Stenliden No Longer

As promised a few days ago, here are a collage of photos from Stenliden. A property that was built back in the 1920ths close to the Hammar Estate in Tungelsta. Over the years it has served as a school. And as a library. And in the 1950ths, the nurse Barbro Edhem lived and worked here. I'd never been inside the building until a couple of days ago when I noticed that the demolition team was ready to tear the place down. The last people that lived here was a local historian and a young family. The photo to the left shows the stairs up to the apartment on the second floor where the nurse lived sixty years ago. Top right is an abandoned piano on the inner room at the first floor. Middle right is from the nursery room on the second floor where the young family lived up until sometime last year. Bottom right is a view from the kitchen on the first floor. Some of the cabinets had been left on the walls. There was a few more items left here and there and I have a few more photos in my Stenliden set at flickr. The reason for the demolition is a new bridge that will be constructed here as the area will undergo some serious changes in the near future. A new railway track will be built between Västerhaninge and Tungelsta which means that a few old X-ings will be moved and a couple of new road will be built.

A Clear Blue Sky

This is rural Ängshagen at Vädersjövägen in Tungelsta. When my mother grew up back in the 1940ths (she lived just up the road), her family used to buy milk from the farmer that lived here, he was called Persson. Later a man called Karl Verner Olsson bought the place. He used to have ice stored in a big sawdust pile behind the barn. The ice was cut from the pond down at the old Mill at Kvarnvägen (Mill Road). During the cold winter days back then, the kids used to play on the frozen pond. The mill was around for two hundred years, until it was burned down in the 1980ths. I don't know who lives here today but I like the look of the place

Sky Watch Friday.

Demolition Time at Stenliden

Talk about leaving it to the last possible moment. This is Stenliden. Perhaps not a famous building in Tungelsta, but with a lot of history. Over the years it has housed a school. It has also served as a library. And back in the 1950ths the nurse lived here and worked here. For the last few years local historian Åke Rhudin rented the house from the council, but he moved out late last year. Today as I walked by, the demolishing team had arrived. I have never been inside, so I took my chance and walked in for a photo shoot. Inside I ran into an old friend of my parents, who was there for a final look. As I walked out after my photo shoot, the demolition started, and as I'm typing this there's probably not much left of Stenliden. I will show some more photos in a day or two.


The reason for the demolition is the construction of a new bridge. In the next few years a second rail track will be built between Västerhaninge and Tungelsta (a 3,2 km stretch), and three old railroad crossings will be closed. The new bridge will span the rail tracks, and one other property ( a horse farm at Lillhammar) will also be demolished as a new road will be built.

Big Garden Birdwatch

The past weekend saw the annual Big Garden Birdwatch in Sweden and a few other countries. I participated for the third year running. All you have to do is observe your feeding area for about an hour or so and write down all visitors. On my list this year was The Common Blackbird, March Tit, Blue Tit and Great Tit (have to love that name). We also noticed many Magpies, a few Eurasian Nuthatches and one example of the very photo shy Green Woodpecker. Not the outcome as I was hoping for. Some of the missing birds where the Great Spotted Woodpecker and The Greenfinch, but I'm sure they will be back soon.

The Eccentric Norwegian

We have a few eccentrics in Tungelsta. One of them owns this old shack at Lillhammar, behind the abandoned greenhouse. He is in his eighties. Almost blind and deaf. And very religious. I once had a weird conversation with him. I asked him what he thought about the recent changes in this area, (a new stretch of road and a future new rail track), and he immediately started shouting that they would all burn in Hell! Not sure who he was talking about. Anyway, you will often see him walking from the bus station to the house. And then back the other way. He always carries a bucket. He doesn't live here (he has an apartment in Farsta), but he comes here during the potato season to fill up his bucket. Yes that's right, he grows his own potatoes, and lots of it. He loves his potatoes.
The effect on this photo was made with help of the Poladroid. It's a very cool software for both PC and Mac.

View From a Hill

The crappy weather continues. So I will continue to digg into my Canon archive. Back in November of 2004 I decided to climb up to the top of the Limpberget hill at Skogsekeby here in Tungelsta. It's one of the highest points around here, and on a good day equipped with a pair of binoculars you should be able to get a decent view of the surroundings. What you see here are a few buildings along the Tornbergavägen road just below the hill. On that day four years ago I did shoot a panorama, and if you feel like it, you can see it here.

