Knights Templar

Knights Templar

We have visited about castles so far that were built or
captured by the Knights Templar, which was a band of
monk Knights, who kept the area safe for Christians,
and fought in the crusades. Beth and I are members of
the Knights. I am a knight, and Beth is a dame,
although she would rather be a Knight. So it is
interesting for us. One castle in Domme France is where
the Knights were imprisoned by the King, and who wrote
graffiti on the walls of the dungeon with their
fingernails and teeth. We saw that today. The Knights
Castle in Portugal was a church castle from the 12th
century. Some of castles them have moats, drawbridges,
turrets, fighting towers.

We followed this going to the Loire Valley.  Again,
castles, but this time, chauteau as oppposed to
fighting castles.

We followed Spring to the north and found blooming
trees once again were spectacular.  However, there real
beauty was found in the blooming mustard fields.  There
were just acres of bright yellow blossoms.  Talk about
spectacular.

It is a beautiful area.  There are a tremendous number
of castles that have a history tied to ours as they
were once English.  We forget that Richard the Lion
Hearted was a Frenchman who laid claim to the French
Throne.

Craig still wonders how Joan was able to get the army
to follow her.

Cinque Terre, Italy APRIL 18, 2003

APRIL 18, 2003

We are in Cinque Terre, which is part of the Italian
Mediterranean area.  The name means "five lands" and they
are linked by trails.  Or, you take the "milk-run" train between
Genoa and La Spezia, as it is difficult to get cars around.

We have hiked the trails between the towns.  They run along the Mediterranean, and then as high as 1,000 feet above the ocean.  Tough hikes.

Yesterday I was walking along the high coast, very early by myself, and heard a crashing sound. I thought it was the noisiest deer I ever heard.  A bit alarmed,

ATTACK OF THE WILD BOARS

The two large wild pigs and a piglet burst across the trail, running hard, and very excited.  So was I.  The baby turned and ran towards me, and so did mama.  I yelled and carried on and they ran off. They stayed a few feet above me, and they continued to make a lot of noise.  So did I.  

There are little castles along the coast.  You can hike, take a boat, or take a train between the little towns.  Very nice.

Stuttgart - Pick Up The Car - Then back to the Riviera

March 2003 

We picked up Beth's car in Stuttgart, Germany. Beth was able to get four big suitcases in the trunk of our little car. She is a miracle worker. 

During our stay in Stuttgart, we got involved in the Stuttgart-Glasgow football (soccer) game -- a playoff game. Very big deal in Europe. There were 15,000 Scotsmen in Stuttgart, most of them drunk and very loud. They were wearing their team colors, and shouting and singing all over the town. Looks like lots of fun, but close to a riot. We enjoyed it. 

We drove back south to get some of our luggage and computer in Florence. We stayed in Switzerland one night, then at an Army base in Vicenza, Italy. The computer was still not ready, so we stayed in rather palatial Army Colonel's quarters near Pisa/Livorno, Italy for three days of R & R. We had two bedrooms, two baths, living room, dining room, kitchen, patio, etc. It was a very nice base near the beach with enormous pine trees (over sixty feet high with great shade), named for Colonel Darby of WWII Army Ranger fame, I think. 

In Pisa, we visited the leaning tower, and lots of nice hill and beach towns. The computer was never fixed, so we finally gave up, and moved along the coast to visit friends in Santa Magarita, Italy. This is a very nice town. We stayed in Menton, another attractive seaside community on the French/Italian border, near Monte Carlo. 

We then went to Cadaques, Spain, a small, isolated fishing village that takes a long mountain drive to reach. We spent three nice days there. Today we moved down to a town that I can´t remember the name of. Just now someone threw a large cherry bomb into the internet cafe. I presume this is childish harassment, and not terrorism. We have noted a number of nice castles and hill towns as we move down the coast. 

Some of them were build by the Knights Templar during the crusades. This is interesting to Beth and I, as we recently joined the Knights. We will check them out and get a few pictures. Our best to all. Adios!

Alsace, France - Wine Country

This is a beautiful area of France, running along the foothills of the Vosage Mountains and along the Rhine River. It is on the German border, has a heavy German influence, and has been part of both France and Germany several times. There are beautiful vineyards where we tasted wine for free before deciding on the vintage that we prefer.

