Birka

Day Cruise From Stockholm to Björkö

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• published: 28 Oct 2011
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I enjoyed the boat ride out and back to Björkö (Birch Island) to see the site of the old Viking town of Birka, in addition to the very interesting visit to Björkö itself. The scenery along the way was incredibly beautiful, very pleasant to look at as the boat made it's way through Lake Mälaren. On the way out in the morning you could buy a cup of coffee and get as many free refills as you want. On the way back in the afternoon, there was a full menu and whatever you want to drink. I got a hotdog (korv) and three Carlsbergs. It was chilly and overcast during the morning ride to Björkö, but on the way back to Stockholm in the afternoon it was warm, sunny, and very pleasant. Here is the website if you want to find out how to go on the tour: http://www.stromma.se BREAKING NEWS: From the August 22nd, 2012 edition of Nordstjernan: http://www.nordstjernan.com/news/sweden/4824/?utm_source=Swedish+News+List&utm;_campaign=b8b13a8624-sweden_today_34%2F12&utm;_medium=email New discoveries revolutionize Birka image The Viking city Birka, close to present day Stockholm may have been much larger than earlier thought. Marine biologists have discovered a gigantic harbor area in the Viking town of Birka. The town was three times bigger than earlier believed, and it was, much like Stockholm, built on water. Ongoing archeological excavations in the bay outside of Birka at the lake Mälaren, have led to discoveries that will rewrite history, as a previously unknown part of the town is being unveiled. The excavations show Birka as being much more of an important commercial center than prior discoveries have led us to believe. Says Andreas Olsson, one of the marine biologists: "What we are doing now is looking at the last great discovery of Birka under the water. The remains of the harbor constructions show that it was really a harbor, not like previously thought only a set of bridges by the beach and a pole further out in the lake for protection." Andreas and his team can now safely say, that Birka's harbor was an enormous construction with docks, piers and bridges, all powerful constructions showing that the harbor might have been the most important area of the town. What are some of the discoveries then? Well, chests made of stone have been found deep in the water, timber, logs, and poles. Nobody thought that the Vikings were capable of building stone chests and to put down poles on 8 meters (26 feet) depths in the water. The stone chests functioned as foundations for the bridges and the docks. Andreas says they are currently trying to solve exactly what the harbor construction looked like.