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Nagu planeeritud oli meil eile väga pingeline päev. Tegelesime aktiivselt mitte millegi tegemisega ja seetõttu ei ole eilse päeva kohta ka postitust. Täna on aga hoopis teine lugu. Tänase päeva eesmärgiks on jõuda õhtuks koju. Vaatame, kuidas see õnnestub. Nagu juuresolevalt pildilt näha on ratas pakitud ja kõik valmis teele asumiseks.

As planned, yesterday was a very demanding day. We were actively engaged in doing nothing at all, and so there is no post about it. Today is quite a different story. Today’s goal is to reach home by evening. Let’s see how that works out. As the photo shows, the bike is packed and everything is ready for the road.

Veel viimane vaade Turu saarestikule. Praami järjekorras pidime ootama vaid 10 minutit. Praamid on sellel lõigul tasuta ja piisavalt suured nii, et jõuavad kõik ootavad autod peale võtta. Nagu tavaliselt planeerisime tee peal ka mõned peatused, et suurelt teelt kõrvale pöörata, nautida sõitu kitsamatel ja käänulisematel teedel ja saada rohkem teada Soome kohta.

One last look at the Turku archipelago. We only had to wait ten minutes in the ferry queue. On this stretch the ferries are free and big enough to take every waiting car aboard. As usual we had planned a few stops along the way, so we could turn off the main road, enjoy the narrower and twistier roads and learn a little more about Finland.

Esimese peatuse ja ka lõunasöögi tegime Mathildedalis.

Mathildedal sai oma nime 1852. aastal. Teijo rauatehase omanik Viktor Zebor Bremer rajas Hummeldali jõe suudmesse uue tehase ja pani kohale nime oma teise abikaasa, paruness Ottiliana Mathilda Bremeri järgi. Mathildedal tähendabki Mathilda orgu. Sajandi lõpuks valmistati siin põllutööriistu ja -masinaid, aurumasinaid ja paadimootoreid ning parimal ajal andis tehas tööd kahesajale mehele.

We made our first stop, and had lunch, in Mathildedal.

Mathildedal got its name in 1852. Viktor Zebor Bremer, the owner of the Teijo ironworks, built a new works at the mouth of the Hummeldal river and named the place after his second wife, Baroness Ottiliana Mathilda Bremer. Mathildedal means Mathilda’s valley. By the end of the century the works was making agricultural tools and machinery, steam engines and boat motors, and at its peak it employed two hundred men.

Tänase päeva teise peatuse tegime Tammisaaris. See koht on tuntud oma vanalinna poolest. See kuulsus on ka täiesti põhjendatud. Tegemist on väga armsa kohaga, mida julgen kõigile soovitada.

Tammisaare asutas 1546. aastal kuningas Gustav Vasa ja see on Soome seitsmes vanim linn. Mõte oli luua kaubanduslik konkurent teisel pool lahte asuvale Tallinnale. Päris hästi see ei õnnestunud: neli aastat hiljem asutati Helsingi ja osa Tammisaare kaupmehi sunniti sinna ümber kolima. Vanalinna praegused puumajad pärinevad põhiliselt 18. ja 19. sajandist ning kogu vanalinn on kultuuriväärtusena kaitse all.

Our second stop of the day was Tammisaari. The place is known for its old town, and the reputation is thoroughly deserved. It is a very endearing spot and I can recommend it to anyone.

Tammisaari was founded in 1546 by King Gustav Vasa and is Finland’s seventh oldest town. The idea was to create a commercial rival to Tallinn on the other side of the gulf. It did not work out especially well: four years later Helsinki was founded and some of Tammisaari’s merchants were forced to move there. The wooden houses standing in the old town today are mostly from the 18th and 19th centuries, and the whole old town is protected as a cultural heritage site.

Selles linnas nägime ühte väga huvitavat riistapuud. Need olid kinnitatud väljaspoolt majade akendele ja lähemalt vaadates tundus, et tegemist on mingisuguse peegliga. Läks päris tükk tööd, enne kui selgus, millega on tegu.

In this town we came across a very curious contraption. They were fixed to the outside of the house windows, and up close they looked like some kind of mirror. It took quite a bit of work before we found out what they were.

Selle olulise seadeldise nimi on otsetõlkes kuulujutupeegel (rootsi keeles skvallerspegel). See võimaldab toast lihtsalt näha, mis tänaval toimub. Kes tuleb, kuhu läheb ja kellega koos. Veel annab see täpse ülevaate, kes uksele koputab, ja kas tasub olla kodus või mitte.

The name of this essential device translates directly as gossip mirror (skvallerspegel in Swedish). It lets you see from indoors what is going on out in the street. Who is coming, where they are going and with whom. It also gives you a precise view of who is knocking at the door, and whether it is worth being at home or not.

Tammisaaris on ka igal olulisemal ametil oma tänav. Lisaks sadulaseppadele on oma tänav ka kangrutel, seppadel, kindameistritel ja kübarategijatel. Nimekiri on ilmselt veelgi pikem, aga need jäid lihtsalt meelde.

In Tammisaari every trade of any importance has a street of its own. Besides the saddlers there are streets for the weavers, the smiths, the glovemakers and the hatters. The list is probably longer still, but those are the ones that stuck in our minds.

Tänase päeva viimane peatus oli Raasepori kindluse juures. Kui me sinna jõudsime, olime veidi segaduses. Tundus, et see vana kindlus on tõeline turismimagnet. Autode parkimist korraldasid rohelistes vestides inimesed ja autosid muudkui tuli juurde. Varsti selgus, et kindluse varemete kõrval on ka Soomes tuntud suveteater, kus täna toimub hooaja viimane vabaõhumuusikali etendus. Suur osa inimestest suundus sinna ja vaid mõned üksikud kindluse varemeid uudistama.

Our last stop of the day was at Raseborg Castle. When we got there we were a little confused. This old castle seemed to be a real tourist magnet. People in green vests were directing the parking and cars just kept arriving. It soon turned out that next to the castle ruins there is a summer theatre well known in Finland, and that the season’s final open-air musical was playing that day. Most of the crowd headed there, and only a few came to look around the ruins.

Raasepori linnuse rajas 1370. aastatel Rootsi riigimees Bo Jonsson Grip. Linnus valvas laevaliiklust ja kaubandust Soome lahel ning pidi hoidma Rootsi huve vastukaaluks hansalinnale Tallinnale. Omal ajal oli see Viiburi ja Turu järel tähtsuselt kolmas Rootsi võimukeskus Soomes. 1553. aastal viidi halduskeskus üle Helsingisse ja mõne aasta pärast jäeti linnus sootuks maha. Üle kolmesaja aasta seisid varemed tühjana, kuni 1880. aastatel algasid esimesed taastamistööd.

Ja nüüd kummitusest. 1468. aasta novembris purjetas linnuseisanda Lauri Akselinpoika Totti abikaasa Katariina Jönsintytär Viffert koos väikese pojaga Stockholmist mehe juurde Raaseporisse. Laev sattus tormi ja uppus Jussarö saare lähedal ning merre jäi umbes kakssada inimest. Kohalik pärimus ütleb, et kui ilm on samasugune nagu tol ööl ja jõe kohale tõuseb udu, võib näha naist ja väikest poissi mööda kallast kõndimas, nad on lõpuks ometi Raaseporisse jõudnud.

Raseborg Castle was built in the 1370s by the Swedish statesman Bo Jonsson Grip. It watched over shipping and trade in the Gulf of Finland and was meant to hold Swedish interests against the Hanseatic city of Tallinn. In its day it was the third most important seat of Swedish power in Finland, after Viborg and Turku. In 1553 the administrative centre moved to Helsinki, and within a few years the castle was abandoned altogether. The ruins stood empty for more than three hundred years, until the first restoration work began in the 1880s.

And now for the ghost. In November 1468 Katariina Jönsintytär Viffert, wife of the castle’s lord Lauri Akselinpoika Tott, sailed from Stockholm with their small son to join her husband at Raseborg. The ship was caught in a storm and went down near the island of Jussarö, taking some two hundred people with it. Local lore says that when the weather is like it was that night and mist rises off the river, you may see a woman and a small boy walking along the bank, they have finally arrived at Raseborg.

Algselt ehitati kindlus meres olevale kaljule. Kalju on alles tänase päevani. Mida pole on aga meri. Nagu paljudes teistes kohtades meie teekonnal tõuseb ka siin maapind. Seetõttu taandus meri kindluse ümbert ja see oli üheks põhjuseks, miks kindlus oma rolli kaotas.

The castle was originally built on a rock in the sea. The rock is still there. What is gone is the sea. As in so many other places on our journey, the land here is rising. The sea therefore withdrew from around the castle, and that was one of the reasons it lost its role.

Etendus, mida suveteatris mängiti, oli „Rock of Ages“. Tundus, et etendus oli väga populaarne, sest ka hooaja viimane etendus oli täielikult välja müüdud. Omalt poolt ei oska seda väga kommenteerida kuna lahkusime etenduse esimeste helide saatel. Meil oli vaja jõuda praamile ja püüdsime mitte väga aega raisata.

The show playing at the summer theatre was “Rock of Ages”. It seemed to be very popular, as even the last performance of the season was completely sold out. We cannot really comment on it ourselves, since we left to the opening notes of the show. We had a ferry to catch and were trying not to waste too much time.

Viimane teelõik Vuosaari sadamasse kulges vahejuhtumiteta. Ootasime tunnikese sadamas kuni check-in avati. Järjekorras lobisesime veidi ühe inglasest tsiklimehega. Tema armastab reisida üksinda ja teha umbes neljanädalasi reise. Seekord pöördus ta tagasi Nordkapist.

The last stretch to Vuosaari harbour passed without incident. We waited an hour or so at the port until check-in opened. In the queue we chatted for a while with an English biker. He likes to travel alone and to make trips of about four weeks. This time he was on his way back from the North Cape.

Meie praam saabus õigeaegselt Muuga sadamasse ja olimegi kodus. Viimane sõit läbi hilisõhtuse Tallinna ja selle aasta reis oligi läbi. Nagu alati on koju jõudmise tunne sama mõnus kui reisi alguse tunne.

Our ferry reached Muuga on time and we were home. One last ride through Tallinn late in the evening, and this year’s trip was over. As always, the feeling of coming home is every bit as good as the feeling of setting out.

Tänane päev algas jälle vihmasajus. Õnneks oli selja taga tõeliselt hea sügava unega öö. Nii, et vihmariided selga ja jälle sadulasse. Mida reisi lõpupoole, seda lühemad päevad oleme planeerinud. Tänases plaanis on ainult üks peatus – Turu kindluses.

