Travelrific® Travel Journal
Picture postcards in prose.™ Check out the blogroll on the front page for official merchandise and other resources!Archive for sweden
A Taste of Sweden in Kansas
By Linda Tancs
Dubbed “Little Sweden,” Lindsborg, Kansas, is a small town with a Scandinavian flair abounding in Swedish food, festivals, crafts and traditions. Retaining a strong immigrant population, it was originally settled in the spring of 1869 by a group of Swedish immigrants from the Värmland province led by Pastor Olof Olsson. Highlights include the Välkommen (Welcome) Trail, a 3.25-mile, all-weather bicycle and pedestrian trail created from the abandoned Missouri-Pacific and Union Pacific rail beds. You can also take a self-guided tour of the historic properties in the city, featuring Italianate, Neoclassical and Queen Anne architectural styles. And you can’t help but notice the colorful Dala horses all around town. Emblematic of the city, the Dala horse is a traditional carved, painted wooden statue of a horse originating in the Swedish province of Dalarna.
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Billed as the Great North American Eclipse, a total solar eclipse will cross North America on April 8, 2024, passing over Mexico, the United States and Canada. The path of the eclipse begins in Mexico, entering the United States in Texas, and traveling through Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. The eclipse will enter Canada in Southern Ontario, and continue through Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Cape Breton. This will be the last time any solar eclipse will be visible within the United States until 2045.
Be prepared! So long as supplies last, you can purchase eclipse glasses and other accessories, like a phone app and photo filter, from American Paper Optics, a NASA-approved manufacturer.
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A Unique Treasure in Stockholm
By Linda Tancs
Located on the island of Djurgården, the Vasa Museum is a maritime museum in Stockholm, Sweden. One of the most-visited museums in Scandinavia, it displays the only 17th-century ship that has ever been salvaged, the 64-gun warship Vasa that sank on her maiden voyage in 1628. Decorated with hundreds of carved sculptures, more than 98 percent of the ship is original. A film about the ship is offered in several languages as is an audio guide.
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Sweden’s Lake Monster
By Linda Tancs
Scotland has Nessie. Vermont has Champy. Sweden has Storsjöodjuret, the legendary monster residing in Storsjön, the country’s fifth largest lake located in Jämtland. Some reports indicate sightings as far back as the 1600s. According to lore, the creature sports a serpent-shaped body and a dog-like head. Besides monster hunting, boating and fishing are popular activities at the lake. In fact, there are almost 20 different species of fish, particularly trout, char, pike, perch, grayling, whitefish, roach and lake. Fishing is free for young anglers; otherwise, a permit is required.
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Moose-Spotting in Sweden
By Linda Tancs
Summer is a great time for moose-spotting in Sweden. And we’re not talking about zoos or farms. You can spot them in their native habitat in a forest in Skinnskatteberg, just two hours from Stockholm. That’s where you’ll pick up a 5-hour moose safari beginning in the early evening, where you may also see fox, deer, owls, wolves or lynxes. The journey begins on foot with a walk through a taiga forest abundant in moss and berry bushes for an orientation of the ecosystem, followed by a minivan safari ride. Although the largest number of moose is spotted in May, June and July offer the best lighting conditions for photography.
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Disgusting Food
By Linda Tancs
One man’s meat is another man’s poison, the saying goes. Keep that in mind when you visit Sweden’s Disgusting Food Museum in Malmö. Boasting 80 exhibits, you’ll find specimens like roasted guinea pig from Peru, maggot-infested cheese from Sardinia and pungent bean curd from China. You can smell and taste some of them. Bon appétit!
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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Neo-Futurism in Sweden
By Linda Tancs
Sweden’s third largest city, Malmö is quite literally a city of twists and turns. That’s where you’ll find the Turning Torso, a neo-futurist residential skyscraper giving a twist to the cityscape in the Western Harbour. The tallest building in Scandinavia, it rises to 623 feet and comprises nine cubes with a total of 54 stories, topped off with a 90-degree twist from base to top.
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As coronavirus proceeds, it is likely that the vast majority of us will be limited in our travels. But this, too, shall pass. Our love for travel remains, so Travelrific will continue offering travel inspiration in this medium. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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The Town of Cycling
By Linda Tancs
In the center of Sweden lies Örebro, one of the largest municipalities in the country. It boasts the moniker “the town of cycling.” And why not? With numerous parks, countryside and nature reserves, it presents the perfect opportunity for biking, which is why the town has plenty of cycle lanes and bikes for rent. Wherever you bike, it’s hard to miss the castle. The medieval fortress stands on an islet in the river Svartån in the city center. Start your visit at the castle’s visitor center, which offers great views of the river and the Storbron bridge. The city is well connected by train from Stockholm or Gothenburg.
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As coronavirus proceeds, it is likely that the vast majority of us will be limited in our travels. But this, too, shall pass. Our love for travel remains, so Travelrific will continue offering travel inspiration in this medium. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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Sweden’s Wild Heart
By Linda Tancs
One of Europe’s oldest national parks, Sarek National Park in the Swedish Lapland is considered the continent’s last true wilderness. That’s probably true. Aside from the fact that there’s no road leading into it, it has an amazing variety of wildlife, including Europe’s largest moose, tons of reindeer, bears, wolverine, lynx and golden eagles. It’s remote, the ancestral land of the Sámi people. It contains six of Sweden’s highest mountains, almost 100 glaciers and dense vegetation in the Rapa Valley, the park’s largest valley. Enjoyable any time of year, it’s nearing on winter season, the longest. That means snow-illuminated tundra and Northern Lights. Hike in, ski in or take a helicopter drop.
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The Key to the Kingdom
By Linda Tancs
Sweden’s Kalmar Castle traces its origins to the 12th century. Because of its strategic location it was known as the key to the kingdom, a medieval fortress protecting against pirates and other enemies. The Vasa kings Gustav, Erik XIV and Johan III rebuilt the medieval castle into a Renaissance palace, and it remains today one of the best preserved Nordic Renaissance castles. Guided tours are offered daily.
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A Match in Sweden
By Linda Tancs
The next time you strike a match, think of Jönköping, Sweden, site of the world’s only matchstick museum. This southern city was a match-producing capital beginning in the 1800s; by 1858 it was churning out 12 million matchboxes a year. The factory-turned-museum explores the history of the matchstick and introduces both the people and the machines that built the industry.
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