July 28, 2008...(Day 5)...Orebro and Nature Reserve

And, off we go to Orebro: Orebro is just a hop, skip, and a jump from Amanda's home town of Odensbacken. It is a pretty city, in central Sweden, with a population of roughly 98,000 people. It was a center of commerce in medieval times.

Orebro Slott: This castle (slott means castle), is right downtown in the city. It sits on the Svartan River, and is the current county governor's residence. The castle was built in the 13th century.

Amanda's High School: Amanda went to Karolinska skolan, in Orebro, for her 10th grade year after returning from the USA where she was an exchange student. This was such a pretty campus with several buildings. Oh...the memories...

High School Biology Museum: Amanda's high school has a unique biology museum on campus. There was a docent on staff who waved the entrance fee upon learning that I was a visiting science teacher from the USA.

Amanda at High School Nature Museum: Amanda was thrilled to be back at her old high school again, and among her old, old, old friends. Actually, I really don't think she spent too much time at this part of her high school. Wow...can you imagine having this awesome museum in your high school? I'll bet we'd have a lot more scientists out there with this kind of resource. (Click on the photo for a larger view.)

Welcome to Rynningeviken: Just outside Orebro, we visited this lovely nature reserve. It was so nice to find this beautiful oasis near the confines of the city.

Rynningeviken Nature Reserve: This area became a nature reserve in 1995. This area was reclaimed from previously being a military training area, an oil terminal, and industrial premises. Now, you can find extensive water meadows, shoreline fens and reed beds. There are over 200 different species of plants, lots of water birds, butterflies, and insects thriving in this lovely reserve.

Lake Hjälmaren: This was an extremely hot day, and we had just walked along a nature path to get to this picnic area on the lake. Jonathan had taken refuge in a shelter, where we soon joined him to cool off before walking back to the nature center for some cold drinks. The lake was very pretty, and had it been cooler, we might have stayed longer. This summer in Sweden was on of the hottest on record, and we could certainly attest to that on this day. "Hello, UllaBritt and Olle! I love you both!"

Male Pied Wagtail, Motacilla alba (ssp. yarrellii): Thanks go to David Jones, my UK naturalist friend, for identifying this bird. I found it scampering all along the shore of Lake Hjälmaren. This species of wagtail is a summer visitor to Sweden, and like all wagtails, I saw it bobbing its head as it walked.