My Viking Soujurn Day 2—The Viking Ship Musuem!

As many of you know, I have long been obsessed with all things Viking. One of my more ‘mystically’ oriented friends is convinced that my current fixation on the Norse is because in a past life I lived either as a Viking or with Vikings. Not sure I believe in past lives, however I admire and respect pioneers. Long a go when asked to name my heroes in a job interview, I didn’t hesitate for a second, and answered, “Eric the Red, Shakespeare, Neil Armstrong, and my father.”

The interviewer was at first taken aback, and then he said, “You admire pioneers.” Until then, I had never made the connection between those four men.

Today we visited the Viking Ship Museum which is located on the island of Bygdøy in the Oslo Fjord in Norway. It is part of the Museum of Cultural History of the University of Oslo, and houses archaeological finds from Tune, Gokstad, Oseberg and the Borre mound cemeteries. The Viking buried their dead in the ships in which they traveled the world.

When you think back to what was known about the world in 982 A.D. it’s impossible (for me) to imagine the absolute courage it must’ve taken to sail into the unknown. Eric the Red left Iceland and sailed west with not a single clue as to if he would hit land or die first. To travel 1016 nautical miles (a nautical mile is 1852 meters or 6,067 feet, while a land mile is 1609 meters or 5280 feet), a journey estimated to take at least two months of solid rowing with completely no idea of not only what lay on the other end, but if there was anything at all there must’ve been harrowing.

Here are some pics of the Tune, Oseberg, and Gokstand Viking longships:

IMG_2827   IMG_2922   GOKSTAD

 

OESBERG   TUNE

Here’s the link to the museum for those who’re interested:

https://www.khm.uio.no/english/visit-us/viking-ship-museum/

Can you tell I’m living and breathing Vikings these days?

My Viking Sojourn, Day 1—Florida to Oslo, Norway!

The Viking and I are back from our Scandinavian trip!

My Viking’s so paranoid that he wouldn’t let me post while we were gone, so today I begin posting the travelogue that I kept for each of the 21 (OMG) days we were away.  So, sit back and enjoy! (I hope you won’t be bored)

dreamliner 2My Viking Sojourn, Day 1—Florida to Oslo, Norway!

If you’ve never flown on the new Dreamliner jets—you’re missing a real treat! Norwegian Airlines flies directly to Oslo from Ft. Lauderdale and their fleet’s composed of Dreamliners.

First of all, these planes can fly higher than most other jets, and that cuts the flying time by an hour and a half. Secondly, this was the most comfortable transatlantic  flight I’ve ever had. The seats recline and there’s a little footstool. If, like me, you’re five almost nothing, this rocks!

Thirdly, and this is the fun aspect, each seat has its own personal touchscreen tablet. OMG!

I dozed, I watched a couple of TV episodes, I played Sudoku and Scrabble , and dozed some more. The food was plain awful, but our Floridian Norwegian neighbor, Nina, had warned me about that, so I packed a picnic.

We took a FlyBus to the Oslo Radisson Blue hotel and enjoyed the passing scenery. Lush green farm after farm flew by. I’m not sure why I was so shocked, but for some strange reason I didn’t expect Norway to be so rural.

Water everywhere, but that I expected.

Because we wanted to stay aligned to the local time, we decided to shower and change, and explore the city. Here are some of the sights:

OSLO HARBOR 1   OSLO CASTLE VIEW 2

IMG_2944    IMG_2942   OSLO CASTLE VIEW1

Nina, our Florida Norwegian neighbor, picked us up later that night and we headed to her lovely home with a fantastic view of the city for dinner. The weather was perfect, we sat on the balcony sipping on a chilled chardonnay, and munching on sausages Nina’d purchased in Cannes, France, a month earlier.

NINA VIEW 2   NINA PLANTS

Yummy food, including a duck salad and by far the best salmon I’ve tasted to date, great company, and a breathtaking view—what more could a gal ask for???

When we returned to our hotel long after midnight the sky was still light and it felt like dusk had just fallen. So weird. This far north darkness never really happens in the summertime and it remains a surreal twilight from one until about 4:30 A.M. When I pulled back the curtains at that time, the sun was full in the sky and it felt like ten in the morning.

I’m so revved about this vacation that I have a strong hunch sleep will be elusive.

 

 

Prymal Hunger!

Prymal_Hunger-Jianne_Carlo--200x320OMG! The cover for Prymal Hunger is soooooo Kydd Kolton!

I’ve been dying to write his story forever! It’s humming along and I’m loving Kydd.

Is it too trite to say that Georgia Woods just made him with her cover? Okay, tell me you don’t see that cover and want to buy Kydd’s tale? What is it about cowboys, bad-ass trucks, and helicopters that’s so irresistible? Nothing more than a taste of Prymal Hunger for everyone this magnificent Monday morning. So, here goes:

Unedited Prymal Hunger excerpt:

***

Kydd’s lips twitched.

