So here is the thing. If Denmark is the happiest place to live in the world (you need to read Living Danishly, but apparently it is), then Sweden must be a miserable place. The only thing is, they still all appear very happy. Confused… Here is my reasoning.
It is fairly clear that a week before we arrived in Sweden the Government issued an order that all of the nice little wooden houses need to be erected (exactly like the ones you used to get in kids Duplo sets or those seen in guide books). All woodwork must be given several coats of Red, Yellow or light Blue paint, except the window frames and fences which must be white. We don’t care if the kids are starving, get the place looking nice for the Kinvigs. An army of remote controlled grass cutting robots are carpet bombed across the countryside so every house has one continually keeping the grass at 18.5 mm. The drives are swept and all the cars are cleaned. Gardens must look like they come from the front of some Chocolate box (and I am talking good quality chocs here). All fields growing wheat or corn must have the regulation wild flowers growing in them. All woodland must have a mix of trees planted between the rocks. And finally all paths used to do all of this work must be removed so it all looks totally natural.
Now if I was asked to do that lot I would be fairly pissed (if not knackered). But it is the only explanation for the absolutely beautiful countryside that is Sweden.
(Oh and before we start, we have reduced the quality of the photos to make it easier to load. Hope that is ok)
Gothenburg
The thing that struck us about Gothenburg (other than Jenny being slightly upset that Batman did not live here – I had to explain that that is Gotham ), is how there is a total mix of architecture and styles, but it all works. Even the container dock looked beautiful with all of its multi coloured containers. This was a big tick in the box for me as I have always wanted to visit and I have to say I was not disappointed.
Jenny navigating us in through the outer harbour. Sun was warm but still a chilly see breezeContainer port (it looks a lot prettier in real life)I spotted these on the way in. Clearly if they don’t want you here you will find out fairly quickly.First view of the townBuilt out of the rock. They make a lot of use of copper roofing in Sweden and it really adds to the sky line.Even the bridges had a fresh coat of paint for our arrival. To match the copper roofs.Suburbia Gothenburg styleWould not have had this down as a building that dealt with shipping containers. Love the roof
We parked up in the very centre of the town in the city marina. It was high school graduation week when we were there so there was a number of party boats going up and down . Apparently it is always like that. The amazing thing was – come 11.00 pm everything stops , even on a Saturday night. So it was great. A real buzz about the place then when you want to go to sleep – bang , lights out.
There was a maritime museum next to the marina ( Jenny suggested I exhibit myself, I am not too sure what she meant…).
A fryken shipYe old stealth kayakTug boat from a micky mouse cartoonView back down the river. Despite all of the different types of architecture , we think it works.View from the back of the boat in the Marina. The “Viking” is a 1906 steel sailing ship that is now a hotel. So if you want to stay in a hotel that has sailed round Cape Horn this is for you. I did look at the prices and they looked ok. The building next to it is called the “lipstick” by the locals amongst a few other names. It was built in 1989 and is offices and residential .A view from the other side of the marina showing the Opera houseLots of Trams – New tramOld tram……we had to hang around for quite a long time for Andy to get a photo of an old tram but, as always, he got what he wanted in the end.I liked this fountain. It had five naked female bronze sculptures, one from each continent ( Africa, America, Asia, Europe and Oceania). The stamps round the edge are the stamps of the Swedish Iron merchants. I was allowed to stare. It is art you know….The Haga district ( nice little shopping district)Bit of sculpture. There was a load of deep and meaningful text about it but, in summary, it represents a drop of water hitting a lake and spreading outwards (associated with how education and equality spreads out )Some of the old city defencesWe were in the City at the same time a Pride week . Unfortunately we missed the festivities , but all the Trams had flags and may people were still waring Pride shirts etc.
