Ten Things We Learned About Sweden!

Over the Labor Day Weekend, we ventured north to Sweden.  This was actually a rebooking of a previous trip.  You may remember that we were registered to run the Stockholm Marathon in May, but due to B's knee surgery date being the week before, he was obviously out of contention and unable to even travel if I had decided to run.  So we postponed the trip and decided to go another time.  We also decided that we would not go to Stockholm and instead rent a car and explore rural Sweden.  We settled on the Southeastern side of Sweden and enjoyed a long weekend exploring this not-so-touristy area.  Here are ten things we learned along the way:

Welcome to Sweden!

1. Not all Swedes have blonde hair and blue eyes....but they do all drive Volvos.
We went into the weekend thinking that everyone would look like that famous American Girl Doll Kirsten Larsen, but we were surprised to find that Sweden has a very large immigrant population.  Not sure if this has to do with their generous social benefits, but our dark complexions did not make us stand out at all. (Update!  The rising number of non-native Swedes has to do with the fact that Sweden does not require visas for residents of EU countries.  Many people from the "new" EU countries have found their way north because of this.)  There were many different ethnicities represented in the area where we were.  Although we did not experience this stereotype, we did notice that almost all Swedes drive a Volvo!  There were Volvos everywhere.

Volvos for everyone!

2. Swedes speak English.
Although the predominant language was Swedish, most Swedes spoke very good English.  They also seemed excited to use English.  Although we were mistaken for Germans on more than one occasion, we enjoyed their frequent use of English and their friendliness when using it. Our only issue came one night when ordering pizza.  The special was a pizza called Batsman, which we learned meant boatman/sailor.  We tried saying it like the superhero and the man could not understand at all what we were saying.  Apparently, it's pronounced like Botsman.

They spoke English, but nobody could tell me what Rhode Island dressing was.

3. Sweden is much similar to the US than Europe when it comes to alcohol.
Unlike the rest of Europe where the drinking age is low and alcohol is inexpensive, Sweden is much similar to the US.  Drinks are pricey and the legal drinking age is 20.  You can only buy beer (not wine or liquor) in a grocery store and the beer has a very low alcohol content (as mandated by the government).  Also, Sweden does not joke around about drinking and driving.  On Sunday morning at 9 am as we set out for the day, we were stopped at a mandatory checkpoint and B had to take a Breathalyzer to pass through.  Very interesting.

4. Sweden looks a lot like New England.
It's no surprise that Swedish immigrants settled in Maine, Canada and Minnesota.  Southern Sweden looks almost exactly like the woods of North America.  There are lots of lakes and birch trees.  I actually forgot that I was in Europe for most of the trip.

New Hampshire....or Sweden?

5. There must be a high population of Swedes with Celiac Disease.
Swedes take gluten-free food to a new level.  Almost every store and restaurant we went to had GF food and even fast-food places served a tallrik option.  A tallrik- the Swedish word for plate- was a platter of food instead of something with bread (a Hamburger tallrik was served on a plate sans bread).  Speaking of cuisine- the Swedes eat a lot like we do and they LOVE doner kebabs.

Swedish cuisine!

6. Sweden is moose country.
Much like New England, there were several signs for moose crossings.  We even enjoyed ourselves on a moose safari where we go up close and personal with these creatures.  Side note: in Sweden, moose are called "European Elk".

Moose Safari!

7. Everyone has a red house.
In Southern Sweden, many of the homes are painted the same shade of red.  We late discovered that this paint is made from the high iron concentration in the land and that the paint serves as a protectant for their wood homes.  Even we had a nice red cottage!

Our awesome cottage

8. Swedish summer ends in August.

We ventured out to the island of Oland (a large island in the Baltic) on a beautiful day only to find that most attractions were closed!  When August ends, so does the summer.  The place was deserted even though it was a beautiful September day.  Side note: Oland is the Swedish equivalent to Martha's Vineyard.

A beautiful day on Oland, but where is everyone?

9. Sweden is the birthplace of Pippi Longstocking.
Who knew?  The author of this series- Astrid Lindgren- was born in Vimmerby, which we decided to visit.  Nearby, they have recreated a Pippi Longstocking amusement park complete with a real-life Pippi!  Sadly, we decided to skip this.

In Vimmerby with Astrid Lindgren

10. Americans are a real rarity in Southern Sweden.
We made our base for the weekend in the lovely coastal town of Vastervik and everywhere we went, people were surprised to find that we were Americans.  Are you German?  British?  Australian?  We heard it all.  Everyone was surprised to find us in that area, but it felt about as close to home as anywhere we've been in Europe.

Visitors!