Sõit Turu poole kulges läbi vihmasaju, mis tasapisi jäi järjest nõrgemaks ja nõrgemaks. Enne Turut oli asfalt juba põhimõtteliselt kuiv. Siiski tervitas Turu linn meid viimasel hetkel tugeva vihmasajuga. Peale mõningast seiklemist leidsime siiski sobiva parkimiskoha lossi kõrval. Vihmasadu oli nii kõva, et me ei võtnud isegi kiivreid peast, vaid suundusime lossis olevasse muuseumisse.

Today began in the rain again. Luckily we had a really good, deep night’s sleep behind us. So: rain gear on and back in the saddle. The closer we get to the end of the trip, the shorter the days we have planned. Today’s plan holds only one stop — Turku Castle.

The ride towards Turku went through rain that gradually grew weaker and weaker. Before Turku the asphalt was basically dry already. Even so, the city of Turku greeted us at the last moment with heavy rain. After some adventuring we did find a suitable parking spot beside the castle. The rain was so hard that we did not even take our helmets off, but headed straight for the museum inside the castle.

Loss oli huvitava ajalooga ja siin “kohtusime” jälle tegelastega, kellest oli juttu Uppsalas.

Turu linnus rajati 1280. aastate paiku Aura jõe suudmesse rootslaste sõjalise tugipunktina ja on koos toomkirikuga Soome suurim säilinud keskaegne hoone. Hiilgeaeg jäi 16. sajandisse, kui siin pidas õukonda Gustav Vasa poeg Johan, Soome hertsog: koos abikaasa Katariina Jagellonicaga muutis ta karmi kindluse renessansipaleeks, kuhu ehitati kuninga ja kuninganna saalid ning kus peeti uhkeid vastuvõtte. Uppsala looga seob Turut Johani vanem vend, kuningas Erik XIV. Tema jaoks tegi see linnus täisringi: 1563. aastal võttis ta kindluse oma vennalt ära, seitse aastat hiljem toodi kukutatud kuningas siia tagasi – seekord vangina, koos oma naisega, ja nad elasid siin aasta aega.

The castle has an interesting history, and here we “met” again the characters we had heard about in Uppsala.

Turku Castle was founded around the 1280s at the mouth of the Aura river as a Swedish military outpost, and together with the cathedral it is the largest surviving medieval building in Finland. Its golden age fell in the 16th century, when Gustav Vasa’s son John, Duke of Finland, held court here: with his wife Catherine Jagiellon he turned the stern fortress into a Renaissance palace, where the King’s and Queen’s halls were built and lavish receptions were held. What ties this place to the Uppsala story is John’s elder brother, King Erik XIV. For him the castle came full circle: in 1563 he took the fortress from his brother, and seven years later the deposed king was brought back here — this time as a prisoner, together with his wife, and they lived here for a year.

Vendade tüli sai alguse poliitikast. Johan ajas Liivimaal oma joont ja abiellus 1562. aastal Vilniuses Poola printsessi Katariina Jagellonicaga, küsimata luba oma vanemalt vennalt, kuningas Erik XIV-lt. Erik pidas seda riigireetmiseks. 1563. aasta suvel saatis ta Turu linnuse alla 10 000 meest ja 12. augustil kindlus alistus. Johan mõisteti surma, kuid sai armu ning istus koos Katariinaga neli aastat Gripsholmi lossis vangis. 1568. aastal, vabaks saanuna, tõukas ta koos noorema venna Karliga Eriku troonilt ja sai ise kuningaks Johan III nime all. Erik suri 1577. aastal vangistuses.

Huvitav on ka selle aegne pereelu. Johan elas Turu linnuses koos Karin Hansdotteriga. Karin oli lihtsat päritolu ja huvitava taustaga. Nimelt oli tema isa eelnevalt olnud munk ja ema nunn. Karin tuli hertsogiga Turusse 1556. aastal, teda kutsuti „meie armuliseks emandaks“ ning tal oli linnuses oma õukond ja teenijad. Neile sündis neli last, kes said perekonnanimeks Gyllenhielm. Kui Johan otsustas abielluda Katariinaga siis anti Karin 1562. aastal naiseks hertsogi teenrile, aadlik Klas Anderssonile. Kuningaks saades toetas Johan Karinit ja nende lapsi edasi.

The quarrel between the brothers began with politics. John pursued his own line in Livonia and in 1562 married the Polish princess Catherine Jagiellon in Vilnius without asking permission from his elder brother, King Erik XIV. Erik considered it high treason. In the summer of 1563 he sent 10,000 men to Turku Castle and on 12 August the fortress capitulated. John was sentenced to death but was pardoned, and spent four years imprisoned with Catherine at Gripsholm Castle. In 1568, once free, he and his younger brother Karl pushed Erik off the throne and he became king himself as John III. Erik died in captivity in 1577.

The family life of that time is interesting too. John lived at Turku Castle with Karin Hansdotter. Karin was of humble origin, with an interesting background. As it happens, her father had previously been a monk and her mother a nun. Karin came to Turku with the duke in 1556, she was called “our gracious lady” and she had her own court and servants at the castle. They had four children, who took the family name Gyllenhielm. When John decided to marry Catherine, Karin was given in marriage in 1562 to the duke’s servant, the nobleman Klas Andersson. On becoming king, John went on supporting Karin and their children.

Kindluse õues ringi jalutades oli kuulda muusikat. Lossi tagumisest väravast välja astudes nägi üle aia kõrval olevat rockkontserti. Laval olev laulja tundus mingil moel tuttav, veidi uurimist kinnitas minu sisetunnet. Nimelt oli tegemist Michael Monroega. See laulja oli kunagi osa bändist nimega Hanoi Rocks. See oli vist üks Soome taustaga kuulsamaid bände maailmas. Niipalju kui üle aia paistis oli ta oma 64 eluaastale vaatamata väga heas vormis.

Walking around the castle yard we could hear music. Stepping out of the castle’s back gate, we saw a rock concert over the fence next door. The singer on stage seemed somehow familiar; a little digging confirmed my hunch. It was in fact Michael Monroe. That singer was once part of a band called Hanoi Rocks. That was probably one of the most famous bands with Finnish roots in the world. As far as we could see over the fence, he was in very good shape despite his 64 years.

Meie tänane päev lõppes Nauvo saarel Turu saarestikus. Siinne väike kämping võttis meid vastu pohlade ja mustikatega. Nagu allpool oleval pildil näha olid vees ka mõned ujujad.

Our day today ended on the island of Nauvo in the Turku archipelago. The small campsite here welcomed us with lingonberries and blueberries. As can be seen in the photo below, there were a few swimmers in the water as well.

Sättisime ennast mõnusalt sisse. Homseks eesmärgiks on tegeleda aktiivselt mittemillegi tegemisega. Miks mitte juba reisi ajal ennast reisist veidi välja puhata.

We settled in comfortably. Tomorrow’s goal is to actively do nothing at all. Why not rest up from the trip a little while still on the trip.

Eilset päeva alustasime Vana Vaasa külastusega. See oli koht, kus linn esialgu asus, aga nagu siinkandis tavaline põles see maha. Järele jäid vaid kiriku varemed ja kooli vundament. Kuna siin maapind tõuseb ja meri taganeb, siis ehitati linn oma uues versioonis üles juba merele lähemal.

Kogu selle hävingu taga oli üksainus piip. 3. augustil 1852 heitis Vöråst pärit purjus talumees magama kaupmees Aureni kuuri, samblahunniku otsa. Ärgates süütas ta poolunes piibu ja pillas selle sambla sisse. Pärast pikka põuda oli linn kuiv nagu püssirohi ja leek kandus majalt majale. Õhtuks oli 379 hoonest alles 24 ja kodutuks oli jäänud kolm tuhat inimest.

We began yesterday with a visit to Old Vaasa. This is where the town originally stood, but — as tends to happen in these parts — it burned down. All that is left are the ruins of the church and the foundations of the school. Because the land here is rising and the sea retreating, the new version of the town was built closer to the water.

Behind all that destruction was a single pipe. On 3 August 1852 a drunken farmer from Vörå lay down to sleep on a pile of moss in merchant Auren’s shed. Waking half-dazed, he lit his pipe and dropped it into the moss. After a long drought the town was as dry as gunpowder and the flames went from house to house. By evening 24 of the 379 buildings were left standing and three thousand people had no home.

Järgmise peatuse tegime kohas kuhu 520 miljonit aastat tagasi kukkus meteoriit. Ausalt öeldes ei ole sellest eriti midagi aru saada. Väidetavalt tähistab metsapiir meteoriidikraatrit. Sellel ringikujulisel lagedal alal oli päris nutikalt kujundatud päikesesüsteemi mudel. Päikest tähistab 70 cm läbimõõduga klaaskuppel posti otsas ja kõik teised planeedid on samas mõõtkavas kinnitatud tee ääres olevate postide külge. Meie jalutasime Marsini.

Our next stop was a place where a meteorite fell 520 million years ago. To be honest, there is not much to make of it. The treeline is said to mark the crater. On this circular open plain someone had laid out a rather clever scale model of the solar system. The Sun is a glass dome 70 cm across on top of a post, and all the other planets are fixed to posts along the road at the same scale. We walked as far as Mars.

Lõunapeatuse tegime sadamakõrtsis kohas nimega Merikarvia. Tegelikult ei ole tegemist kõrtsi vaid gastropubiga. Jätkasime ka täna kalatoitudega, seekord värskelt püütud koha praega.

We stopped for lunch at a harbour tavern in a place called Merikarvia. Strictly speaking it is not a tavern but a gastropub. We stayed with fish again today — this time freshly caught pikeperch.

Rauma üllatas väga armsa vanalinnaga. Kuigi Rauma põles maha isegi kaks korda – 1640 ja 1682, oli linn sel ajal nii vaene, et erinevalt Rootsi linnadest ehitati ka uued majad puust. Sillutatud tänavad ja erksavärvilised majad loovad väga hubase õhkkonna.

Rauma surprised us with a delightful old town. Although Rauma burned down twice — in 1640 and 1682 — the town was so poor at the time that, unlike the Swedish towns, the new houses too were built of wood. The paved streets and brightly coloured houses make for a very cosy atmosphere.

Rauma on üks Soome vanimaid linnu — linnaõigused sai ta 1442. aastal. 1550. aastal käskis Rootsi kuningas Gustav Vasa raumalastel kolida oma vastrajatud Helsingisse. Sama käsk anti Porvoo, Ulvila ja Tammisaare kodanikele ning sõnakuulmatuid ähvardati kaubandusõiguste äravõtmisega. Uus linn pidi tõmbama kaubateed eemale Tallinnast ja hansalinnadest.