The Trollhattan Canal
Now before we go further we need to clarify something. The Canal we used to get across Sweden is popularly called the Gota Canal, however technically it is 2 canals. The first starting at Gothenburg is the Trollhattan Canal, which is 80% just the river Gota with a Canal bit at the top. The Gota Canal starts at the first lake, is nothing to do with the river Gota and goes all the way to the east coast of Sweden (Simple, I will test you later). The key thing is the Gota Canal was designed by good old Thomas Telford who build the Caledonian Canal. So we have now done both of his largest engineering projects.
The trip stared with us getting under a lifting bridge that did not lift. I had called them on the Radio and asked for a lift as we are 17.5 plus about a meter of electronics. “Its ok came the reply” , “we are 19 meters, so you are fine”. “Are you sure” I say ( like the guy does not know the height of his own bridge ) “as the sign says 18.3”. “Yes” came the reply….. long pause….. ” just go slowly”. Oh good I think, rather than just ripping the electronics off quickly I will now have the pleasure of listening to them grinding off the underside of the bridge.Needless to say the boy knew his stuff and we passed under without so much as a kertwang!Next bridge opened but the light stayed at red so I gave them a call and they said I had to hold as a container ship was coming . Then a lady came on and said I was fine as long as we passed starboard to starboard (wrong side ) as she needed the room to manoeuvre. I said no problemYou cannot see her , but she waved and over the radio came “welcome to Sweden”Container ship, one careful lady ownerNice little hut at the end of the garden – there’s loads of these, everyone seems to have a garden room/ hut at the end of their gardens and most have a swim platform too.There are about 5 of these passenger boats that cruise up and down the Canal. you know they are not to be messed with as they use wooden fence posts as fenders!View up riverRiver side housingHoly Shit , someone has taken the wrong turning and we have found the Panama Canal. (it may not look like it from the pic but this is massive)At least we are not tight for spaceAt the Top of the wall of the previous photo. it is hard work as it is so deep there are little inlets up the wall to hook your ropes around. Problem is they are far apart. So what you need to do is make use of the boat hooks and the ladders that go down the side of the lock. Not a big issue on a calm day and no one else to bang into.The Canal Basin between locks. Note the old Canal staircase (a set of locks where the second gate from one lock becomes the first gate on the next one) on the left (B on the diagram later)A view back down the new stair case….. it doesn’t look all that deep when it’s full of water!lock gates…… now you start to get an idea of just how deep they really are.To give you a view this boat is just slightly smaller than us.Coming inUsing the ladderson the stair case the up hill gate is twice the heightbig boats come in as well…
This gives you a view of the locks. We went up route C.A view down route BNice clock on the cliffThe original Canal ( Route A)Route A from lower down
A bit overgrown, but imagine fending off against that rock wallMore of the original locks. I love the way nature takes over and re-establishes herself as soon as people ‘move on’our berth at the top of the locks
“Jenny, shall we go and have a look at the PowerStation?” I get the look. Really? we are in a beautiful area of the country and you want to go and look at a concrete building with some big noisy machines instead of a nice walk by the river (amazing how she can get all of that in one look). “It is only a short walk , then we can go somewhere nice. Honest.”. So off we go.
Well you know how I said the Swedes make the country look beautiful, well they do the same with power stations (eat your hart out Robin Kinvig).
Olidan was the Goverment’s first Hydro plant in 1909 and was the largest for some time. It was originally planned for 8 turbines, with the first 4 ready in 1910. By 1919 they had 13 turbines. 10 of which still work today with a capacity of 100MW
Andy using me to give a sense of scale to this picture of one of the turbines.Lets face it, this is a cool county emblem (clearly did not get the memo about the coat of paint) we originally thought it was only the electrical supply company – but it is on lots of local authority items. Maybe Batman does live in Sweden after all as I am sure his county would have a sign like this.Me being brave looking down the gorge
Dam controlling the water flow to the power plants. you cannot see but one of the pillars is carved into the face of a water sprite (apparently not a evil one, just a bit cheeky. Looks like an old man with a flat hat) It was drawn as part of the design of the dam by the lead architect.View from the bottom of the overflow looking down riverView up river, This is supposed to be spectacular when they open the dam….. he promised me a spectacular waterfall and this is all he could manage!This is the second and newer power station built totally underground in 1942 (a new turbine was added in 1992)Jenny disguising herself as an elk on the gorge walkView of the power station (by now Jenny had to admit that as walks go to see power stations, this was not bad)View down the riverBridge back across to the locks
Jenny and I both have a bit of a soft spot for Saab’s as we used to have a Saab 90 ( very rare in the UK as only 300 imported) so we went to the Saab museum. Jenny impressed one of the curators as they did not know that they had ever exported any Saab 90s to the UK. Always good to be a blonde girl with more car info than the experts, makes up for all the times I went into Halfords to buy bits for the Saab 90 and was told, “yes dear, your car doesn’t exist, what is it really?”
