Sweden - Uppsala and Gamla Uppsala

Folksy Music
If you liked the folksier music of ABBA you'll probably enjoy Nordman. ) Glad you had an enjoyable second day as well. :)

The burial mounds
I remember seeing those burial mounds myself the olny time I did some sightseeing in Uppsala myself (alsmost 30 years ago). We have plans on going to Uppsala some time. It just never happens because it is too easy to go there for us. Did you know that Carl Linnaeus worked out of Uppsala. I Think his old home still stands there and it might be a museum today. If you are into Viking history you need to visit Birka, a Viking settlement (no, rather Viking City) in Lake Mälaren. I guess you didn't see it this time because there is no boat traffic running there in winter. In summer, during vacation season, there are boats going there and the museum is open and they have guided tours. /Ake

Trains, music, and burial mounds
I could hear you enjoying your Abba as the train moved swiftly north. This location has a lot of spiritual energy and significance from the sounds of it. Beautiful architecture.

So much history!
I really knew nothing about Uppsala at all before reading your excellent account of it. Ironically, I have a travel blogger friend who lives there (or closeby) and I have met her twice at "Euromeets" which I mentioned in some of my blogs. BTW, I used to like Abba's music quite a bit. Nice photos, Alex!

Erikleden Pilgrimage
My wife Linda has called off our Scotland trip planned for Aug 2020. So I am looking for an alternative with pilgrimages being something she has agreed to in the past. And I have an ancestral link. Recently, through a distant cousin, I learned that my ancestor, Galfridus FitzWalter de Northcote, was related to the Vikings who occupied Normandy. His five times great grandfather was Rollo "The Viking" Rogenwaldsson, the 1st Duke of Normandy which the king of France gave to him in return for keeping other Vikings from attacking Paris. Rollo "The Viking" participated in the attack on Bayeux, Normandy in 890 after being banished to the Orkney Islands in 876. Rollo descended from three Earls of North Trondelag, Norway and four Kings of Vestfold, Norway. The first of these kings came from Sweden (which somewhat explains my 7% Swedish DNA match), and were descendants of 19 kings of the Yngling dynasty, as recounted in the Yngling Saga, which goes all the way back to 240 AD. Yngling means descendants of Freyr, a Norsk God who was likely immortal, and his wife Gerd, the daughter of a giant. Beowulf also features in this saga. This line goes back 60 generations and 1760 years! So now I am planning at trip to Oslo and Uppsala.

Erikleden Pilgrimage
It is finally time to visit my ancestors in Scotland. Linda decided not to come, as my itinerary was intimidating! I will be in Scotland from 23 Aug to Sunday 4 Sep. I've decided to fly from there to Stockholm that day, stay at an airport hotel (probably the Radisson Blu). I will spend Monday 5 Sep taking the train to Uppsala where I will walk the Erikleden Pilgrimage to Gamla Uppsala where some of my Viking ancestors are buried. I will take the train back to Stockholm for some sightseeing, and towards evening return to the airport hotel. I fly home on Tuesday, 6 Sep. Thanks for your blog which inspired me!