Viking Village

Our wonderful CLO decided to organize a trip for the adventurous moms to take the kids to Viking Village.  I'm pretty much up for any suggestions so immediately responded.  Mikaela and Donna felt the same way.  We set out last Wednesday and although the forecast called for rain it was a gorgeous morning.  Being a responsible parents we brought rain coats for the kids and Donna also brought her umbrella.  We sort of wandered into the village as there were no clear directions on how to proceed, but we knew we were going to take a boat ride of some sort.  

The picture below was taken as soon as we unloaded from the vehicles.  

 You can see the girls getting some air on this swing.

 Clara and Jack on the see saw.  Zach and I gave it a try too.

 Amelia is enjoying the decor.

 Well, it turns out this is the boat we got to ride on.  AND we got to power the oars.

 Here we are all getting settled.  There were six oars and three adults.  Our guide did the steering.  Katie was the biggest kid and did quite well with rowing.  With a treasure map in hand we set out on our adventure.  

 Our guide, Neil, had to be the most patient guy ever as we repeatedly bumped into the shore, trees, etc.  He did look up to the sky and say we did not want to tarry as a storm was approaching.  It looks sunny though, doesn't it?  Zach started saying he wanted to go, crawling up in my lap, and it turns out I CAN row with one hand!

 After passing a tree with a skull in it, we pulled up to the bank and Neil led us on a trail (after warning us of stinging nettles) to a tree with some clues to the location of the treasure.  It wasn't there.

 Seriously, this was a trail.  Can you see it?  It was tough.  I ended up putting Zach on my shoulders.

 Shortly after getting back in the boat, we experienced quite a drenching rain.  Luckily Zach was a trooper at this point.  Donna broke her oar with her super human strength.  We booted two of the kids and the three adults and Katie managed to get us back to our starting point in good time.  We laughed SO much between getting started and the rain.  As you can see, we got rather wet, but Clara's hair is nice and dry.

 When Neil does a job, he does a job.  We got out of the boat and resumed searching for the treasure.  Through clues the kids discovered it might be in the blacksmith's area.

 After the kids found it, Neil carried the treasure box out and made sure everybody got their Kalev gold coin.

We had a fantastic time, but after the treasure hunt we just wanted something warm so went off to enjoy the fare from the tavern.  I ordered the piratica soup (trout, carrot, leek, egg, and fresh dill) with garlic bread and black coffee.  The kids each had a hot dog, french fries, and hot cocoa.  We decided to call it a day after that.  We were quite uncomfortable.  Donna's car said it was 58 degrees when we got back in the car.  I realized when we got home the kids were not nearly as soaked as I was so do not think they were quite as tuckered out.

It was definitely a day we will never forget and quite the adventure!  Maybe we'll make it back one day and see everything the village has to offer.