Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
1
Pondering the ancient burial mounds at
Gamla Uppsala.
2
Soaking up antique science and wonder at Uppsala's
Museum Gustavian-
3
Visiting Carl Larsson's inspiring
family home
in Sundborn.
4
Watching roly-poly bears at play in
Grönklitt
.
5
Stopping for
ice cream
in Nora.
6
Wandering the lovely city park and historic
Wadköping village
in Örebro.
7
Seeing regional art and history in
Dalarnas Museum
, Falun.
8
Sleeping underwater, or in a treehouse, in
Västerås
.
9
Exploring an atmospheric old mine at
Ängelsberg
.
Uppsala
018 / Pop 156,000 (city)
Drenched in history but never stifled by the past, Uppsala has the party vibe of a university
town to balance out its large number of important buildings and general atmosphere of
weighty cultural significance. It's a terrific combination, and one that makes the town both
fun and functional, not to mention very rewarding for the interested traveller.
On the city's edge is Gamla (Old) Uppsala, the original site of the town - once a flour-
ishing 6th-century religious centre where human sacrifices allegedly were made to the
Norse gods, and home to an ancient burial ground.
On 30 April, students dressed in white gather to celebrate the Walpurgis Festival. Tradi-
tionally, this includes a student boat race on the river at 10am and a run down Carolina-
backen at 3pm, as well as various processions and singing. Perhaps less charming are the
traditional early-summer graduation parties, in which cheerfully inebriated students are
driven around town in the backs of large trucks, singing to loud pop music and saluting
passersby.
