Mini Sweden Adventures

Sweden is a relatively small country (about two-thirds the size of Texas) and is easy to navigate, making day trips and explorations very accessible. While living there for a six-month “Sweden Adventure” in 2019, I found pleasant surprises everywhere thanks to the country’s geographic and architectural beauty and diversity.

One of my excursions was to Lulea, in the sub-arctic, northern region of Sweden. You can read about that here.

A wintertime day trip took me outside of the city center, but that excursion started as a mystery when a friend invited me to join a group heading to a new “Fika” spot. Fika is the word that Swedes use to describe meeting for coffee, tea, and a snack or pastry. It’s an opportunity to pause and catch up with others. I went along without asking any questions about our destination, assuming we were going somewhere in the city. So I was surprised when we hopped onto the subway and traveled twenty minutes outside Stockholm.

Karla Cafe - one of my favorite fika spots - in Ostermalm

When we exited the train, I had no idea where we were. Looking around in confusion, I saw only convenience stores and squatty apartment complexes jumbled around the station. What could be our reason for leaving beautiful Stockholm, with its many lovely Fika spots, to go to this uninspiring place for coffee?

As the group started walking, my curiosity level was pretty high. The snowplow tractors had done their work, clearing snow off the sidewalks that wove between the many drab buildings while leaving behind a layer of ice that threatened to take us all down. I felt thankful for my ice spikes.

After about ten minutes, we emerged from between the buildings onto a road. I finally understood the reason for our trip, as a beautiful, old house, hidden until now by the apartment complexes, suddenly appeared before us. Called Konditori Lyran, our destination was a historic home-turned-restaurant right on the banks of Lake Mälaren, the third-largest freshwater lake in Sweden. It was a delightful surprise, an inviting place to warm up with friends in the middle of the harsh Sweden winter.

With the warmer weather of April came a lovely day trip organized by two of my husband’s Swedish colleagues to their hometown of Uppsala, just north of Stockholm. This destination had been on my list of places to see, but I hadn’t had time to make the trip.

Beautiful and welcoming, Uppsala is the fourth-largest city in Sweden and is home to Uppsala University. Founded in 1477, the school is the oldest one still operating in the Nordic countries. Famous graduates include the father of modern taxonomy, the inventor of the Celsius scale, the co-founder of Skype, eight Nobel Prize laureates and countless musicians, writers, politicians, and clergy members.

After beginning our day with Fika, we took an arranged tour of the storied Uppsala Cathedral with an American guide. The church, built at the end of the Viking Era, had a fascinating history, and I highly recommend visiting with a guide to share its lore.

Other highlights included seeing the incredible architecture of the church and the tomb of Gustav Vasa, the famed king of Sweden in the 16th century, whose three wives were buried with him.

After the church tour, we visited the oldest building of the university, Gustavianum. Inside, there was a beautiful theater where the famous Orphei Drängar choir was rehearsing for an afternoon concert. The choir was born in 1853 during a cholera epidemic when students gathered in the cafeteria and began singing to escape their feelings of sadness and despair.

My new friends treated me to a traditional Swedish lunch in the famous Domtrappkallaren restaurant. I enjoyed my new favorite dish, Wallenbergare - finely minced veal combined with egg yolk and cream. Afterward, we toured the canal that ran through the middle of town and visited the park before heading back to Stockholm on the train.

In May, spring came to stay, and so did one of my sons and his friend. One of the highlights of their ten-day visit was a bike trip around the island of Djurgarden in Stockholm, where we stumbled upon an antique car show and auction. Bikes are available for rental by the bridge at the island’s entrance, off Strandvagen. (Strandvagen itself is a highly-recommended sight to see - one of the most scenic walks in the entire city).

Djurgarden is the perfect picnic destination, or you can stop at one of the numerous delicious lunch spots. My two favorites are Skroten Cafe (full of nautical salvage and tucked in a hard-to-find spot like a secret gem), or the very cozy Flikorna Helin, with its yummy sandwiches, desserts, and scenic location near the water.

In May, during my middle son’s visit from the States, we went on an overnight trip to Gotland. Gotland is a small island (part of Sweden) off the coast of the mainland, in the Baltic Sea. Reached from Stockholm by taking a 45-minute bus ride and then traveling for three hours by boat through the archipelago and into the sea.