Plaan ei õnnestunud. Osa raumalasi läks, aga linn ei jäänud tühjaks ning Helsingist ei saanud veel terve sajandi jooksul midagi enamat kui väike asula Vantaa jõe suudmes. Rauma jäi sinna, kus ta oli.

Rauma is one of Finland’s oldest towns; it received its town charter in 1442. In 1550 the Swedish king Gustav Vasa ordered the people of Rauma to move to his newly founded Helsinki. The same order went to the burghers of Porvoo, Ulvila and Tammisaari, and those who disobeyed were threatened with the loss of their trading rights. The new town was meant to pull the trade routes away from Tallinn and the Hanseatic ports.

The plan did not work. Some of Rauma’s people went, but the town was not emptied, and for another whole century Helsinki remained little more than a small settlement at the mouth of the Vantaa river. Rauma stayed where it was.

Rauma rikkus tuli merelt ja pitsist. 19. sajandil oli linnal üks Soome suuremaid purjelaevastikke ja niplispitsi tegemine toitis pool linna — pitsinaiste tööd müüdi laatadel üle kogu maa. Pitsinädalat peetakse Raumas siiani igal suvel.

Vanalinn ise on Põhjamaade suurim ühtne puitlinn ja kuulub 1991. aastast UNESCO maailmapärandi nimekirja. Tegemist ei ole muuseumiga: enamikus neist majadest elatakse ja töötatakse edasi.

Rauma’s wealth came from the sea and from lace. In the 19th century the town had one of the largest sailing fleets in Finland, and bobbin lace kept half of it fed — the lacemakers’ work was sold at markets all over the country. Rauma still holds its Lace Week every summer.

The old town itself is the largest unified wooden town in the Nordic countries and has been on the UNESCO World Heritage list since 1991. It is not a museum: most of these houses are still lived and worked in.

Püha Risti kirik ehitati frantsiskaanide kloostrikirikuks — puukirik seisis siin 1420. aasta paiku, praegune hallist graniidist hoone valmis arvatavasti aastatel 1515–1520. Frantsiskaanid ei olnud mungad selle sõna tavatähenduses. Munk andis tõotuse jääda oma kloostri müüride vahele; frantsiskaan oli kerjusvend, kes elas rahva keskel, jutlustas turuplatsil ja elatus almustest. Just seepärast seisab see klooster keset linna, mitte kusagil metsa taga.

1538. aastal tegi reformatsioon kloostrile lõpu ja vennad saadeti minema. Kirik seisis sada aastat tühjana. Kui 1640. aasta tulekahi hävitas Püha Kolmainu kiriku, sai endisest kloostrikirikust linna peakirik — nii muutus katoliku kloostrikirik luterlikuks. Püha Kolmainu varemed said 1816. aastal uue elu: nende kividest laoti üles kellatorn, mille valge tipp oli meremeestele maamärgiks.

The Church of the Holy Cross was built as the friary church of the Franciscans — a wooden church stood here around 1420, and the present grey granite building was most likely finished between 1515 and 1520. The Franciscans were not monks in the ordinary sense of the word. A monk vows to stay within the walls of his monastery; a Franciscan was a mendicant friar who lived among people, preached in the market square and lived on alms. That is exactly why this friary stands in the middle of the town rather than somewhere out in the forest.

In 1538 the Reformation put an end to the friary and the brothers were sent away. The church stood empty for a hundred years. When the fire of 1640 destroyed the Church of the Holy Trinity, the former friary church became the town’s main church — and so a Catholic friary church turned Lutheran. The ruins of the Holy Trinity were given a second life in 1816: its stones were used to build the bell tower, whose white top served as a landmark for sailors.

Jääaeg ei ole siit veel päriselt lahkunud. Maa tõuseb Põhjalahe rannikul kuni üheksa millimeetrit aastas ja meri taganeb koos sellega — igal aastal kerkib merest umbes 700 hektarit uut Soomet. Vanalinnas on koht, kus kunagi oli sadam ja kus laevad tõesti sildusid; tänaseks tuleb sealt mereni jalutada paar kilomeetrit. Meie selle jalutuskäigu ka ette võtsime ja jõudsime vee äärde alles õhtuks.

Ja lohutuseks: kui maailmamere tase tõuseb, siis siinkandis tõuseb maa esialgu ikka veel kiiremini. Soomlastel on globaalse soojenemise vastu olemas oma looduslik riskimaandus.

The Ice Age has not quite finished leaving. Along the Gulf of Bothnia the land rises by up to nine millimetres a year and the sea retreats with it — about 700 hectares of new Finland come up out of the water every year. In the old town there is a spot that was once the harbour, where ships really did tie up; today it is a couple of kilometres’ walk from there to the sea. We made that walk too, and reached the water only towards evening.

And a consoling thought: if the world’s sea level rises, here the land is for now still rising faster. The Finns have their own natural hedge against global warming.

Rauma ei ole ainult pits ja puumajad. Siinne Rauma-Repola laevatehas ehitas 1987. aastal Nõukogude Teaduste Akadeemiale kaks süvamere allveelaeva, Mir-1 ja Mir-2, mille töösügavus oli 6000 meetrit.

Ameeriklased olid CoComi ekspordiloa andnud peamiselt sellepärast, et nad ei uskunud soomlaste hakkamasaamist. Kui laevad tööle hakkasid, tekkis Pentagonis paanika — kardeti, et nõukogude laevastik hakkab ookeanipõhjast Ameerika pealtkuulamisseadmeid üles korjama. Rauma-Repolat ähvardati eraviisiliselt sanktsioonidega ja firma, kellel oli kaalul kogu naftaplatvormide äri, tõmbus tagasi. Sellega lõppes Soome süvamerelaevaehitus ära.

Mirid ise töötasid veel aastakümneid: nendega filmiti Titanicu vrakki 3821 meetri sügavusel ja 2007. aastal viidi nendega esimesed inimesed Põhjapooluse-aluse merepõhjani. Võrdluseks — 2023. aasta suvel purunes Titanicu juurde laskudes OceanGate’i sertifitseerimata Titan ja viis inimest hukkus. Vahel tasub lasta laev ehitada Soome laevatehases.

Rauma is not only lace and wooden houses. In 1987 the Rauma-Repola yard here built two deep-sea submersibles for the Soviet Academy of Sciences, Mir-1 and Mir-2, with a working depth of 6,000 metres.

The Americans had granted the CoCom export licence largely because they did not believe the Finns could pull it off. When the craft worked, there was panic in the Pentagon — the fear was that the Soviet fleet would start lifting American listening devices off the ocean floor. Rauma-Repola was privately threatened with sanctions, and the company, with its entire oil-platform business at stake, backed down. That was the end of deep-sea submersible building in Finland.

The Mirs themselves went on working for decades: they filmed the wreck of the Titanic at a depth of 3,821 metres, and in 2007 they carried the first people ever to reach the seabed beneath the North Pole. For comparison — in the summer of 2023 OceanGate’s uncertified Titan imploded on its way down to the Titanic and five people died. Sometimes it is worth having your vessel built in a Finnish shipyard.

Tänane plaan oli sõita Oulust Vaasasse. Sõidupäev algas meie mõnusas majutuskohas, millest tahaks paar sõna eraldi rääkida. Tegemist oli väga hästi disainitud apartmendiga – selle nimigi oli Design Apartment. Sinna mahtus kolm kaheinimeselist seltskonda ja olemas oli kõik vajalik, kaasa arvatud saun.

Peale meie ööbis seal kaks saksa paari – ühed mootorratastel, teised jalgratastel. Mugav oli seegi, et saime mootorratta otse maja ette parkida, mis tegi asjade tassimise mootorrattalt tuppa ja vastupidi väga lihtsaks. Maja ees seisid ka jalgrattad, mida kõik apartmendi elanikud võisid kasutada.

Today’s plan was to ride from Oulu to Vaasa. The riding day began at our very pleasant accommodation, which deserves a few words of its own. It was a beautifully designed apartment – Design Apartment was in fact its name. It had room for three parties of two and everything you could need, including a sauna.

Besides us, two German couples were staying there – one lot on motorcycles, the other on bicycles. It was also convenient that we could park the motorcycle right in front of the house, which made carrying things from the bike to the room and back very easy. In front of the house there were bicycles too, free for everyone staying in the apartment to use.

Seekord tegime teel ainult ühe peatuse – kohas nimega Raahe. Erinevalt paljudest teistest linnadest, mida oleme külastanud, Raahe maha ei põlenud, nii et seal on säilinud ilusad vanad puumajad. Peamine põhjus, miks me sinna läksime, oli aga see, et kohalikus muuseumis on eksponeeritud maailma vanim säilinud sukeldumiskostüüm. Muuseumisse jõudes selgus, et Raahes ei ole mitte üks, vaid kaks muuseumi – ja see kuulus kostüüm asus hoopis teises.

See ei tähendanud, et esimene muuseumikülastus oleks halvasti läinud, sest huvitavat oli seal palju. Üks asi, mis pildile jäi, oli kohaliku meistrimehe tehtud nukukarp. Samuli Sarkkila oli voolinud puust kujud linnaelanikest ja teenis raha sellega, et käis seda karpi turgudel väikese tasu eest näitamas. Arvan, et linnarahval oli päris huvitav enda kuju otsida ja naabrite kujude üle nalja heita. Veel üks huvitav fakt linna ajaloost: Raahe asutas rootsi aadlik Per Brahe ja pani sellele üsna otseselt oma nime, kuigi aja jooksul on see muutunud ja omandanud soomekeelse vormi.

This time we made only one stop on the way – at a place called Raahe. Unlike many of the other towns we have visited, Raahe never burned down, so its beautiful old wooden houses are still standing. The main reason we went there, though, was that the local museum has the world’s oldest surviving diving suit on display. On arriving at the museum it turned out that Raahe has not one but two museums – and the famous suit was in the other one.

That did not mean the first museum visit went badly, because there was plenty of interest there. One thing that made it into a photo was a toy box made by a local craftsman. Samuli Sarkkila had carved wooden figures of the townspeople and earned money by taking the box round the markets and showing it for a small fee. I imagine the townsfolk found it rather entertaining to look for their own figure and to joke about their neighbours’. Another interesting fact from the town’s history: Raahe was founded by the Swedish nobleman Per Brahe, who named it fairly directly after himself, though over time the name has shifted into its Finnish form.

