Bison, what bison?

After breakfast this morning we checked out of the lovely Hotel Skeppsholmen and ordered a taxi for the railway station.  We have decided to take the train rather than plane between Stockholm and Göteborg (Gothenburg) so that we have a chance to see some of the countryside.  It seems to be quite a big deal to rent a car anywhere in Scandinavia if you want to return the car to a different destination from where you hired it.


Travelling to Göteborg  from Stockholm,we saw a few different kinds of landscapes. 
On our way from the east coast, we enjoy approximately 4 hours of lakes and forests, Swedish small towns and farmlands hastily completing harvesting and tilling before the colder weather sets in.  

We watch the weather close in, pass through a few showers and gloomily watch the dropping temperature.  As we get closer, however, the wind is pushing the clouds quickly past and by the time our journey is over, the rain has cleared.


We pass by a bison farm - yes, bison!  Between Skövde and Göteborg we pass by Bisonfarmen i Gate.  This farm in West Gotaland, (Sweden) has a herd of American bison imported from the U.S. in 2004. Today there are about 125 animals in the herd. They can be seen on guided tours with tractor and prairie wagon. The Farm is located near the Forest of Hökensås. Bison Farm at Gate has 138 acres of pasture divided into seven enclosures. The animals are moved from enclosure to enclosure to meet the needs of new grass. In the wintertime, the animals are fed with hay. At the farm breeding and meat production are the main activities.



Approaching Gothenburg, we pass the two lakes Aspen and Mjörn. They are much larger with lots of small boats anchored around their shores – and are very close to the train tracks!

We also pass a Volvo factory!


Donna reckons that the carpet is a sign that we are in the right place.  The room is certainly rather luxe.  Very nice. Toochilly to go out in the night air, but we will head out nice and early tomorrow to the Haga area - one of the oldest neighbourhoods in Göteborg.

What lies beneath

Today's post actually begins last night.  Donna, wanting to walk off dinner, took the camera for a stroll and came back with some lovely night shots.  Over a small bridge just below us on the isle of Skeppsholem is an old bridge that joins a smaller islet on which Kastellholmen is found. In the soft light of night, this beautiful building shines.  The castle was planned as part of Stockholm's defense and had two predecessors:

• One used in the 1660s when the Navy just moved to the islets; and 

• one from 1746, blown up through an accident in its ammunition factory in 1845. 

The three-tongue war flag has been hoisted at Kastellholmen since the 1660s and perhaps even earlier. At the end of the 1660s a small octagonal castle with flagpole was built on the roof. From here, passing ships were greeted with flag and cannon salutes. The castle later came to be used as a powder cellar, storage room and ammunition factory, but the flagging from its roof continued.The Swedish word 'skepp' translates as 'ship'.  Another beautiful photo is of a rigged ship - the af Chapman.  There are lots of such boats moored around here, and not many modern launches.  Turns out that this one is now a youth hostel and restaurants.The ship was constructed by the Whitehaven Shipbuilding Company, located in the English county of Cumberland, and launched in February or March of 1888. Her original owners the same name in County Meath, Ireland. Her maiden voyage was from Maryport, Cumberland, to Portland, Oregon, and she subsequently made voyages between Europe, Australia and the west coast of North America.  Funny where you find links with home.

But enough of last night.We begin our day juggling accommodation bookings, flights, and train bookings to make sure that we are back in Amsterdam in time to fly home on the 13th.  Hard to believe that we are planning the end of this adventure!

Today we are headed back to another island on the archipelago that is Stockholm - the

island of Djurgården.  This is the same island that we visited yesterday, but today we walk right along the waterfront to the Vasamuseum.
The Vasa Museum has been constructed to house the largest salvaged item in the world - a 17th century warship that capsized and sank in Stockholm 1628.  After 333 years on the sea bed the mighty warship was salvaged and the voyage could continue. Today, Vasa is the world's best preserved 17th century ship.  

In the spring of 1626, under the watchful and impatient eye of  the King the construction of the Vasa is underway and completed in the summer of 1628. The cellar held the naval arsenal and Vasa was moored below the palace when she took her cannon onboard.  Battles were being waged in northern Europe in the summer of 1628.

