The Vikings themselves did not write down their historical events. Historians have had to use other, more indirect means of reconstructing what Viking life was like.
The Eastern Route
A thousand years ago the Vikings travelled the Eastern Route, to the huge market places in Russia. The route passed the outer archipelago and the narrow strait between Hitis and Rosala, which was called Örsund and was an important port and market place at the Eastern Route.
There is an old Danish document from the 13th century that shows a boat route from Denmark along the Swedish coast to Åland, and via Hitis and Hangö to Reval, i.e. Tallinn. The Vikings also used this route, but their destination was a bit further away.
The Viking ships
The Viking
ships were ca 15 meters long, and they had a mast and textile sails. There was a lot of room below deck, where all selling goods was kept, along with food and drink for several weeks. The water was kept in wooden barrels or sacks of animal skin. When there was little or no wind, the ship was rowed with 4 m long oares.The Vikings were almost better at handling the rudder than the plough. They where skillful shipbuilders and excellent navigators.
The time called the Viking age begun ca 800 AD when the people in Scandinavia started to travel overseas to trade, but also to rob and conquer.
Because of their superiority as seamen and soldiers the Vikings conquered land after land. Only after a couple of hundred years the European people learned how to fight the Vikings successfully, and the Viking age ended in the middle of the 11th century.
The reason why the Scandinavians were so superior at sea was that they invented the keel. Boats with a keel could not only be rowed, but sailed as well. Thanks to the keel the ships could be built wider and more seaworthy, but still with a small draught. The steering oar was located at the rear on the right side of the boat.
It is not known how high the ships was, but probably not very high. The sail had the same shape as the square sail of the fully rigged ships of later times. The advantages of a small sail and low mast were many, for example that demand on the staying was smaller, as was also the need of ballast. The hull of the boat was reinforced with beams so to better endure the pressure of the mast, the freeboard was made higher so that the boat could lurch/wobble without taking in water.
The Vikings had different vessels for different purposes. They had big 
broad ships for trading trips overseas, and smaller freight vessels for journeys in safer waters, fishing boats and naturally the well known long, narrow and fast warships.
Plenty of ships from the Viking age have been found, and they give a good picture of the Vikings shipbuilding skills. The most famous ships are the Gokstads- and Osebergsships in Norway. Only one wreck from the Viking age has been found in Finland. It is a 12- meter long ship that lies at the bottom of the sea, near the Lapuri island in the Gulf of Finland, close to the eastern border. The ship at Lapuri is not very well preserved, but marine archaeologist Harry Alopaeus has after years of research succeeded to make a realistic drawing of the ship. Viikinkiajan Laiva ry has built an exact copy of the ship, which is called Sotka.
Even if the ships were seaworthy, they did not have cabins or any conveniences. At sea everybody had to sleep on deck, maybe under a canvas. The Vikings had good knowledge in astronomy and could navigate to distant places over the seas, but when ever possible they sailed along costs and through archipelagos. There they could go ashore for the night and have a little more comfort by raising tents and making a camp. The Eastern route of the Vikings which passed the Hitis archipelago south of Kimito island was one of these fairly safe routes. One advantage of these sheltered routes was that it was easy to find a harbour if surprised by fog or storm.
The reconstructed Viking ships in Rosala
The Rosala Viking Centre harbours two reconstructed Viking ships, the warship Alvilda and a smaller boat called Hogland.
Alvilda was built in Saaremaa in Estonia, and came to the Viking centre in the spring of 2004. It is 17 meters long and 4 meters wide and weighs about 14 tons when at sea. It is built out of larch and oak.
Burial ceremonies
Funeral ceremonies varied. A deceased Viking could be either buried or cremated. Of those
people who chose burial, most were buried with all the things they thought they would need in the afterlife. Grave goods might include beer and food, clothing, jewelry, weapons and even animals.
Viking mythology
Viking mythology includes an elaborate creation myth, as well as a graphic description of the future ending of the world, at Ragnarok.
