Stavanger, Norway

July 6 – 

Today we docked in Stavanger, the Oil Capital of Norway.  This city lies in southwest Norway and has a population of nearly 140,000.  Stavanger was founded in 1125, but there is much history in the area prior to that time.  In fact our first stop on our tour took us to the Swords in the Rock monument next to the Hafrsfjord.  Three large (33 feet tall) bronze swords are planted into a rock on a little hill by the fjord.  The swords commemorate the battle in 872 when the Viking king Harald Fairhair united all of Norway under his crown. The swords stand boldly next to an idyllic park with ducks and swans swimming past.

Swords in the Rock I picked a photo with people to give some perspective on how big these were.

From the monument we drove to Ullandhaug viewpoint.  From this tower we could see the mountains to the north and all the fertile farmland around.  Unlike most of the rest of Norway we’ve seen, this place actually has more flat land in which some crops can be cultivated.  Additionally because of the Gulf Stream current the climate is pretty moderate with winter lows getting down to an average of 32°.

 

The view from Ullandhaug.  It's very different from the gorges and mountains we've seen in the past few days

Our next stop was the Jernaldergarden farm.  This was a very interesting place. Archaeologists found on the site evidence of an Iron Age farm.  The place has been recreated as it would have been before the Viking era.  There are a couple of low long houses constructed of stones and wood with turf roofs.  The houses are partially buried in the ground for both protection and insulation. The farm is manned by authentically costumed interpreters, much as Colonial Williamsburg is.  Our guide was the chief farmer of the place.  He took us into one of the long houses and explained about life in his era.  Among other things he showed us how the wool from the farm's sheep was spun into threads to make the clothing he was wearing.  In that time frame there were no spinning wheels so he used just a wooden spindle.

Home sweet home!

Inside a long house

A spinning demonstration

The farm raises sheep and cows and as we walked along we had to watch out for cow and sheep patties.  The sheep were all black and very curious; they came right up to us.  I can tell you that I’m very glad I don’t live in that era.  The average life expectancy was about 40 and it’s a wonder that it was that much!

Some nice looking sheep

Our host

Our final stop was the Oil Museum, an appropriate place given the fact that Stavanger is the city most involved with the Norwegian oil industry. I didn’t have big expectations of this place, but it turned out to be very interesting.  We were able to see the equipment used for drilling the offshore wells as well as some video footage of what it is like on the platforms out in the North Sea.  There were also diving bells to see how divers are able to work outside at as much as 400 meters below the surface.  Our most overwhelming impression was that the people who work in the industry must be really tough.  They are paid well, but the risks they take are very large.  I can’t remember if I mentioned it earlier, but the oil and natural gas industry comprise 20% of Norway’s GDP.  Before gas and oil were found in the North Sea Norway was one of the poorest countries in Europe.  It has made a tremendous difference in the lives of the population.

A
scale model of one of Norway's oil platforms

 

A diving bell - three men go down in this thing and must stay for several days to decompress after diving

A very large drill bit!

Norway's oil revenue clock showing at that moment it has brought 8 trillion Krone to the country, about 1 trillion dollars

After our visit to the museum it was time to head back to the ship.  Tied up near our ship was the Sea Cloud II, a lovely sailing cruise ship.   As we watched two men went up the rigging to work on the spars.  I wouldn't want to do that in rough seas! 

Sea Cloud II

A high perch!

This was our last port in Norway and as we headed out to the open sea we said goodbye to this beautiful country.  The scenery we’ve seen in the last days has been absolutely spectacular.