Järgmistel piltidel ongi see kuulus sukeldumiskostüüm, mis asus teises muuseumis, kuhu me jalutasime. Kostüüm on tehtud lehmanahast ja näeb tegelikult päris sarnane välja tänapäevase sukeldumiskostüümiga.

Kõrval oli üles riputatud tänapäevasem sukelduskiiver, mida kõik külastajad said endale pähe proovida.

In the next pictures is that famous diving suit, in the second museum, to which we walked. The suit is made of cowhide and actually looks quite similar to a modern diving suit.

Next to it hung a more modern diving helmet, which every visitor was allowed to try on.

Raahes oli järjekordne võimalus süüa lõunaks suitsusiiga ja ka seekord maitses see väga hästi.

In Raahe there was another chance to have smoked whitefish for lunch, and this time too it tasted very good.

Õhtuks jõudsime õnnelikult Vaasasse ja leidsime ilma suuremate seiklusteta üles oma tänaõhtuse ööbimiskoha. See oli väga mõnus – seekord on meil täiesti omaette tuba koos kõige vajalikuga.

Õhtu lõpetasime mõnusa jalutuskäiguga linnas, väikese šoppamisega, ja magasime väga sügavalt ja hästi.

By evening we had arrived safely in Vaasa and found tonight’s lodging without any great adventures. It was very pleasant – this time we have a room entirely to ourselves, with everything we need.

We ended the evening with a nice walk in town and a little shopping, and slept very deeply and well.

Hommikul ärgates kostis akna taga vihma sabin. Eilne päikesepaiste oli asendunud vihmaga. Taevas oli hall ja pilves. Tänane plaan on sõita Luleåst Oulusse. Nagu tavaliselt planeerisime mõned vahepeatused, et teepeale jäävate huvitavate kohtadega tutvuda. Vaatame kuidas see meil õnnestub.

Waking up in the morning, we could hear rain pattering outside the window. Yesterday’s sunshine had been replaced by rain. The sky was grey and overcast. Today’s plan is to ride from Luleå to Oulu. As usual we planned a few stops along the way, to get to know the interesting places on our route. Let’s see how we manage.

Esimeseks peatuseks on kirikuküla Luleå külje all. Esmapilgul ei paista see kuidagi väga eriline välja, aga tegemist on tegelikult päris kummalise asjaga. Nimelt ei ole kiriku ümber olevad majad kellegi alalised elukohad. Tegelikult on nendes majades alaliselt elamine hoopis keelatud. Need majad on mõnes mõttes nagu suvekodud, ainult kui tänapäeva suvekodud on mõeldud puhkamiseks (või eestlaste puhul pigem töö tegemiseks), siis need on mõeldud hinge eest hoolt kandmiseks. Kuna kirik kattis suurt piirkonda ja inimesed elasid kirikust sageli päris kaugel, siis oli selline majake kiriku kõrval päris hea lahendus.

Our first stop is the church town just outside Luleå. At first glance it does not look particularly special, but it is actually a rather curious thing. The houses around the church are nobody’s permanent home. Living in them permanently is in fact forbidden. In a way these houses are like summer homes, except that while today’s summer homes are meant for resting (or, for Estonians, rather for getting work done), these were meant for taking care of the soul. As the parish covered a large area and people often lived quite far from the church, a little house like this next to the church was a rather good solution.

Inimesed kogunesid kirikukülasse erinevate kirikupühade ajal. Suhtlesid nii oma pere liikmete kui ka tuttavatega ja pühendasid aega kirikus käimisele. See kõlab tegelikult ju päris mõnusa puhkusena.

Vihm sadas aga vahetpidamata. Vihmariietega ei ole see tegelikult midagi väga hullu. Kõige ebamugavam on kindad, mis ikkagi läbimärjaks lähevad. Lisaks tekkisid aeg-ajalt probleemid telefoni laadimisega. Kasutan vana telefoni GPSina ja vihma käes hakkas see hädaldama, ning käskis laadimisjuhtme koheselt välja võtta.

People gathered in the church town for the various church holidays. They spent time with family members and acquaintances alike, and devoted time to going to church. That actually sounds like a rather pleasant holiday.

The rain, however, kept falling without a break. With rain gear it is really not all that bad. The most uncomfortable part is the gloves, which get soaked through anyway. On top of that there were occasional problems with charging the phone. I use an old phone as a GPS, and out in the rain it started complaining and ordered me to unplug the charging cable immediately.

Lõunapausi tegime Kukkolaforsenis. See on vana kaluriküla piirijõe Rootsi poolel. Teisel pool jõge on juba Soome. Küla asub kärestikulise koha peal, kus püütakse kala traditsioonilisel meetodil kahvaga. Nagu pildilt näha on külas isegi sellist kalapüüki kujutav monument. Üleval oleval pildil on väikselt näha ka tegelikult kahvaga kala püüdev mees. Seda kas kala püüti turistide lõbustamiseks või mõnel muul põhjusel jäigi selgusetuks. Igatahes pakuti jõeäärses restoranis traditsioonilist siia kala, mis maitses väga hea. Siig ongi põhiline kala mille poolest see koht kuulus on.

We stopped for lunch at Kukkolaforsen. It is an old fishing village on the Swedish side of the border river. The other bank is already Finland. The village sits at a stretch of rapids where fish are caught by the traditional method, with a dip net. As can be seen in the picture, the village even has a monument depicting this kind of fishing. In the picture above you can also see, small in the frame, a man actually catching fish with a dip net. Whether the fishing was done to entertain tourists or for some other reason remained unclear. In any case, the riverside restaurant served traditional whitefish, which tasted very good. Whitefish is the main fish this place is known for.

Kukkolaforsenis vihm vaibus ja korraks isegi näitas päikest. Kuna me aga hakkasime nüüd tagasi lõuna poole liikuma, siis jõudsime jälle vihmapilvede alla ja sõit Oulu poole jätkus vihmasabina saatel kiivritel. Kohati oli vihm päris tugev, aga meid see ei seganud ja liikusime edasi oma tänase viimase peatuse poole. Selleks oli vana sadam kohas nimega Ii. See on säilinud suhteliselt autentsena oma tavapäraste punaste kalurimajakestega.

At Kukkolaforsen the rain eased and for a moment the sun even came out. But as we now started moving back south, we ended up under the rain clouds again, and the ride towards Oulu continued with rain pattering on our helmets. At times the rain was quite heavy, but it did not bother us and we carried on towards our last stop of the day. This was the old harbour at a place called Ii. It has survived relatively authentically, with its customary little red fishermen’s houses.

Vanas sadamas oli ka väike muuseum, mis eksponeeris erinevaid kalapüügi, palkide parvetamisega ja muude kohalike tegevustega seotud esemeid. Küla läbival jõel toimus ka palkide parvetamine. Sellele oli pühendatud eraldi toake muuseumis.

The old harbour also had a small museum, exhibiting various objects connected with fishing, log floating and other local activities. Logs were also floated down the river running through the village. A separate little room in the museum was devoted to that.

Muuseumikohviku trepil jätsime hüvasti sõbraliku koeraga. Ka hakkas vihm vaibuma. Üks tore kohviku töötaja näitas meile oma arvutis isegi ilmaradarit ja julgustas meid, et vihm lõppeb peatselt. Nii liikusimegi edasi meie tänase lõpp-peatuse poole Oulus.

On the steps of the museum café we said goodbye to a friendly dog. The rain was easing off as well. One kind café worker even showed us the weather radar on their computer and assured us that the rain would soon be over. And so we moved on towards our final stop of the day in Oulu.

Oulu on päris suur linn, mille elanike arv ületab 200 tuhandet. Linn on ka pindalalt päris suur, kuna liitunud on mitmed asulad, mis ajalooliselt olid eraldiseisvad. Sellel linnal on olnud kaks õitsenguperioodi. Linna sünd on seotud tõrvakaubandusega. Tõrva valmistamine toimus Kainuu piirkonnas sisemaal, aga Oulust sai värav mille kaudu toimus tõrvakaubandus. Tõrv oli hinnaline strateegiline kaup, seda vajasid kõik riigid, kellel oli sõjalaevastik, sest tõrvamine on väga oluline laevade hooldusel. Tõrva valmistamisel kõigepealt männipuud kooriti selliselt, et puu jääks elama ja koguks endasse võimalikult palju tõrva. Tõrvapuud koguti tõrvapõletusauku ja kaeti sambla ja turbaga. Selliselt põledes vaik sulas ja voolas puudest välja. See äri lõppes koos puidust laevade kadumisega.

Oulu is quite a large city, with a population of over 200 thousand. It is also fairly large in area, as several settlements that were historically separate have been merged into it. This city has had two periods of flourishing. The city’s birth is connected with the tar trade. Tar was made inland in the Kainuu region, but Oulu became the gateway through which the tar trade passed. Tar was a valuable strategic commodity, needed by every country that had a navy, because tarring is very important in the maintenance of ships. To make tar, pine trees were first barked in such a way that the tree would stay alive and gather as much tar into itself as possible. The tar trees were collected into a tar-burning pit and covered with moss and peat. Burning like this, the resin melted and flowed out of the wood. That business ended along with the disappearance of wooden ships.

Teine õitseaeg on Oulus praegu. Siin on tuntud Oulu ülikool ja Nokia võrguseadmete tootmise keskus. Nokia telefone me enam müügil ei näe, kuid erinevate mobiilside võrguseadmete tootmises on ettevõte endiselt kõva maailmatasemel tegija. Oulus toimubki nende tootmine. Koostöös ülikooliga toimub 6G sidelahenduste väljatöötamine ja siin samas asub ka tootmiskompleks kus tänapäevaseid seadmeid toodetakse. Tänu sellele on Oulus palju noori ja siin töötab inimesi üle kogu maailma. Lisaks on Nokia insenerid aluse pannud ka mitmetele uutele ettevõtmistele.

The second flourishing is happening in Oulu right now. Here are the well-known University of Oulu and Nokia’s network equipment production centre. We no longer see Nokia phones on sale, but in the manufacture of mobile network equipment the company is still a serious world-class player. It is in Oulu that they are produced. 6G communication solutions are being developed together with the university, and right here is also the production complex where modern equipment is made. Thanks to this there are many young people in Oulu, and people from all over the world work here. Nokia’s engineers have also laid the foundations for a number of new ventures.

Piltidel on erinevad objektid mis linnas jalutades silma jäid. Ülevalpool on konteinersaun. See on avalik saunaruum kuhu igaüks saab aja broneerida. Üks tund ühele inimesele maksis 8 – 12 eurot sõltuvalt kellaajast. Kui me sellest mööda jalutasime, siis oli näha laval istuvaid saunalisi kes nautisid leiliruumi aknast vaadet jõele.