Hi tec. the Solar panels in the roof were used to cool the carOnly produced for the American market – a Saab SUVSomething funTwin engineSaab dad and Subaru mum made thisReminds us of Jenny’s parents SaabYes I did have to have a play….there was only one car so he won every race, made him a very happy champion boy!
Lake Vanern
One of the problems with touring Europe is gas supply. We normally use calor gas, but this is peculiar to the UK. In southern Europe they use camping Gaz and in Scandinavia they all have their own propane bottles ( butane freezes here in the winter). I managed to find one bottle of camping Gaz in a shed behind a harbour masters office so was pleased with myself as I can now get that exchanged in the major city locations (I had one already so two should keep us going).
Some nice stained glass sails. These looked spectacular when the sun was shining through them but I couldn’t get it to work in a photo, need some lessons in lighting I think.
A panorama of the little bay we found to spend our first night inSome wizard has left his hat stuck to a treeView of the boat with storm clouds building on the other side of the lake, we found out later that they had dumped a load of hail the size of golf balls on our next port of call and done thousands of pounds of damage to cars with roofs and bonnets all dented. We enjoyed sitting out listening to all the thunder rolling round us and only had one short burst of rain.Beautiful irises in the bayAll on our own – very niceNo point in going for a walk, the forest is impenetrable. I think my Elk impression is better!Found an old boat – this is the bow sectionJenny took some underwater picturesNo idea how old she was.We also saw a load of lily beds but too early for them to be on the surfaceJenny captured this beautiful picture of a damsel flyAnd anotherWhat big eyes you have….Brown one
Spiken (on lake Vanern)
Spiken is one of Europe’s largest fresh water harbours. Some of the catch goes to the fishmarket in Gotenburg but most is smoked and sold locally, and very good it is too!Sweden even manages to make it’s ‘large’ harbours look quaint and welcoming to visitors.
On the way in we saw this castle (Lacko Slott) and decided to have a closer look laterNot a brilliant pic , but these kids must be the envy of the neighbourhood as they have a slide into the lake. There were quite a few of these, I love the casual attitude the Swedes have to health and safety which allows their children to grow up being able to manage themselves confidently in any situation.A very narrow entranceA cheeky Gull…. Andy was eating his lunch right underneath this signpost!
There were loads of swallows nesting under the pier ( guess it was safe place for them)I think this has every type of cloud in one picture. A thing we have noticed is the Scandinavians (especially Sweden ) love big old American cars . Came across this lot at the entrance to the marina. At this time of year we are coming across 2-3 a day when out walking etc. No European sports cars, just big old lumps of US steel.