Red White & Blue

The weather this weekend was not made for photography. Friday and Saturday saw grey skies, with rain and the occasional snow flake falling to the ground. And today Sunday, the fog moved in. So I decided to stay indoors and go through some of my old photos. Here is a pretty winter scene. A small red cottage with a blue door. Seen on a winter promenade through Lida a couple of years ago.

Happy and tired skiers

If you like Nordic Skiing, Lake Rudan in Handen is the place to go if you live in the greater Stockholm area. The club Jordbänningarna, have six snow canons that can produce 90 cubic metre snow per hour. On a good day 200 people go skiing here on the 1,3 km track. For one day you pay 50 SEK, and for one season the price is 200 SEK. I was there on Friday and got some shots of a few happy and tired skiers.

Sky Watch Friday

Nothing beats a blue sky. After days and weeks with grey skies,(at least that is what it feels like), snow and rain, it was nice to see that the sky opened up once again. As I never leave home without a camera I stopped mid way down a tree lined avenue here in Tungelsta at Lida and zoomed in on a magpie that was sitting high up on a rusty lamp post. This is my first post to Sky Watch Friday.

Winter Bike Ride

All of a sudden the snow and rain stopped and the sky turned blue. The sun shone and some people were very quick to respond to the change in the weather. I met these to bicycle riders at Allévägen in Lida yesterday. They were taking it fairly easy on the still icy road and was chatting about this and that as they passed me by.

A Trick of the Eye

Look at those stairs. Do they go up or down or...

A small wardrobe under the stairs in that old house that I have shown you in the last few posts. The wardrobe was filled with books, some of which have now been thrown away. This photo was taken from the kitchen. Everyone I talk to have heard something about the house and the people that have lived here. Today I met a man who lives nearby, he'd often seen the previous owner walk by, smoking one of his cigars. He told me that he had heard that two artists had lived there. That's the first I have heard about that, but it's possible that the two women that had the house built 100 years ago was artists of some kind. If you would like to see a few more photos and read some more about this fascinating place, I have created a flickr set with photos. It's called A woebegone old shack.

A life in pictures

A few more photos from the fascinating old house in Tungelsta that I visited a couple of days ago. The Elephant trunk hangs on a wall on the second floor and it's the first thing you see as you walk up the stairs. Top right is from the inner room on the second floor, where there's a bedsofa, a very messy floor with lots of old postcards spread out. There's a table filled with stuff, an old TV set, and a book case (middle photo), filled with newer and older books and other objects. The wooden cabinet and the sideboard/desk are the finest furniture left. I was told by the new owners that the previous owner had an offer from someone who wanted to buy everything in the house a few years ago, but that he had turned down that offer. From what I saw here I can say that the man who lived here enjoyed jazz music. And boxing, there was many video tapes with old boxing matches. He was also a reader of history and had an interest in World War II. And he owned had a big collection of beetles that sadly had been thrown away on my visit. There was also books about churches and one jar with a preserved snake in it. I will show you some more from this old house tomorrow.

1. Elephant's Trunk, 2. IMG_7400, 3. Wooden Cabinet, 4. Tandavgjutning

The kitchen

I got a guided tour around a spooky old house the other day. Over the years I have heard all sorts of rumours about this place. The property was recently sold. The new owners was hoping to renovate the building, but after a thorough examination they have decided to tear it down and build a new home. The walk-around gave me a shock. The house has no modern facilities at all. No running water or even a toilet. This is the kitchen. Like in the other rooms in the old house it doesn't look as the kitchen has ever been cleaned. The stove is an wood-burning Husquarna 727. This model dates back to 1939. Renovated these sell for around 8000 SEK. It's impossible to think that someone actually lived here up until last year. But that is the sad truth. For the last month or so the new owners have been busy cleaning out the house that was jam packet with stuff. On my visit there was still a lot of stuff left so I will give you another look tomorrow.