Our favorite parts of Alsace are between the cities of Strasbourg and Mulhouse. We picked up a tourist map of the region, and begin exploring from either end of the region.

There are many attractive towns and

Josephine Baker Castle

Villages. Two of our favorites are Kayserberg and Eguisheim. Kayserberg has a ruined castle a few hundred feet above the Village, a river running through and under the Village, and quaint timbered and stuccoed homes, shops and hotels. Storks nest on the tops of buildings. Vineyards cascade up the hills, and trails interconnect the towns.

Eguisheim is a quaint town claiming a history of 5,000 years and three ruined castles. The town has a variety of shops.

Switzerland - Meeting the Relatives

Ancestral home of the Hullingers / Hollingers / Holligers - Hallvill, Seegun, Bonisvil Eglisvill, Canton Argau, east of Zurich, north of Luzerne.


This is my favorite part of Switzerland. (Beth points out that Craig's love for this area is in part because his ancestors left the area in 1735 to emigrate to the US. It is unspoiled and uncrowded, and ndiscovered by most tourists.The small lake of Hallvil has excursion boats that tour the lake during the day, providing convenient access to all parts of the Lake.

It boasts the charming castle of Hallwyl, located on Lake Hallwil. The castle is small, and easily visited, and boasts excellent English translation phones that work well. The charming towns of Hallvill, Seegun, Bonisvil, and Eglisvill are nearby - these are the towns that the Holligers lived in, beginning with Henri in 1425. Our ancestor immigrated to Pennsylvania in 1735.


The high part of our visit was spending two evenings with Elizabeth & Elizabeth & Christoph Holliger. We had met Elizabeth 19 years before, and had a nice visit. We had walked into Elizabeths place of business in 1984, announcing that we "were her cousins, from the US.) We compared our respective geneologies, and had determined that we were distantly related from the 1600's. Elizabeth brought her son and daughter in law, and we joined them for dinner on two occasions. So Christoph and I had the distinct pleasure of dining with three lovely Elizabeths.

Our Swiss cousins are very charming, intelligent and well educated. Elizabeth is now retired from her long career running Fruettiger-Holliger. Christoph is a Professor of Physics and his wife Elisabeth works in mental health.

Christoph is a rennaisance man. In addition to being a PhD, he is the Director of International Relations for the Fachhochscule Aarau, University of Applied Science. He completed a project in Bolivia providing solar hot water and potable water for poor areas, and will travel this year to India to work on a project in that country. He built his own energy efficient home, complete with his own sheep, chickens, garden, and home made schnaps. He also weaves, and is a skilled artist. Beth was interested in how alike Christoph is to his American cousins.

The Seehotel Hallwil is located on the east side of the lake in the town of Meisterschwanden. It has great rooms overlooking the lake, a fine restaurant, and friendly staff.

Switzerland is a picture book country, with magnificent mountains, beautiful lakes, great trails, and quaint towns. The country has four official languages (German, French, Italian, and Romanch), and many people speak several of these languages plus English.

The Country is small, and you see a great deal in a few days. We enjoy simply wandering the county, taking in the sites.

Luzerne is a beautiful city, overlooking a beautiful river, lake, and Alps. You can easily spend a few days here. But when the weather is fine, you want to be outside and in the country.

On fine days, we take to the hills, and ride a ski lift up the Alps. Many areas have paths and trails that you can take around the mountains, and back to your car or train station. Make sure you get a usable map, and that you choose a trail that does not exceed your abilities.


Geneva is in the French portion of the country, located on Lake Geneva. We drove into Lake Geneva from France, took the train to Florence for the third and final time to pick up my computer, then back to Geneva.

England, Wales, Ireland

We spent several weeks in these attractive countries. Very green and pretty. And very rainy. Rains most of the time. The people are great. Very open and friendly.

We took the ferry from Wales, which is also very green and rainy. We drove around the perimeter of the Island, checking out castles and cute towns.

Many of the port towns were founded by Norwegian Vikings, who conquered and took over.

I am part Norwegian.

Is there no end to the depredations of we Norwegian Vikings?

Obviously an early version of the the US Marine Corps of which I am a proud part.

Saw a special on the Vikings. Researchers are doing genetic testing of males in Ireland and England to see how many are descended from Vikings. Judging from the blue eyes, quite a few.

