For the second postcards from Sweden, we head over to the island of Öland, a 20 minute drive over the bridge that connects the island to the mainland. For being so close, the landscape is quite distinctive, and there are many things to stop off and look at.
We started our trip at Ismantorp, a circular fort dating from around 200AD and used until about 650AD. The wall is around 300 meters long, and there are about 95 dwellings inside. It is a fascinating place to visit, and well worth seeing.
We drove over to the open air museum, which was unfortunately shut. We did have a quick look around what we could see as you can see below.
One of the distinctive features of the landscape of Öland is the number of windmills. We stopped here for some cooling drinks, right next to these five (see featured image too). There were strawberries for sale, and I also heard the distinctive sound of a cuckoo.
For lunch I tried a very local dish, kroppkaka, a sort of potato dumpling filled with a meat filling, and served with lingonberries. While this might not look very appetising, I can tell you they tasted excellent.
Below you can see the place we ate lunch and the view from Kalmar looking over to the bridge.
For dinner that evening, we headed over to fish restaurant Blomlöfs for some delicious food – fish and chips for Karl and hot smoked salmon with asparagus and an excellent sauce for me.
And so our stay in Kalmar came to an end…at least for this trip.
This was written on my iPad at Heathrow Airport.
Thistles and Kiwis is a Wellington, New Zealand based blog written by Barbara, who likes cats, summer, good food and pretends to garden.
You can find Thistles and Kiwis on Facebook, and also on Instagram @thistlesandkiwis. If you want to get in touch, email me on thistlesandkiwis@gmail.com or lofgren@thistlesandkiwis.org
Thistles and Kiwis 
Hi, Barbara. Fascinating post. I’m particularly intrigued by Ismantorp, I’ve been reading a lot recently about ruins (and manuscripts) Northern Europe from BCE to around 1200. (Don’t ask why; I stumbled into it and got hooked). Your photos of the walled fort and accompanying information beautifully illuminated my reading. Thank you! (And the restaurant was awfully pretty too.) Save travels!
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Finland has quite a few Bronze Age ruins, as well as stone burial grounds. While out visiting these places, it’s not uncommon to also come upon Ice Age creations called, kettles.
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How interesting! There seems to be some local debate about the fort and whether it was used that much or just ceremonially. There are standing stones on the island too. I really need to read up more on this 🙂
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What a wonderful trip, Barbara — and terrific photos.
I am impressed that you can write such a great post at an airport. I either struggle with wifi connection there — or get completely distracted! 🙂
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I did have the post planned in my head but it is rather tricky with just an iPad I must admit. We had a great trip I must say.
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You have done well to send us such interesting postcards from what has obviously been a well filled trip
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Thanks! I have to say our days in Sweden were just the thing for a proper break.
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Fascinating trip!
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Love the windmills! And the food sounds delicious. Thanks for the wonderful postcards.
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Thanks!
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A lot to see. The windmills are striking, and the red buildings are too. Acadians have a similar potato dumpling dish called poutine rapee. My father, uncle, and grandmother used to make them, and it was quite a process.
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I loved our trip to Öland I must say. I have had similar dumplings in Poland filled with fruit, and think you find them in other parts of northern Europe.
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Thank you, Kate, for letting me know! I’ll be sure to browse my library for more info (and photos!) of Finland’s Bronze Age history.
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These images are so amazing and such an amazing site.with your trip. Anita
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Thank you!
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What a lovely trip Barbara, love all the windmills and your food looks delicious!
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