Wall & Window

This will be a multi-dwelling unit when they are done with 141 apartments called Södertuvan. At the moment the construction workers are busy fitting in all the big concrete blocks. From Tuvvägen in Handen. And I'm sure it will look more colorful when people have moved in. Second photo is a panorama made from six photos, shot with the nifty fifty, I had to wait for traffic between shots.

A wheely good collage

One of my photo hobbies is to stand by the side of the road or up on a bridge and shoot cars, motorcycles or anything with a wheel really. This is a mix of such snaps, including a few panning photos.

The Joker

I met a master criminal today. A psychopathic killer. The Joker. The arch-enemy of Batman. Scary stuff. But in the end I got away alive. Although it could be that this is a guy called Anton, who lives in Tungelsta, and that he was on his way to Stockholm where he would go and see the Batman v Superman movie.

The Bike Buddies

This was the first real day of Spring, at least if you ask me. I was out on a bike ride when I saw two cyclists riding towards me near Hanveden. So I stopped, grabbed the camera and took a few quick snaps. When the guys passed me one of them asked me if I was from the local paper and I responded that it was something like that. I then jumped on my bike and continued, but half a minute later Mats caught up with me, he had turned around and wanted to chat. So that's what we did. Mats (second portrait), is a member of the bike club Falken. He bikes year round. Last year he took part in the new bike race Velothon Stockholm so I told him that I might already have a photo of him. Mats works as a decorator in his own company. His buddy is Robert Rydbrand. He also bikes year round because, well that is what tough cyclists do in Sweden. Robert tries to take part in a few bike races every year. When he is not riding a bike he works as a claims adjuster ( I hope that is the correct title), at Brandkontoret. in Stockholm. It was a glorious day and the bike buddies were on their way to Ösmo where they planned to stop at ösmo Plantshop for something to eat and drink.

Is this the real Spring?

With the sun shining and the temperature back at double digits yesterday I had planned to shoot a whole bunch of cyclists flying by left and right, but this was pretty much the only cyclist that I photographed. It was so nice to just ride around without the Winter clothing that I "forgot" to lift the camera whenever I met another cyclist.

The Blue Hut

Just two years ago this was a forest. Today they crush stone here at Ormstavägen in Västerhaninge.

That Old Tree

The old tree at Easter, or Påsk as it is called over here. Horrible weather. Cold. Gray skies. And a bit of rain as I made my way to the old tree earlier today.

(not the), Highway Patrol

Fake Highway Patrol car. Spotted in Handen a few days ago. No need to get worried behind the wheel if this guy is following you. Owned by a 27 year old guy from the neighbouring municipality Huddinge.

Weather Update

Snow. Rain. Blue sky. Snow. Rain. Sunshine. Snow. Cold. Colder. Repeat. You get the picture.

Location, location, location

This property is called Nylända gård. Many years ago it was a Båtmanstorp. This is were a boatswain would live. And even today that works as I believe that the current owner sells luxury boats. Anyway the location is top notch. You have two golf clubs around the corner. Årsta castle is the closest neighbour. A bike ride down to the port will take you five minutes. And another three minutes and you are at the beach.

The teacher

This is Jörgen Arnstad. A teacher from the Fredrika Bremer secondary school in Handen. He is currently working at the little cottage at Malmvägen that I wrote a petition about and managed to save from demolition. Jörgen and a couple of his students have been busy today with the deconstruction of the interior of the cottage. Next week they will try to move the building to the schools property at the Jordbro industrial area. The plan is to rebuild it there and then, if possible move it to Skutans gård in Handen. If you understand the local lingo you can read more about Jörgens work here. I took the collage photos inside the cottage yesterday.

Snow replaced with snowdrops

The construction of the new (second), rail-track, bridges and tunnels just south of the Tungelsta commuter station, along the Nynäsbanan railway line, has given me a new road to walk on to check out the progress of said construction. And it was during yesterdays walk that I found these snowdrops growing on a hill side near the soon to close railway crossing at karlsrovägen.

That Old Tree

Another visit to the old tree. Spotted some Spring flowers on my walk. Overhead a hawk was circling and I wished i had a more powerful zoom lens.

Anemone hepatica

I had a feeling that if I just walked into the forest at the Iron Age burial site near the Björklund horse farm (two places that you have seen here before), I knew that I would probably find the first "blåsippa" of the year, and here it is. Maybe a centimetre across, so it was good that I had the extension tubes with me.

Cream Colored Volvo Amazon

A couple of days with warm weather was all it took. Signs of Spring popping up here and there around Haninge. The owner of this 1968 Volvo Amazon was heading for the barber which gave me enough time to take a few Brenizer method photos of the cream colored car. This is nine photos stitched together, shot with the Nifty Fifty. Spotted the owner park his car as I enjoyed a mug of coffee in the sunshine at my favorite cafe, Malmens Konditori. Unfortunately the cold weather will return tomorrow. Stay warm.

