Visby and Gotland
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| From Gotland and Visby |
The 80 mile passage to Visby , the lovely old medieval city that is the capital of Gotland, was satisfyingly brisk. On our previous visit to the Baltic 33 years ago , strong winds and lack of time had prevented us getting there so our visit this year was well overdue! It was worth the wait; the stunning old buildings and huge encircling walls really give an impression of how the old city used to be , and whilst it is without doubt a tourist hotspot , it is tourism tempered by a cool understated Swedish classiness that makes it a very pleasant place in which to hang out for a few days.
The island contains fine agricultural land and mineral deposits , and very early on the island farmers became traders. The city which grew to satisfy this demand then froze the farmers out by exerting a trade monopoly with the help of other Hanseatic towns , provoking a bitter civil war which the farmers lost. In the 12 th century the island was invaded by the Danish king with his mercenary army , and once more the the farmers fought ( and lost!) for their land and independence whilst the city dwellers just stood by and watched. Its not often in European history that “mere” farmers show such organisation and spirit , but a trip around the islands shows that the land is indeed very rich , with almost every farmstead wealthy enough to have built substantial and handsome churches . No wonder they fought to protect such lands.
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| From Gotland and Visby |
The coast is fairly unforgiving and I was intrigued to find out how the Hansa city sheltered its ships . A trip to the local museum library showed that in the 12th century the waters were significantly higher and the harbour was sheltered by several skerries which are now incorporated into the modern sea wall.
Whilst there I lost my wallet. It was found and handed into the marina , whose staff worked out who I was , rang and reassured me , and no doubt sympathised with Lynda when she went to pick it up. (“Men , what are they like?!!”) Somehow it typifies the civilised Nordic traditions that have made us feel so comfortable up here. Where else but in the archipelagos would you have honesty boxes for Guest harbour fees , where you have to stuff banknotes into a rickety wooden box that could be unscrewed by the village idiot! Yet nobody abuses the system . It’s just such a civilised ,pleasant place.
One small fly in the ointment is that we have discovered our VHF is scarcely working . I have spent so much time at the top of the mast that I am beginning to feel like a crow ( a nest up there would be good!) and poor old Lynda has to winch me the last bit from the hounds on every ascent, so she is beginning to develop muscles on her muscles. We think we need to replace the cable and antenna in the mast so its off to Kalmar tomorrow to try and sort it out before we get back down to the crowded waters of Copenhagen and the North sea.