My middle name is Harlan. The Harlans were part of the Protestant Plantation people from Scotland and England, that the English sent to occupy and take over Ireland. Our branch quickly left to go to America, but one branch who stayed started a large and famous ship building company, Harlan and Wolfe, in Belfast.

The most famous thing that that company did was to build the Titanic. So you can see that I come by my ability to destroy things and screw things up honestly.

We visited the old sod in Lugan, Parish of Snankill, County Armagh, Northern Ireland. Home of my GGGGGGGGParents George Harlan & Elizabeth Duck , and her parents Ezekeliah Duck and Hannah Hoope. Elizabeth was born on 5 May 1660, and married George on Sep 17, 1678. Four kids born in Ireland, including our GGGGGGGGP, then moved to US in 1687.

There is only one Duck in the Northern Ireland Phonebook, and no Hoopes. There are 22 Harlands.

But get this. There are 30 Hollingers!!!! The Hollingers are from Switzerland. What are they doing here? We Hollingers / Hullingers are like bad pennies, showing up everywhere.

Ireland is very prosperous, and good to see it doing well after so many tough years. But there is still evidence of the troubles in Norther Ireland. Hope they get it all resolved.

We will take the Ferry to Norway in a few days. Our trip is getting short. It is now June 3, and we will head back no later than July 10, unless we get tired and come back sooner. Five months.

England & Wales


We returned from Ireland by ferry to Scotland. We spent a little time in a Kirkcudbright, a nice town that attracted us because it is the McClellan Castle, which is the name of our friend Larry McClellan. We took some pictures for Larry.


We spent several days in York, a great town with Roman, Anglo Saxon, Viking, and Norman roots. The Vikings took the place over. My mother is Norwegian, and my father has routes in this part of England, so I always enjoy speculating about the possible interaction of my mothers Viking ancestors with my fathers ancestors.


My many times Great Grandfather was a Navy Captain who backed Cromwell in the civil war. His brother was an Army Captain who backed the King. The Army uncle did the best, getting a large estate and manor house near York in the community of Sutton on the Forest. This Harlan line died out, but the impressive manor and garden are open for visits. Very grand.


We drove up to Monkwearmouth, a town named for being where Monks were at the mouth of the Wear River. It is now part of the town of Sunderland, on the coast near Newcastle.


We went to the church where my distant grandfather was baptized in 1650. The church is an ancient building, and was once part of a major monastery where the Venerable Bede wrote the first history of England. Three saints came from this monastery. Vikings sacked the monastery, and took over the region. (Once again, examples of my mothers ancestors harassing my fathers ancestors).


On to Norway by overnight ferry boat.

Norway

SELJORD NORWAY (Ancestors Kassa, Venaas)

We took the car by ferry from Scotland to Norway.  We drove to Seljord, Norway, in Telemarken in the mountains.

Telemarken is the "authentic mountain area" of Norway, where the Norwegian traditions are stronger. The town is a beautiful little community, nestled in the mountains over a river and lake. There are a number of old Norwegian homes, but a lot of new construction also.

We stayed in a charming old wooden hotel, with a large balcony overlooking the town and mountains. I am writing this from the balcony, with the air beautifully fresh. A very large birch tree is in front of me, with the mountains rising about 1,000 feet above me.. Lots of flowers. The charm was lessened, however, by the large party next door that went on to about 3:30 in the morning. There is a large Icelandic Horse Show in Town, and it appears that some of them are highly motivated party animals. And of course you can hear anything through the wooden walls.

Food was excellent, and will have to diet for months after the trip to atone for our sins.

The old church was built in 1150. I went to the morning service. I also looked through the graveyard. There were two recent Kassa graves. In much of Europe old grave sites are recycled within about twenty years, so any older graves would have disappeared.

Vik, Norway

The photo above is of Vik, a nice little town on the largest fjord in Norway, with the largest waterfall in the country across the water. I knocked on doors asking for relatives. Turns out we are related to virtually everyone in the town. 



The gentleman below is a third cousin Eirik Tistel. He and his wife Kari Marie graciously drove us around town telling us the names of the farms, virtually everyone of which is in our geneology. He is a dairy farmer and runs a small campground.  The homes date back several years and he keeps them as a personal museum.  He has antique Norwegian bibles, rifles, a bear trap, and a mold to make multiple spoons out of cow horns.

