Måsnarenleden

28 July 2018

Hiking with a Meetup group again! I have not joined much of the hiking activities since winter. So, I was happy to see 2 familiar faces in the group. 

Today, we hiked around Måsnaren Lake (pronounced as 'mos-nah-rent') and the trail is called Måsnarenleden and one follows the blue mark. I did ice fishing in the lake during winter and I am back here again for a hike around the lake. This hike is in Södertälje municipal and it took me about 1.5 hours to get here. I have never been on this hike and hence, I went. I took the commuter to Östertälje and then bus 753 to Hovsjöskolan stop.

It was predicted to rain but it never did. It was pretty warm for me, and I was in hiking shoes which was a bad choice because half of the route was on gravel and asphalt which hurt my feet in hiking shoes. It would have been better in sports shoes. My steps would have been lighter. 

The 14km walk felt like forever, and not to mention the heat. I was glad when the walk ended and I treated myself to an ice-cream at the end of the hike. Some of us went for a bath in the lake at the end of the walk while I decided to take the bus back.  

Kampung Indonesia Festival 2018

27 July 2018

Kampung Indonesia Festival is back again! I went on the first day of the festival which was on a Friday, so there was not much of a crowd. This year's festival has lesser food options though. This was my post on last year's festival. It was raining last year but I went on 28 July. This year, I went on 27 July and it was sunny and too warm for me. What a big contrast! Last year, I was in jeans and rain jacket. This year, I was in shorts, cap and I applied sunblock on myself too.

The Indonesia Ambassador officiated the painting of the festival with a brush stroke and the artist on the right of the painting finished it.

Goteborg in 24 hours: Part 2 - Feskekörka, Göteborg Library, Gamla Haga

24 July 2018

After our sushi lunch, the walk continues to explore the streets of Göteborg. 

We found ourselves opposite of Feskekörka (pronounced as 'fes-keh-shir-kah'). This is a fish market. The price is expensive for me, so I did not try anything. I did enjoy looking at the produce, although I was discouraged by some of the sellers who had strawberries next to the fish produce. Yuck.

Feskekôrka (Swedish: standard: Fiskkyrkan, "fish church") is an indoor fish market in Gothenburg, Sweden, which got its name from the building's resemblance to a Neo-gothic church. It opened on 1 November 1874, and was drawn by the city architect Victor von Gegerfelt. Feskekôrka is an institution in Gothenburg as well as a tourist magnet, housing one of the city's oldest trades, fishing. Apart from a fish market, there is also a fish- and seafood restaurant in the building. Source from Wikipedia.

Goteborg in 24 hours: Part 1 - Slottsskog and Oscar Fredriks Church

24 July 2018

I explored places of Gotland within 24 hours. Here, my partner and I did a similar 24-hour short trip in Göteborg (pronounced as 'Your-teh-boh-ry') today. He drove the night before till 3am and we slept in a resting area which is about 20km from Göteborg. As usual, we slept in the car. Haha! We woke up the next day at 9am and continued the drive. 

My partner had in mind to park the car at a garden and we will walk to town. So, he went to Slottsskog (which means 'castle + forest') which is opposite The Botanical Garden. He parked for 7 hours and paid SEK50. 

First place of visit - Slottsskog. We walked around the park which has a mini zoo (the notice stated there were moose but did not see any) and a small aquarium for seals. It was a bit cloudy. The weather was lovely. It was not too warm for us. Fortunately, or unfortunately (as most would say), a bird shit on me, and it landed on some of my hair. This is the second time during the summer that a bird has pooed on me. Hmph. We managed to get some of the shit off my hair but I still felt dirtied (or lucky?) by it. Overall, 3 times in Sweden. 

Rock Festival 2018

21 July 2018

So, you know that Kungsträdgården is a public park where events are held every weekend during the summer. The monthly schedule can be found pasted on their notice board in the park or in Stockholm Stad website. 

For today, the theme of the event is Rock Festival. I have never been to one ever and it was very interesting for me to be there. Initially, I was there in the afternoon and the stage was empty with a small crowd. Everyone looked so lifeless. Maybe it was due to the warmth and it was burning hot, hence no one around yet. There were the usual food trucks. I came back in the evening and there was a performance going on by Sparzanza! I can't really catch the lyrics. I could only hear shoutings and growlings. I found it really hilarious!

I only took one photo during the event. 

This is an almost related photo to the Rock Festival. Remember I wrote that I came back again to Rock Fest. Yes, so I went to the National Library in that short period. Also, I found time to get my photo snapped at this little garden next to the Library. 

Shortest post ever. Haha!

