August 7, 2008...(Day 15)...The Island of Oland on the east coast of Sweden.

Oland: While staying with Amanda's aunt, we decided to take a trip from Kalmar over to Oland. We traveled across what was once the longest bridge in Sweden to the island of Oland. Here we visited the ruins of a castle, some windmills, a flax house, limestone steppe, and a lighthouse. Whoo...what a fantastic travel day we had!

Castle Sign: Our first stop on Oland was the magnificent castle ruin called Borgholms Slott.

Borgholm Slott: A "slott" is a castle. This is the ruins of a magnificent kingdom stronghold turned castle that was in use from the 12th century through 1772.

Borgholm Slott Model: This is what the castle probably looked like in 1709. It was designed for King Karl Gustav X, after it suffered severe damage in the Kalmar Wars of 1611-1613.

Spiral Stairway: Many of these spiral stairways led down into small prisons. The Royal Castle of Borgholm was one of the most important strongholds in the Kingdom. During the whole of the middle Ages up to the 17th century, it was the scene of battles and sieges, of destruction and reconstruction.

My hosts for this island tour: Amanda's Aunt Kerstin, Olle, Cousin Martin, Ulla Britt, Amanda, and Jonathan gave me a wonderful tour of this castle ruin.

Arch Upon Arch: Doorway upon doorway, window upon window, room upon room...Between 1572 and 1592 an architect was hired to transform the old stronghold into a magnificent renaissance castle. Large towers were erected, as were magnificent state apartments, with large windows on both floors.

Three Stories High: I wonder how many people lived in this castle. There must have been hundreds of rooms.

Massive towers: This castle was so huge, and every view was awe inspiring. To think that some of these stones may date back to the original buildings from the 12th century is amazing.

Laurie at castle: I was standing next to a tower that overlooked the waters surrounding Oland. This part of the castle probably dates back to the late 1500s.

The castle today: The castle is currently used for many functions, such as concerts. A stage was being set up in the center of the castle as we wandered through it.

After leaving Borgholm Castle, we made our way down the eastern side of Oland. We stopped to look at some windmills before continuing southward.

Front side of the windmill: The first windmills were probably set up near the end of the Middle Ages. By the mid-1800s there were 2,000 windmills on Oland. Today, there are only about 400 windmills remaining. 

Backside of the windmill 

Windmill Turning Rod: This rod can be used to turn the entire windmill, around the central supporting post, so that it faces into the wind as the wind changes direction.

Windmill Schematic Drawing: This drawing details the parts of the windmill, most of which were impossible for me to photograph. It was quite a tight fit inside.

Inside a windmill: There are all sorts of wooden mechanical parts in this windmill which all work as a system to grind grain.

Flax Workshop: This Flax Workshop was across the street from the row of windmills. Amanda's father, Olle, just had to check it out, so in we went! This house served as a production workshop for flax fibers from 1750 - 1922. This was a very interesting little place with a very enthusiastic guide.

Flax Fiber Production: This sign gives the steps of flax fiber production. Production was on-going in this workshop from 1750-1922. It was owned by all the farmers of this hamlet.

Flax has been used for clothing for more than 5,000 years. The purpose of "flax-dressing" is to release the fibers from the straw of the plant. Flax is harvested by hand so as not to damage any of the fibers. Once the flax is brought into the workshop, it is dried from smoke of the chimney fire. Then, the work begins of braking it to release the wooden parts, leaving only the fibers. Then, the fibers are beaten by a scutcher, then drawn through a carding machine, then woven into cloth.

Flax Flower Sign: I saw flax flowers in many areas of Sweden, and they are just like the species we find here in the USA. I presume this sign lists the steps of making cloth from flax.

Carding the Flax: This is an age-old process used to create what I call "Flax Wool" from the plant. Amazing!