Ginnungagap
An infinite number of winters before the earth was created there was only the Great Abyss, a gorge of unfathomable depth. The abyss of emptiness was called Ginnungagap. From the North, from the land of frost and cold, ice and snow fell into the Abyss. From the South, from the land of fire and heat, burning rivers flowed into the deep. After an eternity of time the ice and the fire came within of each other, and when Surt struck sparks against the ice, the primordial cow came into being. Then also Ymer, the first ice-giant, was born. From his armpit, without the aid of a woman, Ymer gave birth to a giant and a giantess. Foot was coupled with foot, and a son with many heads was born. Out of the salty ice the primordial cow licked a man with beautiful features. His name was Bore, the born one. It is from him that all the Gods are descended. There was no earth nor sky, but under the soil the World Tree, Yggdrasil, pushed forth its roots.
Yggdrasil, the World Tree
Over time the Gods grew weary of living with the giants in Ginnungagap. Odin and his brothers decided to build a better world. Building material was needed for this new world and so Ymer was slain and ground between two great millstones. The earth was fashioned from his flesh, from his blood the sea and the crags from his bones. The vault of heaven from his skull and from his brains were all harsh storm clouds created. Four dwarves were set to bear the vault of heaven, one in each direction of the wind. Earth was given a place at the center of the World Tree and is called Midgard, Middle Earth. The golden woods of the gods were set in the crown of the ash and to ward off the giants all of Asgard was surrounded by a high wall. Upon Yggdrasil's three roots lies the netherworld with its springs. Each day the Gods ride over the colorful bridge Bifrost to rule over the rights and wrongs of the world. The land of the dead, Hel, is covered in mist. Last the Gods created two humans, Ask and Embla, and gave them Midgard to dwell in. Those giants who had survived the flood of Ymer's blood were forced to live in Utgard at the edge of the world.
Ragnarok
Viking mythology also encompassed what was going to happen at some unspecified time in the future, when the gods themselves would die. Here there is a definite parallel with the Christian account, in Revelation, of the forthcoming Apocalypse, for Ragnarok too is a final battle between the forces of good and evil.
When Heimdall, the guardian of the Gods blows his horn will the warriors of Valhall know that the battle has begun. The World Serpent twists itself in giant hate, raises waves, sneezes fire and spits poison. Thor, the god of Thunder, kills the serpent with his hammer, but only nine steps does the son of gods take before the serpent's poison brings him down. The ship Nagelfar sails off, led by the wolf, the crew of cast-offs draw nigh. Odin charges, the battle field thunders, Bifrost breaks. Great is the sorrow in the land of the gods when the father of time is swallowed by the wolf.
The sun grows dark, the earth sinks to the sea. All the bright stars fall from the sky. Afterwards silence, darkness.
Viking gods
Odin was the chief god in the Norse mythology, and the father of Thor, Balder, Hoder, Tyr, Bragi, Heimdall, Ull, Vidar, Hermod and Vali. His wives were Fjorgyn, Frigga and Rind. He had a bad habit to roam around Midgard in human disguise seducing and impregnating women. This is why many mortals were able to trace their ancestry back to him.
Thor was the son of Odin and Fjorgyn. He was the god of thunder, the sky, fertility and the law. Armed with his strengthgiving items, a belt and the hammer Mjölnir, he had a simple way of righting wrongs: he more or less killed everything that moved. The other gods -mostly Loki- occasionally took advantage of Thor's simplicity.
Loki can be called the 'wizard of lies' and is in many ways the most interesting god in Asgard. Loki was related to Odin, but their relationship was rather strange. He came to Asgard either as of right or because Odin and he entered into a blood-brotherhood.
Frey was a fertility god of the the Vanir race. He was the son of Njord and came to Asgard as a hostage along with his father and sister Freya.
Freya was the goddess of sex and later also war and death. She married the god Od, who deserted her. After being abandoned she divided her time between mourning his absence and being promiscuous.
The goddess of spring and immortal youth was called Idun. She was the daughter of the dwarf Ivald and married to the god Bragi.
Sif was the goddess who married Thor and bore his stepson (by Odin), Ull. The vikings (and their gods) admired golden hair, and she was exceptionally proud of hers, so Loki cut it all off while she was asleep.
Hel was a goddess (or a monster), a daughter of Loki and Angrboda, who ruled over Niflheim, which was the land of the dead. There were different opinions of whether she was alive or dead. Ull, in his role as god of winter, was supposed to spend a few months each year as Hel's lover. Hel and her ghostly army were going to support the other gods at Ragnarok, after which her domain would go out in flames.
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