What is the first thing you think about when you hear the
word Sweden? Vikings? ABBA? Smorgasbord (actually spelled smörgåsbord)? Or maybe Björn Borg and Zlatan Ibrahimovic if you’re
into sport?
For me, other things spring to mind – huge forests, thousands
of glittering lakes, cinnamon buns, incredibly clean and fresh air … I am
perhaps a little biased, as I’m half Swedish and grew up there, but it is an
amazing country and well worth a visit.
(I recommend the summer months though, unless you’re going skiing, as
that’s when it’s at its best.)
Most people probably think of it as quite a small country –
and in an international sense perhaps it is, but in terms of actual size it is
more than twice as big as the UK!
However, with a population of under 10 million (so less than Greater London),
there is a lot of space. An awful lot! So if you like wide-open spaces and
being alone, or if you’re into nature in a big way, this might be the place for
you.
Just like in the UK, the landscape is very varied. In the south the countryside is flat and
open, but if you head north you pass through endless forests (mostly consisting
of Christmas trees, as my kids used to say) with literally thousands of lakes
dotted around. About halfway up (it’s a long, thin country if you look at it on
a map), it changes again and becomes more mountainous until you reach the far
north, a huge wilderness of mountains, plains and forests. Here there’s a
chance to see the midnight sun in summer and the aurora borealis – or Northern
Lights – in winter, and the only creatures you’ll meet for miles are reindeer.
The world-famous Ice Hotel is up there during winter – I’ve
never been there myself but it does sound fascinating! – and there is skiing in
places like Åre and Sälen, which I can recommend.
On the whole, Sweden is a paradise for nature-lovers and as
a child I was always dragged out into the forest or countryside for one thing
or another – cross-country skiing in winter, swimming in a lake in the summer,
picking berries and mushrooms in autumn … The list was endless and I say
‘dragged’, because I was the kind of girl who much preferred sitting on the
sofa reading a good book. Exercise is so not my thing – still isn’t. But these
days I do appreciate it when I get a chance to go for a walk in a Swedish
forest because it is quite simply magical. My grandmother used to tell me tales
of the trolls and fairies who lived in those forests and it’s easy to see how
such stories came about. There is a very special atmosphere among the trees and
because there are so few humans around, you can imagine you’re in a fairy tale
world. For a special treat, why not go on an ‘elk safari’? Sweden has a lot of
moose (or elk if you translate the Swedish world ‘älg’ literally) and although
they’re fairly shy, there are places where you can go and see them.
If you prefer more cultural
things, the bigger cities of Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmö have interesting
sights and museums. There are of course castles and the equivalent of National
Trust properties everywhere, and on the island of Gotland you will find the medieval
city of Visby, complete with city walls. For those of you into Scandic Noir,
the famous bridge between Sweden and Denmark is of course a must, but there’s
also another very long bridge on the other side of the country – one that leads
to the island of Öland. In summertime, that’s a great place for swimming in the
Baltic Sea.
Have I tempted you to a visit
yet? I hope so – enjoy! https://visitsweden.com/
Thank you so much Pia for this fabulous look at Sweden.
Pia Fenton writes historical romance and time slip as
Christina Courtenay (published by Choc Lit), and
self-publishes YA under her real name. She is half Swedish and in her teens
she moved to Japan where she had the opportunity to travel extensively in the
Far East. She's a former chairman of the Romantic Novelists’
Association. Her novels ‘Highland
Storms’ and ‘The Gilded Fan’ both
won the RoNA for Best Historical Romantic Novel of the Year (in 2012/2014
respectively). Her latest novels are ‘The Velvet Cloak of Moonlight’ (time slip) and ‘New England Dreams’ (YA contemporary
romance).
Now you've made me want to return to Sweden especially as it's unbearably hot and humid here in Nashville! I've fond memories of your home country and it's on the list to go back to soon.
ReplyDeleteThanks Angela! You might want to wait a bit as it's been amazingly hot there too recently! Very unusual :-)
ReplyDelete