Gotland served as an essential point of commerce during the Viking Era, and the well-preserved remains of the medieval city walls around its capital of Visby are still standing. Plus, the island has sheep, which is the reason why I had always wanted to visit.

A peaceful journey across the Baltic to the island of Gotland

During the middle ages, each parish on the island had its own church, so there are over ninety medieval church ruins to explore. In addition, Gotland’s Viking towns, caves, beaches, limestone “stacks” (high limestone rock formations on the beaches), and other surprises make it a delightful place to explore.

We rented mopeds in Visby, Gotland’s capital, and rode to limestone caves north of the city. Unfortunately, the rental company didn’t include visors on the helmets, so we were met with bugs and dust in our faces. With proper equipment, it would have been a fun way to explore the island. Sadly, the caves had just closed when we arrived, and we decided to cut our moped adventure short, save our eyes, and return to the city. We learned that it is best to rent earlier in the day, and call ahead to make sure the caves will be open for visitors.

After checking into the beautiful Donner’s Hotell, we set out to explore the old city. Making reservations was easy through online travel sites. Around every corner on the winding old streets of Visby, there were shops, church ruins, beautiful homes, and cute eateries to enjoy. We ate delicious crepes on the patio at Creperie & Logi for dinner and watched the slow sunset, which was late since the days were much longer in May.

Following dinner, we went walked past church ruins, through the botanical garden, and to one of the towers of the medieval city wall. The weather was perfect; long after the sun went down, there was still plenty of light to illuminate the beautiful ruins.

After a peaceful night of sleep and a full breakfast (which included the dreaded pickled herring, yuck), we rented a car and headed to Fårö, a small island just north of Gotland. When renting ahead, be sure the agency is located in town, not at the airport, or you have to take a cab to pick it up. We rented from an agency directly across from our hotel, then drove straight to the Fårö ferry, approximately forty minutes from Visby. We wished we had more time to explore the island’s famous limestone stacks, but we had a boat to catch to Stockholm late that afternoon.

Along the way, we saw many of the sheep for which Gotland is famous. With my love of all things “sheep,” each sighting made me very happy.

Our explorations made us hungry, but finding lunch wasn’t an easy task. Finally, we came to a crossroads in the middle of nowhere, and as we tried to decide which direction was more likely to take us to food, we saw what looked like a junkyard to the left. My son, searching for lunch options on his phone, thought that the dilapidated, sketchy building across the street was a restaurant. I didn’t believe him, but being quite hungry, decided to check.

We had serious doubts as we pulled into the grassy “parking” area, full of old junk cars and rusted bicycles, but the cars in the lot and a sign with three names on it suggested there may actually be food nearby. Winding our way through a flowered path and past an old 1930s car with a mattress and dresser inside, we found the entrance to a rundown building.

Inside, we found a charming and eclectic restaurant with friendly owners. We ate in the backyard, next to a peaceful field of flowers and a bunch of junk. By the time we left, a bus had pulled up, and the restaurant was packed.

We didn’t have much time to return to Visby and catch our ferry, so we made our way back to town directly after lunch. With just a few minutes to spare, we purchased some souvenirs at the quaint shops in town before boarding our boat to head back to Stockholm.

It was a memorable and packed adventure. Next time, I would stay at least two nights to take in more of the sights and history without having to rush.

A few weeks later, my husband and I, along with several of his colleagues, enjoyed visiting the Svenska Curlingforbundent (Swedish Curling Club)in Danderyd, just north of Stockholm City. There, we not only learned how to play the Olympic sport known as “curling,” but we also managed not to break bones! Quite a feat. It was clear that we wouldn’t be appearing in the Olympics anytime soon.

After a couple of hours in the icy cold curling center, we all enjoyed a delicious and memorable meal in the home of one of my husband’s colleagues. Swedish dinner parties are delightful because of the terrific spirit of welcome and hospitality.

Six months was not nearly enough time to see all of the beauty and surprises in Sweden, nor was it adequate time to spend with the dear people I met. I can’t wait to go back.

Sunset in Visby - photo cred Bennett Hayes

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