Siis Oulu katedraal. Astusime sinna ka korra sisse ja nautisime parajasti käimas olevat oreli ja marimba kontserti. Silma jäi ka Oulu vangla, mis asus suhteliselt linna keskel ja nägi välja väga inimlik.

The pictures show various things that caught our eye while walking around the city. Above is the container sauna. It is a public sauna room that anyone can book a slot in. One hour for one person cost 8 – 12 euros depending on the time of day. As we walked past it, we could see bathers sitting on the sauna benches, enjoying the view of the river from the steam room window.

Then Oulu Cathedral. We stepped inside for a moment as well and enjoyed an organ and marimba concert that was going on at the time. Oulu prison also caught our eye, sitting fairly centrally in the city and looking very humane.

Võrreldes Eestiga oleme ikka kõvasti põhja pool. Selle tunnistuseks on ka õitsevad pärnad. Eestis õitsesid need juba mitu nädalat tagasi.

Compared with Estonia we are still a good deal further north. The lindens in bloom are testimony to that. In Estonia they flowered several weeks ago already.

Esimese peatuse tegime Skulebergeti mäe juures. See on ümbruskonna üks kõrgemaid tippe ja siit avaneb imeilus vaade Höga Kusteni mägedele, orgudele ja lahtedele.

See koht on omapärane sellepärast, et siin on maailmas kõige rohkem pärast jääaega kerkinud pinnas – väidetavalt üle kahesaja kaheksakümne meetri. Kohe pärast jääaega kerkis maapind umbes kümme sentimeetrit aastas, praeguseks on see stendil oleva teksti järgi aeglustunud üheksale millimeetrile aastas. Aga pinnas tõuseb endiselt iga aasta kõrgemale ja kõrgemale.

We made our first stop at Skuleberget. It is one of the highest peaks in the area, and from here a beautiful view opens over the mountains, valleys and bays of the High Coast.

What makes this place unusual is that the land here has risen more since the Ice Age than anywhere else in the world – reportedly by over two hundred and eighty metres. Right after the Ice Age the ground rose about ten centimetres a year; by now, according to the text on the information board, that has slowed to nine millimetres a year. But the land still climbs higher and higher every year.

Üles tulime suusatõstukiga ja lootsime, et sellesama tõstukiga saame ka alla. Talvel on siin suusamäed – seesama tõstuk, mis talvel suusatajaid veab, toob praegu inimesi mäkke üles ja viib ka alla.

Tublimad saavad siia ka jalgsi üles tulla. Meie lihtsalt ei hakanud oma paksus mootorrattavarustuses seda matka ette võtma.

We came up by ski lift, hoping the same lift would take us back down again. In winter there are ski slopes here – the very lift that carries skiers in winter now brings people up the mountain and down again.

The hardier ones can walk up. We simply did not take that hike on in our thick motorcycle gear.

Teel tegime kohvipausi ühes tanklas. Esmapilgul tundus see olevat täiesti tavaline tankla, aga kui me sealt välja astusime, siis nägime unikaalset lisateenust. Nimelt oli tankla kõrval suusahüppemägi. Eriti kasulik on see elektriautode omanikele – seni kuni auto laadib, saab paar hüpet teha.

On the way we stopped for a coffee at a petrol station. At first glance it seemed a perfectly ordinary petrol station, but when we stepped back outside we spotted a unique extra service. Right beside the station stood a ski jump. It is especially useful for electric-car owners – while the car charges, you can fit in a couple of jumps.

Pärast mäe otsas käimist sõitsime edasi päris kaua – niikaua, kuni jõudsime linnakesse, mille nimi on Skellefteå. Peatuse tegime selles linnas selleks, et vaadata üht vist isegi maailma kõrgematest puitmajadest, Sara kultuurimaja.

Maja kõige kõrgem osa on kahekümnekorruseline ja seal asub hotell ja spa. Esimesel korrusel, kust me sisse jalutasime, on raamatukogu. Päris-päris muljetavaldav hoone.

After the mountain we rode on for a good long while – until we came to a small town by the name of Skellefteå. We stopped in this town to look at what may even be one of the tallest wooden buildings in the world, the Sara cultural centre.

The tallest part of the building is twenty storeys and houses a hotel and a spa. On the ground floor, where we walked in, there is a library. A really quite impressive building.

Kuigi mõnes kohas paistsid juba praod, loodame, et see hoone püsib püsti veel aastaid.

Though cracks were already showing in places, we hope the building stands for years to come.

Selle linnakese kohta, kus muuseas on kolmkümmend viis tuhat elanikku, selgus lähemalt uurides veel üks huvitav nüanss. Nimelt toimus just selles linnas tänapäeva Rootsi kõige suurem pankrot – ja see on selle puidust kõrghoonega natuke seotud ka.

Siia linna üritati rajada Euroopa elektriautode akude tootmise megatehas – Northvolt. Investorid investeerisid sellesse viisteist miljardit dollarit. Kõik muu oli nagu korras – poliitikud toetasid ja raha jätkus, aga probleem tekkis sellega, et ei suudetud toota kvaliteetseid akusid. Kuna tootmine hilines ja kvaliteet ei olnud ootuspärane, katkestasid potentsiaalsed ostjad lepingud. Kahe tuhande kahekümne neljanda aasta novembris esitas Northvolt Ameerika Ühendriikides pankrotikaitse taotluse ning kahe tuhande kahekümne viienda aasta märtsis läks ettevõte Rootsis lõplikult pankrotti.

Looking more closely into this little town, which incidentally has thirty-five thousand inhabitants, one more interesting detail came to light. It was in this very town that modern Sweden’s largest bankruptcy took place – and it is connected to that tall wooden building too.

A megafactory for producing electric-car batteries for Europe – Northvolt – was to be built in this town. Investors put fifteen billion dollars into it. Everything else was more or less in order – the politicians backed it and there was money enough, but the problem was that quality batteries could not be produced. As production fell behind and the quality was not what had been expected, prospective buyers cancelled their contracts. In November two thousand and twenty-four Northvolt filed for bankruptcy protection in the United States, and in March two thousand and twenty-five the company finally went bankrupt in Sweden.

Praeguseks on tehas müüdud ühele Ameerika ettevõttele. Nii palju kui aru saime, toodetakse seal praegu siiski mõningal määral ka akusid ja lisaks asub seal andmekeskus. Miks see tehas üldse sinna linna tehti – seal on palju odavat hüdroenergiat. Idee oli selles, et need akud on tõesti rohelised, sest kasutatakse rohelist energiat. Aga noh, kahjuks nii läks. Kui tehas pankrotti läks, koondati tuhat kuussada töötajat; kui ameeriklased tehase üle ostsid, võeti siit linnakesest uuesti tööle kuskil kuussada inimest.

Ja siit tulebki side selle puidust kõrghoonega. Kui Northvolt kahe tuhande seitsmeteistkümnenda aasta sügisel Skellefteå oma tehase asukohaks valis, lubati tuhandeid uusi töökohti ja linn hakkas oma tulevikku planeerima suure enesekindlusega – vald, kus elab umbes seitsekümmend kaks tuhat inimest, seadis sihiks kasvada üheksakümne tuhandeni. Selleks pidi linn muutuma piisavalt atraktiivseks, et uued tulijad siia ka jääksid. Sara kultuurimaja arhitektuurikonkurss võideti küll juba aasta enne Northvolti otsust, aga ehitati ja avati maja kahe tuhande kahekümne esimesel aastal just sellesse ootusesse – kaheksakümne meetri kõrgune, uhke ja kohalikust metsast. Nüüd on tehas pankrotti läinud ja kultuurimaja seisab endiselt – linna kõige nähtavam mälestusmärk sellest, kui kindlad oldi oma tulevikus.

Ja edasi siis viimane etapp täna – sõitsime Luleåsse ja siin ühes väikses majakeses linna servas sättisime ennast tänaseks sisse. Homme peaks hakkama juba tagasi lõuna poole liikuma.

By now the factory has been sold to an American company. As far as we understood, some batteries are still made there after all, and there is a data centre on the site as well. Why the factory was built in that town in the first place – there is a great deal of cheap hydropower there. The idea was that these batteries would be genuinely green, because green energy would be used. But, well, it turned out as it did. When the factory went bankrupt, sixteen hundred workers were laid off; when the Americans bought it, around six hundred people from this little town were taken back on.

And this is where the connection with that tall wooden building comes in. When Northvolt picked Skellefteå as the site for its factory in the autumn of two thousand and seventeen, thousands of new jobs were promised, and the town began planning its future with great confidence – the municipality, home to some seventy-two thousand people, set itself the goal of growing to ninety thousand. To manage that, the town had to become attractive enough for the newcomers to want to stay. The architecture competition for the Sara cultural centre was in fact won a year before Northvolt’s decision, but the building was built and opened in two thousand and twenty-one, right into that expectation – eighty metres tall, proud, and made from the local forest. Now the factory has gone bankrupt and the cultural centre still stands – the town’s most visible monument to how certain it once was of its future.

And then the last leg of the day – we rode to Luleå, and here, in a small house on the edge of town, we settled ourselves in for the night. Tomorrow we should already start making our way back south.

Täna me kuskile ei sõitnud. Plaan oli teha matk ümber meie kämpingu. Ümbritsev loodus on imeilus – kämping asub poolsaarel ja seda ümbritseb tormine meri. Alustasime teekonda külast, möödusime kalarestoranist ja suundusime edasi tuulisele mererannale.

Mererand oli täis igasuguseid kive – oli suuri, oli väikseid. Ja lisaks sellele olid nad ka väga erinevat värvi: punaseid, kollakamaid, hallikamaid. Lahe suudmes puhus sisse tugev tuul, mis ähvardas mütsigi peast pühkida.

Today we didn’t ride anywhere. The plan was to hike around our campsite. The nature here is beautiful – the campsite sits on a peninsula, and a stormy sea wraps around it. We set off from the village, passed the fish restaurant and headed on towards the windy shore.

The shore was covered in stones of every kind – big ones, small ones. And on top of that they came in very different colours: reds, yellowish ones, greyish ones. A strong wind blew in at the mouth of the bay, threatening to sweep the cap right off your head.

Edasi suundusime mööda matkarada, mis kulges paralleelselt mereäärega. Sellel rajal oli meie jaoks kaetud mustikate rootsi laud – mets oli päris paksult mustikaid täis, mida võis aeg-ajalt vabalt suhu torgata. Mida me ka tegime.

