This morning, we woke to church bells and ate a quick breakfast of yogurt and muesli before heading to our morning tour. Our guide was very entertaining and took us on a tour of contemporary Sweden. We had been expecting more of a historical tour, given the pattern of our other tours to date, but this one was actually quite interesting as it took a look at the implications of historical events, including the relationship of parliament to the crown, relations with neighboring Denmark, and their current plot for world domination: IKEA and H&M.
Most interesting to me were the stories of the bank robbery after which “Stockholm Syndrome” got its name (apparently, one of the captive bank employees was guest of honor at the robber’s wedding a number of years later!), and the etymology of the name Stockholm. Supposedly, the Swedes of the day, hearing that pirates were on the way, stashed their gold in a hollowed out log (stock) and said “wherever it lands, there shall be our home!” and it hit an island (sund).
After the tour, we asked our guide for a suggestion of where to have lunch and he invited us, along with a group of Austrian students to join him at an Irish Pub. Enjoying our Swedish Meatballs with Mashed Potatoes, Fish & Chips (caught fresh that day!), and Swedish libations, our guide regaled us with tales of his travels, the cost of University around the world (he actually gets paid to study), and basic tourism etiquette.
Saying farewell to this crew, we wondered around the watery walkways, took a nap in a park overlooking the water, and made our way back to our hostel to freshen up before our tour of the “Old Town” (the district in which our Hostel is located).
Our guide, from Arkansas, filled in a lot of the gaps in the history we’d missed; about the original Vikings (the Swedes and the Goths – for whom Gothenberg was named), historic battles, ghost stories in the palace, executions, and more.
After the tour, we decided to grab picnic supplies and have dinner in a scenic spot. I tasked Ray with finding “the most Swedish sandwich supplies” and he came through (his cursory knowledge of Swedish served us well!). We found a nice spot on a hill above the water and, despite the cruise ship crooner below us, it was perfection. Following a brief scare where we dropped our keys inside a slatted bench (thank goodness for thorny branches-turned-hooks!), we tucked into our salty meat and cheese sandwiches and giant blueberries.
We stayed in our lovely spot reading and watching people and boats for a good long time before relocating to a spot with a Western view to watch the sun set over the water.
