Elder and Sister Lundwall: Karlskrona

December 4, 2010

This is a Sunrise in Sweden. It is taken at 9:30 in the morning!! Winters are dark.

Here is Neal on the train. The train stopped at Kristianstad so I took the photo.

We were off to Karlskrona to do an apartment check. (We go to all the missionaries’ apartments every quarter.) We check to make sure they are keeping the apartment up and to get rid of things they no longer need, also see if they need anything. It is a real fun assignment, we always bring them cookies and so they are real excited to see us!! Sometimes the apartment needs repairs, because they are all very old apartments, so we tell them how to contact the owner etc. We also check to see how their bikes are or if they even have bikes. Sometimes we have to teach them how to clean!!! Most apartments are just fine.

I just love how the people walk in Sweden. Here is a man pulling his son on a sled. I also love the old cemeteries like the one in the background.

Here is a photo of the Elders Apartment.

This is Elder Rice and Elder Arko.

Each elder has their own bed and a study area. In this apartment the bedroom and living room are one in the same. But it is a big room. They have a nice kitchen, bath, entryway and a basement with a storage room along with a laundry.

After the inspection they took us for a little tour of the city. I could not get over all the ice cycles on all the rocks along the road.

This is a Statue of Karl XI the founder of Karlskrona.

The town is built over several islands. It was granted a town charter in 1680. This is where Sweden’s main naval base was located due to the fact that this was an ice free port.

We are standing by the Baltic Sea. In the background you can see a modern light house.

The Elders told us to turn to another view to see the other light house. We could not see it, can you?

It is also in the background to the right of us. It looks like a devise with a bucket on it.

When a ship was seen far off they would set the bucket on fire and move it up and down to warn the sailors.

The towns in Sweden have very colorful streets.

We ate at a cute café. This was a delicious Shrimp Sandwich. They also have a really good bakery. People come here to eat and meet with friends and chat. They are in no big hurry.

This is the front of the café

Fredrickskykan (Fredrick’s Church) it was constructed in 1744. One of the towers has 35 bells. They ring 3 times a day.

This Church is called the Heliga Trefaldifhets-Kyrkan (Holy Trinity) it is also known as the German Church, after Admiral-General Hans Wachtmeister who inspired it and is buried in the crypt. It was completed in 1709. After a fire in 1790 the church was rebuilt with a lower dome than its predecessor

In the Stortorget (this is like a town square or market place) It is said to be the largest in Northern Europe. We saw a tent set up so we went in and boy were we pleasantly surprised. The tent was full of beautiful flowers. After being out in the white snow this was like a breath of fresh air. Neal bought me a real pretty Poinsettia.

This is a view of the size of the Stortorget.

We went into several of the shops but I really liked this one. It had lots of cute Christmas crafts. I bought this one for our couple’s gift exchange. The bag has a mix for Pepparkaks Cookies. It was tied with a ribbon with a cute wooden heart.