Tórshavn, capital of the Faroe Islands

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I've been away a few weeks, I'm sorry I couldn't publish sooner; I hope this long post will compensate for my absence.
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The Faroe Islands are a Danish territory halfway between Iceland and Scotland. The Faroese main town and capital is Tórshavn, located in the southeastern coast of Streymoy, the largest island of the archipelago

Though Tórshavn is quite small for a capital, it still displays a rich heritage and History as well as a modern European lifestyle, old turf roofed houses live side by side with galleries and cafés.

Tinganes is the historic location of the Faroese 'løgting' (parliament). On the left side is Vastervág, where maritime trade started.

The city was founded in the 10th century and was named after Thór, the god of thunder and lightning in Norse mythology. The Vikings established their parliament on the Tinganes peninsula in 825 AD. The Viking settlers established their own parliament called 'ting'. They would meet on the flat rocks of Tinganes every summer, until probably 1035.

Tórshavn, Faroe Islands

Coordinates: 62° 0′ N, 6° 46′ W
Population: ~ 13 000
                    (urban area: ~20 000)

After 1035 the 'ting' gave place to a market which gradually grew into a permanent trading area by the port. All through the Middle Ages the narrow peninsula jutting out into the sea made up the main part of Tórshavn. In 1856, free trade came to the Faroe Islands; as the islands opened to the world, Tórshavn gained a central trade position, thus became the capital of the Faroe Islands since 1866.

'Tinganes' means "parliament jetty".

This is one of the oldest parliamentary meeting places in the world, along with Tynwald hill in the Isle of Man and Þingvellir in Iceland. The parliament has since moved to the north of the city, but the home-rule government still sits here.

Tinganes alleys.

Á Reyni, the oldest borough

Turf roofed wooden houses painted in blach with white or red framed windows - that's the oldest part of the town.

The houses were made of drift wood, since there were no trees on the islands. Driftwood was then a precious commodity!


Café Natur

Close to the old city by the port, this is a classic favourite.

Áarvegur, 7

The H. N. Jacobsen bookstore

HNJ Books is right next door to the Visitor Information Centre and is a little treasure trove of scandinavian books.

H. N. Jacobsen was a bookbinder who founded this bookshop and supported “the protection and preservation of the Faroese language”.

http://bokhandil.fo/include/main.php

www.hnj.fo

Vaglið 2, 100 Tórshavn.


Tórshavn's two harbours:

Tinganes peninsula divides Tórshavn's waters in two harbours, East and West.

Vestaravág (West Harbour)

This is where Tórshavn grew as Faroe's largest trade port. It looks a little like late Hanseatic from the early 20th century, with the three-storey warehouses and the cathedral beneath.

View from Vágsbotnur.

Poul Hansen warehouses, since 1927.

The cathedral tower from beneath the warehouse roofs.

Tórshavn Cathedral, the second oldest church in the country.

Seen from Vágsbotnur, a street along the Vestaravág shore.

The Glaeman, café and bar.

A lively meeting point by the sea.

For a more refined outdoor seating: Kaffihúsið

Bryggjubakki, 14

Kaffihúsið, also located on the waterfront, has a local atmosphere in a modern decoration.

Usually gets quite crowded as the night falls.

Eystaravág (East Harbour)

This is a more commercial and modern harbour.

The old kiosk

In Niels Finsen gøta, this is one of the most photographed views in town.

Restaurant Áarstova

Gongin 1, in Á Reyni, the old town.

Áarstova means 'the house by the brook'.

Also in Áarvegur, another cosy café, the Jynx, on the sidewalll of a turfed roof cottage.

This northern town has definetly acquired the taste for a good expresso.

Guðrun & Guðrun
the most attractive shop in Tórshavn for foreign visitors.

Niels Finsensgøta, 13

Hand-knitted items, for a wardrobe in Scandi-style.

The famous faroese knitwear woolly jumpers (as Sarah Lund used in 'The Killing').

Öström, Skálatrøð

Öström: faroese design, gallery, working studio, café - also on Vestaravág.

This design store/café  is a space where Faroese designers can showcase their work: fashion, jewellery and homewares are all on display and available for purchase.  A 'chic' space for coffee and snacks.

The Nordic House

The Nordic House (Nordens Hús) in the Faroe Islands, the most important cultural institution in the Faroes.

The Nordic House hosts exhibitions, lectures and other cultural events.

Well, I do think the Faroese have many reasons to be found of their capital city. And when they feast St. Olav, they publically show that joy.