BAGN, AURDAL (families Liffengren, Tronrud)

Bagn is a sweet town about 110 miles north of Oslo on the east side of the country. It is the home of most of the Liffengren / Tronrud ancestors. It is located on Highway 13, which takes you across the country to the towns of Vik Sogn, where many of the Anderson ancestors are located. The road trip between Vik and Bagn is beautiful, following fjords, mountains, and waterfalls. There are several Stave churches en route, and two ferry boat rides are required to make the one day trip.

While in Bagn we visited the Liffengren Farm and the

Liffengren Farm in Bagn

Tronrud Farm. Cousin Aslak Tronrud gave me directions to Cousin Tor & Kari Tronrud farm. The Tronrud farm is in the high pasture area where livestock was taken to graze in the summer. It is now an area of cabins and cottages, and the pine trees are taking over.

Mrs. Tronrud directed me to the low main Tronrud farm near Bagn. I took pictures of the farm where our great grandmother grew up. The two story white home is perched on a ledge, overlooking a picturesque valley.

The Liffengren farm is in the south end of town, but it took me a little time to find it. Everyone knew where it was, but I had a tough time following the directions. A taxi cab came along, and he gave me directions, which still confused me. So I jumped in the cab, and gave him his shortest ever fare, about 200 feet.

The cab driver took me to a home that he said all the drivers knew as the Liffengren farm. This was confirmed by the sign on the mail box structure that said Liffengren. I talked to the current owner, who graciously showed me a 1904 portrait of the Liffengren family in front of the house. The house itself is a nice two story house, painted red, and it appears that the farm used to go down to the river. Route 13 is a two lane road that appears to split the farm from the River. If you are looking for the farm, locate the red church across the river in the south end of Bang. The home is directly across the river from the church.

The church is very attractive, with a graveyard around the church. There are names of families connected with our family, but in Norway, as in much of Europe, graves are recycled after a number of years, say 20 to 40 years. So there are no graves from our ancestors unless someone paid to keep the grave site over the years, or if there was no need for additional burials.

I also visited the Stave church above Bagn, in Reingly. This is the church that the Tronruds attended.

Beth and I went to dinner with cousin Aslak Tronrud and his fiancee Linda Davidson friend in Oslo. Oslo is a beautiful city on the fjord, with numerous boats coming in and out the harbor overlooked by great restaurants. We had a great time.

SELJORD NORWAY (Ancestors Kassa, Venaas)

Went to Seljord, Norway, in Telemarken in the mountains. Telemarken is the "authentic mountain area" of Norway, where the Norwegian traditions are stronger. The town is a beautiful little community, nestled in the mountains over a river and lake. There are a number of old Norwegian homes, but a lot of new construction also. We stayed in a charming old wooden hotel, with a large balcony overlooking the town and mountains. I am writing this from the balcony, with the air beautifully fresh. A very large birch tree is in front of me, with the mountains rising about 1,000 feet above me.. Lots of flowers. The charm was lessened, however, by the large party next door that went on to about 3:30 in the morning. There is a large Icelandic Horse Show in Town, and it appears that some of them are highly motivated party animals. And of course you can hear anything through the wooden walls.

Food was excellent, and we will be dieting for months to atone for our sins.

The old church was built in 1150. I went to the morning service. I also looked through the graveyard. There were two recent Kassa graves. In much of Europe old grave sites are recycled within about twenty years, so any older graves would have disappeared.

Our Ancestors name from Seljord include:

Jemns Kjetilson Venaas 1742-1831

Guro Steinerdatter 1754

Ole Jenssen Vennas 1787-1854

Margit Thorsdatter Kassa 1789-1854

Jorgen Kassa 1833-1898

We called Olaf Kassa who is the Public Works Director of the County at 35 05 01 97 in Seljord, and by all accounts a friendly and knowledgeable individual, but were not able to locate him. Will try later.

MAKING THIS TRIP

If any relative is interested in making this trip, I would suggest flying into Oslo, renting a car, and driving the loop to Bang, Vik, and Seljord. It is a one day drive between each one of the communities. You could easily do this trip in one week, or take two or three weeks if you want to do a lot more research and make more contacts.