August 3, 2025
Oskarshamn, Sweden
We wandered over to see a couple museums. First the work of a famous local woodcarving artist, Doderhultar.
Note condition of the bride.
Then a nautical museum.
Those poor armadillos were turned into lamps.
Then to the library where we saw the coolest globe ever! Has full relief to show mountains, including under the oceans! We want one, but they aren’t made any more.
Oskarshamn has hired various artists to paint murals on the sides of buildings.
We stopped for lunch on a bench at a park with a nice view of a garden, a church, and a painting of a jar of pickles.
Got moved to our next hotel, which is in an old train station across from the ferry line. The young man (age 28) who bought the restaurant section of the station 6 months ago has converted the rooms over the restaurant into hotel rooms. Our room is ginormous!
The owner is originally from Syria. Left at age 16, moved to Greece and became a chef, married a Swedish girl, moved here and started up his business.
We ate Greek food at his restaurant tonight while watching the huge Gotland ferry unload and begin reloading. This ferry holds 500 cars! Looks like it is a key way stuff gets to and from the island. For instance, we saw big trash trucks leaving the ferry. And there were 3 farm trackers that got on.
Tomorrow, we are on the 1:25 pm ferry, leaving us time to sleep in, check out, hang out at the ferry and be early to get on (or on time even if anything goes awry).