Northern Europe 2019, day 6: Stockholm (day)

Our first stop was the island of Kymmendö, which took about three hours. On the way, we passed by many scenic shorelines with old (from the 1850’s) and newer homes.

Although it has been mild in Stockholm, it certainly got cold and windy on the boat. But that didn’t stop Casey from having a good time!

The older homes have the “gingerbread” design on them. These were built in the 1850’s by naval officers for their families.

Lots of Swedes rent or own summer homes on the islands.

Anne: Nice!

On Friday, we took a cruise around the Stockholm Archipelago. Stockholm is a city that’s divided by waterways, so there are tons of bridges and some of the neighborhoods created naturally (by virtue of being a mini-island). The Archipelago is a series of islands further out from the city; some are super small (like less than 10,000 square feet) while others are the size of a city. Some islands are close to Stockholm, while others are further out and take a couple of hours to get to.

We docked at Kymmendö and had about 45 minutes to explore the island. Kymmendö is very small and everything is owned by the same family. They rent out small cabins in the summer.

We took a gravel road around the island which ended in a small farm. Kymmendö was the home of a famous (to the Swedes) author named August Strindberg. There were a few sheep and a couple of horses, as well as some rickety bikes that passed by us on our walk. Casey said this must be where the Tyler Place gets their bikes…

We found a little friend…Casey is an expert frog-catcher.

Elsine: super tiny…bet Ann loved it and wanted to bring the frog home…

Back on the boat and time for lunch! They had a buffet with traditional Swedish foods.

Elsine: awww …awesome picture…

I had cured salmon, cold baked salmon, Swedish deviled egg with mini shrimps, cheese, bread, and potatoes. Someone told us that potatoes are the number one food in Sweden, then meatballs, then dark pickled herring. But you can’t have meatballs without potatoes, either boiled or mashed.

On our way to the next island, Bullerö. It’s a nature reserve and was the home of a well-known Swedish artist, Bruno Liljefors.

Anne: Casey and Anna look happy. Beautiful spot!

The water was stunning! We were so lucky with the weather; the forecast called for rain in the afternoon but it remained dry the entire day.

Elsine: beautiful picture

It was so beautiful! There were lots of wild flowers and tall grasses, as well as some goats grazing in the distance.Anna tried to get to them but the terrain is actually pretty rocky, and they were standing just out of reach.