St. Olav day in Tórshavn.

Christmas season in intensely enjoyed as the only feast in the 'long winter nights' period.

As cruise ship tourism to norternmost Europe is developping, Tórshavn is visited annually by several big ships: still a remote destination, but its nordic charm and authenticity make for a long term appeal.

Scalloway, on Shetland's atlantic coast: Up Helly Aa !

The Shetland Islands are closely related to Pytheas arctic sailing adventure in quest of the farthest Thule - he probably sailed eastwards to the Scandinavian coast, but he may well have harboured at the Islands.

Twenty centuries later, Walter Scott and Stevenson visited the Shetlands and Scalloway. Then in Victorian times the Shetland Islands were greatly in demand by tourist ships in Thulean wonder. The present days are calmer and better anyway, as life standards have increased and there is a large choice of connections - ferries, flights - with Scotland's mainland.

Lerwick is a vibrant little town, I gave notice of it here on U.T.. Scalloway, on the west coast of Mainland, is the second largest settlement on the islands, a pretty village of about a thousand people with a growing number of visitors. They can find there a Hotel, Guest Houses, Museum, Castle, History, a coloured waterfront, and a lively little port, well known since the Hanseatic era - for Scalloway was at the time a sheltered harbour on a northern route from Hamburg and Bergen.

Scalloway was then called Schaldewage. Ships from Hamburg, Bremen and Lubeck sailed to Shetland every summer, bringing seeds, cloth, iron tools, salt, spirits and harder currency.

Coordinates: 60° 08′ N, 1° 16′ W
Population: ~ 1000

Scalloway (Old Norse:Skálavágr ~ "bay with large house") is presently the largest settlement on the North Atlantic coast of Mainland Shetland. Until 1708 it was even the capital of the Shetland Islands.

The Waterfront

A few houses by the water's edge have been restored recently, some with a side or front private pier.

The historic waterfront, with the purple "booth".

After the war Scalloway served as harbour of the Shetland-Orkney ferry service on the Scalloway–Stromness route.

The 'Main street' runs along the shore, with a row of colourful two-storey houses.

Scalloway Castle is located near the quay and the Museum. Built in 1600 by Patrick Stewart, second Earl of Orkney, the old ruins of the Castle are the most notable feature of the village.

In use for only a short time, the castle fell into disrepair since 1615.

But Scalloway is worth a larger stroll around, along Main Street, the pier and side alleys.

The beginning of Main Street.

Gabled stone houses and colorful painted house rows.

New Street. Most buildings were built in the early 19th century.

The Old Haa

The Old Haa, at the end of New Street.

Shetland's Haa are large, substantial houses, with pronounced garrets, rising high and aloof above their surroundings.

The Old Haa ('laird's house') of Scalloway, in New Street opposite to the docks, is a 1750 three storey gabled house, currenrtly under restoration.

Church of Scotland

Built in 1840-41, the small kirk is a square building with a piended roof and a bellcote above the entrance porch. White-painted horseshoe gallery and pews and red carpets make the interior bright and welcoming.

Little charming details elsewhere:

Kirkpark view.

The water edge's 'booth' in spring.

Alley detail.

Modern cast iron railings. Ironwork is also a local tradition.

This house was until recently Yealtaland bookshop and Post Office.

The oldest and grandest hotel.


The docks

For hundreds of years the salt fish trade was in the hands of German merchants of the Hanseatic League. Today, the little port still gets busy when the ships unload.

Fishing industry is, as always, one of the main activities in Scalloway

Scalloway is also the location of the North Atlantic Fisheries College, which offers courses and supports research in fisheries sciences, aquaculture, marine engineering and coastal management.


'Up Helly Haa' festival

Up Helly Aa is an yearly fire festival in Shetland in the middle of winter, to mark the end of the yule season. The festival involves a procession of some hundreds guizers formed into squads who march through the town or village in a variety of themed costumes.

The Scalloway Festival has a procession of torch-bearing guizers, accompanying a Viking longship (or “galley”) through the village from Lovers Lane, singing and cheering all the way down New Street and onto Main Street.

After arriving at the port, they sing the traditional Up Helly Aa songs as the galley is launched into the sea, filled with the flaming torches, where it burns in all its glory.

After the galley has burned, the festival moves to several venues where the party continues well through the night.


This madness only happens at the end of January. Then returns the undisturbed, quiet Scalloway, its almost permanent character.