Visby
The Swedish town of Visby, on the island of Gotland, was the last stop of our Baltic cruise, and what a stop it proved to be! Beautiful weather graced our stroll through the center of the ancient walled town while the solemn ringing of the church steeple bells settled in the morning air. Visby was one of the richest cities in northern Europe in the 1300’s and a center of trade between Scandinavia, Russia, China and India. It has been protected for centuries by one of the longest city walls in Europe, over two miles long, and, like the church pictured, is constructed of limestone blocks quarried on the island. North of town, on Gotland’s rugged western coast, the island is faulted and up-thrust to present steep cliffs to the Baltic winds and waves. We visited an extensive system of caverns deep underground where rainwater, percolating downward, has eroded intricate spaces and textures in the limestone country rock. Nearby, on the outer coast, are sea stacks that represent just the reverse: the surrounding rock has been removed through coastal erosion processes and what is of interest is what is left instead of what is now gone. Both the church and the sea stack are built of native country rock and both offer peace and inspiration to the humans of Gotland.
The Swedish town of Visby, on the island of Gotland, was the last stop of our Baltic cruise, and what a stop it proved to be! Beautiful weather graced our stroll through the center of the ancient walled town while the solemn ringing of the church steeple bells settled in the morning air. Visby was one of the richest cities in northern Europe in the 1300’s and a center of trade between Scandinavia, Russia, China and India. It has been protected for centuries by one of the longest city walls in Europe, over two miles long, and, like the church pictured, is constructed of limestone blocks quarried on the island. North of town, on Gotland’s rugged western coast, the island is faulted and up-thrust to present steep cliffs to the Baltic winds and waves. We visited an extensive system of caverns deep underground where rainwater, percolating downward, has eroded intricate spaces and textures in the limestone country rock. Nearby, on the outer coast, are sea stacks that represent just the reverse: the surrounding rock has been removed through coastal erosion processes and what is of interest is what is left instead of what is now gone. Both the church and the sea stack are built of native country rock and both offer peace and inspiration to the humans of Gotland.
