A splash of colour in the ocean
F O R centuries lust for adventure and ships have been closely linked. Voyages of discovery, voyages of adventure; voyages of necessity or pleasure. If you live by the sea, then ships will always be an essential part of life and for island dwellers, far out in the Atlantic Ocean, an ocean voyage these days is both a pleasure and a necessity.
Travelling long distances for a holiday is more common today than it was even 40 to 50 years ago and the methods of transportation have increased. In those earlier days, there was just one option if you wanted to the visit the Faroe Islands. You had to sail from Denmark on a voyage that took 48 hours or more.
Today, the ocean trip can still be part of your holiday and your arrival will be one of the highpoints of your holiday. Once the ship passes the Shetlands, you have one day left to travel, one day with nothing but the ocean on all sides. But then a couple of hours before you arrive, you will notice a tangible air of excitement and suspense onboard. Pulses quicken. Many of those aboard will be Faroe Islanders who are pleased to be returning home and this feeling of excitement and expectation will soon spread to other passengers. Together, the passengers strain their eyes for sight of land. Is that land or just more sky you can see. But, then there is no longer any doubt, the land appears and soon you can make out that it is different islands with small hamlets, and the blue-grey colours change into green mountainsides and brightly coloured houses. Before you know it, the ship rounds the jetty and puts in at the lilliputian capital city, which is actually surprisingly large and modern. We have arrived.

The Faroe Islands
T H E F A R O E I S L A N D S are a small country outin the mid-Atlantic Ocean. A handful of islands - the Faroese themselves say there are 18 islands but there are also many smaller islands, islets and skerries. Deep fjords and narrow sounds separate the islands, indeed you are never more than 5km from the ocean wherever you find yourself. Distances generally are not great on the Faroe Islands.
The Faroe Islands are of volcanic origin and the location in the North Atlantic means that the climate is markedly oceanic - misty, changeable with an almost constant breezeof varying strength. Summers are chilly, but the Gulf Stream, which touches the islands, means that the winter sare relatively mild. The average temperatures are 3°C in the coldest month of the year, rising to 11°C in the warmest. It gets dark early in the winter, but in exchange, the summer nights are very light. The number of daylight hours a day is 5 hours and 19 and a half hours respectively.
The country is situated at 62° north latitude and at 7° west longitude and has a total area of 1,399 km2 with a total coastline of 1,117 km. The distances to the islands' closest neighbours are 430 km to Iceland; 600 km to Norway; and 300 km to the Shetlands. It is around 1,300 km to Copenhagen. At the beginning of the new Millennium, the number of inhabitants stood at 46,000.

The Vikings
T H E R E are no written sources for the Faroe Islands' earliest history. In 825, an Irish monk named Dicuil mentioned a country that lay two days' voyage from the northern British islands. Irish monks lived in this country, which may have been the Faroe Islands, until they were driven away by the Vikings in the early 10th century.
The first Vikings to visit the islands came from Norway and northern Scotland. They were farmers who settled nea rthe coast and cultivated the earth, fished and bred sheep. The story of these first Faroe Islanders is told in the saga Færingesaga. However, this was not written down until acouple of centuries after the events took place.
In 1956, Viking graves were found in Tjørnuvík. Remainsof Viking houses and farms have been found all round the islands. At Kvívík, the farm comprises a house and a stable. At Leirvík you can see remains of a house and outbuildings. The finds made in and around the sites and in graves, can be seen at the Faroe Islands museum of history in Tórshavn. The remains at Kvívík and Leirvík have been restored and are worth a visit.

The Episcopal Residence at Kirkjubøur
S O U T H of Tórshavn on the south-western tip of Streymoyis the village of Kirkjubøur. The village is not particularlylarge as the sea has recaptured a large part of the originalsite, but it still bears the signs of former glories. In theMiddle Ages, it was the cultural and religious centre of theislands. There were three churches, one of which is the parishchurch today. The parish church, which is generallyknown as Olav´s church, was rebuilt almost completely in1874. At the same time the beautifully carved boards fromthe church benches were removed and can now be foundin the National Museum in Copenhagen. In 1966-67 a furthercomprehensive restoration of the church was undertakenand it was restored to its pre-1874 state. In the churchyou can see the old altar piece, which is also the new,modern altar piece, which has been painted by Mikines, oneof the Faroe Islands´ leading painters. To the north of thechurch, you find the ruins of a magnificent cathedral fromaround 1300, Magnus Cathedral or Múrurin as the FaroeIslanders call it. The cathedral is in the gothic style andrichly decorated. It is not known for sure when it was completed,if it ever was completed, but it has been consecratedand there is a commemorative stone in the eastern wall. The introduction of Christianity was approved by theparliament in Tórshavn in 999 and shortly afterwards theFaroe Islands became a part of Norway in the sense thatthey paid tax to the Norwegian king. The Faroe Islandsbecame a diocese under the Archbishop of Nidaros andfrom around 1120 a bishop was based permanently inKirkjubøur. To the west of the cathedral ruins you can seethe foundations of a large farm and above these today youcan see a king´s yeoman´s farm, a medieval smoking houseand a log house. This is the medieval bishop´s farm andthere was also a seminary here. The Norwegian king Sverretrained for the priesthood in Kirkjubøur and, so legend says,was also born there. After the Reformation, Kirkjubøur lost its significance asan Episcopal residence. The king took over church lands,which in the Faroe Islands were then leased to farmers, theso-called king´s yeomen.

