Baltic Sea
We are more than halfway through our unforgettable expedition through the Baltic regions of Europe, and have had the opportunity so far to explore spectacular port cities such as St Petersburg, Tallinn, Helsinki, Stockholm and Riga as well as the natural history of some of the countless islands that dot this small, inland sea.
The National Geographic Endeavour is now on its way to Poland, a total distance of 334 nautical miles from our last port of call in Latvia, so we all settled in to enjoy a peaceful day at sea. We listened to a variety of presentations from our staff, aimed at bringing our experiences together and preparing us for those to come; finally made some progress with the books we brought with us but had not had the time to even look at as yet; and even sorted through the myriad images captured on our digital cameras.
We continued to be blessed with the beautiful calm seas, blue skies and shining sun that we have counted with until now, which encouraged many of us to spend time on deck, keeping an eye out for the occasional sea bird or just enjoying the fresh air. We also had ample opportunity to contemplate this fascinating body of water that may seem so insignificant on a map but has played such a pivotal role in the history of a whole continent.
The Baltic is a very young sea, formed by the last Ice Age. As the ground of the whole region rose after being pressed down by ice, the Baltic switched in between being a sea and a lake – or even something in between, as it can be considered now. At present it is connected to the North Sea through narrow and shallow sounds between Denmark and Sweden, which obstruct efficient water exchange between the two: it can take over thirty years for all the sea water in the Baltic to be replenished – add to this an enormous freshwater input, and the sea is hardly a sea at all!
The unparalleled strategic importance of the sea, however, has constantly placed it at the centre-stage of titanic power struggle over all-important trade routes, dating back to Roman times (the name of the sea is probably derived from the Latin word for belt: Balteus). Early struggles between Scandinavian Vikings and Pomeranians gave way to successive dominion by Swedes, Germans and finally the Prussians and Russians, over the course of several centuries. The area subsequently played an important role in the Crimean War and both World Wars. Nowadays, eight of the nine countries that border the Baltic Sea are part of the European Union, and the area is finally as peaceful as the waters we have travelled on during the last few days.
We sat and let this all sink in as the sunset over the Baltic, and we looked forward to several more exciting discoveries still to come.
We are more than halfway through our unforgettable expedition through the Baltic regions of Europe, and have had the opportunity so far to explore spectacular port cities such as St Petersburg, Tallinn, Helsinki, Stockholm and Riga as well as the natural history of some of the countless islands that dot this small, inland sea.
The National Geographic Endeavour is now on its way to Poland, a total distance of 334 nautical miles from our last port of call in Latvia, so we all settled in to enjoy a peaceful day at sea. We listened to a variety of presentations from our staff, aimed at bringing our experiences together and preparing us for those to come; finally made some progress with the books we brought with us but had not had the time to even look at as yet; and even sorted through the myriad images captured on our digital cameras.
We continued to be blessed with the beautiful calm seas, blue skies and shining sun that we have counted with until now, which encouraged many of us to spend time on deck, keeping an eye out for the occasional sea bird or just enjoying the fresh air. We also had ample opportunity to contemplate this fascinating body of water that may seem so insignificant on a map but has played such a pivotal role in the history of a whole continent.
The Baltic is a very young sea, formed by the last Ice Age. As the ground of the whole region rose after being pressed down by ice, the Baltic switched in between being a sea and a lake – or even something in between, as it can be considered now. At present it is connected to the North Sea through narrow and shallow sounds between Denmark and Sweden, which obstruct efficient water exchange between the two: it can take over thirty years for all the sea water in the Baltic to be replenished – add to this an enormous freshwater input, and the sea is hardly a sea at all!
The unparalleled strategic importance of the sea, however, has constantly placed it at the centre-stage of titanic power struggle over all-important trade routes, dating back to Roman times (the name of the sea is probably derived from the Latin word for belt: Balteus). Early struggles between Scandinavian Vikings and Pomeranians gave way to successive dominion by Swedes, Germans and finally the Prussians and Russians, over the course of several centuries. The area subsequently played an important role in the Crimean War and both World Wars. Nowadays, eight of the nine countries that border the Baltic Sea are part of the European Union, and the area is finally as peaceful as the waters we have travelled on during the last few days.
We sat and let this all sink in as the sunset over the Baltic, and we looked forward to several more exciting discoveries still to come.
