KALsNews
Welcome to Karolyn's Web Page
Happy Summer!
Last Update: 3/08/03
GENEALOGY
I have been furiously working on my Family Tree Maker database. I've entered 1,200
names and counting. Go to Family Tree Maker's web site if you'd like to see more
info--along with my Family Tree and some old photos:
Karolyn's Family Tree
REUNION NEWS: The next Norberg Reunion is scheduled for Sunday, 27 July 2003,
at Lake George, Minnesota, at the picnic grounds. We're also tentatively planning
a Lindberg Reunion on Saturday, 26 July 2003, in Coon Rapids, Minnesota.
PICTURES
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to this page.
Spring/Summer 2001 Highlights
This spring, Angelique and Kristina performed at Bethel in "Sermon
on the Mound". We also went to the new Disneyland Park California
Adventure Stay tuned for more pictures....
Then in May I took a trip to Minnesota and took in a game by the red-hot
division-leading Minnesota Twins!
It was only my second visit to the Dome after plenty of games at the beloved
Met Stadium. For my landmark birthday, folks at work "celebrated" with me
on a trip to see the San Francisco Giants at PacBell Park. We had quite the celebration!
Christmas 2000
The girls performed in two numbers
at Bethel Church's "Christmas Spectacular" this year; Michelle was in charge
of the wardrobe again too. Their choir, the Kingdom Kids, sang in Christmastime
and the Peanuts Suite medley. Kristina
and especially Angelique love
to perform!
Summer 2000 Highlights
In July, I spent a week in Minnesota, which began with the Norberg Reunion in
Lake George, Minnesota. Here are some highlights...first some pictures of some
of the branches on the Johan Norberg family tree:
The Agnes Norberg Lindberg Branch
The Alice Norberg Kunzer Branch
The Freda Norberg Horstman Branch
The Hildur Norberg West Branch
(Somehow I only got pictures of the sisters' branches...)
And here are some more Lindberg pictures:
Lindberg Siblings and...
Lindberg Cousins
The best picture of all is the newest (at 5 days old!) and oldest (she's
not talking!)
Norberg.
May-June 2000: SCOTLAND
While tracing my Norwegian ancestors, I've discovered some Viking roots that trace
back to settlements in the British Isles. Some of my ancestors settled in
the Orkney Islands and were Earls appointed by King Harald Fairhair
of Norway. There are also references to the Isles of Skye and Mull in my tree.
An early ancestor from that area, Ruidhri, was founder of the Clan Ruidhri,
which is a sept under the present Clan Donald of the Isles.
In preparation for my own Viking expedition to Scotland, I visited Washington,
D.C. at the beginning of May to see the Vikings:
The North Atlantic Saga exhibit at the Smithsonian's Museum of Natural
History. The exhibit, in honor of the 1,000-year anniversary of Leif Eriksson's
discovery of North America, covered the Norse way of life, especially in
the westward settlements of Iceland, Greenland, the Faroe Islands, and North
America.
26 May 2000: Arrived in Glasgow, Scotland! Here's a view from in front of
the Marks and Spencer department store,
where I picked up some dinner at the basement deli. Georgia arrived later
(sans luggage, but that's another story) from Madrid. We saw the sights in
Glasgow, then on 28 May 2000 we picked up our
rental car. The first thing I did was turn into the parking lot of the
Cinema (seen in the background) instead of on to the road. The next thing
I did was drive the wrong way into a round-a-bout and against the traffic.
But we managed to get out of town finally...soon Georgia volunteered to drive!
In Oban, we boarded the Caledonian MacBrayne ferry
"Isle of Mull." Our hotel was in Tobermory, a 1-1/2 hour drive from the
port on a winding, single-track road. The Western Isles Hotel overlooks the
harbor at Tobermory. This is the wonderful
view from Room #26. The view was even
better the next morning! On 29 May 2000 we drove to the other
side of the island to catch the 5-minute ferry ride to the isle of Iona.
The roads were all single-track and wonderfully scenic,
complete with sheep and Highland
cows (or should I say, "Heilan' Coo'?" ) The sheep
and lambs were so cute...their little tails wagged when they ran. We
were in time for the 11 a.m. ferry to Iona.
Among other Kings of Scotland, MacBeth and Duncan are buried at Iona
Abbey Church, as well as some Kings of Norway. Iona was sacked by Vikings
in 795, 802, 805, and 825, but eventually they settled in the Western Isles.
On 30 May 2000, we headed for the Isle of Skye. Armadale
Castle is the site of Clan Donald's Museum of the Isles. Somerled II,
who married the Norse princess Ragnhild (daughter of the King of the Isle
of Man and my ancestor) was the grandfather of Donald, progenitor of Clan
Donald. Later, when we had dinner at Kinloch Lodge, we were able to meet
Lord Macdonald, 34th Chief of the Clan Donald. On 1 June 2000, we headed
northeast past Loch Ness and Urquhart Castle
en route to Thurso, where we stayed overnight before heading to the Orkney
Islands.
