Today I went back to Älgafallet on the border between Sweden and Norway now when the Covid restrictions are gone. After a cold night and lots of water in the waterfall there was some great pictures. The early morning sun also wanted to play along.
See also a short video here. Sound on!
Imagine there’s no borders, ha de Gött!
Seagull flying past a navigation mark. In Swedish this type of navigation mark is called ‘Kummel’ and I struggled to find the English translation. Cairn is the closest I came up with. On the chart the mark is named ‘Vakupp’ that translates to, wake up or stay alert! Makes perfect sense, as you enter a dangerous area to navigate in. Due south is the lighthouse, one of my favorite motives, ‘Väcker’. With the same perfect logic this translates to, awakens!
Stay sharp, ha de Gött!
The strait between the islands Hällsö and Kalvö.
Navigate with caution, ha de Gött!
Rusty ball-bearing in dire need of some lubrication.
Leonardo Da Vinci is by some named the inventor of the ball bearing but the already the Romans used wooden ball bearings. The first modern ball bearing was patented by Philip Vaughan, a Welsh inventor, in 1794.
Sven Wingquist, a Swedish inventor invented a self-aligning ball bearing in 1907. This revolutionary invention became the foundation for one of Sweden’s most successful international companies, SKF. SKF stands for Svenska Kullager Fabriken, simply Swedish Ball Bearing Factory.
My first two and half years I lived across the street from the huge factory with its fasade of red clay bricks. Now a trip to Gamlestaden in Göteborg must be planned for some photos.
Aim for a smooth ride, ha de Gött!
No, I have not been to Mars and found water. It is the red granite rock typical for Bohuslän in Sweden. Sun was about to go down and created this special light effect. Wind and water keep working hard, like a carpenter on overtime, to get the rock smooth.
Rock hard, ha de Gött!
Ship sailing down the river, Göta Älv, with the new high-raises in the background. In the middle far back is ‘Skansen Kronan’ as a reminder of the history.
River flows, let it flow, ha de Gött!
Göteborg has a nickname, Little London. This stems from the era with large shipyards and industrialization during the 1800. The trade over the North Sea has always been intense and many British businessmen and craftsmen saw opportunities in Göteborg. English was as common as Swedish in the streets. Chalmers University of Technology is one of the institutions founded by a British businessman.
The picture is taken at Lindholmen where Chalmers has one of its campus. The water in the picture is the dry dock (not so dry now) from the shipyard. Like Docklands in London the area is transformed to a modern business area with skyscrapers, hotels and smart dressed business people. Chalmers Campus creates a hightech hub and you will find many well known international companies here. Just note the white autonomous drive cars parked to left in the picture.
The tower being built in the background is the Karla Tower. When it’s ready in 2024 it will be 245 meters high, highest building in Sweden. The building tempo adds one floor per week.
Try to rise above, ha de Gött!
A city is in constant change. The old cranes in the old shipyard was, and still is, a symbol of progress and pride. It put Göteborg on the international map as a place of advanced engineering and craftsmanship. In the background the modern cranes building skyscrapers. They manifests confidence and trust in the future. Not bad for an old fortress town built in a swamp.
I had the opportunity for a photo session in Göteborg today between the rain showers. As I live in the country side, city photography is not a skill I get to explore much. The old cranes from the shipyard Götaverken is one of the things I long wished to photograph. I write about my connection to Göteborg in an older post you can find here.
Impossible is a question of will, ha de Gött!
It is called the Queens Mountain, Drottningberget in Swedish, and it is an ancient fortress. More accurate a hill-fort. The natural form of the rock is what create the attributes of a fortress. There is very little man made constructions made. The height and the flat plateau on the top together with the availability of water made it perfect to stand ground. I have no idea where the royal name come from but maybe there was a female ruler in the settlement.
44 meter up surrounded by steep cliffs it was an easy place to defend by simply throwing stones in the head of the attacking enemy. I wonder if this is why the soldiers helmet was invented, still used today. There is only two ways up without any climbing gear, trust me I’ve tried. Here you can see some remains of walls and collected throw size stones. With the sea level a few meters higher up it was most likely attackers came from the sea.
Keep it simple, ha de Gött!
Empty boat moorings waiting for the summer in a winter cold small town landscape. Harbor side walk is empty. No problem with social distancing. No troubadour leading a sing-along crowd in front of the outdoor scene. No late night, hot dog or hamburgers served in the take away. But six months from now. Grebbestad, the place to be.
Enjoy every season, ha de Gött!
UlleHaddock 