Where: Stockholm, Sweden
When: November 15, 2008
With: Jen, John and friends
My trip to Sweden came about in the best way that trips do. One of my best friends from my college dance team was spending a post-graduate semester in Stockholm with her husband, and they said they'd welcome visitors at any time. Well, no need to ask twice. My long weekend to Sweden was booked within days.
I went into it not knowing much about Sweden other than Ikea and meatballs. Since I was staying with friends who'd tour me around, I did absolutely no research whatsoever. So after stepping off the relatively short red-eye to a giant poster of ABBA welcoming me to the country, I didn't know what to expect.
So while the Vasa Museum became the highlight site of the trip, it was also completely unexpected. A little history on it: back in 1628, when Sweden was attempting to establish its military presence in the Baltic Sea, they built the Titanic of war ships and called it the Vasa. However, similar to the Titanic, the Vasa didn't live past her maiden voyage. In fact, she sank in the harbor about 1400yds after setting sail.
The main reason the ship went down is a word I became all too familiar with after visiting this museum: ballast. Ballast is the stuff (like boulders or logs) loaded into the hull of a ship to keep the bottom heavy and weighted into the water so that it doesn't topple over. Sadly, the Vasa didn't have enough ballast for its relatively shallow bottom, and a good gust of wind sent the ship right over. Here's a little model of it going down.
However, their loss is our gain. The cold, brackish waters of Stockholm's harbor kept a lot of the ship in tact, more than I would have expected. So, more than 300 years after it sank, efforts were made to raise it from the bottom of the harbor and house it in a museum specially built for the ship. Here's the outside of the Vasa Museum.
While I sort of understood what we were going to see from a brief explanation, nothing could quite prepare me for walking into a room and seeing a 300+ year old warship standing there almost fully intact. It was huge!
When: November 15, 2008
With: Jen, John and friends
My trip to Sweden came about in the best way that trips do. One of my best friends from my college dance team was spending a post-graduate semester in Stockholm with her husband, and they said they'd welcome visitors at any time. Well, no need to ask twice. My long weekend to Sweden was booked within days.
I went into it not knowing much about Sweden other than Ikea and meatballs. Since I was staying with friends who'd tour me around, I did absolutely no research whatsoever. So after stepping off the relatively short red-eye to a giant poster of ABBA welcoming me to the country, I didn't know what to expect.
So while the Vasa Museum became the highlight site of the trip, it was also completely unexpected. A little history on it: back in 1628, when Sweden was attempting to establish its military presence in the Baltic Sea, they built the Titanic of war ships and called it the Vasa. However, similar to the Titanic, the Vasa didn't live past her maiden voyage. In fact, she sank in the harbor about 1400yds after setting sail.
The main reason the ship went down is a word I became all too familiar with after visiting this museum: ballast. Ballast is the stuff (like boulders or logs) loaded into the hull of a ship to keep the bottom heavy and weighted into the water so that it doesn't topple over. Sadly, the Vasa didn't have enough ballast for its relatively shallow bottom, and a good gust of wind sent the ship right over. Here's a little model of it going down.
However, their loss is our gain. The cold, brackish waters of Stockholm's harbor kept a lot of the ship in tact, more than I would have expected. So, more than 300 years after it sank, efforts were made to raise it from the bottom of the harbor and house it in a museum specially built for the ship. Here's the outside of the Vasa Museum.
While I sort of understood what we were going to see from a brief explanation, nothing could quite prepare me for walking into a room and seeing a 300+ year old warship standing there almost fully intact. It was huge!
The museum did a great job of allowing you to view the ship from a ton of different angles (since clearly, you can't just climb on board). Criss-crossing catwalks, balconies and glass walls allowed us to stand over it, under it, alongside it and really see it from every angle.
I couldn't believe how much detail was still in place. The back of the ship was a masterpiece, but everywhere I looked were intricate wood carvings.
Looking up at all the openings for cannons. Certainly was a war ship.
The exhibits around the ship were great too. They explained what life would have been like in Sweden in the 1600s with models of town life, including quotes from actual journals of the time.
They also had relics collected from the interior of the ship, including a backgammon set and the sail of the ship.
Jen-Jen and I attempting to be sailors.
This was honestly one of the coolest museums I've ever been to. The fact this ship still exists in any condition is a miracle, and seeing in person is like looking at a time capsule. So very cool.
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