It was mid-afternoon when at last it was time. After many delays, frustrations with the supply of guns, and a change of captain, the newly fitted out Vasa was anchored below the castle, with its cannon finally on board and the crew manning their stations. The quay was packed with people and the water teemed with small craft carrying people who wanted to watch the mighty war machine slip its moorings and sail from Stockholm.  What started with church services and a festive atmosphere ended in a watery grave. It was the 10th of August 1628, when Vasa, the most powerful warship in the Baltic, foundered in Stockholm harbour before the eyes of a large audience, scant minutes after setting sail for the first time and travelling only about 1,300 metres.

The day after the sinking, an inquest into the disaster was begun. 

Ultimately, no one was blamed and the reason given was poor design (which had been approved by the King!)  Perhaps the most interesting part of the inquest from a technical point of view is an appendix at the end, recording the opinions of a group of professional experts, captains and shipwrights. Without the benefit of calculus or modern naval engineering theory, they correctly identified the forces at work and the cause of the instability. As one of them put it, the ship did not have enough "belly" to carry the high and heavy upperworks.

The ship lay on her side, somewhat forgotten despite searches for the ship over the centuries, at the entrance to Stockholm harbour.  In the early 1950's when the City was looking at constructing a new bridge, research highlighted that what was thought to be rubble from a 1920's blasting turned out to be ballast from the Vasa.  
The seabed home of the Vasa was confirmed on 4 September 1956 (and today is 4 September 63 years later!).  It took another 5 years to plan and prepare for the raising and on Monday, 24 April 1961, thousands of people crowded the shores around Kastellholmsviken, much as they had lined the shore almost 333 years earlier, and the Vasa was brought back into the light.

This is an amazing story both in the building, salvaging and documenting of the stories.  The ship that spans seven storeys high, sank in 3 minutes meaning that the minutae of everyday life aboard such a vessel survived also.  Much of the museum is dedicated to this.  
There is a film that explains the story of the salvaging and lots of detailed exhibits.  What an interesting afternoon!

We finally leave after 5 pm.  The weather is chilly now with an afternoon breeze and we walk the 750m around to the ferry stop to head back to Skeppsholmen.  We have an early light dinner of sliders, salami and cheese, and ready for a bigger day tomorrow on Gamla Stan - the Old City.

ABBA - Thank You For The Music

Yesterday allowed us to fully re-charge. A day filled with rest and recovery (although Donna who is not used to sitting still for so long felt it).  We spent a few hours having a look at what there is to see and do in Stockholm and finding accommodation.
Everything in Scandinavia is far more expensive than any other place we have travelled, so accommodation doesn't come cheap.  Since we are paying a premium, it might as well be somewhere nice, and central to everything. 


So this morning we headed back from the Raddison to the Stockholm Airport on the free connection bus because this is the easiest way to connect with the public transport system into the centre of Stockholm.  The express train in to Stockholm City is not included in the public transport and at AUD$50 per person, we don't hink it is cheap.  But with the journey cut to 20 minutes as the speed gets up to 190 kph - couldn't quite catch it as the monitor kept changing.highlighted!


At the main station, we go down to the metro station and get a 72 hour all-public-transport pass for the same price as our trip this morning AUD$50 each.  Now, we are set. We know that there is no transport right to the door of our hotel today, so succumb and take a taxi so we can divest ourselves of our luggage.  The taxi driver complains of the amount of roadworks, but we assure him that there is no more than most other cities.  He moans about the Green Party, who hold the balance of power and are influencing the investment in environmentally friendly transport modes that will restrict vehicles in part of the City.  Sorry, just can't agree with him. It was nice to get a couple of photos of the inner city as we were driving to the hotel.  I hope to get clearer shots over the next couple of days.

We finally reach the hotel where we will spend the next couple of days - the stunning Hotel Skeppsholem set just up from the waterfront on the island of Skeppsholem.  The Hotel has a long and colourful history. Originally built in 1699-1702 with the purpose of housing the Royal Marines of Karl XII. Since Sweden’s financial situation of the time was poor, most of the building material came from ruined castles on the countryside. The buildings, known to locals as “The Long Row”, was never used for the soldiers as intended, as most of them never made it home from the wars. They were therefore left uninhabited until 1710, when the city started using them as a hospice for poor people infected with the plague. 

Years later after renovation, the buildings became offices and storehouses for the Navy, and also housing for military employees. The Martial Court was accommodated here too. In the 1900’s most of the space was turned into apartments for Navy staff, mostly officers and their families, and in the 2000’s it was once again adapted to be used as administrative offices. It is fascinating and lovely. We arrive in the sunshine with lots of people sitting in the garden.

