Just kidding. First lesson of the day: Contrary to coffee places opening at 04:30 in the United States, the earliest any coffee shop in Gothenburg (or at least around the hostel) opens is 08:00, and most even open later!
I’m happy to say that jet lag is definitely not a problem that I have here. I woke up at 07:00 ready to start my day! It’s raining outside but it’s so beautiful and peaceful.
I would like to thank the Slottsskogens Hostel for being tremendously accommodating with vegan options for breakfast. They went out of their way to provide vegan butter, “salami”, soy yogurt, oat milk, and much more. As always, food is posted on my vegan page. This honestly means so much to me– I’ve gone so long settling for under-ripe bananas and nothing else. Our hostel really is going above and beyond, and I can’t begin to explain how much I appreciate it.
After a very satisfying breakfast, we went on a very educational and fun tour of Gothenburg with the nicest tour guide! We saw historical buildings, learned about the history of Sweden’s royal family, and famous landmarks. We visited the fish church (or fish market that looks like a church), and also got to go inside the German Church and learned that the basement is filled with 100 graves, including the grave of the first Swedish pharmacist! The architecture here is absolutely stunning.
We went to the top of a hill and got a view of the entire city…
We don’t support animal cruelty on this page, so here were the only thriving fish at the fish market (rest in peace to the others):
The GORGEOUS German Church (note: services are held in German):
During the tour, we also learned fun facts like Sweden is the largest consumer of candy! The tour guide says they stay fit by partaking in outdoor activities. We also learned that Gothenburg started as a fortress and there was originally a wall surrounding it to keep Danish-Norwegians out. Also, one of the kings had a building to house all of his mistresses!
We saw a statue of Poseidon by Carl Milles…
I love learning, photography and architecture so this tour was very exciting for me. I would highly recommend it to anybody.
The tour ended in Haga, a small town near our hostel. We went to Cafe Husaren, home of the plate-sized cinnamon bun (which ARE vegan), and then went our separate ways to enjoy our free time. We went to several shops and did a lot of walking.
When we travel in large groups, it’s clear that we’re American; we get looks from people constantly. It’s my first time being a foreigner and it’s a little uncomfortable, but it’s also at eye-opening at the same time, because the United States is full of foreigners and I’ve never been able to truly empathize with what it’s like to be one.
For dinner, we originally were going to go to a burger place, but we didn’t know that we needed a reservation. As a group of 11, we sadly got turned away. It’s a chilly night to be walking, but we walked all over Haga looking for somewhere to go. We ended up at a sports bar called O’Leary’s. I’m personally just happy that the staff was as nice as they were, considering we were a huge group of people with no idea what we were doing, as far as ordering, paying, and splitting the check.
After a long walk through the cold, I’m back at the hostel, ready for bed not even 22:00. Exhaustion from mental stimulation is the best kind of exhaustion, if you ask me.
Take aways:
- Always make a reservation when dining with a large group.
- Americans draw attention to themselves.
- Coffee in America is fuel; people need it to function before they go to work. In Europe, coffee is more leisurely. Europeans don’t need coffee at 04:30
till sverige 