Car Wreck

A few weeks ago I met the new owners to a property in Tungelsta. The old house that they had bought has always fascinated me. Over the years I have heard some rumours about the place and now I had a chance to look inside. But before we go in I want show you what was parked behind the house. It's a car wreck. The car is from the 1930ths. How long it's been rusting away there is anyone's guess, but I would have to say 40 or 50 years.

That Old Tree

Another cold day in Tungelsta, but with a blue sky. I took a walk up to the old tree at Välsta. A few people about, met two women on the path that I have met here before, and I said hello to Malin who was leading her horse to the pasture. This is one of the places that I always return to. So far I have 168 photos of this oxel tree.

A new place to spend your money at

Late last year the S.A.T.S gym, the Babyland store and a few other boutiques opened here in Handen at the intersection Gudöbroleden/ Dalarövägen. Built by Gotska.The construction started in late January of 2008. This is a zoomed out photo from yesterdays photo.

A Room With A View

On the treadmill. Modern day lunch promenade. Two people doing a cardio workout at the new S.A.T.S gym in Handen. You will never find me on one of those things. When I put one foot ahead of the other I expect to get somewhere, not look out a window. And the view isn't much to write home about either. They are staring down at the cars in the roundabout.

The Chestnut

Back in 2007 the pre school Kastanjen (The Chestnut), at Vallavägen in Handen had to close because of serious damp problems. A few months later the building was teared down. Now construction has begun of the new bigger school.

I shot this with the Canon Digital Rebel. To get the shot as I wanted it, I took two photos in manual mode. After aiming the camera at the closest object I turned off auto focus. I then used a stitching software and made a panorama from the two photos. And then I cropped the photo to the format that I normally use in my photos. An easy way to get a better photo.

Kids on the hill

A skier on the 1,3 km track at Rudan in Handen. In the background local kids having some fun in the snow. The building to the left is the theatre barn where you can sometimes see plays performed by the theatre group Ormteatern. The newer looking building behind the little snow hill belongs to the ski club Jordbänningarna. It is known as The Stable, as that's what it once was. All the snow is gone now so this is probably the last snow photo for a while.

Nils the Fisherman

This is Nils Södergren from Västerhaninge. I met him on the frozen Lake Rudan the other day, where he was ice fishing without any luck. Although he did get 25 perch last weekend when he was fishing at Finska Viken (Finnish Bay), at Muskö. That's not the official name Nils told me, we call it that because there's always a group of Finns there fishing! Nils who is in his eighties has lived in Haninge for many years. He spent 17 years in the Swedish Navy ,and was stationed on pretty much every vessel they had during that time. Back in the late 1940ths there was a big fire in Handen (that's how Brandbergen (Fire Hill), got it's name) and Nils and the Navy was involved in putting out that fire (as was my dad who was a volunteer fire fighter in Tungelsta back then). After leaving the Navy, Nils and his wife opened a fish shop in Västerhaninge a shop that they owned for some 30 years (they sold it in 1989). After this brief conversation, I took a couple of photos and that was that.

Nils doesn't have Internet access so he said he'd have a look at my photos when visiting his kids. I hope you like the shot Nils!

Ice fishers need stamina...

Another ice fisher from Lake Rudan in Handen. I took this photo from one of the piers. As I was chatting to Christer (see yesterdays photo), this man walked by and said he was giving up for the day. Sadly none of the ice fishers got any fish during my stay, but it was a beautiful day and everyone seemed happy anyway. Most of the guys at the lake are members of the local fishing club. It's called Lilla Fiskelyckan.

The Ice Fisher

This is Christer. I met him in Handen yesterday. He was ice fishing from the frozen Lower Lake Rudan. Before I stepped out on the ice he assured me that the ice was at least two decimetres thick, and strong enough to drive a car on! He was hoping to get rainbow trout or brown trout but had no fish luck on this occasion. Christer is retired after working 30 years for the Swedish Postal Service and has him plenty of time to fish these days. There was quite a few ice fishers at the lake today, all members of the same fishing club, Lilla Fiskelyckan. The weather had changed abruptly from yesterday and we had 4C and a clear blue sky. Which was nice.