Gotland in 24 hours: Part 3 - Cycle on Fårö Island

14 July 2018

We got off the bus at Fårö jetty and collected our rented bicycles at a small shop behind the wooden restaurant. The wooden restaurant is the second building after the jetty. There is a path next to the row of shops (where the restaurant is). Payment is made once we collected our bicycles. This bicycle shop is by Gotlands Cykeluthyrning and is only open in July (for the one at Faro jetty).

We got on the ferry and was on Fårö Island within 10 minutes. Here is how the ferry looks like - there are 2 ferries that takes turn to go to and fro.

It was my first time cycling in Sweden, and also maneuvering a 3-gear bicycle. To be honest, I am not familiar with all these gear stuff. I don't usually pay attention to it. I am happy enough if the bicycle can function. So, it was a bit stiff when I cycled. Then, I got the hang of it. It was about a 14km-cycle to the nearest sea stacks. See the signboard with the brown background that reads - Raukområde. We cycled on the main road and the cars avoided us carefully. It was also burning hot as we cycled. We stopped a couple of times to check the map. We saw other cyclists using the same route, and I stopped one of them to ask and she affirmed that we were on the right route.

Gotland in 24 hours: Part 2 - Explore Visby

14 July 2018

Upon our arrival at Visby Harbour at 05:45, we walked to Visby town. The town was very quiet. I mean, of course, it was 06:00! Look at all the boats lined up. Then, I wondered, won't any of these boats would like to sail away? How are they getting out? 

The Hanseatic city of Visby is arguably the best-preserved medieval city in Scandinavia and since 1995, it has been on the UNESCO World Heritage Site list. Among the most notable historical remains are the 3.4 km (2.1 mi) long town wall that encircles the town center, and a number of church ruins. The name "Visby" comes from the Old Norse Vis, (genitive singular of Vi) meaning "(pagan) place of sacrifices", and by, meaning "village". In the Gutasagan (mid 14th century) the place is referred to as just Wi meaning "holy place, place of worship". Visby is sometimes called "The City of Roses" or "The City of Ruins". Source from Wikipedia.

This is one of the cheapest accommodations in Visby - a hostel that used to be a prison - Visby Prison! It is located less than 5 minutes walk from the harbour. Low season i.e not in July - SEK300 per person but the price doubles in July to SEK600.

Gotland in 24 hours: Part 1 - Ferry from Nynäshamn to Gotland

It is summer now. 

I did a trip to Norrland with my partner in June 2018 for 9 days and it is in my travel blog. Today, I am going to blog about my 24 hour trip to Gotland. I am very happy that I got to go on this trip because I have been hearing stuff about it, and the only way to get there is by ferry which means that costs money. I have saved up some money from my internship and I was excited when I planned and executed this trip! Plus, it was my first time on a huge ferry!   

14 July 2018

I went with a friend whom I met from a hiking activity in Meetup. I booked the cheapest ferry ticket - SEK95 (for one way) from Destination Gotland. So, in total, it was SEK190. It was affordable. I think it is the most affordable ticket during the summer. But the timing was odd. The ferry departs at 02:30 from Nynäshamn (Nynäs harbour) and arrives at Visby Harbour, Gotland at 05:45. I bought the next morning ferry at 00:50 and will arrive in Nynäshamn at 04:05. Also, the cheapest price means sleeping in a not-so-comfortable place (I was not aware of the sleeping arrangements until I was onboard). Do remember that the ferry schedule changes periodically. I checked the ferry tickets 2 weeks before purchase and it was different from 1 week before purchase. 

Here is Nynäshamn ticketing and waiting area. One can get here by the commuter train. It got crowded when it was almost 02:00. We were not the only ones with the cheap alternatives! 

Thailand Festival 2018

13 July 2018

Time for another country festival in Kungsträdgården. It is Thailand! My friend and I got here early at 11am, just when it was starting and we did not need to queue up long for the food. Plus, we went on a Friday too. Avoid the weekend crowd! I did not visit this last year, so I was pleasantly surprised to see that there were so many goodies available for grabs - dried banana snacks because I tried pronouncing some Thai words from a TV screen, potpourri from a little demo class, tried steamed vegetarian dumplings from the Thai Embassy tent, and a teddy bear from Thai Airways tent.

Definitely will visit this next year!

Adolf Fredriks Kyrkan

11 July 2018

This is not a very obvious church from any panoramic view of Gamla Stan or Central Stockholm. I passed by this place while I was walking back from Haga Park (11km walk one way - summer means can walk anytime anywhere). Since it was opened, I thought why not? This church is located somewhere along Drottninggatan and guess what - Drottninggatan is a VERY LONG street. I do wonder though why are there so many churches in Stockholm. So, people can decide to detour as and when they wish? Or too many folk in Stockholm? Well, I do know that once upon a time, Swedish was a very religious country. 

