Zum Franziskaner

Beer, anyone? This building at Skeppsbrokajen dates back just over a century. It replaced a previous building. The German beer hall Zum Franziskaner opened for business when they built the original building four hundred years ago, and is still serving beer. Oh, and there is a mascaron on the facade. Used to scare away evil spirits. And just under it something that looks a lot like a woman's you know what. The architect was Fredrik Dahlberg.

The Red Boat

I had some issues with the eBike. Found a mechanic via Facebook. A former pro cyclist. He picked up the bike on Thursday morning. Fixed all the problems and delivered it back to me by Friday morning. The forecast promised rain, so I did an early 70 km test ride. Biked the last 15 km in the rain. Before the rain, I managed to also get a nice promenade along the Riddarfjärden bay. There are 24 ships moored at Söder Mälarstrand on Södermalm in Stockholm. The lake is called Mälaren. Among the ships you will find a nightclub, Patricia, that I used to visit some thirty years ago. There is also a floating restaurant. And quite a few private homes. And this. The Red Boat, a hostel. It is in fact two boats next to each other at Kajplats 10.

Vårkänsla

I always keep an eye open for any sign of Spring. The lawn outside my house is a good spot for that sort of thing. Here are three photos from three days this week. On the day when I snapped the top photo, the temperature reached 12C and thought Spring has arrived, I mean I shouted it. And yesterday after the mechanic came over with my fixed-up eBike I took a 70 km bike ride. All good until 15 km from home, when it started to rain. And now Saturday morning as I am typing this it is snowing, and we can expect that to continue for a while. Oh, and vårkänsla means Spring feeling.

An architectural mix

Aiming the Canon a little to the left from where I was in yesterday's post, we get what I call an interesting architectural mix. The further up the Mariaberget hill we go, the older the buildings. On top the church tower of Maria kyrka. Construction started in 1588. I have shown you that church once before. And if you don't speak the local lingo, Miljöpartiet de gröna is the Green Party.

The Knights' Islet

This is Riddarholmen. The Knights'Islet. Technically, part of the old town in Stockholm. I took this photo from the same spot where I shot the hillside photo that I showed you two days ago. The orange building is the old Parliament building. Behind it, Riddarholmskyrkan, a church where a number of Monarchs are buried. I sometimes use Riddarholmen as a shortcut, as the pedestrian bridge on the other side of the islet connects with Kungsholmen, the island where you will find Stockholm City Hall, that you can see to the left on this photo. I have photographed Riddarholmen before, from the lookout point Monteliusvägen up at Mariaberget. The white ship is Mälardrottningen, also known as Lady Hutton.

Besvärsbacken

The traffic sign says, that despite this being a one way street, you can cycle up the hill. I am yet to try that. I parked my bike over at the Slussen metro station. This is Brännkyrkagatan at Mariaberget on Södermalm in Stockholm. It goes between Pustegränd and Kristinehovsgatan. Same place as in yesterday's post. This part is called Besvärsbacken. The slope is Stockholm’s steepest street, with an incline of 22%. Back in the day, it was often used for break tests.

Mariaberget

A famous view. Mariaberget, a hillside on Södermalm. The city of Stockholm was founded in 1252 by the regent of Sweden, Birger Jarl. And this was a popular place to live already back then, although it looked very different 800 years ago. Over the centuries, Mariaberget have been a popular place to live and work for musicans and other artists. Back in the 1960s this whole area was nearly torn down because of long time decay, but luckily for everyone the city decided to renovate the old buildings and today this is a very hip and expencive place to live in. The building at the top is called Mälarborgen and if I could afford it I would not mind moving in there.

Ryssgården

The square Ryssgården at Slussen on Södermalm in Stockholm. The big building is Stadsmuseet. The Stockholm City Museum. Originally built back in 1663. Designed by the architect Nicodemus Tessin den äldre. The name Ryssgården comes from the fact that several hundred years ago, Russian merchants sold their goods here.

Fengerska huset

This is Fengerska huset at Ryssgården on Södermalm. Or Stockholms sjömanshem, (that is where the 1891 comes from, a home for sailors), at Slussen. The address is Peter Myndes backe. Mynde was a Dutch guy who had a tobacco factory here a few centuries ago. And this building was built in the Dutch style. It dates back to 1646 when Lars Mårtensson Remmar had it built. The building changed owners a number of times back in the day, and was used for tobacco making at one time. Around 1850 a man called Fenger owned it, hence the name Fengerska huset. Two tunnels were constructed under the building, one in 1860, and a newer one in 1950 for the metro. The Stockholm City Museum moved in here in the 1970s.

The Birch Forest

Two photos from my latest visit to the Woodland Cemetery at Enskede. It was a few degrees warm, and the snow was slowly melting away. Probably all gone by now. These newly planted trees replaced an earlier forest. If you walk through it from here, you will soon find yourself on the 888-meter-long path that will take you from the Meditation Hill (second photo), down to one of the big chapels. As you walk down the path, the trees take over more and more, and it gets a little darker. All thought out by the two young architects a century ago.

Rule of Thirds

Out walking at the busy construction site that is Slussen in Stockholm. I had photographed a lot of buildings. Most of them as tricky panoramic images that I am yet to try and stitch together. I walked halfway over a pedestrian bridge that connects Södermalm with Riddarholmen and the old town. The water underneath is Söderström, part of Riddarfjärden. Still some ice left there and when I spotted the orange buoy I decided to take photo.

Six Girls

Slussen is a busy transport hub on Södermalm i Stockholm. You can read about it here. Currently, undergoing big changes, so parts of it is closed off. New bridges have been constructed. Roads closed. In short, it is a mess. Between two entrances to the metro station, you can find this sculpture. It is there temporarily. It is called Six Girls. Made by Lena Cronqvist. And those of you that know how to count are saying, wait what is going on here, I can only see five girls? Well, the sixth girl is indoors skipping rope for some reason. Maybe they had a falling out, or maybe she thinks it is too cold to play outside in the Winter weather.

Winter at Välsta

Four Winter photos from Välsta. This is the area near the old tree. Today there is a horse farm here. You can see the old tree in the third photo, although from a different angle compared with how I usually shoot it. In the last photo you can see Christina's place as I like to call it. Real name Övre Välsta. Or Upper Välsta. The original farm house was destroyed in a fire a few decades ago.

Freedom to roam

There are lots of open fields where I live. This field belongs to the 700-year-old Nedersta gård. As this is Sweden, and we have the freedom to roam, (allemansrätten), anyone who wants to can ski over the fields.

That Old Tree

As Winter decided to return, I figured it was time for another visit to the old tree. It was a beautiful day, although cold, around -2C as I jumped on my ebike. Lots of open fields around Välsta, Krigslida and Nedersta and as soon as the wind picks up here it gets freezing. Not sure exactly how cold it is with the wind chill factor added, but cold enough, so after snapping a few photos of the nearby farm, I headed for home and a warm cup of coffee. And as I am typing this, the sky has turned white again as we are in the middle of yet another snowstorm.