In planning this last minute getaway to Nordic country, Josh and I remembered fondly the little red lake cabin we shared in Finland for his 30th birthday trip in 2019. It was one of our favorite travel experiences and so we were more than thrilled to find a little blue lake cottage in Sweden for the second half of this family vacation.
The property is located in a small lake town called Överlida in southern Sweden. The cottage is an adorable two-story home with four bedrooms and a gorgeous asthetic that I'm calling costal-minimalist. Outside there is a huge deck with a hot tub and an unobstructed view of the stars at night. It's very dark and I've seen more shooting stars here than I've seen in my whole life combined (a few Russian rockets - which we identified through our SkyGuide app - too!).
The real gem here, however, is the lake. Located down a well-worn trail about 500 feet from the house is a little yellow lake house with a small sitting area, a sauna and an outdoor shower. The lake has a small dock and rowboat (which Josh some how convinced me to let him and my brother take M out in). The lake is absolutely gorgeous and we all (excluding my parents) did a quick polar plunge in the cool water this afternoon. It is a beautiful and peaceful property. A good for the soul kind of place which is welcomed after our hectic travels and the last few fast-paced days in Copenhagen.
The drive from Denmark to Sweden took us across the Øresund Bridge which opened to the public in 2000. The drive was scenic and an easy 4 hours, despite M being a little restless.
Our first full day in Sweden was spent exploring some of the nearby towns. We spent several hours on the ground of Torpa Stenhus (stone house). This castle is located on Lake Åsunden. This simple (for a castle) single house castle was built in the 1470s and is one of Sweden's best preserved medieval castles. Interestingly, the castle hasn't been sold since the 15th century and has passed through inheritance all the way to the present.
The castle is said to be one of Sweden's most haunted locations and several ghost stories were shared via the written English guide we had during our visit. The most chilling was the "walled-up girl" whose cries can supposedly be heard through the castle at times. The legend goes: the young daughter of one of the previous noble owners of the castle had travelled to Denmark. Her father overhead her saying that the plague was spreading in Denmark and fearing that she was exposed during her travels, set out to have her killed in order to avoid the spread of disease.
He decided the best way to do this was to have her walled-up inside the stone house castle. She was tied to a chair in a window sill and brick masons were instructed to build a wall around her. In the years and centuries later, several people have attempted to remove the wall where her body is supposedly located, but all have died mysteriously before completing the task (one fell down the stairs, one had a heart attack while working, etc. . .).
The legend goes on to say that, in the days after the girl was walled-up, her sister sat next to the wall to keep her company and help her stay calm. On the fifth day, when her sister could no longer get a reply from the walled-up girl, she cursed the bricks and anyone who dared to disturb her sister's remains.
Creepy! But we were happy not to see any signs of ghosts during our time at the castle. We did see some trolls, though!
Our afternoon was spent exploring the Gräne Gruva Nature Preserve - home to a troll garden. A former feldspar and quartz rock quarry, the nature preserve now features hiking trails, natural playgrounds and cute little stone trolls throughout the grounds. M made a sweet little friend at one of the play areas. Her name was Louisa and the girls played together so sweetly for close to 45 minutes - picking up rocks, climbing over logs and holding hands. I've never seen M play so nicely or for such a long time with another child. Louisa, who was Swedish, and her family were visiting the nature preserve for the day from their home an hour or so away. I enjoyed taking with her mom while the girls played together and Josh and my brother went on a short hike.
Today was our slowest paced day of the trip and it was very welcomed by all.
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