Stockholm: Vasa Museum and Skansen

Sorry for the radio silence for the last few days, but we were in Norway without our computers. Before telling you about that trip (spoiler alert: spectacular!), I must go back to our earlier doings.

On Saturday, June 20, we took the now familiar UL commuter train into Stockholm. Since CJ had not yet been to the Vasa Museum, our plan was to go there immediately upon arrival, spend a couple of hours, and meet my/our old friends Jim and Andrea afterwards for additional sightseeing. Jim, as some of you may know, was my traveling companion on a European trip in 1976 when we were both undergraduates. Since then, he earned his PhD, has a career in academia, and is now on sabbatical at the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm.

When we arrived in the city, it was drizzling and, as we walked the mile or so to the museum, the drizzle turned into a downpour. And then the wind picked up so, upon arrival, we were somewhat damp. Or soaked, depending on your perspective. However, once indoors, we dried out rather quickly and the weather failed to dampen our spirits. HA HA HA!! You had better laugh, that may be the only joke you are going to get.

As you may remember from a previous post, the Vasa was a huge Swedish warship that sank on its maiden voyage in Stockholm harbor in 1628. Like many if not most engineering disasters, this one was caused by management (in this case the king of Sweden) demanding a design that was not feasible in the real world. The ship was raised in 1961 and what you see in the museum is 98% original materials.

I didn't have my good camera with me on my previous visit to the Vasa, but this time I did. It is very dark in the museum and the ship is made of dark colored wood, so photography is a challenge. It turns out that a little digital post-processing helps a lot. Here is what you see when you walk into the display gallery.  I think the multiple points of light are shiny highlights reflecting my flash.

The Vasa. For scale, note the people at the lower right.

This is a model of the Vasa showing the original colors

Closeup of some of the carvings on the stern

Mockup of what the same area looked like with the paintwork intact

The upper deck

A toilet or head. Comfy looking, no?

Lots of rigging. Good view of the shrouds.

Mockup of the officers' quarters

One of the reasons for the Vasa's existence

One last look...

We had short and simple lunch with this guy nearby...

So proud to be an American

Afterwards, we met Jim and Andrea and took a tram to Skansen, which is the world's first open-air museum (it was built in 1891). It has traditional rural buildings from all over Sweden and features costumed guides to tell you about everything. Also a zoo!

Typical 18th-19th century farm buildings

A rune from the Upplands region (of which Uppsala is a part)

Eurasian Brown Bear

An uncommonly handsome moose. What a noble visage.

This being Midsomer Day, of course dancing around the maypole is a must. As you can see, the weather improved since the morning but the earlier deluge had left the dancers cavorting in a muddy field. However, the Swedes and tourists made the most of it. Jim and Andrea took an active part in the festivities while we contented ourselves with being onlookers.

Dancing 'round the Maypole

I thought this lady looked exceptionally Swedish

Part of the band

Tiny houses used for farming. No electricity, no plumbing. We saw some of these little summer farming houses still in use just outside Uppsala.

Inside a tiny farmhouse

17th century printing press (made of wood)

17th century printing press

Mid 19th century piano in a mockup of the printer-owner's household (see above, re the printing press)

Ferdinand Boberg's Observatory built in 1910. Boberg was an architect and amateur astronomer. The observatory was never actually used for real astronomical research.

The Seglora Church, built in the 18th century, was disassembled and moved to Skansen in 1916. The Swedes not being much into religion these days, it is mostly used for weddings.

Seglora Church

Seglora Church. The roofing patterns caught my eye.

The altar in the Seglora Church. Note all of the painting on wood behind the altar.

Seglora Church: painting directly on the wooden wall

A field of flax (the sails for the Vasa were also made of flax). Does flaxen-haired mean someone has green hair?

A couple of old friends (or, as the photographer says, jolly gents)

By this time, we were all getting hot and tired so we adjourned to a small cafeteria for beer and snacks. At least I think I had a beer. I know the others did.

After regaining our strength, we got on the tram, went to central Stockholm, and walked over to Gamla Stan (the old part of town) in search of dinner. Choices were limited due to the holiday so we settled, believe it or not, on the Texas Longhorn Steakhouse (which is not actually an American restaurant). Oddly enough, there were some vegetarian options in spite of the fact that Scandinavians are seriously into meat and fish. We had a pleasant meal sitting outside as the weather cooled down. Eventually, we were eating in our jackets, and by the end, Andrea wrapped the blanket, thoughtfully provided by the restaurant, over her legs. As we walked out of Gamla Stan this was the scene on the first day of summer:

Swedes are serious about their outdoor time; these are more restaurant-provided blankets

We were out quite late and it was nearly midnight when we arrived back in Uppsala. As we were crossing the river, I just had to take this picture of midnight in Uppsala on the summer solstice.

Summer Solstice midnight at 60 degrees of latitude