Stockholm, 5/14/1989Tour Cut Short After Long Flight

(STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN, May 14, 1989)

by Bob Van Leer

Dinner at the Operakallaren restaurant was excellent, and so was the price. Dinner for two came to 688 krona which converts to about $110, including tip. Betty dined on breast of snow grouse and I had saddle of reindeer. Tomorrow evening we’ll have to dine at the McDonald’s restaurant across the street from our hotel to make up for it.

We arrived at Arlanda Airport, a 40 minute drive from Stockholm, at 9:18 a.m. after an uneventful flight from the Newark, New Jersey, airport on Scandinavian Air Service (SAS). Betty and I left Gold Beach Friday evening to drive to Medford to be there in time to catch a 6:40 a.m. United Airlines flight to San Francisco. There we boarded another United flight non-stop to Newark. This was the departure point for our tour arranged by the National Newspaper Association, a trade association of small newspapers. A total of 28 are scheduled on the tour from all over the U.S.: Massachusetts to Florida to Texas to Oregon. Of the 26 besides ourselves we’re acquainted with 20, so there are few strangers.

Our flight took us north over New York and Canada and east over southern Greenland and Iceland then across Norway to Sweden. The central part of Sweden is flat. The view from the air approaching the airport is much like the Willamette Valley. There is a mixture of farms and timberland. The timber harvest method is clearcut. In a few, but not most, of the clearcuts there are a scattering of mature trees left. On the ground, our guide says the timber is mostly fir and pine.

Sweden is a small country, about the size of California, with about 8 million people. About a fourth of these live in the Stockholm area. The country is predominantly Lutheran but our guide says only about three percent of the population attends church regularly.

Our guide took us on a driving tour around downtown but it had to be cut short. Many of our party were falling asleep after the long trip and the changes in time. In Sweden the time is nine hours ahead of Gold Beach. In Finland, where we go next, it will be 10 hours, and in Russia, 11 hours.

Stockholm is built around an estuary. Old Stockholm is on an island in the estuary and the newer city has grown up north and south of the estuary. Sailing ships of old used to dock at the old city, but today’s vessels need deeper water. There appear to be about as many signs in English as in Swedish. Our guide tells us that teaching English begins in the third year in school when the children are about nine years old.

We were taken on a long tour of City Hall of which the Swedes are quite proud. It was built in the period 1911-1923. We asked who the official was in the painting above the reception desk. Our guide said he was not an official, but the driver of the beer truck who kept the workmen supplied during construction of the hall.

One room in particular stood out: the Golden Hall, about the size of a football field. The walls, about two or three ordinary stories high, are entirely of mosaic, 90 million small pieces of ceramic, mostly gold, depicting scenes of Swedish history.

Finally, our driver delivered us to our hotel, The Malmen, which is acceptable, but not a good as many motels in Gold Beach. Still, we were told it is one of the best in the city. At the hotel we met Cecilia Rydman, mother of Asa, who has been in Gold Beach the past year as a Rotary exchange student. Asa has accumulated extra items in her year in Gold Beach and we took back a suitcase full which we delivered to her mother.

It was time to collapse and recover a bit before dinner. Tomorrow we will tour more of Stockholm.