F**king figured.

The day he turned fourteen and came into his wolf, women fell all over themselves trying to get into his pants. Fame and fortune amplified his sexual magnetism. He had a hundred plus emails from actresses of all ages who wanted a one and done date with him.

He finally met his mate—Helle—and she wanted nothing to do with him.

“Message received loud and clear. You will not have an affair with me. You’re not going to sleep with me. You want to become the best screenwriter on the planet.” His excellent periphery vision caught her stun-gunned reaction.

Adrenalin flooded his veins. The prehistoric beast in him savored the chase to come. Her kittenish aroma had become dominant since he announced his wolf. An underlining suspiciousness sneaked into his mind.

Was she a mixed breed like him?

Her scent beguiled him. He couldn’t identify any wolf in her. The only female shifters he knew were pure-bred Wylfens the aristocrats of the shifter world. His friend Bandit was part panther, part wolf, and human. Could it be that females who were cat and human existed?

Kydd doffed his Stetson and dropped Helle’s backpack on the counter separating the kitchen area from a u-shaped meeting space. He collapsed into his favorite behemoth leather chair, stretched his legs, and picked up the remote lying on a side table. He powered on the TV and scanned channels until he found the weather station.

She walked to the counter, eyed the distance to the door, and shot him a swift glance.

His little cat contemplated escape. Kydd repressed a self-satisfied smirk. He had her on the defensive.

“Don’t even go there, Helle. Getting into and out of this studio, as you should’ve gleaned from the security when you entered this morning is no cakewalk. Before I catch you up on the publicity changes, let’s go through my appointments again.” He gestured to her backpack.

She loosened the leather straps on her backpack and said, sotto voce, “The man must have the memory of a sieve.  Did I not do this not an hour earlier? In great detail?”

For a half-moment, Kydd considered explaining why they needed to go through his schedule again. But, he wanted her off-balance not panicked and scared.

He studied her from half-hooded eyes.

Four years in the ring as a UFC fighter had honed his battle strategies. Get in the first volley and attack relentlessly until his opponent went down. eBut, Helle wasn’t his opponent, so he needed to adjust his tactics.

Over the last couple of months he’d spent time with his buddy and fellow Prymal pack member, Apache, who trained falcons and hawks. Kydd decided to approach having Helle mate-claim him the way Apache tamed the wild, primitive birds: accustom her to him using all of her senses, touch, taste, smell, hearing, and sight.

***

Hope you enjoyed!

Have a merry Monday! I won’t be checking in again until we’re in Oslo!!!!!! I feel so wonderful just writing that. OMG, I’m going to be walking the walk of the Vikings!

The Hump Day Remix Rocks!

First of all, it’s HUMP DAY-EH!

I found this fabulous remix of the original Hump Day ad! OMG, I’ve been replaying this over and over. Check it out!

 

What a great way to begin the day!

Have a wondrous Wednesday!

Prymal Lust’s ON SALE for $.99 for a Limited Time!

 

Here’s what the reviewers have to say about Prymal Lust:

logo - REDZ World Reviews - Recommended read.You know you have a winner when you’re reading a book and feverishly begin plotting how much time you’re going to have to wait until the next installment of the series comes out.  I’ll say it again – I LOVED Prymal Lust, and heartily recommend it to anyone who’s a fan of paranormal/military/alternate history genres.  I can’t wait for the next installment to be released, because the secondary characters in this book were engaging, intriguing and hotter than hell.  Jianne Carlo has me hooked; and I don’t care one bit. You might initially pick this story up for the panty dropping alpha male hero, but you’ll devour it to the last page because of its well written characters and multi-layered plot. Cassiopeia, Rredz World Reviews
 
logo - trr top pickThey are alpha males, wolf-shifters and navy Seals. They are hot, dangerous and ready to love the-only-one. PRYMAL LUST is a steamy ride full of pheromones and adrenaline. Wow, have I mentioned this book is packed with action and heat? It took me two hours to devour the story and I’ve finished without knowing whom do I want to meet next. Really there are so many amazing secondary characters that I don’t know which one is my favorite. All I know is that I’m ready to read the next Prymal today! Isabelle, TRR Reviewer

Award - Paratrooper - NW Top Pick reviewertoppick2This is the first in the Prymal Series by Jianne Carlo and I am now a fan. It was a fantastic read; it was fast paced, exciting and had a great plot. It kept me captivated from the beginning to the end. There was no part of this book that I did not enjoy. I highly recommend this book, especially if you enjoy a great shifter novel with lots of heated sex and tons of action and suspense. I can’t wait to read about what happens next in this series. It captivated my imagination. KimP, Night Owl Reviewer

 

What are you waiting for??? Go forth and buy on this superb Sunday!