Adolf Fredrik Church (Swedish: Adolf Fredriks kyrka) is a church in central Stockholm, Sweden, named after Adolf Frederick. It was built in 1768-1774, replacing a wooden chapel from 1674, which was dedicated to Saint Olof. It was opened on 27 November 1774. Its cemetery is where René Descartes was first buried in 1650, before his remains were moved to France. Inside the church a memorial to the memory of Descartes was installed by Gustav III. Other famous people buried in the church cemetery include Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme, who was assassinated only a block from the church, Prime Minister Hjalmar Branting, physicist Carl Benedicks, and the composer Anders Eliasson. Source from Wikipedia.

I have not seen this in other churches before. Take a ribbon and tie it to the net. Each colour represents something. For example - Gold for God. I tied one because it was free. :) 

Museifartygen (Museum Ships)

7 July 2018

I thought I have completed all the free museum visits in Stockholm till I passed this place when I was in Djurgården (after watching a theatrical show). I was so surprised that I never knew about this. These are ships that have been turned into museums - an icebreaker ship (Sankt Erik) and a lightship (Finngrundet). They are opened daily during the summer. 

These museum ships are under the care of Maritime Museum. I went there in July 2017. The Vasa Museum is also under their care which I have yet to visit due to its high entrance fees. 

Uppsala - Botanical Garden, Uppsala Town, City Park

5 July 2018

Another town that is worth visiting during the summer is Uppsala! This is about an hour drive from Stockholm and it is mostly a university town because it has a university there (obviously!). Uppsala University is the first university in Sweden and most students choose this place because it has an authentic studying environment. 

All the photos were taken between 7pm and 9pm. Swedish summer is fantastic!

We went to a Botanical Garden (looks like most towns have A botanical garden) that looks almost dried out. I mean, the plants and not the giant bushes. The Botanical Garden faces Uppsala Castle which has an art museum inside (I went there last winter and will be blogged about too).

Sigtuna - First town of Sweden

4 July 2018

One of the towns to visit during summer is Sigtuna Town, Sweden's first town - the reason why I wanted to go there. It is a cosy little town out of Stockholm town but still accessible by train and bus using the local SL transportation card. You can get here by boat too but it costs more. One beautiful morning, I journeyed to Sigtuna and was happy that I did it because I had the best weather to my advantage, saw lovely sights and had an ice-cream!

This is the bus one takes upon arriving at Märsta Commuter Station. Bus 570 or 575. It is easy to find the information on transportation via SL website or SL app. Get down at Hällsboskolan and you will be at the Main Street of Sigtuna. 

Sigtuna is the oldest town in Sweden, having been founded in 980. The history of Sigtuna before the 11th century, as described in the Norse sagas and other early medieval sources, can be found in the article Old Sigtuna. Sigtuna has a picturesque medieval town centre with restaurants, cafes and small shops. The old church ruins, runic stones and Stora gatan, the old main street, are popular attractions for tourists especially in the summertime. The small streets with the low built wooden houses lead up to several handicrafts shops and the old tiny town hall, Sigtuna Rådhus. There are restaurants and a hotel (Stadshotellet) in the town centre. Source from Wikipedia.

The first thing I did was to buy myself a cinnamon bun in ICA. Because I don't think I can afford the food in the restaurants here. 

Storkyrkan (Stockholm Cathedral)

3 July 2018

Last year in 2017, I went to all the free churches around Stockholm (Katarina, Sofia, German, Saint James) and paid for one which is Riddarholmen Church. One of the high churches that I have not stepped in is Storkyrkan - Stockholm Cathedral because one needs to pay an entrance fee. One can see this church when one takes a panoramic view of Gamla Stan. 

Today, I finally got enough funds to pay for the entrance fee - SEK60. Yes, it is a lot for a jobless person! 

Storkyrkan (The Great Church), officially named Sankt Nikolai kyrka (Church of St. Nicholas) and informally called Stockholms domkyrka (Stockholm Cathedral), is the oldest church in Gamla stan, the old town in central Stockholm, Sweden. Source from Wikipedia.

Park Theatre 2018: Twelfth Night

3 July 2018

In 2017, I attended 3 Park Theatre events but this year, I only attended one. It was an English play entitled 'Twelfth Night'. If you are familiar with William Shakespeare, this is one of his works. The cast was really funny and I find it surprising that this is a free play (of course, funded by the taxpayers). I think this play is definitely worth being charged for. The cast sang well, exaggerated a couple of scenes (which were really hilarious) and I laughed so much that I got a few stares from my neighbour. 

The chairman of Park Theatre gave a speech before the play started.