Kalmar - Last day

This would be my last full day in Kalmar and Sweden. I have done everything I have set out to do while in Sweden. The plan today is to return the rental car, walk back to the hotel to get one of the bicycles and then set off to visit a few of the remaining sites to see in Kalmar.

Except while I was checking the sites in Kalmar I searched for 'runestones near Kalmar' and the search returned the Karlevi Runestone! Oh oh. It is one of the most notable and prominent runestones and constitutes the oldest record of a stanza of skaldic verse. Thought to be dated to the late 10th century. 

Google maps had it 27 minutes away by car on the island of Öland. It was 9:30 and I had to return the car by 12:00 at the Kalmar Central train station. And I needed to fill the tank with gas before I returned it. Hmmmmm.... One last adventure while I have the car? Sure, why not?

The Karlevi Runestone proved easy to find following the Google Maps directions. The rental car interfaced automatically with my iPhone and the directions were relayed through the car's speakers. The last 'turn right' had me driving down a dirt road through a farmer's field. I parked in a designated area and walked a narrow path along the field to where I saw the runestone standing. There was a friendly Swede visiting the remote site who snapped a photo.

Now this runestone is easily 500 kg and out in the middle of a farmer's field. Seriously. That's the runestone, the rock shown in the very center of the photo.

The gentleman that was visiting the runestone was a bit of a rune geek. He stated that he had researched this particular runestone and translated it himself. He stated he disagreed with the translation shown by Wikipedia and offered several snippets of his own. His English was a bit choppy and I didn't quite get the drift of what he was saying. But he was very enthusiastic while pointing out particular references.

I left the Karlevi Runestone and headed back to Kalmar to fill the rental car up with gas and return it to the Kalmar Central. 

Everything is an adventure in a foreign country, even filling the rental car with gas. Yet again a friendly Swede walked me through the process and I left with a full tank and a receipt for 629,19 kr. That's about $60 in gas for both the country drives and the one this morning. Not bad. 

I dropped off the rental car at the Kalmar Central station and walked the short 5 minutes back to my hotel to check out one of the bicycles. There were two sites I wanted to visit; the Kalmar Cathedral and the Kalmar County Museum.

Kalmar Cathedral was finished being built in 1703 and is considered one of the foremost examples of classical baroque architecture.  There was a Church of Sweden Sunday service being held as I walked inside the church. I sat in one of the pews and listened to the service in Swedish. When the offering came around I dropped a $5 bill into the container. I chuckled to myself as I thought of the person who would be counting the day's offering. 

I did not take any photos inside the church in respect of the service. However, it was awe inspiring to sit and take in the many ornate displays. There are lots of interior photos on the Kalmar Cathedral wiki site. I did get this one photo while outside the church.

My energy was waning a bit and as has been my usual on this trip is to energize myself with a cup of coffee and this time a traditional Swedish cinnamon bun. 

Next up was the Kalmar County Museum. This museum hosts artifacts from the royal ship Kronan which served as the flagship of the Swedish Navy in the Baltic Sea in the 1670s. Unfortunately the Kronan sank during a battle with the Danish Navy off the coast of Öland after just 4 years of service. 

There is an ongoing effort to retrieve all of the Kronan. However 30,000 artifacts have been recovered to date with a generous amount on exhibit at the Kalmar County Museum. 

I rode back to my hotel, returned the locking key for the bicycle to the receptionist and made my way to my room to freshen up and read my latest novel. 

The idea is to not venture out anymore today and eat dinner at the hotel's restaurant.