Lisaks mustikatele oli seal ka sinikaid, pohli ja kukemarju, nii et rootsi laud oli tõesti rikkalik.

From there we carried on along the hiking trail, which ran parallel to the shoreline. A blueberry smorgasbord had been laid out for us along it – the forest was thick with berries, and now and then you could simply pop one in your mouth. Which we did.

Besides blueberries there were bog bilberries, lingonberries and crowberries, so the spread really was a generous one.

Kõndida väga mugav ei olnud, sest tee kulges põhimõtteliselt mööda kive. Mõned kivid olid lahtised ja ümmargused, mõned veidi kindlamad. Aga me läksime julgelt mööda matkarada edasi.

Kõige lahedam oli ehk tormine meri. Poolsaare tipus puhus tuul otse avamerelt, lained murdusid ja mänglesid vastu kallast. Tunne oli küll, et sellise ilmaga merre ujuma minna ei tahaks.

Walking was not exactly comfortable, since the path essentially ran across stones. Some were loose and round, others a little more solid. But we pressed on along the trail undaunted.

The best part was perhaps the stormy sea. At the tip of the peninsula the wind blew straight in off the open water, and the waves broke and played against the shore. It did leave you feeling that in weather like this you wouldn’t fancy going for a swim.

Kaldal oli ka mõned vanaaegsed arheoloogilised mälestised, mis väidetavalt olid kunagiste kalurite onnide asemed – ümaralt ja mõnikord ka kandiliselt paigutatud kivid. Millised need onnid välja nägid, seda ei tea keegi, sest kogu see asi on vähemalt tuhat aastat vana.

Huvitav oli see, et matkarada oli praktiliselt inimtühi – kohati tundus, et oleme ainsad seal ringi jalutajad. Lõpuks nägime siiski veel kolme inimest. Küllap on siin ümberringi veel midagi põnevat, mida inimesed vaatamas käivad. Aga kuna meie tegime ühe motikavaba päeva, siis meie jaoks oli see väga-väga mõnus jalutuskäik metsas ja mere ääres.

On the shore there were also some old archaeological remains, said to be the sites of fishermen’s huts from long ago – stones laid out in circles, and sometimes in squares. What those huts actually looked like nobody knows, because the whole thing is at least a thousand years old.

What struck us was how empty the trail was – at times it felt as though we were the only people walking there. In the end we did see three others. There is probably something else worth seeing around here that people go to look at. But since we were having a motorcycle-free day, for us this was a very, very pleasant walk in the forest and by the sea.

Peale jalutuskäiku tundus, et kõht on tühjaks läinud, ja õnneks oli meie kämpingu kõrval kohe tore kalarestoran. Läksime sinna, tellisime fish and chips’i, veidike õlut, veidike veini – ja saimegi kõhud täis. Vot selline tore päev meil täna oli.

After the walk it turned out we had worked up an appetite, and luckily there was a fine fish restaurant right next to our campsite. We went in, ordered fish and chips, a little beer, a little wine – and that filled us up. So that was the sort of lovely day we had today.

Nädalavahetus oli meil plaanis veeta Norrfällsviken kämpingus, kuhu teekond näitas ligi 500 km sõitu. Sinna sisse olime planeerinud ka ühe vahelepõike Alftas asuvas talukompleksis. Seega asusime teele juba suhteliselt varakult, Uppsala oli veel mõnusalt uneuimas, kui me sealt oma tänast teekonda alustasime. Liiklus oli mõnusalt hõre.., arusaadav, inimesed naudivad koduseid laupäeva hommikuid.

Ilmad on siiani olnud suhteliselt sarnased Eestimaale, v-o isegi pisut jahedamad, keskmiselt selline 17-19 kraadi. Reedene päev oli kõige soojem, kui Uppsalasse jõudsime, näitas termomeeter 25 kraadi, see on motomatkamiseks isegi natuke liiga soe, arvestades meie riietust. Nii et naudimegi sellist 18-19 kraadist ilma.

We had planned to spend the weekend at the Norrfällsviken campsite, and the route showed close to 500 km of riding to get there. We had also worked a detour into it, to a farm complex at Alfta. So we set off relatively early; Uppsala was still pleasantly half-asleep as we started out on today’s journey. The traffic was pleasantly thin – understandable, people were enjoying their Saturday mornings at home.

The weather so far has been fairly similar to Estonia, perhaps even a touch cooler, averaging around 17-19 degrees. Friday was the warmest – when we reached Uppsala the thermometer read 25 degrees, which for motorcycle touring is even a little too warm, given what we wear. So this 18-19 degree weather suits us just fine.

Tulekahjud. Tulekahju tundus olevat eilse päeva läbiv teema. Kolm korda ühe päeva jooksul. See algas peatusest Gävle linna lähistel. Nagu tavaks uurisin, selle linna tausta ja üks esimesi fakte, mis välja tuli oli see, et see linn põles 1869 aastal peaaegu täielikult maha ja et tulevased tulekahjud ei leviks ehitati linn üles hästi laiade tänavatega. Lisaks veel teine huvitav fakt – selles linnas tehakse Gevalia kohvi.

Edasi viis meie tee UNESCO nimekirjas oleva maalitud seintega vana talumaja juurde. Ka see sai alguse 1793 aastal toimunud suurest tulekahjust, kus välk süütas kõigepealt kirikutorni ja tuli levis edasi kiriku ümber olevatele taludele. Peale tulekahju ehitas peremees talu üles teistest majadest eemale ja siin seisab see tänase päevani.

Kolmas kokkupuude oli läbides Sundsvalli linna. Ka see põles täielikult maha 1888, jättes ühe päevaga kodutuks üle 9000 inimese. Kuna linnas oli palju rikkust tänu rohketele saeveskitele, ehitati linn uuesti üles nelja aastaga.

Fires. Fire seemed to be the running theme of yesterday. Three times over in a single day. It began with a stop near the town of Gävle. As usual I read up on the town’s background, and one of the first facts to come up was that it burned down almost completely in 1869, and that to keep future fires from spreading the town was rebuilt with very wide streets. And one more interesting fact – this is the town where Gevalia coffee is made.

From there our road led to the old farmhouse with painted walls that is on the UNESCO list. This one too began with a great fire, in 1793, when lightning first set the church tower alight and the fire then spread to the farms around the church. After the fire the owner rebuilt the farm away from the other houses, and there it stands to this day.

The third encounter came as we passed through the town of Sundsvall. It too burned to the ground completely, in 1888, leaving over 9000 people homeless in a single day. Since there was a great deal of wealth in the town thanks to its many sawmills, it was rebuilt within four years.

Ol-Andersi talumuuseum on tuntud seetõttu, et seal on suurepäraselt säilinud 1848. aastast tehtud seinamaalingud. Eks neid on pisut muidugi kohendatud, aga tõesti väga kaunid nägid välja.

Lasin AI-l ka ühe pildil oleva teksti ära tõlkida, et paremini aru saada, mis on pildil kujutatud. Antud pildil olid kujutatud piiblist tuntud kolm idamaa tarka. Need olid riietatud tüüpilise Rootsi tolleaegsesse riietesse. Need olid huvitavad versioonid, kuidas tõlgendas piibli sündmusi Rootsi külakunstnik.

Üks tore seik seal talumuuseumis oli ka veel. Kui sealses kohvikus istusime, tuli meie juurde üks natuke eakam armas vanaproua, kes muuseumis ka giidina töötas. Ütles, et kuulis eesti keelt ja tuli meile “Tere” ütlema. Ta ise on pärit Uppsalast ja oli 90-tndate keskel Tartus, mis on Uppsala sõpruslinn, Rahvaülikoolis pool aastat Rootsi keelt õpetanud. Igaljuhul väga armsad on sellised kohtumised.

The Ol-Anders farm museum is known for its beautifully preserved wall paintings made in 1848. They have of course been touched up a little, but they really did look very lovely.

I also had an AI translate one of the texts in a painting, to understand better what was depicted. This particular painting showed the three wise men known from the Bible. They were dressed in the typical Swedish clothing of the time. These were interesting versions of how a Swedish village artist interpreted the events of the Bible.

There was one more delightful moment at that farm museum. As we were sitting in the café there, a lovely, somewhat elderly lady came over to us – she worked at the museum as a guide. She said she had heard Estonian being spoken and had come to say hello. She herself is from Uppsala and in the mid-1990s spent half a year in Tartu, Uppsala’s twin town, teaching Swedish at the Folk University. Encounters like that are always very heartwarming.

Talukompleksi juures oli ka väike muuseum Rootsi väljarändajatest Ameerikasse ja sealt tuli välja mõrvalugu, mis algab Rootsist ja kulmineerub hoopis USAs. Rootsis elas jahukaupmees Erik Jansson. Kui ta oli 22 aastane, siis vaevas teda reuma. Ühel päeval kui ta põllul kündis, kukkus ta maha ja palus maas lamades jumalalt abi. Pärast seda episoodi paranes ta oma tõvest täielikult. See viis ta usu juurde ja mõne aasta pärast oli ta juba arvamusel, et ta on jumala saadik maa peal. Ta pidas luterlikku kirikut korrumpeerunuks ja ta jutlustas oma versiooni, kuidas inimesed peaksid jumalat teenima. Asi läks isegi nii kaugele, et ta põletas ametliku kiriku poolt välja antud raamatuid ja sellest tekkis tal mitmeid probleeme. Selles olukorras tuli tal mõte emigreeruda Ameerikasse ja luua seal oma ideaalidele vastav kogukond.

Mõeldud tehtud. Ta saatis ette oma jüngri Olof Olsson’i (laev on kujutatud pildil), kes leidis sobiva maatüki ja ostis selle tulevase asunduse tarbeks. 1846 aastal saabuski Jansson sinna koos oma 1400 järgijaga. Algselt oli kogukonna elu väga raske, elati telkides ja ajutistes hüttides. Inimesed haigestusid koolerasse ja surid. Alguses kehtestas Jansson tsölibaadi, aga kui elu läks paremaks, siis lubas ta abielusid, kuid kontrollis, kes kellega võis paari minna.

See viibki meid loo sõlmpunkti, mille moodustavad Eriku nõbu Charlotta ja juba enne Rootsist välja rännanud John Root. Root liitus samuti kogukonnaga ja Erik lubas tal abielluda Charlottaga. Abielulepingus oli sees punkt, mis muutis abielu kehtetuks juhul, kui John otsustab kogukonnast lahkuda. See mõte aga just Johnil pähe tuli, kui ta nägi koolera poolt tehtavat hävitustööd. Kui ta tegi Charlottale ettepaneku lahkuda, siis viimane keeldus. John lahkus ja üritas kaks korda Charlottat koos oma lapsega röövida. Kogukonna liikmed aga nurjasid mõlemad katsed. Lõpuks kaebas John Eriku kohtusse. Kui Erik tuli 13. mail 1850 kohtumajja oma õigust kaitsma, siis varitses John teda ja tulistas teda surmavalt.