It wouldn't be summer without a visit from K & J Poles...and true to form, the traveling pair showed up in Italy mid-August during another (whirlwind, crazy, ambitious) visit to Europe.  Luckily this year, they knew how to operate our door, we knew more restaurants and places to visit with them and we all had a more relaxed time.

In between their travels to neighboring countries, they joined us for two weekend trips:

Weekend 1: Germany/Austria

The Tea House- Hitler's Eagle's Nest

During the long, hot summer last year we decided to book a hotel in Germany for this summer.  It happened to be the same weekend of the Poles visit so we all decided to head to Bavaria.  Although we have been in that area several times before (and are going back soon!), there were still a few sites we had not seen.  Unfortunately, K & J had seen the sites we had been too and vice versa.  We decided to head different directions- we went to Berchtesgaden where Hitler's Eagles Nest is located and K&J headed to the Neuchwanstein castles.

As you can see, it's quite the tourist attraction

Berchtesgaden is a town right on the German/Austrian border south of Salzburg that is known as the site of Hitler's mountaintop hideout.  It was the location of many top Nazi homes and bunkers in the hills in what was a favorite retreat place during World War II.  Although it was eventually bombed by the Allies near the end of the war, the bunkers and the tea house remain.  The tea house- or Kehlsteinhaus in German- is now a functioning restaurant, which is very strange because it's also a bit of a museum complete with a fireplace that Mussolini gave Hilter as a birthday present and a room dedicated to Eva Braun.  I honestly thought there would be a lot more substance to the whole place- the only real "history" is in the nearby Documentation Center, which is all in German (but with an English audio guide).  The bunkers were probably the best part and I don't have any pictures!

The birthday fireplace- right behind this is a modern restaurant

To get to the mountaintop, you must take a special German bus to an elevator that is powered by a UBoat engine.  The views are very nice on a clear day and we got enough of one to be able to see into the surrounding towns.  Speaking of surrounding towns, our tour made a stop in the town of Berchtesgaden.  The town was rather sleepy on an August afternoon, but picturesque nonetheless.
We met up with K&J for a nice German dinner and prepared for another day.

The town of Berchtesgaden

On day 2, the skies were picture perfect blue- a real rarity in Germany.  We decided that now would be the best time to attempt the Grossglockner Pass.  The Grossglockner is a high alpine road that connects Germany/Austria/Italy with magnificent views of the highest point in Austria and a glacier.  It also happens to be my father's absolute favorite sites in Europe and he has not stopped talking about it since his visit last fall.

The windy roads of the Grossglockner

Hi Dad!

The road is very scenic and we had the perfect day....

Really out of the way...

Unfortunately, we did not realize how out of the way it brought us and we spent the majority of the day in the car.  We ate all our snacks, listened to the same songs, stopped talking because we were tired of listening...it was a long day.

Weekend 2: Croatia


K&J really wanted to add as many countries to their travels as possible, so we ventured out to Croatia on the following weekend.  We decided to try the Istrian town of Rovinj on a recommendation from Rick Steves.  The seaside town did not disappoint...and neither did our accommodations.

The lovely apartment

We rented an apartment in a very residential section of town from a lovely lady who spoke no English.  Upon our arrival, she had her grandson attempt to translate for us, but his English was spotty and we got by with some hand signals.  The place was spacious, comfortable and in a cute neighborhood.

The rugged coastline

On Saturday, the weather was surprisingly very warm, so we ventured to the "beach".  I say "beach" because there was really no sand.  Instead, the Golden Cape coast is a combination of woods, bike path/walking path and rocks.  We were definitely in need of some good aqua socks in order to swim, but we were able to find a place to get in easily.  The water was very warm and enjoyable....until we saw a
massive Adriatic jellyfish.  My fear of all things aquatic initiated a very fast exit.  We can also cross off "Go to Nude Beach" from our bucket list as we ventured onto one while wandering around.

The Golden Cape

We enjoyed a lovely dinner right on the Rovinj harbor and walked around the Old Town, which just happened to be having a festival.  The city was packed with people, all the way past midnight and the fireworks show.  We also caught the performance of now famous Croatian cellists- Stjepan Hauser and Luka Sulic.  If you aren't familiar, check them out!

Rovinj Harbor at dinner

The downfall of the weekend came on our walk back to the apartment, which was a good distance from the Old Town.  My famous last words sounded something like..."We should just go back the way we came..." but my travel companions decided they knew a quicker way.  The quicker way got us lost near a Croatian nightclub in the woods where people were tailgating in the abandoned parking area nearby.  We were hopelessly lost without a map or any idea where we should go.  Eventually, we did make it back and argued for a while about whose decision-making got us back on the right track.

Entry to Old Town, Rovinj

On Sunday, we returned to Italy and bid K&J farewell with a nice dinner overlooking Vicenza.  We know they'll be back soon!