SWEDEN

We drove into Sweden from Norway, then traveled north to see the best scenic sights. Sweden is a pretty country, with gently rolling hills covered in forests,

with lots of green fields, rivers, and lakes.

Mile, after mile, after mile, after mile of the same pretty thing.

It was not fair to Sweden to visit it after the dramatic fjords of Norway. But sometimes, the green was broken up by fields of flowers,

And the only wildlife we saw in Scandinavia was in Sweden. We came around the corner and found this caribou on the road

and his very rare albino buddy nearby.

One of the most famous products of Sweden is hand-painted wooden horses. We visited one of the factories where they are made.

Blocks of wood are marked,

and then the horses are cut out.

The uncomplicated horses come in mass quantities of all sizes.

Most are spray painted red.

Then a design is hand-painted on them.

The smallest is priced at around $30, and a 12-inch high goes for about $300.

Frankly, the most impressive thing I found about the factory was that they convinced people that these straightforward horses were worth the outrageous prices they were asking.

In western Scotland, we went for 100 miles, where every house was painted snow white and had a black roof. In Sweden, 75% of the homes and outbuildings are painted a dark brownish red. Most of the buildings not painted red are yellow.

A meteor hit central Sweden 380 million years ago, blasting a hole that created a circle of lakes and tilted all the rocks.

This made a lovely gorge we hiked, with a narrow overlook,

with a shear drop-off.

Nearby is an old limestone rock quarry that was going to be filled with water to make another lake until an opera singer discovered it had terrific acoustics. Now it is a concert venue.

Stockholm, the capital of Sweden, is a fun city with lots of waterways,

and narrow streets.

We toured the royal palace,

which is over the top in typical regal fashion.

The Royal Chapel is much more elaborate than most Protestant churches because it needed to show the king's grandeur.

One of the best things in Stockholm is the Vasa Ship Museum. In 1626, Sweden was a significant military power in Europe. Between 1626 and 1628, one of the mightiest European warships was built in Sweden as part of the military expansion into Poland. The ship was designed to shock and awe Sweden’s enemies. It was decorated with over 700 sculptures and had two decks of cannon.

Unfortunately, the ship was dangerously top-heavy. While it was being towed out to sea with both rows of cannon hatches open so it could fire a salute to all the waiting dignitaries and crowd, it encountered a slight breeze, healed over enough to let water in the lower cannon hatches, and sank like a stone in 35 meters of water after traveling only 1400 yards and never putting up a sail. Embarrassing!

The masts were cut off to clear the harbor, and the cannons were removed by brave men in 1600s diving bells. Then the ship was forgotten. The cold brackish water of the Stockholm harbor does not have shipworms that eat wood, and the conditions were ideal for preserving the boat.

In 1961 the ship was recovered. Now it rests in a museum all its own. 90% of the boat is original.

The five-story stern of the boat still boasts the hundreds of carvings that decorated it.

A humiliating naval disaster in 1628 has provided us with the best-preserved ship of that era.

Sweden is known for its hand-blown crystal, which impressed me more than its wooden horses.

To make a wine glass, you start with some molten glass,

which you put in a form and blow down the tube.

When the form releases, you have the beginnings of a wine glass.

These are the steps to a finished glass.

In their art gallery, we saw some stunning and fun sculptures.

Heading south, we saw more pretty green fields and forest,

which convinced us we were ready for something new. We left Sweden by crossing the long bridge and tunnel to Denmark.