The School

The two storey brick school building at Tungelstavägen. I was a student here in second and third grade, back in the 1970ths. Before me my mother was a student here when the school was new in 1952-1953. Since then a few more school buildings have been built here.

Ned and the Sheep

Meet Ned. He is a Border Collie. And a herding dog. I met him and his owner Karin, at the Nedersta barn yesterday, where they were busy sheep herding. He got many commands during my visit. And got most of them right. Here he is in the snow, keeping an eye on the sheep.



And here are some of the sheep. As I said the sheep belong to Karin who I have met before, she was one of my 100 Strangers.

Skogs-Ekeby

For a long time a building at this property at Skolvägen was used as storage for the brewery products made by a man called Falk. Back then the family that lived here was called Johansson and one of the daughters was in school with my mother. Today it's a private residence. A few months ago when I was out on a photo promenade I met the owner, and we chatted for a bit about the big changes that this area has seen over the last few years. He had seen some of my photos so I asked him if I could take his portrait for the 100 Strangers Project that I was busy with at the time. He said thanks, but no thanks. Today he has a few new neighbours as three new houses have been built on both sides of the Skolvägen road.

A Nature Memorial

The old oak at Skogsekeby in Tungelsta. This tree is protected (since 1945), as a naturminne, or a nature memorial if you like. Just across the road there's another majestic old oak. There are a total of seven protected naturminnen in Haninge. Here is another historic fact. This road dates back to the Viking era, so it's around 1000 years old. It's part of the old Häradsvägen to Stockholm. This part of the road hasn't changed much over the last 400 years, if you don't count the fact that it has been paved.

The Youth Centre

This is the old volunteer fire station in Tungelsta. Today it's a youth centre and has a miniature golf course. And a new color. It used to be green but, is now yellow.

Ugly Tungelsta

Once upon a time Tungelsta was famous for all the greenhouses. In total there has been more than 90 nurseries here. These ugly greenhouse skeletons at Gamla Tungelstavägen and Södertäljevägen haven't been in use for many years. I don't know why the owners have left them like this. Every time I look at them I see another smashed window so at least it gives the kids something to do.

The Brick Church

The brick church in Tungelsta was built in 1973. The architect was Rolf Bergh. The two Mandorla shaped windows were designed by the artist Tore Bergh. Back in the seventies there was a youth centre in the basement, and me and my friends used to hang there.The reason for that was a miniature slot car track. Before the church was built there was a nursery here owned by the Pettersson family. Behind the church there's a burial ground. The first people to be laid to rest there was from that family.

Mulsta in Black & White

As everyone that has ever visited this photo blog knows, I enjoy going back for another photo. Sometimes because it's an obsession, or a project, or just because it's great to be able to show everyone my favorite places in different seasons. This year will be no different. Although I will probably shoot a few more black and white photos. Today I picked Mulsta in Tungelsta. The village dates back some 700 years. This building from 1893 was known as a Länsmansboställe, as was the building that stood here before it. For a few centuries many Vassals lived here. Today it's a private recidence.

Best of 2008

The best of 2008 was very easy to pick. It's not one photo, but a project. Back in late February I joined the 100 Strangers Project an idea made possible by Teppo. In November I finished. It's been a big challenge and great fun. I met many people that I normally never would have had the opportunity to talk to. Every meeting was unique and rewarding. Sadly one of my strangers have passed away since our meeting. Quite a few of the people I met, I have met again, which has been great fun. Some meetings made great stories of coincidences. The father and daughter story is on my personal top five list. As is the meeting with the Princess that turned out to be almost a relative of mine! Obviously a few photos stand out from the rest but I couldn't rank them even if I had to. This mosaic shows the 12 most popular photos as of today and take into count views, comments and faves that they have received via flickr.

1. Johanna & Katrin, 2. Barbie, 3. Stina, 4. Gisela, 5. Madde & Sandra, 6. Erika, 7. Ego, 8. The Horror Nipples, 9. The Princess, 10. Annika Johanson, 11. Christine, 12. Meet The Carpenters

If you are one of the many wonderful people that made this happen, I'd like to say a big thank you as this has been the most exciting photo project I have ever taken part in. See you again next year!


This is Theme Day. The theme is Best of 2008. Click here to view thumbnails for all participants