Of course it was nothing like today, but it was a far cry from the isolated, dark world I was taught about where people didn't leave their villages and nobles w

Of course it was nothing like today, but it was a far cry from the isolated, dark world I was taught about where people didn't leave their villages and nobles were in their castles fighting off barbarians who shuttled between Norway and Britain for some occasional pillaging. Skilled craftsman who worked on large projects moved between them. Arab scholars and traders brought ancient texts into Europe. Traders brought spices from the east. Viking traders who weren't pillaging Britain traveled through Russia as far south as modern day Turkey. It was a far more interconnected world than I thought when I was 12.