The North

On our way north to Scotland, we stopped in York, England. This walled city is rich in 2000 years of history, but we focused on the Viking Invasion that occurred in 866 AD and the subsequent lifestyle that prevailed in the city until 1066, the year of the Norman Invasion. Somewhere along the Spendlove line, a little Viking blood entered the family. I remember my grandpa, being playful, making it known on occasion that we are Vikings, full of aggression, manliness and honor. As a result, I have always been curious about these brutal invaders. During our medieval studies in Utah, we studied these early attackers. We learned that they were the most feared of the middle age barbarians. They would go into psychotic killing rampages, enhanced by drugs, and that their concept of heaven was a series of drunken feasts and battles to the death, only obtained by death in battle on earth. They killed innocent villages and often targeted monks. The Vikings directly led to the era of knights in armor, protecting their lord from the killings and pillages. Although, after our studies, I wasn't sure that I wanted to claim any Viking blood, we spent the morning in York at the Jorvik Viking Center learning about our distant ancestors. We took an Epcot-esque ride through a Viking Village and then spent time in the museum learning about their way of life.   

 In the afternoon we headed up to Scotland, with a stop at Hadrian's Wall. The remains of this ancient stone barrier are what is left of the wall that the Emperor Hadrian built to protect the Roman Empire from northern barbarians.  This was a must-see site on the agenda. In learning about the area, it seemed so remote, barren and isolated, which intrigued me. In addition, we had studied the Roman Empire and had been to Rome, the capitol of what seemed to be the world for many. It was interesting to point out how far north the Romans had come. It seemed so foreign to picture Roman Soldiers protecting the Empire up in this frigid English region.

 We could not keep Sophia away from the fluffy sheep and baby lambs.

 This day was frigid! We bought Jonathan a hat in the gift shop, sympathetic to his signature buzz cut.

 Jenny, being a nurse, posed for a photo in the ancient hospital.

 All throughout Europe, Ezra took on different super hero characters in his play. If we caught him at the right moment, we could find him sneaking like a spy around turns, shimming across streets and even doing karate moves on imaginary villains. I will be sad when this fun stage is over.

 Jenny and the kids raced over these stone blocks that once were used in the storehouse of the soldiers, timing themselves to see who could earn the better time.

Driving up North turned out to be so memorable. It was amazing to think that we were only about half way up the British Isles, yet we already felt that the area was a bit remote and untamed.