Chevy Van

Norr Mälarstrand, Kungsholmen.

A Vehicle Inspection of sorts

I noticed an unusual van parked at the vehicle inspection site at Port 73 in Handen so I stopped for a few photos. Looks like it must belong to a dedicated surfer with a lot of humour, the pin-up girl was unfamiliar to me, but a flickr contact told me that it is Carol Doda. Not sure about the bullet holes! As I took the photos another guy (third photo), came up and started taking photos of his own. He turned out to be a real Francophile, owning no less than ten French cars. He gave me a tour and pointed out was what original and what was not, he didn't actually own this van or even know the owner ,but he had one himself, and according to him there are only five Peugeot J7 in Sweden.

Malicious Johansson

I don't know Mean Johansson, but apparently this Dodge Ram is his ride. Elak means cruel, or malicious. Rugguglehöjda is tricky to translate. Rugguggla is a slang word for a somewhat unattractive female. Höjda means Hill. The Van is parked on a man-made hill at a property in Tungelsta.

To the Bookmobile!

This is the new book bus and mobile library in Haninge. The book bus is an artwork in itself, designed by the artist Kristoffer Zetterstrand whom I met today. He told me a little about his work. He started on this project back in February. He sometimes works in 3 D, and then often uses the Maya software for his art. After our short talk I asked him to pose for a few portraits. This summer he has had an art exhibition in the Cultural Centre here in Handen, a building that also houses the library. The artwork on the bus covers everything from classical books written in different languages, to modern day computer games. The big unveiling takes place today at Poseidon's Square in Handen. The bus will visit all the pre schools in Haninge and hopefully the kids will discover the joy of reading. It will also visit nursing homes and other facilities for the elderly and for the disabled. And I'm sure I could borrow a book there using my library card.

The Train Robbers

I saw this van like a mile away, and walked over to the owner who was sitting in the driver's seat, talking on this cell phone. I made the international sign for "hey, that's a bad ass van you have there, mind If I take a few snaps". He replied with the "go ahead punk, you're not the first to ask that question" sign, so I did just that, after he walked away continuing his cell phone conversation. After I finished shooting, I wanted to ask him a few questions about the custom paint, but he kept talking, so that was that, but he was Russian, and quite in to American culture I take it!

Bigger photo.