Our path along cobbled streets lined with historic white frame houses in Gamle Stavanger
Our path along cobbled streets lined with historic white frame houses in Gamle Stavanger
Our path along cobbled streets lined with historic white frame houses in Gamle Stavanger
The Norwegian Canning and Printing Museum
The Norwegian Canning and Printing Museum
The Norwegian Canning and Printing Museum
A sampling of sardines in the 1920’s dining room in the historic Thilo house
A sampling of sardines in the 1920’s dining room in the historic Thilo house
A sampling of sardines in the 1920’s dining room in the historic Thilo house
The 1960’s living area upstairs in the Thilo house
The 1960’s living area upstairs in the Thilo house
The 1960’s living area upstairs in the Thilo house
Traditional Norwegian wooden shoes
Traditional Norwegian wooden shoes
Traditional Norwegian wooden shoes
Smokers used in preparation for canning sardines
Smokers used in preparation for canning sardines
Smokers used in preparation for canning sardines
One of countless designs on sardines tins
One of countless designs on sardines tins
One of countless designs on sardines tins
And many other products produced in Stavanger
And many other products produced in Stavanger
And many other products produced in Stavanger
Our tour director regaling us with history of canning in Stavanger
Our tour director regaling us with history of canning in Stavanger
Our tour director regaling us with history of canning in Stavanger
A mirror to allow residents to watch activity on the street
A mirror to allow residents to watch activity on the street
A mirror to allow residents to watch activity on the street
A reminder of the street widening project after the 1860 fire.
A reminder of the street widening project after the 1860 fire.
A reminder of the street widening project after the 1860 fire.
The requisite ship’s anchor – found in every port community
The requisite ship’s anchor – found in every port community
The requisite ship’s anchor – found in every port community
The Fire Watch Tower on the highest point in town
The Fire Watch Tower on the highest point in town
The Fire Watch Tower on the highest point in town
The Colorful Street is popular with locals as well as visitors.
The Colorful Street is popular with locals as well as visitors.
The Colorful Street is popular with locals as well as visitors.
Smoked mutton, flatbread, pickled herring, and Vestlandslefske. Yum!
Smoked mutton, flatbread, pickled herring, and Vestlandslefske. Yum!
Smoked mutton, flatbread, pickled herring, and Vestlandslefske. Yum!
Ship models in the Stavanger Maritime Museum
Ship models in the Stavanger Maritime Museum
Ship models in the Stavanger Maritime Museum
Lots of fascinating stories
Lots of fascinating stories
Lots of fascinating stories
Tide prediction machine
Tide prediction machine
Tide prediction machine
Walking downtown streets
Walking downtown streets
Walking downtown streets
The waterfront is integral to the town
The waterfront is integral to the town
The waterfront is integral to the town
“Herring has come!” Was a cry heard along the waterfront of Stavanger, a coastal town in southwest Norway in 1808. It heralded an economic boom for the area. Suddenly potential workers flooded into this area that until then had been agricultural. Some even moved their houses from their farms to the growing community on the waterfront that packing and shipping herring. The area flourished for decades but then was hit with economic disaster when the herring no longer came in 1870. Within ten years though the community turned to the new industry of canning. We heard the stories as we walked through the historic district of Gamle Stavanger on a Taste of Stavanger walking tour on our way to the Iddis Norwegian Canning Museum. We started our museum visit with a sardines tasting in No 90, a home built in 1836 for blacksmith Peder Peterson Thilo that has been restored to reflect life in Stavanger in the 1920s and the 1960s. From there we toured the first canning factory in what became the canning capital of Norway with 60 factories employing thirty-thousand workers. We learned a lot about how they went about smoking and canning fish and of the innovations developed here. Among the tidbits we learned was that an international court awarded France an exclusive right to market “Sardines in Olive Oil”. Other countries may pack their sardines in olive oil but must label the product some other way such as “Norwegian Bristling Sardines in Olive Oil”. Also the term “sardines” refers to a method of packing, not to a type of fish. Once back out on the streets we learned a bit about King Haakon VII, about author and favorite son Alexander Kielland, about a great fire in 1860 that led to wider streets and an improved fire tower, about how a scandal led to the founding of the local church, about Stavanger as the major port for Norwegian emigration, and a brief history of the Colorful Street before visiting the Stavanger Maritime Museum, starting with a tasting of some more local foods. Soon we were alotted a little time to peruse the galleries of the museum. We must have lingered a little too long learning about the ships and sailors of the area for when we made our way back downstairs our tour group had departed. Luckily we were only a short walk from the ship and quite willing to walk back at our own pace.
With Karen’s sister, niece, and her family we visited Stotfold England to walk in the footsteps of ancestors and to explore a lovingly restored historic water mill.
To meet up with some family members for the weekend, we headed north to explore Ely one day then Lavenham the next, two incredible historic communities.
As we begin venturing into Central London we explore Primrose Hill,the Victoria Memorial, the Gatti Ice House at the London Canal Museum, and the HMS Belfast with more adventures to follow.
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