HISTORIC UPPSALA, BIRGIT'S HOME IN SALA AND ARRIVAL AT OUR RATTVIK COTTAGE--JUNE 21, 2010
For our first night in Sweden, the seven of us stayed in three separate places in Uppsala, the fourth largest city in Sweden. Maia and Tina stayed at Tina's mother's condo; Bonnie, Dug and the kids spent the night at Tina's apartment; and we stayed in a small hotel called Charlotte. After almost no sleep the night before, we were ready to fall into the comfy hotel beds for a full night's sleep. A typical Swedish breakfast was served until 9:00 a.m., so we had to get up early to enjoy the variety of sliced meats, cheeses, crisp breads, hard boiled eggs, cereals, juices and beverages. As we looked out the picture windows in the breakfast room, we watched dozens of cyclists riding by. Tina had told us that one could get along well in Uppsala without a car by using only a bike or by walking!
When our family and Tina got together on Monday morning we took a long scenic walk through the city. Our first place to explore was the University Building at Uppsala University, which was founded in 1477. It is the oldest university in the Nordic countries, known for its "world class research and first-rate education of global use to society, business and culture." The University Building was built in Romanesque Renaissance style with a Grand Auditorium typical of 19th century Swedish architecture.
In the park of the university we came upon rune stones with inscriptions from the 11th century A.D. Runes were first used over 1500 years ago by the East Goths, and later appeared throughout England and Scandinavia. The word "rune" itself comes from an early Anglo-Saxon word meaning "secret" or "mystery", and they remain an enigma to the world at large.
The runic alphabets are a set of related alphabets using letters known as runes to write various Germanic languages prior to the adoption of the Latin alphabet and for specialized purposes thereafter. Until the early 20th century runes were used in rural Sweden for decoration purposes in Dalarna and on Runic calendars.
Our next Uppsala landmark to visit was the Uppsala Cathedral, dating back to the late13th century. It is the largest church building in Scandinavia. Originally built under Roman Catholicism and used for coronations of the Swedish monarch, it has been controlled by the Lutheran Church of Sweden since the Protestant Reformation.
Before Tina had to leave us to go to work, we all enjoyed lunch at a typical Swedish restaurant in an outdoor patio. This restaurant, Lingon, served only three meals--one chicken dish and two fish entrees including beverage, main course, salad and dessert for one set price. Each chair at the tables had a red blanket for guests to place around their shoulders on chilly Scandinavian days.
Scenes from our walk around Uppsala...
Both Bonnie and Maia had spent time in Sweden in the past. Dick had only been there once, and Judy twice before. It was the ideal time to renew acquaintances, not only with Tina, but with another friend, Birgit, a teacher, who in 1965 answered a letter from Judy requesting help in finding a place to stay in Dalarna during Midsummer as well as meeting Swedish teachers. She was working in the tourist office in Leksand for the summer, found a tiny cottage for us to stay in in Tallberg, and her family invited us for several meals during our stay there. When Bonnie and Maia each visited Sweden many years ago, they, too, were invited to be with Birgit and her family. She is very special to our family!
When we left Uppsala in the afternoon, we drove north to Sala, where Birgit now lives. She had invited us to stop by to relax on her lovely patio and to talk about our families and our past times together. Delicious desserts were on the outside table for us to enjoy while we all were happy to be together once again. We gave her a DVD of the movies we made of our visit with her family in 1965 and were able to watch it together. This film brought back so many memories for each of us. We also gave her a carved bird made by our 89 year old dear friend, Cliff, in Cincinnati.
Watching the movie from 1965
Reflection in the window of our van
From Sala we drove on toward the town of Rattvik, stopping for groceries and for pizza along the way. Most of the scenic road we traveled was only two lane with frequent roundabouts instead of traffic lights. Finally we found ourselves driving along beautiful Siljan Lake looking for the turn off for our cottage. Arriving at 9:45 at night, it was still daylight when we looked for the key under the door mat. It wasn't there!!! What were we to do? We called Tina in Uppsala, who had made the reservations for us. She was able to contact the rental office emergency number, and eventually someone brought us a key. When we went inside, we found they had also forgotten to bring us the extra bed we had ordered, so Bonnie slept on the sofa that night. The following day the bed was brought to our cottage! Other than these minor problems, we are extremely pleased with our lovely cottage overlooking Lake Siljan!
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