SWEDISH SOJOURN, Day 10, June 29

We are definitely winding down our trip, and I am writing all of you from the Scandic Foresta Hotel in Stockholm, overlooking Lake Malaren in this beautiful Venice of the North. However, I need to bring you to that point, so I will begin by describing the day as it unfolded. I awakened to a profoundly beautiful morning, when all I heard were the sounds of birds' wings flapping as they took off from the water. Later on, as Jenny was showering, I had WRR on, and Strauss' "Tod und Verklaerung" or "Death and Transfiguration" was played on that station. A combination of that placid view and music moved me deeply, and I was so thankful to God to be able to experience such blessing. An amazing event I will never forget. We traveled to Huskvarna to visit the Huskvarna Museum. Known worldwide for Huskvarna chainsaws, this company started 300 years ago with muskets and other weapons for the Swedish army. The company has since grown, and its production has since changed from weapons, sewing machines, kitchen equipment, bicycles and motorcycles to lawn mowers, chainsaws, and construction products. Fascinating history, and several pieces, like the Huskvarna motor scooter that looked like a Vespa attracted my eye and made me realize the beauty, yet practicality of a well-executed piece. After our visit there, we drove along the shores of beautiful Lake Vattern to the village of Granna, stopping at the Granna polkagris (peppermint candy) factory candy store. Forty km north of Jonkoping, the lakeside town of Granna is associated with pears and striped rock candy. The Granna pear is one of the best-known varieties in the country today. And in 1859, Amalia Eriksson, in trying to keep her financial balance in the black as a widow, applied to the authorities for permission to start making polkagris. The candy is available in myriad shapes and sizes, some approaching one pound of candy. The making of the classic red and white-striped polkagris is shown, and we watched a fascinating demonstration. Sugar, water and some vinegar are mixed together and heated to around 150 Centigrade. This is in order to get a clear dough of melted sugar, which is then poured out on the baking table. A small part of the molten sugar is colored red. The remaining dough is flavored with peppermint oil. The red section of the melted sugar dough is then cut away, kneaded and set aside to cool. While the red dough is cooling off, the clear dough is cooked and kneaded to become filled with air bubbles. In this process it turns white. The one modernization in the making of polkagris is a machine that helps with the heavy work of pulling the dough. When the pulling of the dough is done, the dough is shaped into a bun, the red part is put on top of it as a red strip. The process then is to continue to pull and twist the sugared dough of two colors until the polkagris has its right intertwining pattern and size. When the polkagris dough becomes long enough or when it reaches its desired thickness, it can be cut and shaped. I bought five different varieties of the candy--lime, orange, Irish cream, super sour, and the famous original peppermint. Returning to the bus, we drove into downtown Granna, where Haakon let us off for sightseeing and lunch. A vintage car parade was on, so the street was lively. I joined up with fellow travelers Tom and Jenna and we strolled down to the edge of Lake Vattern and enjoyed a picnic of brie, bread, wine, an apple, and some nuts. Afterwards, we strolled back up to the center of town, and Jenna and I explored the main church, where there was some lovely light wood paneling, a heart-shaped wrought iron candleholder that appealed to me, and a modern crucifix. A recording of one of the Strauss waltzes was playing when we entered, but we could not stay long, as we were close to the deadline for catching the bus. On the way out of town we stopped at another glassblowing atelier. Several things were of mild interest to me, but nothing screamed my name, so I didn't buy anything. For our last stop before Stockholm, we stopped at the Viking Age rune stone called "Rockstenen," which details a family's saga. It is considered the first piece of written Swedish literature, and thus it marks the beginning of the history of Swedish literature. The stone was discovered built into the wall of the church, and was subsequently removed. The church was built in the 12th c. It was common to use rune stones as building material for churches. The stone was probably carved in the 9th c., and is covered in runes on five sides. A few parts of the inscription are damaged, but most of it remains readable. It contains the longest extant per-Christian runic inscription of about 760 characters, and tells of a father memorializing his dead son. Following the visit to the rune stone, we made a stop at the Berg Locks on the Gota Canal, which we had visited at Sjotorp. Boats maneuver through the system of locks, and this one had seven successive locks for boats to pass through. A fascinating process to watch. We traveled about another two hours from the Berg Locks to Stockholm, which I intend to fully describe in tomorrow's log. Suffice it to say that we are staying at the Scandic Hotel Foresta on Lidingo Island in Stockholm's central archipelago, 15 minutes from the city center. The hotel has been an important meeting point since 1910, when it was first opened. This evening there is a wonderful view of Lake Malaren from our window. We have two wonderful,red leather chairs and elegant hardwood flooring, and the design of it all is functional but creative and innovative. More tomorrow! As ever, Sylvia