Tórshavn - gatherings and trade
T H E V I K I N G S brought their democratic form ofgovernment to the Faroe Islands and set up assemblyplaces throughout the country with the principal assemblybeing at Tinganes in Tórshavn. All free men had the right tomeet here. This later became a legislative assembly. Theassembly brought with it a market and Tórshavn was atrading centre with warehouses and residential houses forthe public and for those involved in trading. Norwegianmerchants were granted the right to trade with the FaroeIslands and were later joined by Hanseatic merchants, theEnglish and the Dutch. In 1709, a royal monopoly based inTórshavn was introduced. Today, Tinganes is a small peninsula in Tórshavn´sbustling, modern port. However, you can still see the marksof history when you walk around between the oldwarehouses on the tip of the peninsula. These beautifullyrestored buildings now house part of the Faroes´ home rulecommittee with government offices and conference rooms.Further inland on Tinganes is the old town with houses fromthe 18th and 19th centuries. The houses are small,blackened wooden houses, many with turf roofs. However,this is no museum and families live in these small houses,many of which have been knocked through to meet modernpeople´s need for space.

Agriculture
T H E F A R O E I S L A N D S had an agricultural economyuntil the end of the 19th century. Islanders kept sheepand cattle, grew some wheat and made hay for animal feed.In addition, islanders fished, caught birds and collectedeggs to get enough to eat. Agriculture does not have thesame economic importance today. However, there are still70,000 sheep on the islands and the country is almost selfsufficientin milk. Wool, which was “Faroese gold�, haslost its importance, it is becoming more difficult to sell woolall over the world. However, production of wool and woollenproducts continues, particularly of the striking jumpers intraditional Faroese patterns and in more modern designs.Where previously, islanders were farmers who fished,these days they are fishermen with a little farming on theside. There are a few large farms, but out in the countrysidehamlets in particular, most people farm as a supplement,their main occupations being in the fishing industry, in trade,in administration and the service sector. They growpotatoes and make hay for sheep and together they bringthe sheep down from the mountains in the spring/summerfor shearing, medication and to mark lambs. In the autumn,the sheep are gathered together again for the great task ofslaughtering, cleaning the entrails, hanging the carcasses todry and preparing the sausages and similar foods.

Fishing
I N 1 8 5 6 , the royal monopoly on trade was lifted andFaroese society changed completely. The advent of freetrade brought closer links with neighbouring countries. In1872, some men in Tórshavn bought an old English fishingboat and took it out on a long fishing trip. “Foxâ€� was thefirst of a whole fleet of fishing boats, which the Faroeseusually call sloops, which enabled the islanders to beginfishing further afield, first in fishing banks near the islandsand later up to Iceland and Greenland. Times were changing and people were beginning to earnmoney. The whole society changed in tandem with theincreasing importance of fishing. The agrarian society wasstatic and the population grew slowly. This now changed asit was possible to earn money and start a family withoutowning land. The rate of population growth increasedsignificantly. For example, in 1865 Tórshavn had around800 inhabitants, rising to 984 in 1880 and to 1,791 in 1906.By 1965, the population had risen to almost 12,000 andtotaled more than 16,000 in 2000.