Our room is not yet ready, but that is okay as the hotel will gladly hold our luggage.  So off we head down the path and then out along the quayside walkway to the ferry terminal.  We are off to see the ABBA museum that I had booked tickets for while we travelled in to the City on the train this morning.

So, one cannot come to Stockholm and NOT go to the ABBA museum.  Not sure where to start.

For those who know me, I am an ABBA tragic from way back.  I'll never forget the day when a teenage Gen was horrified when she found me singing to Fernando in one of the band's later incarnations.  She didn't know at that time that the band was universal and timeless!

Because we have pre-purchased our tickets, we can skip the line at the door and waltz straight on in.
We end up spending more than 4 hours here.  It is filled with the stories and memorabilia of the individuals and their personal lives before,during and after the ABBA phenomena, the band and their hits and tours, the stage play and the two movies.  It included interactive sections where you could try mixing the songs, auditioning for a supposed opportunity - and no, I am NOT putting that up here, nor the photo shoot of me as the various band members - suffice to say those are the pics that horror movies are based upon!

There is nothing that is not covered.
The costumes, the props, the newsreels, the platinum records - everything.  From the foursome's childhoods to the current day.
It is a wonderful tribute that allows so many people to re-live their teen years.  And the story of the Australian link to their fame is well

So as the day is drawing to a close, and the weather starting to chill for the night, we head back across the bay to our island and our hotel.
Dinner is served until 10 pm, but with a full hotel, the best we can manage is 6:45 pm.  So we take it.  The restaurant here not only services the hotel, but locals also, and is very well known here.  Restaurant Långa Raden caters to discerning diners (and the bus tour groups lodging here).  The food is typically Swedish with a modern twist.  Donna and I decide that we can only do two courses and opt for a main and dessert.  The food is fabulous.

Mains - Donna
Hängmörad svensk ryggbiff med kryddsmör, tomatsallad och rödvinssky 
Dry aged Swedish sirloin steak, spice butter, tomato salad and red wine jus  
Maria
Köttbullar med potatispuré, pressgurka, lingon och gräddsås  
Meatballs with potato purée, pickled cucumber and lingon berries and cream sauce  

Desserts - Donna
Hallonyoghurtglass med kolabrownie och maränger 
Raspberry and yoghurt ice cream, caramell brownie and meringues
Maria
Vit chokladpastej med citrusmarinerade jordgubbar och smultronsorbet 
White chocolate cake with lemon marinated strawberries and wild strawberry sorbet

Those desserts were 'died and gone to heaven delicious'!
 
Back in the room as we are putting our gear away, Donna comes across the purchases that you can make on the room menu - the smalls you might have forgotten - socks, jocks, nickers and tights (small to extra large- one in each size) - now THAT is class!!
Donna then did a Michael and went out to take some night shots - we will share them tomorrow.

Tomorrow we are heading into the Old Town.

Room upgrade - no thanks we'll keep the one we have

Hello world.

After hurting my ankle last night, we decided to have our rest day (planned for later in the week), today.  We went down to the restaurant for breakfast and I went over to reception to extend our booking by a day.  And that was where the challenge started!  There is a conference booked in to the hotel and they were very full.  There are no bookings left in the price bracket we came in on (via booking.com), so we have to pay a higher price. A much higher price.

Conversation with the receptionist went as follows:
"Not to worry madam, the new room will be far more comfortable and larger."  
"Larger?  Who needs larger?  This room is more than enough. Can't we stay in the room we have?"
"But it would mean a downgrade!"
"But we won't need to move all our stuff."
"Oh . . . ok.  I'll have to upgrade someone else."  
He struggled with the concept that we were happy with what we had!!

So we have had a very quiet day.
Slept late, breakfasted late.
Washed some smalls.
Had an afternoon nap.
Watched a movie - The Aftermath.  One that we had both been wanting to see, and bonus was that we could choose English language.

Planned the next four days in central Stockholm.  Staying on an island with view across the Old Town and modern Stockholm City.  Planned transport.


Ate a late supper Cheese Plate with Fig Jam and Creme Brulee washed down with a Strongbow each.

Quiet day.  Happier foot.  Rejuvenated us!  
Glad we didn't take the wrong corridor by mistake. 
Actually three different corridors.
End of story.

