"Island of Maybe"

This morning we woke up in the harbor of Torshavn, Faroe Islands – a group of 18 islands that are part of Denmark.  


It was a bit foggy, but we were ready to go after breakfast. Some info about the Faroe Islands:

*Rising in North Atlantic waters halfway between Iceland and Norway, the Faroe Islands form a breathtaking archipelago of jagged mountains and dramatic fjords. Viking settlements here reach back to the 9th century. Many homes and businesses still have and use sod roofs.

*Most inhabitants never lock their homes, and many don’t even have a lock. Our tour guide also said that most people just park their car and leave the keys in them. Essentially there is no crime as everyone knows everyone else. Another fun fact is they have the only bridge over the Atlantic Ocean.

*The islands were first called the Island of Maybe by the English when they were here during World War II because the weather is so changeable that each day you never know what you can do until you see how the weather will be.  

The red building was the first Viking Parliment

 We started on our first excursion and realized how beautiful and green these islands are – probably greener than Iceland. 


We drove over narrow roads enjoying the beauty and the sheep grazing on the plentiful grass. Another fun fact – there are no native trees on these islands and any trees they bring over have the chance of dying because the sheep eat the bark and leave them exposed to the weather.  There are a few trees in the capital city but not out in the countryside.

Our first stop was at the Saksum village and Farmhouse Museum. 

There were several turf houses nearby as well as Duvugardar, a 300-year-old farmhouse that is a heritage museum.  


We toured the rooms and enjoyed seeing how life for a farmer would have been so long ago.


Across the road was the small church and graveyard – also with a turf roof. Enjoy the pictures….


 



Two tours today, dinner and a show. 

Therefore, that’s all for the blog since it's now 11 pm here.  

Stay tuned for part 2 tomorrow. 

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