Here we're on the ferry "St. Ola" passing the island of Hoy,
the first in the Orkney Islands chain on the 2-hour ferry ride from Scrabster
to Stromness. There are few trees on Orkney, but plenty of stone
and grass. First we visited Kirkwall and the 800-year old St.
Magnus Cathedral. Building began in 1137 on the Cathedral, organized
by Magnus' nephew, Earl Rognvald Kolsson. St. Magnus' relics were found entombed
in a pillar at the Cathedral in 1919, with marks on the skull exactly as
his death-wound was described in the "Orkneyinga Saga." Magnus Erlendson
(later St. Magnus) was a grandson of the great Earl Thorfinn Sigurdarson.
In 1098, King Magnus Bare-Legs of Norway brought Magnus with him on an raiding
expedition to the Hebrides. Magnus, however, refused to participate, preferring
instead to sing from his psalter as men founght around him. Obviously this
peaceable trait did not endear him to his King and he was forced into a low
profile. Years later, he returned to Orkney and eventually challenged his
cousin Hakon Paulsson for sole rule of Orkney. In April 1117, after some
efforts toward reconciliation, Hakon ordered Magnus be killed. Magnus became
a martyr and word spread of a bright light seen over his grave and miracles that
occurred there. I had another motive to visit this Cathedral besides the
historical; Hakon Paulsson is an ancestor on my genealogy chart! Earl Hakon
apparently felt some remorse later, as he made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem
and then built a round church in Orphir,
modeled on the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the Holy Land.
The name Kirkwall comes from the Old Norse "Kirkjuvagr" meaning Church Bay
and is first mentioned in the "Orkneyinga Saga" after Earl Rognvald Brusason
completed St. Olaf's Church in 1046, dedicated to his foster-father, King
Olaf Haraldsson (later St. Olaf) of Norway. Only the doorway
remains. The Bishop's Palace was built
in the 12th c. to provide accommodations for those visiting the new Cathedral.
King Haakon of Norway died here in 1263 after his loss in the Battle of Largs,
the last Norse effort for control over Scotland. The palace was re-built
in the 15th and 16th centuries. The narrow, winding streets of Kirkwall
still hold the charm of its colorful history.
In Orkney, we stayed at the Standing Stones Hotel, which had a great view
over the Loch of Stenness and the Standing
Stones of Stenness. These stones, and the nearby Ring of Brogar were
like something out of "The X-Files." There were more sheep than tourists
at our visits to the Stones. Another
great view from our hotel was the midnight sun.
This picture was taken nearly at midnight I think. I don't know when the
sun rose, but it was full light by 4:30 a.m.! On 3 June 2000 we visited Maes
Howe, a 5,000-year old neolithic tomb, inside of which is the largest surviving
collection of Viking runic writing or Viking "grafitti" in existence. On
one wall is inscribed the name "Ingibiorg"...the
rest of the inscription reads, "...the fair widow, many a woman has walked
stooping in here...A very showy person..." After Maes Howe we drove up to
Birsay and walked across the causeway to the Brough
of Birsay. Birsay is said to have been the permanent residence of Earl
Thorfinn Sigurdarson. That afternoon as we drove down toward the island of
South Ronaldsay in search of another Earl Thorfinn's burial mound (Thorfinn
Skullsplitter), we crossed the Churchill Barrier,
built by Italian prisoners of war during WWII to protect the harbor from
German U-boats. The prisoners also built the Italian
Chapel from a Nissen hut, which is most everyone else's destination when
crossing the Barriers! We never did find Thorfinn's "Howe of Hoxa." On 5
June 2000, our last full day on Orkney, we shopped in Kirkwall and saw the
Earl's Palace and Bishop's Palace there, then had enough time to stop at
the charming fishing and shipping village of Stromness,
where we visited the Maritime museum.
The final leg of our journey took us to Inverness, where we dropped off our
rental car and boarded the train to Glasgow and our flight back to the United
States! Now I must start on those photo albums....
More Pictures...
Halloween Princesses
Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella, October 2000
Kristina's 6th Birthday
She turned 6 on June 9, 2000
Dusty
Missy
My Favorite Links
Here are some cool URLs I've found:
Debby's Page Debby's web page - she
has pictures!
Jonathan's
Link Jonathan has pictures too!
Minnesota Twins Listen to the Twins
On-Line
Internet Travel Network To check on airline
flights
Minnesota's Roadside Architecture
Check out some typical Minnesota scenery!
Paris Cam Live views
of Paris
Valdres Bygdelag Norwegian Genealogy
AJR NewsLink Swedish Newspapers
Email Me!