Finally a clock that tells the true time

Post for 1 September

After a late night we had arranged with Riikka to meet us for breakfast at 9 am at the Albert Hotel.  In the end, we sent her a message this morning and put everything back 30 minutes.  We don't need to check out until noon, so it makes it easy.

Both of the major churches that we want to see have services this morning and are not open to visitors until after 12 anyway.
It was certainly worth the measly €8 for the convenience of having the car on-site. We have got the packing down pat now and having sent some of our clothing, shoes and books etc back by post, we now have more balanced and lighter suitcases.  So right at noon we pack the bags into the car and wriggle out of the very tight car space.

Or first stop is at Uspenski Cathedral.  We park right in front in a private car park. Either not too many people know about this hidden gem, or are not prepared to pay €5 for an hour's visit. I don't care and really are appreciative of the fact that I don't need to walk too far!  And finally, a Church clock that has the correct time!!

This is an Eastern Orthodox cathedral in Helsinki, and the main cathedral of the Orthodox Church of Finland, dedicated to the Dormition of the Theotokos (the Virgin Mary). Its name comes from the Old Church Slavonic word uspenie. It is built in the Russian Orthodox style with gold plated orbs atop the turrets and church high points. Riikka has explained that if you want to be officially recorded in a religion, and have the option of choosing religious education for your children, then you need to pay a religious tax in Finland. The joke is that most of the tax goes to replace or add to the gold leaf atop this Cathedral on a regular basis.  

There are signs at the entrances saying 'No Tourists' but after countless others push past us to walk in, and some soul-searching on our part, we decided to also take a quick peek.

Inside the air is thick with the remnants of the incense used in the services this morning and it creates and it creates whorls as the sunlight streams through from the windows.  It is ornate with gilt and iconographic pieces.  As we are here, a small wedding party has arrived in a late model Porsche and is directed to the Krypt - presumably for their service.

While not particularly old, the Cathedral is striking from near and far with that gleaming gold against the green capped rooflines.

The next church we visit is in the other quarter of the waterside centre.  This is the Helsinki Lutheran Cathedral (Tuomiokirkko). This is a very large imposing white building with a green domed roof.  It towers over the large and impressive Senate Square. 

Getting a car park in the street below the Cathedral, we entered through the Krypt that was currently home to an interesting art exhibition by Makela Pirkko. 

Inside, this building is humble and understated and is in direct contrast to the ornate orthodox church we have just seen.  The Lutheran religion does not put the emphasis on the altar, but rather, on the pulpit where the priest preaches the word of God.  

The young, female priest, dressed in a brightly coloured striped dress leaves as we take a seat in the pew.  She was not more than 35.

We wandered out to the top of the steps of the Senate Square, observing the very geometric layout of the architecture around this impressive square.  Down around the fountain, there is a flurry of activity which appears to be the packup after last night's Midnight Run through Helsinki - celebrating the last day of Summer here!

After this, Riikka gave us an hour tour through the streets of Helsinki and out along the waterside residential areas.  I particularly loved the new Helsinki Wave Library set is wide, open lawned areas.

We finally dropped her off outside Taro's home with lots of hugs and kisses and genuine love.  It has been so lovely to spend special time with her and to have time with the family generally.  We are already planning to catch up again when Riikka and Runo come out to Australia looking at job opportunities next March or April. 

Flying to Stockholm tonight, we say goodbye to Finland and watch some of their thousand of islands and islets dwarf as we move away, and the fingers of water that move into the countryside slip away.  As we near Sweden, the clouds start to appear.  Once we are over this coastline, it is evident that although there are some islands off the coast and rivers extending away from the coast, there is not as many as Finland.  And the forests here are denser, more tightly sown and yet another different green.  So close, and yet already we see the differences.











The clouds thickened, the cotton wool became denser, the plane shuddered a few times, buffeted by the storm and just under the hour later, we landed at Stockholm (Arlanda) airport.  I pulled my irksome ankle as we walked the half kilometre from the gate to the baggage claim area. So now I am really hobbling.

We caught a cab to the Raddison Blu Arlandia hotel and have already decided that we will book another night and have a rest day tomorrow to try to soothe it.  The cabbie told us it had been raining on and off today and we promised him clear skies tomorrow.  He laughed it off and we had to convince him that we have taken the sunshine everywhere we have been!


Dinner tonight was ordered in - Donna had a HUGE Caesar Salad with Chicken and I had the Swedish Meatballs with Lingonberries and mashed potato.  Nice to just veg.