A day at the Viking Museum… in the sunshine! Such a contrast from the day before. Thankfully our shoes had dried out somewhat on the radiator. The day turned out to be so much more than a museum. I’d been expecting an indoor exhibit with glass cases and quiet corridors. Instead, we were transported back in time to a full outdoor Viking village, complete with a mini‑zoo and Matt bashed a square peg into a round hole with a mallet, to bring home.
We were given bracelets (future scrapbook gold) and set free to explore. Each building was beautifully curated, with noticeboards outside painting vivid snapshots of Viking life. You could almost imagine someone in furs stomping out of a doorway demanding to know why we weren’t helping with the harvest or gathering moss.
All the buildings were wooden with straw and moss‑laden roofs—very rustic, very atmospheric, with the smell of chopped wood, wood-fires and moss hung in the air.
The animals were living their best lives. The pigs really did blow snorty bubbles in the pond accompanied by a squeaky grunt sound, or digging enthusiastically through a mountain of yellow hay. Horses grazed in the field opposite, a cat wandered around like it owned the place, and goats had found a corner in a field and piled on top of each other.
We watched a hawk display hosted by a lovely falconer and her assistant, Alex. The sun beat down on our backs as we took countless snapshots and videos. Mid‑display, one of the hawks flew straight into the falconer’s face. Matt caught the moment on film, she requested to see the footage footage to figure out what happened, as it had never happened before and she has been flying that falcon for over 10 years. She was shaken and explained that a bird travelling at that speed could have killed itself on contact. The falcon though defied the odds and just wanted the food instead. Thankfully, both falconer and hawk survived the incident.
The venue closed at 3:30 pm giving us just enough time to potter around the gift shop before heading home. We didnt find anything but everything was hand carved.
Many of the indoor photos didnt really come out well, I made the rookie error of changing settings without realising it. Only the outdoor pictures stand a chance of being seen.
Dinner was lasagne for Matt, and golden rice with salad and avocado for me. Simple warming food, comforting, and exactly what was needed after a day of Vikings, sunshine, and airborne birds
