Today is graduation day for Swedish high school kids
We stayed last night in a one bedroom apartment at Hotel Borrby. It is a bit confusing as it is known more for its restaurant, and at one end of its barnlike structure are 4 apartments which are available for travellers. Located on a farm outside of town, the setting is peaceful and very pretty. Well, it was peaceful until we looked down to see that it was set up for a graduation party for a school from nearby Srimishamn for the next morning.
Another sunny warm day in Sweden. Our bedroom had a sharply sloped ceiling and Barry rammed his head pretty hard when he leaned over to get something off the bed. Perhaps he should wear his helmet off the bike as well.
We were eating our breakfast in our suite, when we heard the bus arrive, excited chatter, air horns and whistles. Let the celebrations begin.
Some of the girls from the graduating class who are here for their breakfast/morning celebration. The boys and girls all wear this type of cap. The girls traditionally wear white dresses and the boys wear dark suits. Graduation is a very big deal here.
We see fewer churches in Sweden than other places we have travelled in Europe. Their churches are usually white and reflect the clean lines of Scandinavian architecture.
We could hear this wee family long before we could see them. They were frantically calling out to each other to stick together and also to try to find their mother as they careened down the cycle path with a busy road beside them. They never did find her while we were there. The chicks escaped in to the greenery and we watched, hoping for the mother to appear. At least they were safe off the trail.
The Baltic is very busy with ferries in this area as Trelleborg, a very busy ferry port is ahead about 30 km. Ships are headed to Rostock, Travemünde and Swinoice.
As fans of televised mystery series and Henning Mankell’s Wallander series, we are excited to be in Ystad, his home town and the setting for his books and the televised series.
The Konditori is also known affectionately as Wallander Cafe as the actor who portrayed Wallander and the author Henning Mankell came here often for coffee. Scenes from the show were filled here when Wallander went out for coffee.
Graduations in Sweden are a really big deal, steeped with traditions, pride and celebratory fun. Families and friends gather in huge numbers outside the school waiting for the graduates’ classes to be dismissed. And then, as each class is dismissed, the students burst through the doors to a noisy and appreciative reception by their loved ones. The students can find their familes by looking for the large photo of themselves as a young child being held proudly in the air. Music blares, people are cheering, glitter confetti cannons are set off -it is quite a scene. As well, the students dress quite formally for the event with boys and girls wearing the same blue brimmed white Mariner caps inscribed with their names, the boys in dark suits with white shirts and ties....and the girls wearing white dresses.
Schools out! The grads have been unleashed. Let the celebrations begin.
The graduate on the left is representative of what happens. Family and friends give them flowers, gifts, stuffed animals, etc and they are suspended on ribbons. The kids have quite a load of goodies to wear by the end.
We are so lucky to stumble upon these significant moments when we travel. We were actually lost, took a wrong turn and came upon this High School and couldn’t believe what was happening. From the sounds and fireworks we could hear from a distance, we imagined it was a raucous concert or street festival.
It is a long established tradition for the final part of the celebration to include a parade of flat bottomed trucks playing very loud music with the kids onboard dancing and drinking champagne or beer.
After we left Ystad, we followed once again the quiet shoreline, the route hugging close to the shore most of the time. These kids were celebrating the final day of school by going for a swim,
A familiar sight for us seeing cormorants drying their wings on the rocks. Cormorants migrate south to our islands for the winter and we enjoy watching them at home too.
We have booked to stay at Pensionat Rosengarden in Beddingestrand. We find that it has best to prebook so that we can get a room in the right price range. The owner/host is very friendly and welcoming, but this property is a shadow of what it used to be. We can see that the gardens were lovely at a time and that she is perhaps overwhelmed. We were able to put Seavo in a dry, secure place by our room under the eave, so it was fine for a night.
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Today's ride: 62 km (39 miles) Total: 2,506 km (1,556 miles)
