Hejhej everyone!
So I just got home late last night from a weekend spent on the Swedish islands of Gotland and Fårö. And it was absolutely wonderful. I'm going to do 2 separate posts- one just for the pictures!
Late afternoon on Friday we took a bus from Växjö to Oskarshamn, Sweden, right on the east coast. Then we hopped on a ferry that took us to Gotland. Destination Gotland was the name of the ferry- and it was the biggest boat I've ever been on. People drive their cars right onto the ferry below deck, get out, and then ride to Gotland in the passenger area (which is really really nice.) It was a lot like what I imagined a cruise ship to be like. There was a cafe, gift shop, and restaurant on the ferry so it was a very comfortable 4 hour trip.
When we got to Gotland, we arrived and stayed in the capital city, Visby. It was completely dark when we arrived in Visby so we had no idea what everything really looked like. We were all assigned to different cabins at this little resort park. They were basically brand new small mobile homes and were very nice! The next morning we woke up and looked out the windows... and realized the Baltic Sea was about 150 feet from our cabin. That was pretty awesome.
So that Saturday morning we took the bus into the city center of Visby. Visby is a medieval city and has a large wall (built in 1300) to keep out invaders that surrounds the entire city center. Everything was so OLD. Older than anything I've ever seen. The Visby Cathedral (which I had the pleasure of attending Sunday mass in!) was built in 1225. The streets in the city center are very narrow and all cobblestone. It was hard to believe people actually live in a place so beautiful. In a way, Gotland is a lot like how Hawaii is to the U.S. It's still part of the main country, but there is a sort of exoticness to it. Fun Fact- Gotland is where Pippi Longstocking was from! Walking through the streets, one thing I noticed was how quiet it was. There were no stop lights or traffic. Maybe one or two cars every 15 minutes passed us while walking. Between the cobblestone streets, the medieval aged buildings and statues, the countless flower gardens, and the Baltic Sea in the background, I would say Visby was the most gorgeous city I've ever visited.
Saturday afternoon we hopped back on the bus and drove to northern Gotland and took another short ferry to Fårö, another small island off northern Gotland. This island is famous for what's known as "raukarna". Raukarna are the huge rocks that jet out vertically from the ground or water. The beach on Fårö where we spent the afternoon was hands down, without a doubt, the most beautiful place I've ever been. The beach is snow-white, not with sand but with chalky rocks. The raukarna were a product of a glacier melting. Most of the rocks have little fossil patterns on the outsides of them. We brought small portable grills and cooked some burgers for lunch on the beach. The sun was shining and the temperature was pretty good. The only thing was the WIND. Wow. But it was a beautiful afternoon.
We got back to Visby and ate dinner at a night club and stayed there until 2:30 in the morning. It was a reaaallly long day, but a great one.
We left Gotland on Sunday afternoon and didn't get back to Växjö until about 11 pm. Everyone was completely exhausted and drained. But this was my favorite weekend in Sweden so far! And I would love to go back to Gotland later in life sometime. It's too good to go just once.
I'm posting pictures from the trip above this post!
Until next time,
Sara
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