TRAVEL DIARIES #1

It has been sometime that I have written anything. Wonder if this is what is called a writer's block. If so, was a pretty long one. Anyway thought will give it a go again and what best way to start than writing a travel blog for once.

Past couple of months, we (I and Mr. Shyam) discussed and brainstormed while in our quest to zero in on a place that would be perfect for our 4 days of Easter holidays. Criteria was that the place needs to be visa(at least one of us at the moment can't travel outside Sweden), pocket and weather friendly. After long debates, sleepless nights and taking turns at threatening each other with a hunger strike if something is not planned for these 4 days, a colleague was involved. In short, we settled on a place for a one day trip. Ya, that happened, everything everywhere was booked or sold out and so we stayed home 3 days and went out for a day trip.

Anyway this is not about us, this is about us in Trosa, the tiny little happiness we are now proud to have chosen. Hop along with us, for a day trip to this adorable, well preserved seaside town.

CHAPTER 1: Trosa, Sweden 

 

Well, Trosa in Swedish quite literally translates to "panties" in English, but DO NOT judge a place by its translated name. I can assure you it was much more than Google's interpretation. The town has seen a lot and has quite a historic tale to tell (which one can find on Wiki of course). For our purposes, this must be made known to alleviate the name conundrum, that the town is colloquially nicknamed Världens ände (the world's end) and rightly so because of its location at the end of a long peninsula. We decided to visit Trosa on Easter Sunday, 4th of April, 2021. There are direct buses (Trosabussen) plying from Stockholm(Liljeholmen) to Trosa amongst other transport options, which felt the easiest and most convenient to us. 

Carrying our lightly packed backpacks, we jumped out of the house to catch the nearest tunnelbana that would take us to Liljeholmen station. We reached the designated bus stop well in time and boarded the bus once our generous driver examined our tickets to his satisfaction and allowed us in. It was a double decker bus and we placed ourselves on the top front part of the bus, that presented an awesome, unobstructed view ahead and an opportunity to restrain ourselves from indulging in the "window-snatcher" ordeal(a ritual we take part in order to decide who gets to sit on the window seat for that leg of the journey).

Journey Begins : 9:15 a.m

It took 1 hour and 20 minutes to reach Trosa Centrum via Vagnhärad. Once we disembarked, what we saw around us was truly amazing. A small town in midst of nature, perfect for a walk during summers along with a myriad of other outdoor activities, and easily imaginable to be one of the picture-perfect towns during the dead of winter. No wonder this town sees huge tourist footfalls every year and is now considered among one of the top 4 wealthiest communities in Sweden.

Reached at : 10:20 a.m

There is a tourist information centre near the harbour which dishes out pamphlets, that one can follow to see the whole town on foot and follow the historic trail. However, we decided to do things our way. When you have the power of Google maps you are invincible. We first decided to go to the farthest spot on our "must see" list rather than sticking to interior of the town. So we were off to Tureholm Castle which is 2.8 km to the west of Trosa centrum and takes about 35 mins to reach on foot.

It was a surreal experience of walking amongst lovely summer cottages surrounded by burgeoning signs of Spring, to suddenly step into vast expanses of fields and forests. The smell of freshly mowed grass wafting from every direction, a warm sun brightly shining and not a soul to be seen for as far as one can see. Amidst such silent vastness we kept walking until we caught a glimpse of a small section of the castle.

    As we approached the castle its grandeur slowly unfolded. It stood strong lonely on a hilltop. It felt as if, not just the castle but the scenery all around it assisted it to complete a picture worth remembering. Even the trees lining the path leading up to the castle lied in anticipation of the wind of change that would soon bring the gift of vitality and at last they would play their part in completing the grand design. Since the castle is currently privately owned, it was not open for public viewing. The scenery in front of me, instilled mixed emotions in me. I was happy to see a glimpse of engineering in midst of nature but melancholic to see a facade of a forlorn creation that only covered a hollow dilapidated interior. There was clear signs of life inside the castle in forms of potted plants kept on the window sills that were green and healthy and yet there was rust all around and thick layers of cobwebs dotting every window I could peek through. Because of its remote location and unceremonious accessibility, it had already become a mystery in my mind. I started peeping through every crevices I could find, trying to pry open any doors or windows I could lay my hands on. There was a small kitchen with a dining table for four with china of various shapes and sizes kept on small shelves. An easy to miss fireplace standing solemnly behind the dining table. A bedroom whose only existential proof afforded to us, was its thick laced drapes. A garden out front with couple of benches to sit on, but all of them neglected, left to fend for themselves. After a futile search of unearthing more clues of life, that once the castle possibly experienced, I concluded that the castle has not been stayed in for quite sometime, it pines for more attention and it was time for us to walk back to the city centre.

 

Tureholm Castle : 11:05 a.m

We rambled over the same path back to the town. As soon as we caught glimpse of the river Trosa, that flows in the middle of the city giving it a canal-like feel, we started walking alongside it as we felt it was the best way to explore the town. The river was full of fishes that could easily be seen in the sections illuminated by sunlight. Many tourists and locals were trying their hands at fishing standing on the sides of the river, as it is legal to fish there, right in the middle of the town, as long as one has a valid fishing permit and the river is not frozen. A flock of ducks were also trying to make hay while the sun shined, over and over they would dip their necks and dive in for fishes, sometimes successfully sometimes not so much. We stood by the sidelines watching this unusual yet natural dance of death and if not for a rumbling belly, we would probably have stood there by the river a tad while longer, naming the ducks and urging the fishes to swim away to safety. With food now moving up our list, we started to wander through the town in search of our next stop.

After looking at the city centre which consists of the river, a city library, city hotel, a book shop (where we took some souvenirs) and various small cafes and restaurants we started to walk towards our final destination- the city harbour. As this is a seaside town, almost everyone own boats that finds their place in a calm and small harbour. It was pretty breezy that day especially near the harbour where one can smell the dry air flowing over a motionless sea. Basking sun while sitting in the pier we spotted a restaurant on the shore. Since it was Easter Sunday, the restaurant had Easter special sandwich (Påskmacka) which featured toasted rye bread served with herring, boiled potatoes, eggs, browned butter, sour cream, chives and dill. We stood for our turn to order and took our place to enjoy a good Easter lunch.

Lunch : 2:00 p.m 

After lunch we opted for some ice-cream from one of the small cafes in the town centre and more leisurely walks allowing us to soak in the scenic beauty of the place and take away with us memories of a good day. Soon it was time for our return journey and the familiar bus with a familiar face arrived to whisk us back to Stockholm. 

We reached home in time for fixing a good Easter dinner while constantly thinking about the place we just visited.

Panorama view of the town