We took a break from Liseberg Day 2 in order to explore the city. I mean, it would be a crime to go to Europe and only ride roller coasters, right?? I was so excited when I saw we had two days at Liseberg because I knew I was going to want to use some of that time to be tourists.
There was a tram stop right across from our hotel and we were able to very easily take it right into town.
We got off at the central station area and spent the rest of the afternoon just walking around with no real plan other than looking for a hardback copy of Beartown in Swedish (no luck), somewhere to grab a light lunch, and somewhere for Henry of the Petite Bladder Clan to piss. (Spoiler: the Ikea there did not have a public restroom.)
Random ice cream sign that needed to be remembered. I miss you, GB Glace. I miss you bigly. No one misses you more than me. I’m a person that misses the most. A tremendous amount of missing.
Gothenburg had a poppin’ shopping district where I bought zero things.
I think I know that kid.
I’d like to add that Henry is supposed to be helping me write this but he claims he “doesn’t even remember that day.” Now he’s looking at some man soap website on his phone that is not even Swedish.
“Is that when I was looking for a bathroom?” he just mumbled. OH SO HE DOES REMEMBER.
You know how when you’re in the moment, you just start snapping photos because you want to remember everything, no matter how insignificant it might seem, say, two months later when you’re sitting at home looking at them and trying to think of how to caption them for your blog?
Yeah…
If I lived in Gothenburg, I would sit in this courtyard often. It surrounds the magnificent Gustavi Cathedral, btw.
No photos allowed inside, but we went inside to gawk and light a candle. Big fan of churches from a tourist POV.
I MISS SWEDEN. Literally not a single shitty experience was had in the entire country. Wonderful people. Chill vibes. Beautiful culture. PREVALENT LICORICE. Korea is still my past life country (not in the sense that I think I was Korean bc that would be a gross and inappropriate line to cross being the white mutt I am; I just mean that Korea feels so familiar to me like I lived there once), but Sweden is somewhere I definitely see myself revisiting again and again.
I asked Henry if he would go back. He paused, looked up at the ceiling which I guess was to illustrate that ‘look at me, thinking’ and then said, “….I think so. Yeah.”
Wow.
I liked this door so I took a picture of the door. Oh, I remember now!!! We were walking aimlessly toward where we thought the water was! And Chooch sidetracked us because he wanted to climb some random steps that ended up being a good plan because it allowed for some nice views at the top (PLUS THIS DOOR).
I mean, even with that crane in the skyline, isn’t this place just a goddamn dream??
I look old AF (because I am old AF) but I’m including this because MEMORIES of walking around looking for food while Chooch complains because he wanted to buy his friend Zakk something from some random sci fi shop and we made him leave because we were LOOKING FOR LUNCH.
He threw this in my face for like 3 days afterward. “I can’t wait to tell Zakk that I wasn’t allowed to buy him anything from the sci fi shop.”
OMFG please. That brat just wanted to buy himself something and I promise you it’s something that he could have bought anywhere, not unique to just Sweden.
LAKRITS. I want a giant LAKRITS ice cream cone for my front yard.
At one point, we ran into Kevin (the one who sat in front of us on the bus for nearly the whole trip) and Marshall who were excited to tell us about the great lunch they had nearby and what a good value it was on top of that and we did go inside briefly to check it out but IF YOU RECALL, I wanted a small, light lunch that day for some reason. Maybe I wasn’t that hungry? And as usual, who cares when Henry and Chooch wanted, am I right? Haha ha hahaha. Ha.
Then we found the famous Ahlstroms! This was on my very unorganized list that mostly lived in crumpled ball in my head. But I recognized the name! It was established in 1901!
“I was just glad they had a bathroom,” Henry sighed.
While he was pissing his heart out in a 1901 urinal, Chooch and I braved the sandwich counter. The people working there (and in line with us!) were so wonderfully patient and helpful. When I asked if one of the ladies if a certain sandwich had meat on it, she couldn’t think of the word in English and the girl behind me paused her convo with her friend and said, “It’s cod!” and we all had a laugh.
No cod sandwich for me, please!
Henry was still in the bathroom!!!
EW HE JUST TOLD ME HE DIDN’T JUST HAVE TO PEE, THAT WHOLE TIME HE HAD TO SHIT TOO. He pooped in a 1901 bathroom!!!! He ruined it with his American waste!!!
You guys, this sandwich was just what I needed. The bread was so perfectly poppy-seedy. I can’t remember what Chooch got – some kind of cheese sandwich? Mine was EGGS. I got a cinnamon bun and Chooch got whatever he got.
Then Henry came back from stinking up the bathroom and pouted because we had food so we were like, “You are a grown-up, capable of independent decision-making. If you want your own sandwich, go the fuck up there and get one?!?” So he did. Something with meat on it. He thinks he liked it.
Then…more walking! It was the perfect day. High 60s. Blue skies. Fresh air. We had just signed Balder that morning. Writing this blog post, 2 mths later, and I can still remember how content I felt!
Guys, let’s go back to Gothenburg.
German Christian Church. I’m glad Chooch isn’t the type of kid who gets all put-out and whiny when it’s time to pop in a church for cultural purposes.
Otherwise, we might have missed this.
My geotag on this tells me it’s Gustav Adolfs Torg, a town square.
We went into a souvenir/candy shop around this area to buy magnets, etc.
Made our way back to Central Station because there was more fun to be had at Liseberg and we needed to start heading back.
But first one of these two doofuses I was with put us on the wrong tram and we were headed in the opposite direction. Luckily, it was an easy fix but UGH these two and their constant map-quarrels. They both have to be right and I feel like they purposely choose different routes just to be forever contentious with each other. Idiots.
Before we went back to Liseberg, we tore into this famous Princess Cake that we got to go from Ahlstroms. I wasn’t sure if I liked marzipan but turns out, sure! I sure do! I wish I hadn’t had to share this with Henry. Fuck.
But Gothenburg? Will you have me back someday? Because I really want to come back, stay at the Curiosa again, spend a day at Liseberg and then do all of the Gothenburg things. This was, to summarize the best way I can think, a comfortable day. The transportation was easy-ish, I bought a ton of licorice treats at Lakrids By Bulow—they have the best, fanciest, designer licorice, you guys – we got jars of lemon-coated licorice balls and mango-coated licorice balls and…I miss those balls, is all I’m saying. The lemon ones especially were amazing because they were slow-crafted and therefore $$ but 100% worth the inflation—and we just had a nice day of not rushing around and only moderately hating on each other.
ONE MORE GOTHENBURG/LISEBERG recap after this, and then we will move on to another part of Sweden. Please don’t jump ship. Stay with me. Pretend like it’s the 1950s and I pulled out the old, overheated projector and we’re going through a slideshow of blurry photos, most of them with Chooch mid-eye roll and Henry airplaning food into his own gaping maw while I’m trying to get shots of the scenery behind them while I’m narrating it in a monotone and making you eat salty licorice. See? It could be worse.