We went back to the castle that we passed on the way in. It was late in the day and the day before Mid Summer ( something they take very seriously in Sweden) so we decided to come back the following day Preparation work for the Mid Summer festivities We did the tour of the castle before the “frog dancing” began. – ye old time piece, requires “one large tower” to operate correctlyLacko Slott with medieval fayre setting up around the grounds.There was an exhibition of glass in the castle. You would never guess that these were from the 60’s would you. I love these, blue glass has always been my favourite colour and, yes, I do know that poison was always stored in blue glass but it’s still beautiful. This was rather cool . We liked the other view of the same item belowView of the back of the headSome very fine pistolsThis was our favourite peace, it was actually wearable. Better have your clean undies on! More from the 60s
Outside the festivities started, first with the pole being paraded through the crowdThen the erecting of the pole. Many of the girls and some of the men had fresh flower garlands in their hair
Once up, the dancing starts – (video of the dancing has been posted on Goodfeath facebook site)
The dances mainly consisted of a cross between Old MacDonald had a farm, with actions, and the hokey cokey . I loved the girl with the lollypop in the foreground. “Oy what are you looking at”Jen grabbed this snap of a Swedish girl with the home made garland. She did look like something out of a children’s book Viking ship in the grounds of the CastleWe went out on the bikes and found this beautiful little marina.There was an old boy just come back from fishing and tried to make us take one of his catch. Alas we did not have a bag. Good size fish. We chatted for ages. turns out he has prostrate cancer which was so sad as he was clearly one of life’s characters. He promised to come to Scotland if he survived the winter. Eventually his wife called him and he had to go. Jenny and I talked on the way back and both felt privileged to have met him. Funny how some people you meet have such an impact on you.Picture of traditional Swedish fencing One very old buildingThis is just the typical country houses they have in Sweden Again , nothing special, just an old barn. But helps you get the idea of how picture book the country is.View across a wheat field – loads of wild flowersThe Bromptons doing well on some single trackSome beautiful tracks through the woods
Lake Vattern
We went and visited a museum in Karlsborg at the start of the lake. This is the entrance to the museum. The museum is on a working army base inside an old fort. The fort was built to act as a second capital of Sweden (in land) if needed. Even the gold reserves of Sweden were to be guarded in the fort in times of trouble. It was started in 1819 but not operational until 1870. Covering over 250 acres it is still one of Northern Europe’s largest buildingsYes, I do know what one of these is. He did try his best to put on a washing without any help but having the instructions in Swedish didn’t help.Locking up in the Gota. They don’t hang around when they let the water in . It is like white water rafting on a fragile plastic raft jammed in a concrete boxJenny armed with trusty boat hook.Locking upLocking up
We found another beautiful inlet to stay for a couple of days. Time to practice some paddle boardingGoing for a swimJen on the board, I don’t think I’ll ever get the stability in my ankles, knees and hips to stand up but it’s lovely knelling and paddling around so that’ll do me!view out the back of the boatDining roomNice sunsetI promised myself that I would try and learn the guitar on this trip . Guess I had better stay out for a couple more years at current rate of progressJenny’s blanket construction (yep, we definitely need a couple more years)Jacques Cousteau Jenny taking pics of some small fish. I adjusted the settings on my camera and can now see what I’m pointing the camera at, which helps!Small fish hiding – I watched for a wee while and the two of them kept peeking out from behind the branch at me.found you!Bit small for dinnerAnchor well set
This nice old boat came past
The Gota Canal
Some beautiful wild flowers beside the canal – all the verges were like this, many had even more variety in them.More wild flowers (playing with the de-focus setting on my camera!)Beautiful part of the Canal , if not a little narrow
We were glad to be following someone who’d been here before for this stretch, the channels are very narrow and, if you stray out of them, very, very shallow.Unfortunately I did not have my camera out in time , but there was a young osprey in the nest on this box 7 locks in a row making it the biggest staircase on the Canal . We did this when the temperature was over 30 deg. A little warm. On a quick day, you can get through this in about an hour…. we did, as we had to be clear of the locks for one of the passenger boats coming up. No shade, no rest and very hot…..I had to have a wee lie down when we got out at the bottom! Many houses have little paths to swim platforms on the Canal . Some people like to show off!We met this girl trying to get her kayak in the water after passing a lock gate . She was getting exasperated as no one would let her pass through their land to get back on the Canal. So Jenny and I helped her . Turns out she is a travel writer/blogger who does all sorts of adventures. She was doing the whole of the Canal. Linda has a web site called wilderness-stories.com. Worth a look if you get the chance – some good pics
