Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
MIDSUMMER MAYHEM
An atmosphere akin to Mediterranean
joie de vivre
takes over Sweden during the
midsummer
solstice
(the weekend closest to June 24), when maypoles are erected as giant fertility
symbols in gardens and parks across the country. Midsummer is not a time for staying in
towns - everyone heads to the countryside and coasts, with Dalarna, the island of Öland and
the shores of the Bohuslän coast being just a few of the most popular spots. Aided in no small
part by copious quantities of
alcohol
, the population's national characteristics of reserve and
restraint dissolve over midsummer weekend. Long trestle tables draped in white cloths and
sagging under the weight of multiple varieties of herring, potatoes with dill and gallons of
akvavit
are set up outside, and parties go on through the light night with dancing to the
strains of accordions and fiddles.
and the city's network of canals and spacious avenues is reminiscent of Amsterdam,
whose architects designed it.
The south is the most cosmopolitan part of the country, owing to the proximity of
Denmark and the rest of the European continent, and home to the glorious ancient
university seat of
Lund
, while nearby
Malmö
, Sweden's third city, heaves with youthful
nightlife around its medieval core.
Inland, southern Sweden boasts some handsome lakes, the two largest of which,
Vänern
and
Vättern
, provide splendid backdrops to some beautiful towns, not least the evocative
former royal seat and the monastic centre of
Vadstena
, and
Karlstad
, the sunshine capital
of Värmland, a rugged province ideal for river-rafting trips. To the east of the mainland
lies
Gotland
, justifiably raved about as a haven for summer revelry, especially within the
medieval walls of its unspoilt Hanseatic city,
Visby
.
Central and northern Sweden represent the most quintessentially “Swedish-looking”
part of the country. In the centre lies
Dalarna
, an area of rolling hills and villages that's
LEFT
PEOPLE AT SANDHAMMAREN BEACH, SKÅNE
