Not intending to, we have visited the largest (Stockholm), second-largest (Gothenburg), and now third-largest city in Sweden, beautiful Malmo. Malmo is across Oresund Bay from Copenhagen, our next stop. The city has a rich history of its own, complete with a castle (dating to 1434) and several squares that are irresistibly charming. On the Main Square, Stortorget, is the Town Hall, which is absolutely stunning. On the Little Square, Lilla Torg, are some older half-timbered buildings, cafes, and beautiful trees that bloom in the spring. Tulips are everywhere, and bridges abound as you walk across the canal at various points.
One day, it was warm enough to walk without a jacket. Then the weather turned, and it was actually cold walking with both a sweater and jacket. We met a British man named Jonathan in the hotel who came to Sweden for business, and stayed – for over 20 years. He told us that Sweden has six seasons, not four: Summer, Fall, Winter, Spring, Winter, Spring. He said it gets warm, and everyone thinks that spring has arrived: they put away their cold-weather gear and get ready for the warmth. But – uh, oh! – winter returns and it gets very cold once again before winter retreats for good! We certainly have experienced that on this trip.
Malmo – and all of Sweden, in fact – has an extensive food scene. From Ukrainian to Asian to Swedish (meatballs) to American diners to British pubs – all happily coexist here. Prices are fairly expensive. Dinner in a nice restaurant could cost around $45-60 per entree. Breakfasts have been provided in all the hotels, and they have been lovely and filling, featuring fresh-baked breads, croissants, and pastries. We would gladly return to Sweden in a heartbeat – such a beautiful, historic country.
An additional comment for Americans who hesitate to travel to countries where English is not the first language: I know we have touched on this subject in the past, but we run into those people in the US quite often. In fact we heard on a podcast just this morning that 50% of Americans don’t have a passport. In the month we have been in Sweden, we haven’t found anyone who doesn’t speak enough English that we couldn’t communicate with them. Most people speak it fluently. One must always remember that someone traveling from a small country which has its own language to anywhere else has to communicate with everyone else. Nearly always, that is with people, from whatever country, using English.
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