sunshine, street views and prawn sandwiches

On Saturday was it time to meet up with Jytte, one of my oldest friend – we goes back for 40 years nearly – we are both cancer survivors so fare. She went through her treatments the year before me.

We decided to meet by the Central Station – and to get there I had to walk to through the whole city center. Otterhällan is the street where the apartments is and the quickest way to come down on the main shopping street in Gothenburg, Kungsgatan (Kings Str.), is to take the stairs and there its. But walking home I don’t take the at least 100 steps up – I walk all the way around … can’t do it anymore.

Gothenburg was swimming in sunshine and so busy – Kungsgatan (Kings Str.) where packed with people – had to go into the main department store, Åhlens, had forgotten to pack face tonic and Åhlen’s own brand is the best on the market – I have tried all the big brands, but nothing leave the face so clean and soft as theirs and it only cost 60% of what a big brand does. Fantastic and magical. Plus they have their range in small travel sizes too.

There is no city in world, I think, that has more outdoor eating and cafés then Gothenburg in the summer. They are absolutely everywhere … and they where all packed. Where there is as place for a table and a couple of chairs they make a patio of it. On Saturday every chair was taken even on the streets where the sun wasn’t reaching.

All the shops where packed with autumn fashion and people. Gothenburg’s Youth Band was out playing and brought some great happy sound to the Saturday shoppers and out door lunch eaters. 

At the Central Station is where most trams lines meet and there is no warning signal for them neither – so you have to eyes in your back too walking across the Drottingtorget (Queens Sq). Our old massive post office that has been empty for years, once the biggest post office in Europe has now been converted to a luxury hotel – “Clarion Post Hotel”. They have kept the old building and made a fantastic job out of it. Nice to see ..
Opposite is one of the oldest hotels in Gothenburg, “Hotel Eggers” that was closed for a couple of years, but now been hotel again and been blooming for years now. Love it because of its red marquises and red flowers in the window boxes. A magnificent building and for me it’s a bit of Paris in Gothenburg.

Gothenburg has now “rent a bike” too – Gothenburg is a very bike friendly city, even if I wouldn’t dare to go on a bike in the city centre. Very cheap 10.00SEK/$1.50/€1.20/£0.95 per 30 min – you can rent a bike 46 times per day, but you can only use it for 30 min each time, if you want it any longer – you have park it and wait a couple of minute and then take it out again.
All so the bikes don’t leave the city centre.
Gothenburg is famous for it’s dry humour – so they call their bike set up “Styr & Ställ” – freely translated it means, “Steer & Rack”, but it also means “Control and Decide”. It’s the public transportation company, Västtrafik (Westtraffic) that runs the bikes and you can use your travel card to use the bikes – great set up.

Jytte wanted to show me a coat she had bought a couple of days earlier so went into the shop – and that meant I came out with a bag – not with coat, but a tunic and 500SEK/$76/€60/£48 lighter.

After that we decided to go down to the guest marina and Gothenburg’s famous Opera House, built as a ship and in the inner harbour of the city centre. A beautiful area and probably the most photographed area of Gothenburg – most popular on postcards. With the modern Opera building and the old “bark” ship “Viking”, once sailed the seven seas then it became a restaurant school for merchant navy. Now it’s a 3-star hotel. She are also the biggest poop deck vessel ever build in Scandinavia – with 4 masts, built in 1906.

We find a free seats at one of the packed cafés, Cafe Bommen, just by the water edge – and what to eat in Gothenburg for lunch – their famous prawn sandwiches (hand peeled fresh prawns). Every place that wants to make quick money has them, they cost a fortune … around 189,00SEK/$28.00/€23.00/£18.25 and I must say they are worth the money- they are massive about 7″/18cm in diameter. Best in town you find in the top floor restaurant at “Hotel Riverton” – even if “Hotel Gothia Towers” had made a name of theirs.

When it’s about eating in Gothenburg there is no bad places, great food everywhere – my gourmet favorite is 1-star “fond” up by the Art Museum on the Avenyn, the main street in Gothenburg. There is also  “The Flying Barrel” that I mention in yesterday’s post – my favorite Gastro Pub and then we have my absolute favorite, “Smaka” – a small busy restaurant with fantastic food and very reasonable prices. 

We also have a very unique concept for lunches in Sweden – called “Dagens” (Today’s Dish) – where you get well prepared dishes, salad or pizza for about 70SEK/$10.65/€8.50/£6.75 – with drink, bread, salad buffet and coffee included. Every eating place has it between noon-3pm.

We sat there in the beautiful August sun and chatted for hours and just enjoyed each others company and pleased over that we both are still around.

In the same area you will find the Gothenburg landmark – Läppstiftet = the Lipstick – a very funky office building in red and white, that you more you look at it the more details you see. Personal I love it – there is suppose to be an observation room on top, but I have never been up.

There was different public activities  going on when we returned into the center where the famous trams are – Jytte had jump on one .. while I walked “home” and let the camera work a bit more. 

Gothenburg are also the home city of Volvo – even if it’s Chinese owned since a couple years back and of course Volvo is the most popular car in Sweden and one of the safest on the market.

First I had plans to claim the stairs back up to the apartment – so I got some energy into me – a Ramlösa mineral water and poppy seed muffin, but I chickened out and took the easiest and the longest way around.

To last an request from the deepest of my heart – if you ever visit Sweden and want a mineral water, please buy “Ramlösa”, because for every liter they sell they give away the same amount of fresh water to water projects in Africa. Last year they gave away 60 million liters through The Red Cross.

Welcome to “Gothenburg” – and see for yourself that it’s one of the nicest cities in Europe !!!!

Photo provided and thanks to ramlosa.se