Cruising around Sweden

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It was going to happen sooner rather than latter, our lack of pre booking caught up with us on our first night in Stockholm. We had already had a massive day of travel which started at 4am and we finally got to get some sleep at 1am the following day.. It was going to happen though since we have been pushing or luck quite a bit and when we go to Stockholm we were walking around for 5 hours trying to find a place to stay at and it turned out to be the very last place we went to before the park was our place for the night.. So we had a sleep in the next moring before heading into the city, our first thoughts of this city is that we both could see our selved living here. Coming from Eastern Europe it is really easy, everything is organised, on time and it is also a nice city to be in. Not to big at all which we both really liked and the people really friendly.
We went to the historic museum and it would have to be near the best one that I have been to. The viking area there was awsome and really spooky when walking though with crushed in skulls and the old information they had. Also there is a gold room and we were very impressed with that place.
Lunch that day was an event for us as well, since we were starving from the day before we found a pizza hut that has buffet lunch and a couple of hours there was really well spent except for the sick feeling of course. That night we meet up with Peter, Crazy's friend from back home. He lived on the farm with his family for a year so it was good to catch up with him for a meal and a couple of beers.
Today was more relaxing than anything since Crazy man was heading back to London the next morning very early. We headed to one of the Islands in the city and somehow we came across an arcoligical site and what they digging up was a world trade fair that was held in Stockholm in the 1890´s so that very interesting to see. Just more walking around today the city before we headed out to meet up with Peter and one last meal before Crazy headed back to London. Well Stockholm really is a great city and for a capital quite small which is perfect!

Crazy man left very early and not the best seeing him hitting the road but it was bloody awsome travelling with him for the past few months. So on my own again I headed to Ostersund up central north in Sweden to get out in the country. It is a kinda small city in the middle of know where really and it was perfect for me. It is right next to a lake and surrounded by mountains, everything is green! All the way up there the scenery was fantastic and I couldn´t beleive how many lakes there are in Sweden! I meet up with my host David after he finished work and it seemed like we had know each other for years right away! We headed to some of is friends for a feast then headed out and what a fantastic night life this place has.. Sleepy during he day and flat out at night!
So we were sleeping in after the night before and then went walking around the city and over to the other side of the lake for some fantastic views back across the city. Now the next thing that we done would have to be one of the worst, but traditional experiances I have done. I am not to sure if anyone has heard of surströmming but it is the worst thing I have ever smelt and tasted in my life! What it is.... Herring is caught one year ago and then out in a barrel of water and salt and left for a year.. Then when rotten put in a tin to sell and thats it.. The result is surströmming (sour herring) it smells really like fart times 100 and the taste is just like salt. All the guts are still in them ahh it was horrible. Eaten with raw onion, spuds, sour cream, bread and a vodka shot with every mouth full. The flat was reaking and when friends turned up they just simply turned around and left!!

Anyway the next town I went to was just what I thought Sweden would be like, imagine a big traditional house in the middle of the forest, fruits on the trees to be picked at will, apple pie in the over all day long, our room with antlers on the walls, a lake 5 minutes walk, mountains surrounding the place and everything green. Does not get any better than that! The town is called Leksand pretty much in the center of Sweden and finally got to do some hiking with a German guy who was staying there as well. It was a good walk, we had no maps or anything so we just set our sights on a nice mountain and headed into the bush but we didn´t realise how thick it was going to be. So we got cut up quite a bit before we reached the top for the magnificant viwes.

Oh and by the way drinking is so expensive here... Everything is taxed 70% so the cheapest bottle of vodka is 40 Aus one stubbie 8 Aus os even more! But the food is fairly the same as back home, just a big shock coming from Eastern Europe comparing the prices.

Well that will do for the first half of Sweden and really could see myself coming back to this place sometime!

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Photos

Ostersund
The worst food ever!!

Comments

[Anna]

Stockholm seems a bit like a St.-Petersburg in Russia... absolutely amazing city! I'm sure the whole Sweden was awesome as well...:)