A Unique Museum

The famous warship Vasa which sank in 1628 in the harbor of Stockholm was found and then raised

in 1961.  A sensational event which was at that time reported in TV and press world wide.  

Barely out of the water, immediately the painstaking process of preserving the wood started.  The restoring and keeping the ship intact is an ongoing process.

Now it is housed in a special designed building and more then 30 million visitors (more then one million yearly) have had the chance to get close to a 17th century royal warship. 

Most of the visitors stay longer than they plan because they get an understanding for Sweden as a Great Power involved in endless warfare during the 17th century.  A different Sweden now has peace keeping forces and has had peace for the last 200 years. 

http://www.visitstockholm.com/en/To-Do/Attractions/the-vasa-museum/142

In the heart of Stockholm

From the subway station we could have walked over a bridge to Skeppsholmen ('ships island') but we chose a ferry to arrive in style.  This island in the heart of Stockholm has it all: beautiful nature, architecture, museums, sculptures, theaters, youth hostels and then a parade of historical boats anchored at the quay.

Some of them 100 years old and still floating because of lots of TLC.  Labels on the walkway explain their  history in Swedish and English for the curious.

And then from the terrace of the Modern Art Museum one can see the outline of the Vasa Museum in front of the Nordiska Museum.  The Royal Vasa warship which was built 385 years ago, sank on its maiden voyage and was lifted and restored in whole 333 years later.  That deserves a separate visit another day.

http://www.walkinstockholm.com/walkinstockholm_eng/extern/skeppsholmen.htm

The mother of all IKEAs

The other day I needed a 'spice mill' like the one I had bought in Munich at IKEA. 

An excursion to the largest IKEA department store in the world - a world with 300 stores in 44 countries  - was a given.  The free shuttle bus from Stockholm Center  drove me in 30 minutes to the front door at Kungens Kurva. It is not only the largest but the first IKEA store - built 1965 in the round form inspired by the Guggenheim museum in New York.

IKEA's policy is to see all customers as visitors and therefore a friendly "Hello, so nice of you to come for a visit" is printed in eye level on the glass entrance doors.

Grab a yellow bag and start collecting!  The round building is a challenge even for visitors with good orientation. It took me 30 minutes to find a spice mill and 20 minutes to come to the cash register so I could catch the next shuttle back to the Stockholm downtown.  At home the instructions - in 26 languages - were another proof of the world wide success of the Swedish entrepreneur Ingvar Kamprad.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324328204578571182799372930.html 

Sweden's Versailles

After a 50 minutes boat ride from Stockholm Center  (30 minutes with public transportations) we arrived at the 17th century Drottningholm Palace and could take a long walk in the baroque garden.  Restful and not too many tourists.  This little 'cousin' of the chateaux of Versailles is open for visitors despite that it has been since 1981 the private residence to the Swedish Royal Family.

For the security of His Majesty King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Sylvia, the Royal guards are present at all times and in all weather.  And yes, in Sweden there exist equality and both female and male guards are in service. Same uniform and discipline whatever the size.

http://www.kungahuset.se/royalcourt/royalpalaces/drottningholmpalace.4.396160511584257f218000368.html

A twofer in Versailles

All these years, when I visited the garden in front of the Orangerie in Versailles, I peeked through the windows to catch some glints of the architecture inside.  Alas, the doors were always closed.

Surprise: this year for a photo exhibition http://ahae.com the whole place is open and no entrance fee.

Now one can enjoy both a photo exhibitions AND this master piece of architecture designed by the chief architect of Louis XIV: Jules Hardouin-Mansart (1646-1708)

Amazing and hard to catch the High Baroque architecture of the gallery (155 m long and 13 m high) with the camera:

The doors are large enough that the trees can unharmed be moved in and out.  They give some idea of the 'cathedral' feeling in this 'Ground floor' of the castle. 

All year long, the temperature is between 41 and 48 Fahrenheit.

It is actually a three-fer in the summer heat!

Disciplined trees

Why do we love to visit the potted trees - outside the majestic Orangerie of the Versailles castle?  - Primarily for the heavenly smell from the orange and lemon flowers. Secondly for the beauty of the cut boxwood trees in the fashion of Le Notre.  His 400th birthday is celebrated this year and the gardeners  have put extra special attention to the potted trees of the Orangerie and the entire park. 

These little trees are carefully cut ever so often because we always see them snipping after the historic cut out forms. Time consuming disciplining and keeping up with the tradition!

Then there is the wild beauty of the untamed old trees glad to still sprout green leaves.

http://en.chateauversailles.fr/explore-the-estate/the-garden/the-copses/the-orangerie