Norskoping
We met up with this other UK boat and joined up for a couple of days.We did a day trip into Norskoping , described as the Manchester of Sweden (well it did rain). The likeness is due to the mill trade as Norskoping was the centre of weaving in Sweden. We particularly liked this cactus garden as it made us think of Dugald, who has tried, mostly successfully, to grow cacti most of his life. He reckons that even he could keep this garden alive!This waterfall is the overflow from the old mills, the stream seems to run all the way through the town. In the entrance to the Stadsmuseum there was a Mother’s Day exhibition, lots of very pretty hearts and this amazing tree with silk heart leaves.A bit of yarn bombing…Must be one of the longest scarves in history, Doctor Who must be very jealous!One of the large looms on display, most are still in full working order and they sell tea towels and other products made from their own cloth in the shop. We were lucky enough to be there in time for one of the working demonstrations….. so noisy, can’t begin to imagine what it would have been like to work in a factory with 20 or so going at the same time.Most of these looms are controlled by using punch pattern cards, a process developed in Soderkoping and subsequently used all over the World.This loom produces most of the product sold in the shop using this pattern.The dancing bobbins. A very clever machine which plaits threads into cords and can even wrap electrical cords in woven thread straight from the machine. Some of you may be old enough to remember that pendant lights used to have fabric covering their electrical cables, this is the machine that does that. Video of it and one of the looms working is on Goodfeath Facebook page.A carding machine….. fleece goes in at one end and thread comes out the other… ingenious.Just loved these hats….
Soderkoping
After a very windy and stressful day getting blown around in the locks with our new British friends (Neil and Jill), we decided to stop here and wait for the wind to die down and the storm to pass. Fortunately, it was a good place to stop, quite quiet despite it actually being a caravan and camper site and nobody else was using the laundry room, so I got all caught up with the washing. It was an easy walk or cycle into Soderkoping town which we did both days. Neil and Jill had decided to carry on into the big marina in town, when we met up later, they were wishing they’d stayed with us as getting safely tied up had been a horrid and difficult process.There are statues and works of art all over the country, I loved this one. It’s called Rabbits Crossing and has it’s own, official yellow road sign. I didn’t get a photo of the other side of the canal but the rabbits were diving into the water to be safely pulled out by their friends on this side.
Monet or Manet? I can’t quite decide.We walked into town through the woods one day, beautiful paths with mountain bike tracks and sitting areas with benches and tables. So much time has been put into making the country accessible, and well worth it, we saw lots of people of all ages, using the paths and enjoying their countryside. It’s a long way down…..This amused Andy – a church with a spare spire, just in case! We met up with some German people we had (not literally) bumped into at different points all the way through the canal and they were saying that one of the 200 year old trees around the church was blown down in the winds the night after we took this photo.Andy’s favourite bit of all, planning for the next adventure……..
Wow, what fantastic adventures – sights, smells and tastes. The colours and architecture is charming, beautifully decorated by surrounding arts. What a feast for the soul. As always, great narration and your photos are magical. Stay safe. Looking forward to catching up on your forthcoming fun days and evenings. Iluska x
The country side looks wonderful. I agree walking the the power stations is always a great idea. Robin would concur I’m sure. Glad to see you managed to get into the water. Have a great time and the question is how long do you need to be pout there for Andy to learn the guitar.
Feath 
Wow, what fantastic adventures – sights, smells and tastes. The colours and architecture is charming, beautifully decorated by surrounding arts. What a feast for the soul. As always, great narration and your photos are magical. Stay safe. Looking forward to catching up on your forthcoming fun days and evenings. Iluska x
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The country side looks wonderful. I agree walking the the power stations is always a great idea. Robin would concur I’m sure. Glad to see you managed to get into the water. Have a great time and the question is how long do you need to be pout there for Andy to learn the guitar.
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Good to see the trip continues, Hilary loves the pictures though struggles a little, awaiting eye op.
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