Faroese food
T H E C O U N T R Y ´ S northern location, its climateand harsh conditions mean that there is a need for a diethigh in protein and fat. Lamb and mutton have been an important part of theFaroese diet, but sheep were only slaughtered once a yearwhen they were brought down from the mountains. To keepmeat edible beyond the slaughter period, different methodsof preserving were required. Some meat was salted, butsome, in a manner unique to the Faroe Islands, was dried.This meant that after it had been jointed, the meat was hungin well-ventilated storehouses and was air-dried by the freshair and could be eaten uncooked. Everything was dried, fish, lamb, whale-meat, game andanything else that needed to be preserved. Traditionally, thefood has been eaten as it is needed. If the fish/meat wasnot fully dried, then it was cooked. The semi-driedmeat/fish had a good, strong flavour and it is still somethingpeople look forward to eating in the run up to Christmas.Later, once the meat was fully dried, it was eaten cold anduncooked with bread or potatoes. In addition to the animals mentioned above, the islanderseat birds and, in previous times, birds´ eggs, which aremost nutritious. When pilot whales were seen near thecoast, people would sail out in small boats and hunt thewhales towards the beaches, where they would be killed.The whale-meat and blubber were divided fairly betweeninhabitants according to a very old system. They ate theblubber as well as the meat from the whales as the blubberprovided fat and was an important source of extra vitamins.Some of the blubber and the meat were cooked fresh to eatimmediately after the catch, while the rest was salted ordried for later. The blubber was eaten with the dried whalemeal or with dried fish.

The Faroese boat
T H E F A R O E S E boat is characterised by its beautifullines and is built based on traditions stretching back toViking times. Through the years, boat has been adapted tosuit the islanders´ changing needs The boat has been builtin many different sizes, all of them smaller than the Vikingships we know from archaeological excavations in Norwayand Denmark. The boat was used for coastal fishing andwhaling as well as being an important form of transport –without boats it was impossible to travel around the islands.You were often obliged to use a boat to fetch a priest, adoctor, a mid-wife, the post and the authorities. The boat is still in daily use and if you take a walk aroundthe harbour in Tórshavn or out in the country villages youwill see the beautifully painted boats sitting side by side waitingfor the next fishing trip. If you are lucky, perhaps a boatwill come in after a morning fishing trip and you can buy acouple of freshly caught fish to take home. Then, just bycooking the fish, you can give your taste buds a uniqueexperience. The boats are also used for sport these days andperhaps the most popular form this takes is racing. In thespring, the rowing clubs suddenly come to life and theboats can be seen training out on the fjords. All summerlong, boat races are a permanent feature in theprogrammes of village festivals. On Ólavsøka, the FaroeIslands´ national day, and the largest festival of the year,boat racing is the most popular event and the one thatattracts the most spectators. This is the time for the annualFaroes championships and participants battle fiercely notjust for the gold medal, but to be first on Ólavsøka itself.

Nature
T H E N A T U R E of the Faroe Islands is magnificentand varied, and right on your doorstep. Geologically, the islands are of volcanic origin and part ofa giant lava plateau, which was eroded gradually to itspresent shape. There were three volcanic periods and thechanging layers of basalt and volcanic ash, or tuff, havegiven the land its characteristic layers. The basalt layersform the steep cliffs while the softer and thicker tuff layershave formed the sloping hills between the layers of basalt.This has given the hills a stair-like shape. During the lastvolcanic period lava seeped into the already formed plateauand created interesting geological shapes in the presentlandscape, with deep crevices and thick layers of basaltcolumns. The Faroes were covered in ice during the Ice Ageand the lines scored into the cliffs and characteristic ushapedvalleys were formed from erosion by the ice. The ocean is everywhere and its waves and the force ofthe wind have eroded the western and northern shores toform almost vertical cliffs along the coast, solitary cliffs justoff the shore and deep caves under the mountains. Theeastern and southern coastlines have been protected bythe deep fjords and have gently sloping and green shores.The rocks on the western and northern coasts are hometo thousands of birds that build their nests there. Thesurrounding ocean provides an abundance of food for thebirds, which means that Faroe Islands have more birds thanany other place in the Atlantic Ocean. There are only about50 nesting species, while 30-200 other species can beseen more or less regularly. The puffin is the most commonof the sea birds; it builds its nest in dug-outs in the grassyarea at the top of the rock, while the guillemot builds itsnest on narrow shelves further down. The gannet nestsonly on Mykines. The fulmar is a fairly new arrival in theFaroes but its numbers are growing rapidly. It is foundmainly on the bird rocks although it sometimes builds nestsfurther inland. The island of Nólsoy boasts the world´slargest population of Leach´s petrels. The petrel lives out onthe ocean and only flies ashore at night to lay its eggs andfeed its young. There are some inland bird species in theislands but they are not as numerous as the sea birds. Theoyster catcher is a migrating bird; it arrives around the 12thof March and during spring and summer you can hear itscharacteristic cry all over the Faroes, near the coast andeven in the towns. The oyster catcher is the Faroe Islands´national bird.

