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Göteborg - Stockholm - Turku Day 13 - 24-June

Back to Stockholm
After 6 days Norway and 7 days Sweden (today is the 7th day), it is time to go to Finland. When I planned the journey I was a bit disappointed that I had to pass Oslo on my journey while going to Northern Norway, and the same thing with Stockholm where I need to go back to take the boat. Afterwards I was happy about these 2 facts. I don't want to stay longer in Göteborg and decide to get back to Stockholm immediately and spend the rest of the day over there before I go back to Stockholm.

In one week Sweden I have had time to find out if the prejudices about the country are true. Volvo and SAAB are indeed very popular cars here, the water is as blue as on the pictures, the girls are looking much prettier compared to the Netherlands. Proven not to be true: ABBA is not still no. 1 in the hitlists, it's not so expensive as everybody thinks (though certainly not cheap) and I haven't seen any IKEA.

In Göteborg the weather is still like yesterday afternoon, a bit rainy and I decide to walk quickly to the train station and take the train to Stockholm. The X2000 just leaves for Stockholm but a few minutes later an Intercity train is leaving as well. This train takes 2 hours longer and will arrive as late as the next X2000 departing 2 hours later. Nevertheless I rather sit in a train then waiting for a train arriving as late as this one.

Travel details: Göteborg - Stockholm Trainride: Intercity/Commuter Departure: 9:00 - Arrival: 13:20 Distance: 455km

As old as the intercity trains look, the commuter trains are more modern, and they take less time for the ride to Stockholm.

The intercity train stops at Örebro and Västerås, I wanted to visit Örebro on a day trip so passing it by train wouldn't be a bad idea. The intercity train looks old from the outside but is quite comfortable from the inside, and quite fast as well. At another station suddenly a lot of people step out, after a quick peak in my timetable I see there is a connecting regional train going to Stockholm in a faster way. The idea of arriving earlier in Sweden is more tempting, then taking the long route to the city and I switch trains as well. I pass through Södertalje and see the huge Scania factories there. Arriving in Stockholm the sun is shining again and it is nice and warm. So far I am really lucky with the weather.

Because Sweden is quite cheap I have quite some money left because I still live like I am in Norway. With the money left I decide to buy me a T-Shirt, I doubt between a shirt of the Swedish soccer team, or a black t-shirt with the flags of scandinavia on it. The last one looks a lot better then the footbalshirts and so I buy me this T-Shirt. I take a walk around the usual sights I have seen before and then go to the Vasamuseet. A museum about an old ship. I saw a picture of a dark ship which didn't look like really interesting, but everybody recommends the museum and the only way to find out is to enter the museum.

Cows and Boats
In Sundsvall they displayed a lot of decorated dragons. In Berlin they do that with Bears. And in Stockholm they have cows. I didn't know why they had cows and why they had these cows standing there. I found out about the reason. It's a charity project called "Cow Parade Stockholm 2004". Around 70 artists painted a cow and at the end of summer the cows will be auctioned, the money goes to a charity foundation.

One of the painted cows in Stockholm.


This one must be some kind of distant relative of the Milka Cow.

The museum is all about 1 ship, the Vasa. The ship sunk on its maiden voyage when it barely left the docks from Stockholm right in the waters of the city centre. Around 1950 the ship was found and it was still in good condition. The ship has been fully restored and is now at display in the museum. The interior is very dark (to preserve the ship) and that gives a dramatic look to the huge wooden ship. The big ferries (which are a lot bigger) are impressive to see, but this sailingship is even more interesting. It's richly decorated with gold and details and there are many canon holes. The Vasa apparently was one of the flagships designed in times that Sweden was a large power owning parts of Norway, Finland and some parts of Russia.

Taking the ferry

Travel details: Stockholm - Turku Boatride: Silja Line Departure: 20:15 - Arrival: 8:00 (local times) Distance: +/- 300km

And so it's to time to go to the other boat, one that hopefully doesn't sink. The Silja Line terminal is quite a walk so I take the subway to the terminal and board the large ship, which looks quite small from the inside. The boatride goes right through the Baltic Sea, but the complete route is just scattered with thousands of islands. so you are never really at full sea.

The boat is about to leave Stockholm


Sailing for about 3 hours and still there are islands everywhere. The boat in the background is the Viking Line, also going to Turku.