Peale juhi surma sattus kogukond finantsilistesse raskustesse ja see lõpetas oma tegevuse 1862 aastal. Varad jagati kogukonna liikmete vahel. Charlotta jäi kuni surmani Bishop Hilli (selline oli kogukonna nimi). Ta elas kõrge eani ja juhtis oma talu koos pojaga. Bishop Hill on senini linnake Illinois’s, mis tunneb uhkust oma Rootsi juurte üle ja kus tähistatakse Rootsi traditsioonilisi pühasid.

By the farm complex there was also a small museum about the Swedes who emigrated to America, and out of it came a murder story that begins in Sweden and comes to a head in the USA. In Sweden there lived a flour merchant named Erik Jansson. When he was 22 he was troubled by rheumatism. One day, while ploughing a field, he collapsed and, lying on the ground, asked God for help. After that episode he recovered from his affliction completely. This brought him to faith, and a few years later he already held the view that he was God’s messenger on earth. He considered the Lutheran church corrupt and preached his own version of how people ought to serve God. It went so far that he burned books issued by the official church, which brought him a good deal of trouble. In that situation he had the idea of emigrating to America and founding a community there that matched his ideals.

No sooner said than done. He sent ahead his disciple Olof Olsson (his ship is the one shown in the picture), who found a suitable piece of land and bought it for the future settlement. In 1846 Jansson duly arrived there with his 1400 followers. At first life in the community was very hard; they lived in tents and temporary huts. People fell ill with cholera and died. In the beginning Jansson imposed celibacy, but once life improved he permitted marriages – while controlling who was allowed to pair up with whom.

And this brings us to the knot of the story, formed by Erik’s cousin Charlotta and John Root, who had emigrated from Sweden earlier. Root joined the community too, and Erik allowed him to marry Charlotta. The marriage contract contained a clause voiding the marriage should John decide to leave the community. And that is precisely the thought that came to John when he saw the devastation the cholera was causing. When he proposed to Charlotta that they leave, she refused. John left, and twice tried to abduct Charlotta along with their child. Members of the community foiled both attempts. In the end John took Erik to court. When Erik came to the courthouse to defend his case on 13 May 1850, John lay in wait for him and shot him dead.

After the leader’s death the community ran into financial difficulties and wound up its affairs in 1862. The assets were divided among the members. Charlotta remained in Bishop Hill (that was the community’s name) until her death. She lived to a great age and ran her farm together with her son. Bishop Hill is to this day a small town in Illinois that takes pride in its Swedish roots and where traditional Swedish holidays are celebrated.

Sundsvallist edasi viis tee meid põhja poole ja õhtuks jõudsime kämpingusse mere ääres männimetsa sees.

From Sundsvall the road took us further north, and by evening we reached the campsite by the sea, in among the pines.

Eestlasi siinkandis eriti ei näe-ei kuule. Eesti numbrimärgiga autosid ka pole kohanud. Usun, et eestlased ikka rohkem soojale maale sõidavad puhkust veetma. Me kumbki pole suur soojalemb, seega sobib selline põhjamaine karge kliima meile väga hästi.

Kämping ise asub piirkonnas mida kutsutakse Höga Kusten – Kõrge Kallas. See on looduslikult kaunis kaljune piirkond. Homme avastame seda ja kirjutame juba lähemalt.

You neither see nor hear many Estonians in these parts. We haven’t come across a single car with Estonian plates either. I suppose Estonians still tend to head somewhere warm for their holidays. Neither of us is much of a heat-lover, so this crisp northern climate suits us very well.

The camping lies in the region called Höga Kusten – the High Coast. It is a naturally beautiful, rocky area. Tomorrow we will explore it and write about it in more detail.

Olemegi õnnelikult Uppsalas. See on pika ajalooga linn, mille nime on tõenäoliselt igaüks kuulnud. Jalutasime õhtul linnas ja kosutasime nii vaimu kui ka keha. Siin on mõned vaated ja mõtted, mis sellel jalutuskäigul meelde jäid.

We have arrived safely in Uppsala. This is a city with a long history, whose name just about everyone has probably heard. In the evening we walked around the town and refreshed both mind and body. Here are some of the views and thoughts that stayed with us from that walk.

Uppsala ülikool on vanim põhjamaades. See asutati 1477. (Tartu ülikool asutati 1632). Erinevalt Tartu ülikoolist, mille asutas Rootsi kuningas Gustav II Adolf, asutati Uppsala ülikool Rooma paavsti korraldusel. Uppsala sai ülikooli asukohaks kuna siin asus kiriku keskus ja tolleaegne ülikool oli kiriklik asutus, kus õpetust jagasid vaimulikud. Ülikooli loomise eestvedajaks oli peapiiskop Jakob Ulvsson ja loomulikult valis ta selle asukohaks oma residentsi. Sama loogika on aluseks ka teiste vanade ülikoolide asukohtadele – Pariis, Bologna ja Oxford.

Uppsala University is the oldest in the Nordic countries. It was founded in 1477. (The University of Tartu was founded in 1632.) Unlike Tartu, which was founded by the Swedish king Gustav II Adolf, Uppsala University was established by order of the Pope in Rome. Uppsala became its home because the centre of the church was here, and a university of that era was a church institution where the teaching was done by clergymen. The driving force behind its founding was Archbishop Jakob Ulvsson, and naturally he chose his own seat as the location. The same logic lies behind the location of the other old universities – Paris, Bologna and Oxford.

Gustavianum on Uppsala ülikooli vanim säilinud hoone. Selle ehitust rahastas Tartu Ülikooli asutaja Gustav II Adolf ja see hoone valmis 1622-25. Hoone torn on ehitatud hiljem, aga see on koht, mis meelde jäi. Nimelt asus selles anatoomikum, kus toimusid avalikud lahkamised. Surnukehad kuulusid surma mõistetud kurjategijatele ja lahkamine oli etendus, mida igaüks võis vaatama tulla.

Gustavianum is the oldest surviving building of Uppsala University. Its construction was funded by Gustav II Adolf, the founder of the University of Tartu, and the building was completed in 1622-25. The tower was added later, but that is the part that stayed with us. It housed the anatomical theatre, where public dissections took place. The bodies belonged to criminals sentenced to death, and a dissection was a performance that anyone could come and watch.

Veel üks fakt mis minu jaoks oli täiesti uus. Uppsalas tegutses ka Celsius, kelle eesnimeks oli Anders. Ta oli mitmendat põlve teadlane ja tegeles ise nii füüsika, astronoomia kui ka matemaatikaga. Tema lõi ka meil kasutusel oleva Celsiuse kraadide süsteemi. Nii ma arvasin, aga tegelikult see päris nii ei ole. Celsiuse poolt loodud süsteemis oli vee keemistemperatuuriks 0 kraadi ja külmumise temperatuuriks -100 kraadi. Tänapäevane süsteem kehtestati juba peale Celsiuse surma 1744.

Another fact that was completely new to me. Celsius – first name Anders – also worked in Uppsala. He came from several generations of scientists and worked in physics, astronomy and mathematics alike. He also created the Celsius degree system that we use. Or so I thought, but that is not quite how it was. In the system Celsius created, the boiling point of water was 0 degrees and the freezing point -100 degrees. The modern system was introduced only after Celsius’s death in 1744.

Kirikusse me kahjuks sisse ei pääsenud kuna seal toimus kontsert. Kirikusse on maetud kuulus kuningas Gustav Vasa, keda peetakse tänapäevase Rootsi riigi rajajaks. Teiste seas on sinna maetud ka kuulsa Sture-de pere liikmed, kes Uppsalas 1567 aastal mõrvati. Sellest tuleb juttu veidi allpool.

Unfortunately we could not get inside the church, as a concert was being held there. The famous king Gustav Vasa, regarded as the founder of the modern Swedish state, is buried in it. Among others, members of the well-known Sture family are buried there too – the men who were murdered in Uppsala in 1567. More about that a little further down.

Surmav mõrv Uppsalas. Oli aasta 1567 ja Rootsi kuningaks oli Gustav Vasa poeg Erik XIV. Uppsala lossi kongis olid vangistatud Sture pere liikmed – isa Svante ja pojad Nils ja Erik. Erik XIV-l oli kaks probleemi. Ta umbusaldas Sturesid. See pere oli olnud pikalt Rootsis võimu juures ja kuningas kartis, et nende toetus on suurem kui tema oma. Teiseks ei olnud tema peas enam kõik korras. Kõik see kulmineerus 24. mail kui kuningas sisenes Svante kongi. Ta palus vanemalt Sturelt andestust ja pussitas ta seejärel pistodaga surnuks. Ülejäänud vangid käskis ta tappa oma sõjasulastel. Pärast seda kohutavat tegu kadus ta lossist.

Erik XIV leiti alles tükk aega hiljem. Tal olid seljas lihtsa talupoja riided ja ta ajas väga segast juttu. Tapetud maeti katedraali ja ka nende riided jäid sinna hoiule ja on alles tänase päevani. Need on kõige paremini säilinud ilmalikud riided sellest perioodist, milles on noa augud veel selgelt näha.

A deadly murder in Uppsala. The year was 1567 and the king of Sweden was Erik XIV, the son of Gustav Vasa. Members of the Sture family were held prisoner in a cell of Uppsala Castle – the father Svante and the sons Nils and Erik. Erik XIV had two problems. He distrusted the Stures. The family had long been close to power in Sweden and the king feared their support was greater than his own. Secondly, all was no longer well in his head. It all culminated on 24 May, when the king entered Svante’s cell. He begged the elder Sture for forgiveness and then stabbed him to death with a dagger. He ordered his men-at-arms to kill the remaining prisoners. After this dreadful deed he vanished from the castle.

Erik XIV was found only a good while later. He was dressed in simple peasant clothes and his talk was very confused. The murdered men were buried in the cathedral, and their clothes were kept there as well and survive to this day. They are the best-preserved secular garments from that period, and the knife holes are still clearly visible in them.

