A trip down memory lane

Further to the Swedish Saturday Candy day, it started on a more dark note. Around 1947 the government with support from the Swedish confectionary companies feed institutionalised mental patients an extreme amount of candy over a 2 year period. The aim was to prove that candy /sugar didn't harm you. Well the opposite was proven-mouthful of cavities, all teeth being removed etc. So the Swedes decided to limit the amount of sugar young people should have and hence Candy Saturday came about. In a way this experiment aided the whole world.

Back to today, well we are off to Uppsala and it is a warm sunny day -19 degrees!

The day started well with a very, very good European breakfast-you name it you could have it...I think we did. The hotels here in Sweden have a 12 midday check out, which mean't we could take a 50 minute walk (you can work out how long we lingered over breakfast) around the central part of Vastras.

  The small river that flows through Vasteras-the houses are all that remains of the workers cottages

                  One of the runestones the writing is around the edges

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 The big burial mound in the background with the stone ships

Two of the stone ships-the largest is 50metres long and 16 meters wide

 A very good sculpture depicting workers biking to work for one of the main industrial companies in the town in the 1920's-ASEB I think.

Our first stop of the day were the archaeological ruins at Anundshog. They are made up of burial mounds and stone ships. One of the burial mounds is meant to be the largest in Sweden and dates from around 1500 BP (before present). It has been claimed that it is the resting place of the semi-legendary King Brothers-Anund. Little by way of excavation has taken place.
The stone ships date from late bronze or Iron Age and is associated with burials as well.
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One other feature was at this site: The Eriksgatan. A line of rhinestones that marks a path that early kings had to walk to be confirmed by the Swedish nobles (lawmakers). The actual crowning took place in Gamla Uppsala (old Uppsala).

From here it was an hour's drive to Uppsala. Stopped for gas-diesel was NZ$5 per litre. Half a tank cost $76.

Now for the memory lane bit. Evan and Becky took us to Flogsta- the student housing they both lived in while studying at Uppsala. The memories they brought back should not be repeated but it seems that a lot of debauchery took place.  But it was good they took us around the buildings and pointed out where they had their rooms etc.

Flogsta building, student accommodation for those attending Uppsala University

 Evans room is the second window from the left. Becky lived a couple of blocks away.

Now it was time for our last pika together, Evan and Becky insisted on a small coffee place in the main square (Torg). Then they had to head back to Arlanda to fly back to London.

                                                The cinnamon buns were big and very fresh

WE checked into the hotel (the same as Regan and I had stayed on our flying visit to see Evan 4 years ago), even if he thinks we stayed at the Radisson Blue.

Went for a quick walk in the evening, ate at Max (Swedish equivalent of MacDonalds), then off for a good nights sleep.