Kalmar
day 3 - Tuesday, JULY 7, 2015
This morning we leave Stockholm and head to Kalmar. Before we leave Stockholm, we will visit Stockholm's City Hall, home of the Nobel Prize banquet. We will stop along the way for lunch in Soderkoping along the Gota Canal before driving through beautiful birch forests on the way to Kalmar.
Our first stop today is a visit to Stockholms City Hall. City Hall was built in 1923. It is still functioning as a city hall with 101 members on the city council. Most of the council members are women who have regular day jobs and meet in the evening for city council meetings. It is a favorite sight for weddings as they do two every hour on Saturdays. It's probably most famous for the annual Nobel Prize banquet. The pictures below are of City Hall.
Our first stop today is a visit to Stockholms City Hall. City Hall was built in 1923. It is still functioning as a city hall with 101 members on the city council. Most of the council members are women who have regular day jobs and meet in the evening for city council meetings. It is a favorite sight for weddings as they do two every hour on Saturdays. It's probably most famous for the annual Nobel Prize banquet. The pictures below are of City Hall.
We left Stockholm's City Hall to continue on our way to Kalmar. We made a stop along the way for lunch at the A-cafeet in Soderkoping along the Gota Canal. The Gota Canal was built 150 years ago by 60,00 men working 22 years. It consists of 190 miles of canals and 58 locks working up to the summit of 300 feet. It was a pretty little town. Take a look at the pictures below.
After our lunch we continued on to Kalmar. We arrived at the Frimurare Hotel late in the afternoon. After checking in to the hotel we had a quick orientation walk around town. Our walk took us around the Larmtorget Square and the northern section of Kalmar's Kvarnholmen. Below are a few pictures of our walk around Kalmar.
Day 4 - Wednesday, July 8, 2015
This morning we tour Kalmar's main attraction; the Kalmar Castle. The Kalmar Castle is where the treaty establishing the 1397 Kalmar Union was signed. This treaty united the three countries of Norway, Sweden, and Denmark against the German Hanseatic traders, their common enemy. It created a large empire that lasted a little more than 100 years and was dominated by Denmark. The union was dissolved when the Swede Gustav Vasa came to power in 1523. Below are a few pictures of the Kalmar Castle and the gardens that surround it.
After the Kalmar Castle tour, we were off to Copenhagen.