Loss mille ehituse alustas Gustav Vasa 1549. Veel üks huvitav fakt, mis on selle kuningaga seotud. Enne kui ta kuningaks sai üritas ta leida omale toetajaid oma kodumõisa ümbruse talupoegade hulgast. See aga ei olnud eriti edukas ja oma turvalisuse tagamiseks asus ta teele Norrasse. Talupojad aga mõtlesid ümber ja saatsid mehed tulevasele kuningale suuskadel järele. Sellel samal distantsil sõidetaksegi Vasaloppet’i suusamaratoni.

The castle whose construction was begun by Gustav Vasa in 1549. Another interesting fact connected with this king. Before he became king, he tried to find supporters among the peasants around his home manor. That was not particularly successful, and to secure his own safety he set off for Norway. The peasants, however, changed their minds and sent men after the future king on skis. It is over that very same distance that the Vasaloppet ski marathon is run.

Allpool on kaks pilti Uppsala kesklinnas. Majad asuvad kõrvuti ja tundub nagu oleks ehitajatel aadressid segi läinud. Müürsepad sattusid puust maja juurde ja tegid sinna kivist juurdeehituse, puusepad aga omakorda kivimaja juurde ja lisasid sinna puust kõrvalhoone. Kuidas asjad tegelikult olid, selles ajalugu vaikib.

Below are two pictures from the centre of Uppsala. The houses stand side by side and it looks as if the builders had mixed up the addresses. The masons ended up at the wooden house and added a stone extension to it, while the carpenters ended up at the stone house and added a wooden outbuilding. History is silent on how things actually came about.

Täna tegeleme turismiga. Plaan on avastada Gotlandi saart. Põhimõtteliselt oli kaks valikut kas minna põhja või lõunasse. Meie valisime põhjasuuna. Nagu oleks ühest saarest veel vähe, siis valisime sihtkohaks Fårö saare. See asub Gotlandist põhjas ja ülesõit maanteeameti praamiga võtab aega mitte rohkem kui 10 minutit.

Põhilisteks vaatamisväärtusteks sellel suunal on erinevad kivist moodustised, aga nendest juba allpool lähemalt.

Today we are all about tourism. The plan is to explore the island of Gotland. Essentially there were two choices – to head north or south. We chose the northern direction. And as if one island were not enough, we picked Fårö as our destination. It lies north of Gotland and the crossing on the road administration’s ferry takes no more than 10 minutes.

The main sights in this direction are various stone formations, but more on those below.

Erinevalt Rootsist, kus kõikjal paistavad graniidist kaljud, on Gotland lubjakivi alusel. Kontrollimata andmetel on Gotlandi all väga ammune korallrahu. Saar oli 400 miljonit aastat tagasi ekvaatori lähedal ja seal on leitud isegi naftat. Lubjakivi on seal erinevat sorti, tugevamat ja saviga segatud nõrgemat (mille nimi on mergel). Kogu selle asja tulemuseks on see, et mere ääres uuristavad erinevad loodusjõud nõrgemad kivimid välja ja järele jäävad huvitavad moodustised, mida kohapeal kutsutakse raukideks.

Lickershamnis asub neist suurim, selle nimeks on Jungfrun (neitsi) ja see on umbes 12 meetrit kõrge. Selle kohta on olemas ka kurva lõpuga legend, mis sisaldab armunud noori ja pahurat isa. Igatahes avanesid kõrgelt kaljult imelised vaated merele ja kalurikülale.

Unlike Sweden, where granite cliffs show everywhere, Gotland rests on limestone. According to unverified information, there is a very ancient coral reef beneath Gotland. 400 million years ago the island lay near the equator, and oil has even been found here. The limestone comes in different kinds – a harder one, and a weaker one mixed with clay (called marl). The result of all this is that along the sea the various forces of nature erode the weaker rock away, and what remains are the interesting formations known locally as raukar.

Lickershamn is home to the largest of them, named Jungfrun (the maiden), standing about 12 metres tall. There is even a legend with a sad ending about it, involving young lovers and a grumpy father. In any case, from high on the cliff wonderful views opened out over the sea and the fishing village.

Peale jalutuskäiku avastasime leti, kus müüdi suitsukala. Seda oli seal palju erinevaid sorte. Meie valisime wasabiga lõhe ja pistsime selle kohapeal nahka. Maitses väga hästi, kuigi must kohv ja suitsukala ei ole just kõige tavapärasem kooslus.

After the walk we came across a stall selling smoked fish. There were many different kinds. We chose the wasabi salmon and ate it right on the spot. It tasted very good, although black coffee and smoked fish are not the most usual pairing.

Järgmise peatuse tegime Lärbro kiriku juures. Selle kiriku omapäraks on kaheksanurkne kellatorn. Selle kellatorniga on küll nüüd see lugu, et ta enam ei olegi kellatorn. Millalgi 16. sajandil lõhkus torm kiriku torni ja kellatorn viidi üle kõrval olevasse neljakandilisse kastelli torni. Kastell on huvitav kindlustatud objekt, mida kasutati nii varjupaigana sõjaolukorras kui ka toiduainete ja muu väärtusliku kraami hoidmiseks segastel aegadel. Kuna Gotlandil oli vanal ajal rikkust palju, siis on ka sealsed kirikud päris uhked.

We made our next stop at Lärbro church. This church’s peculiarity is its octagonal bell tower. The thing with that bell tower, though, is that it is no longer a bell tower at all. Sometime in the 16th century a storm destroyed the church spire, and the bells were moved to the four-cornered castle tower next door. The kastell is an interesting fortified structure, used both as a refuge in times of war and for storing food and other valuables in troubled times. Since Gotland was very wealthy in the old days, its churches are quite grand too.

Kiriku juures olid eksponeeritud hauakivid. Kuna ma nendel olevast tekstist tuhkagi aru ei saanud, siis tegin pildi ja palusin AI-l selgitada, mis sellele on kirjutatud. Nii tuligi välja, et hauakivi kuulus ühele mehele, kes oli sexman. See kõlas väga intrigeerivalt ja ajendas edasi uurima. Selgus siiski, et sellel ei ole otsest sidet seksiga (kuigi on mingil määral kaudne). Sexman oli üks kuuest usaldusisikust, kes aitas kiriku varasid hallata ja auditeeris koguduse arvepidamist. Hiljem muutus see positsioon pigem moraalipolitsei laadseks. Need olid inimesed, kes kogusid infot amoraalse käitumise juhtumite kohta ja kandsid need kirikuõpetajale ette.

Gravestones were on display by the church. Since I could not make head or tail of the text on them, I took a photo and asked an AI to explain what was written. It turned out that the gravestone belonged to a man who was a sexman. That sounded very intriguing and prompted more digging. It emerged, however, that it has no direct connection to sex (though there is a somewhat indirect one). A sexman was one of six trusted men who helped manage the church’s assets and audited the parish’s accounts. Later the role became more like a morality police – people who gathered information about cases of immoral behaviour and reported them to the pastor.

Kiriku juures asus ka ühishaud, kuhu olid maetud koonduslaagri endised vangid. Ka see kõlas intrigeerivalt – koonduslaager Rootsis. Tegelikult oli aga lugu järgmine. 1945. aastal vabastati Saksamaal vangid paljudest laagritest ja Punane Rist paigutas need haiglatesse üle Euroopa. Gotlandile toodi neid umbes 500. Kahjuks paljud olid siiski liiga nõrgad ja nende elu vabaduses jäi lühikeseks. Nüüd on nende puhkepaik kaunis kiriku surnuaias.

Järgmine lühike peatus oli praamil, mis viiski meid Fårö saarele. Seal alustasime lõunasöögiga mõnusas pastarestoranis, mis asus ühe talu juures. Seal pakuti maitsvat kohapeal valmistatud pastat. Täis kõhuga olime valmis uuteks seiklusteks Fårö saarel.

By the church there was also a communal grave where former concentration-camp prisoners had been buried. That too sounded intriguing – a concentration camp in Sweden. The real story, though, was this. In 1945 prisoners were freed from many camps in Germany, and the Red Cross placed them in hospitals across Europe. About 500 were brought to Gotland. Sadly, many were still too weak, and their lives in freedom were cut short. Now their resting place is in the beautiful church cemetery.

The next short stop was the ferry that took us over to Fårö. There we started with lunch at a cosy pasta restaurant beside a farm, where they served tasty pasta made on the spot. With full stomachs we were ready for new adventures on Fårö.

Järgmiseks peatuskohaks oli Gamla hamn – vana sadam. See koht on ka kuulus oma kivist moodustiste poolest. Viikingite ajal oli selles kohas vaikne lahesopp, mida kasutati sadamana. Nüüd on loodusjõud selle lahe sulgenud ja alles on jäänud väike jäänukjärv. Siin võib näha kõige huvitavama kujuga kuju, mis meenutab väga koera.

Our next stop was Gamla hamn – the old harbour. This place is also famous for its stone formations. In Viking times there was a quiet cove here, used as a harbour. Now the forces of nature have closed off the bay, and all that remains is a small relict lake. Here you can see the most interestingly shaped rauk, which looks very much like a dog.

Fåröl külastasime ka kohalikku tuletorni. See aga erilist muljet ei avaldanud. Torni sisse ei pääse ja väljaspoolt ei olnud see eriti muljetavaldav. Muljet avaldasid hoopis rohkem looduslikult kasvavad kirsipõõsad, mis tuletorni aia ääres kasvasid ja kust võis kirsse maitsta. (Loodan, et ikka võis).

On Fårö we also visited the local lighthouse. It did not make much of an impression, though. You cannot get inside the tower, and from the outside it was not especially striking. What impressed us far more were the wild cherry bushes growing along the lighthouse fence, from which you could taste cherries. (I hope you were allowed to.)

Fåröle on maetud ka kuulus filmitegija Ingmar Bergman. Ta olevat saare enda jaoks avastanud filmi tehes. Saarele sattus ta aga hoopis töös oleva filmi napi eelarve tõttu, mis ei võimaldanud võtteid algselt planeeritud Orkney saarel Šotimaal. Bergmanile meeldis saare rahu ja loodus. Lisaks leidsid nad rannast ka vana laevavraki, mis oli juba stsenaariumisse sisse kirjutatud. Bergman tegi saarel mitu filmi ja jäigi siia elama. Tema põrm on maetud kohaliku kiriku surnuaeda.

The famous filmmaker Ingmar Bergman is also buried on Fårö. He is said to have discovered the island for himself while making a film. He ended up here, though, because of the tight budget of a film in production, which ruled out shooting on the originally planned island of Orkney in Scotland. Bergman loved the island’s peace and nature. On top of that, they found an old shipwreck on the beach that had already been written into the screenplay. Bergman made several films on the island and stayed on to live here. His ashes are buried in the local church cemetery.