03/07/2009 Simrishamn – Karlskrona – Kalmar
The summer clearly has arrived in Sweden! It is (…or was? The next low seems to be on its way). At the moment it is like sailing in South Brittany – only warmer and slightly less crowded. We had more and more time to sun bathe on deck and to practice old, almost forgotten skills like using the sextant for position plotting. We have developed a simple effective method: I (Stephan) take the sights and Madeleine does all the calculations and the plotting. Except for one sight, I have to admit, I was very (unbelievably?) close ( 1.2 & 3.6 NM) to our GPS position.
Karlskrona, at the northeast corner of the Hanö bight, is a town with a longstanding proud naval history and is part of the UNESCO Heritage Sites. All the museums are usually closed when we arrive – but at least the ice cream parlours are open and inviting.
Another 65 NM further to the NE we arrived at Kalm
ar, in the Kalmar Sound opposite the island of Öland. Again, Kalmar has an important historical and naval heritage. We took one of the excellent buses to Öland over the impressive bridge to Borgholm, the largest town on the island. Some houses remind you of stories many of us have read by Astrid Lindgren. Sunday, however, seems not to be a time of great activity in Swedish villages…