Walking
V E G E T A T I O N is sparse and most visitors are struckby the green hills and the absence of woodland. No treeshave grown naturally in the Faroe Islands since the Ice Ageand the trees you see have all been cultivated. The firstattempt at planting trees in Tórshavn, at the end of the 19thcentury, failed. However, people soon realised that thetrees had to be protected from the sheep and planted in asheltered area. Under these conditions, trees grow willinglyalbeit slowly. There are now several plantations around thecountry. The sparse vegetation means hill walkers get a fantasticexperience of the mountains, ocean and sky. The islandshave an old system of paths marked by cairns. In the past,walking in the hills was restricted to protect the grazingsheep. However, as weather conditions often preventedpeople from sailing from village to village, they had to walk.A network of paths was created, and cairns were built tomark the paths and stop people from getting lost in fog andbad weather. In the present day, modern roads and coachesmean the old paths are no longer in regular use. However,they provide an excellent way to explore the Faroe Islands´magnificent nature. The first cairn is often visible from the hamlet. Then thepath starts to climb, at times it is quite steep, until you havewalked a few hundred metres and you reach the first valley.This is where you experience nature at close range, you canhear the birds and the sheep, perhaps a hare leaps acrossyour path – and you stand quite still and hope it hasn´t seenyou. A lake full of trout and salmon proves an irresistibletemptation for any angler. You can now rest for a minuteand enjoy the view of the village and shore behind you. Butthe path continues, up from the valley to the next hilltop.Now you have reached the highest point and you can seethe landscape on the other side of the island. This high up,the ocean is almost always within view and the landscapespreads out below with valleys, streams, crevices, sea andmore islands. On a clear day, you can see almost all theislands that make up the Faroes. On a clear day you can enjoy the view, however, if it isgrey or foggy you can explore the details in the landscape,such as the mossy stones, the lichen and small flowers thatcling to life in this barren ground. Some mountains aregreen and grassy while others form a vast rocky desert. Nomatter what the weather is like you are guaranteed anexceptional experience particular to that day, light andweather. The islands´ rivers and streams are also a specialexperience. When there is no rain over a period of time,some of the rivers and streams dry out, but after just a fewheavy showers they almost flood and turn into strong rapidsand waterfalls.

Language and dance
F A R O E S E is a Nordic language, closely related toIcelandic and old Norwegian dialects. It has always beenspoken Faroese in the Faroe Islands, but there was nowritten language, which meant Faroese was more open toinfluences from other languages. Fortunately, the oldtraditional chain dance has been preserved. This is dancedto the accompaniment of songs about ancient heroes. Thistradition has helped preserve the language through theages. Towards the end of the 19th century the grammar andspelling of Faroese were standardised and have remainedlargely unchanged to this day. Growing nationalism and thepublication of the first Faroese language newspaperawakened people´s awareness about the role of theFaroese language in the society. At the beginning of the20th century, the first Faroese textbooks were publishedand in 1912 Faroese was introduced as a spoken languagein schools. The dance that has preserved the language through thecenturies is a medieval European chain dance, which hassurvived in the Faroe Islands. The steps are simple and thesongs that accompany the dance tell of ancient heroes andEuropean knights, and of the Norse kings and their powerstruggles. The dance took place at special festivals and indifferent villages during different festivals. The songs arebelieved to comprise a total of 70,000 verses; these areboth ancient songs and new additions that have appearedover the years.

Modern transport
Modern roads, cars and buses have made it easier to travelaround the Faroe Islands. The traditional rowing boat hasbeen replaced by small ferries and larger car ferries, whichtransport people between the islands. In addition, there arebridges and dams, tunnels through the mountains andsoon, tunnels under the sea. A helicopter operates aregular service to small hamlets that are without a roadconnection or a ferry harbour. And for many years now, theFaroe Islands have had scheduled flights to and from itsneighbouring countries. Flying to the Faroes may not be as thrilling as an oceanvoyage, but the journey time is shorter. It is no secret thatthe weather is an important factor in your experience of theFaroes and also of your journey to the islands whether youarrive by boat or plane. Who hasn´t heard of long delays toflights because of fog? However, in reality, most flightsarrive on time thanks to the modern instruments aboardairplanes and in the flight control towers. Flying is an easy and comfortable way of travelling. Evenon a cloudy day, you will travel in beautiful sunshine with theclouds forming a shining white landscape below you. Clearweather is frequent and then you can enjoy the view of thevast, blue Atlantic Ocean with the occasional ship. Afterjust a couple of hours the Faroe Islands appear out of theocean, green and black with little lakes in the mountains andsmall villages with brightly coloured houses, even the roofsare painted. And if you arrive on a sunny day after asnowfall you may be forgiven for thinking that the Danisharchitect Jørn Utzon has paid a visit, for the island of Fugloycovered in snow looks just like the Sydney opera house.