First Crocus Report of 2016

Spotted a bunch of yellow crocus at Bergdalen in Tungelsta this afternoon.

Spring has Sprung

It's official, Spring has arrived to Stockholm and here is the proof. I found the "Tussilago" growing high up on a decline close to the noise-barrier for the railway line Nynäsbanan in Västerhaninge. I stopped along Allevägen in Krigslida a little earlier and had to stand over a ditch to shoot the "Vintergäck" flower. Both photos shot with the 85mm lens and one or two extension tubes.

Just one more seed

The Domherre (Bullfinch),was back for more seeds this morning.

Fact:

If you wear a camouflage uniform when ice fishing, the fish can't see you. And it worked because this guy had actually caught a fish. As seen at the Lower Lake at the Rudan nature reserve yesterday afternoon. The meteorologist had promised warm weather with a blue sky but that never happened. Instead it was freezing when I jumped on the bike for my daily ride. There was another ice fisher next to the camouflage man and he told me that the ice here was still around 20cm thick.

The Adventure of the Cardboard Box

Part 10. Year 2.March. The last (?), ice is now melting around the cardboard box. More photos here.

Blasting in 5,4,3

So I decided to walk in, despite seeing (and photographing), the Keep Out signs that I showed you in yesterdays post. The reason was that I noticed a new walkway that wasn't there on my last visit to the future green industrial park, Albyberg. There have been a lot of drilling and blasting here over the last few years and I wanted to document the result of that from inside the "park". But I only had time to take maybe five photos while walking up the road. Suddenly a few cars left the area in a hurry. The last one stopped when they noticed me. A woman walked out and told me that they were doing some rock blasting in a few minutes time, so I better turn around and walk back to wherever I had come from so that's what I did.

No Entrance

They don't want unauthorized people (including yours truly), walking around at the new industrial park Albyberg, (also known as The Green Business Park), currently under construction just outside Handen. The fences and the signs should have been enough, but I found my way in anyway. I will tell you more about that tomorrow. Some info in English here about the project.

Start 'Em Young

Probably the youngest fisher ever. The sun came back yesterday after a long absence. It was 5C when I took a few snaps down at the Årsta Havsbad beach. I was enjoying a light lunch, sitting on the big bench down by the water, when this young family decided to try their luck at fishing from one of the piers. The war ship in the background is the HMS Nyköping.

Pipeline stuck in the ice

A bit odd. A pipleline stuck in the ice at the Upper Lake at the Rudan nature reserve.This is a popular place for a swim during the Summer. I took the photo standing at the sandy beach. A new fresh water pipeline runs through the lake, but I don't know if this plastic pipeline has anything to do with that. A few weeks ago the ice was thick enough for ice skating, but I wouldnt recommend anyone trying that today.

Foundation

Five new apartment buildings here when they are done. From Tuvvägen in Handen. The ugly gray boxes across the road are cheap student apartments.

Fenced in tower

Another look a the redesigned water towers in Handen. No one ever noticed them before, but now they are hard to miss. I try to shoot them from different angles whenever I can. Shot this one from the nearby secondary school, Fredrika Gremer-gymnasiet.

Into the mist

If you walk into the mist here near the old farm at Nödesta, you may never see the light of day again. Maybe.

Steffe's Cottage

Here is an update about the little red cottage at Malmvägen in Handen that I was hoping to save from the bulldozers. I wrote about it last November. Two weeks ago there was an article in the local paper Mitti, about my idea. The house is a century old, the only one of his kind in Handen, and was built by American timber. A few more people are involved in the project now. I got a call from my friend Sune Nilsson at the local historical association, Haninge hembygdsgille. He had discussed the idea with people from the Fredrika Bremer secondary school, the municipality and the building company and they had all paid the house a visit, and everyone seems to think that it might be worth saving. If the house, (now known as Steffes stuga), is to be saved, it has to be done very quickly as two of the tree new houses to be built here have already been sold and the new owners are supposed to move in during the Spring. One idea is to cut up the house in four pieces, move it to somewhere were it can be stored for a while, and then maybe rebuild it at the old village in the Tyresta national park. It will of course cost a pretty penny but hopefully that is a cost that is affordable for everyone involved.

That Old Tree

And now the weather for Haninge. It is going to be misty today so try not to get lost out there.

S.A.T.S

From a few days ago. It was a sunny day with blue skies, but these people preferred to jog indoors at the S.A.T.S gym in Handen.

Where do you belong

Theme Day. Where do you belong? I do see a lot of Haninge. Always travelling by bike. Year round, no matter the weather or season there's always something interesting around the next corner, a portrait of a pretty girl, the changing seasons, big difference between Spring, Summer Autumn and Winter in this part of the world. Oh and there's always my favorite cafe where there's new people and stories on a weekly basis. And of course a weekly visit to the old tree. i guess that's a few of the reasons why I'm still here.