Gallivare

Pronounced "yal-li-VA-ray" this is a word from the local Sami culture, the native people we used to call Laplanders. The town grew due to the mining in the area (see previous post).
Inlandsbanan day one

The Inlandbanan is a passenger rail that runs in the summer along a route through the middle of Sweden. I am spending 4 days along the route and will post pictures along the way. Today, the trainRead more
Jokkmokk

Small town right at the arctic circle. A center of or meeting place for Sami culture. Right now the annual reindeer herders Congress is in process here. Unfortunately, it rained heavily yesterday andRead more
Arctic circle

Thge train stops for pictures right at the arctic circle, and they give certificates, too
Inlandsbanan day two

Much like day one--wild lands, crossing the arctic circle (see another post), a natural river (what we would call wild and scenic), the lunch stop for reindeer stew, grass red like I've never seenRead more
Vilhelmina

Old logging town now a small center of Sami folks and tourism. The pics are the old courthouse and representative Sami buildings set up by a local Sami cultural society. The last pic is looking out myRead more
Vilhelmina kyrka

The village church. You don't see many churches with a glassed off room at the back for socials, coffee hour or even Sunday school. The last pic is the view from the pulpit. I admit I couldn't resist.Read more
Kyrkstaden

Church town. When the first churches were built to serve the Sami, it was necessary to build a bunch of cottages or bungalows because people had to travel so far to church that they needed places toRead more
Inlandsbanan day three

4 hour evening ride from Vilhelmina to Ostersund. A few differences. More types of trees, deciduous mostly. More "civilization." Not as boggy. Yet more lakes. More complex forests. A steam engine onRead more
Ostersund

A rainy day, but I did visit the Stora Kirka where I was taken by the chancel artwork. I've not seen anything even remotely similar. A pic of the oldest part of town and the Froso Church. The bellRead more
Sommerhagen

Home of composer Wilhelm Peterson-Bergers. (Pronounced PEH-ter-zhawn--BEER-yers and remember to roll your Rs). Wonderful tour of the house with his music included at each stop. One of the highlightsRead more
Inlandsbanan day four

The last day on this small train through the center of Sweden. Still traveling south with the climate becoming more temperate . More farming. More varied topography. Woodlands are more interestingRead more
Mora

Small country town, home to the world's largest ski race, the Vasaloppet. Named for the same king that the preserved ship is Stockhlom is named for. His statue is at race central, as is the bellRead more
Mora church

15th century church. Local cathedral. The exterior is under renovation with scaffolding everywhere. So no pics. So pics are all inside. Look especially at the close-up of the pulpit. I get a kick outRead more
Southern Sweden

Train for 7 hours through southern Sweden, frtom Mora to Gothenburg. Very different from recent days. Much more agriculture.
Gothenburg

City focused on the harbor. The older portion of town was originally a blue collar neighborhood that has gentrified. The "fish church" is actually the fish market, even though it looks like a church.Read more
Oslo domkirke

Cathedral in Oslo. Extraordinary ceiling. But the best part was arriving 5 minutes before an organ recital. Kristina Lysiak played for a full hour, including Bach, Buxtehude, Schumann, Bjornboe, andRead more
Oslo

Welcome to Norway. The first pic is the view from the apartment where I'm staying. A nice way to wake up. Then the first city hall and a statue commemorating the king throwing down his glove sayingRead more
Oslo city hall

The new and current city hall where the Nobel Peace Prize is awarded. First, the front from the courtyard. Then three pics of some of the murals in the main hall where the peace prize ceremony takesRead more
Vigeland park 1

Vigeland was a sculptor who spent most of his working life on this park, which, even absent the art, is a beautiful place. I have divided this into 3 posts because there is just too much here, andRead more
Vigeland park 2

The fountain is between the bridge and the main sculpture. The last pic looks back from the main sculpture to the fountain with the bridge beyond.
Vigeland park 3

Now for the main sculpture. Done in granite. First is the ironwork gate. There is one on all 4 sides, each different. There are about 40 or individual sculptures around the central carved column. (I'mRead more
Oslo fjord

Oslo fjord differs from the fjords we usually see. I'll get to those next week. This is the harbor. The cruise doesn't go out far enough to get to the narrow section. So this is what we saw--lots ofRead more
Lillehammer

Site of 1994 Winter Olympics. Pics are the Olympic torch, the ice arena, the ski area and close-up of the ski jump, view from the top of the ski jump (taken while my acrophobic stomach was just aRead more
Traveler
The guy on top of the statue looks cold, even in Aguust