Alright. Let’s pick up where we left off. Lina + I had just left a week of calm, quiet, simple living out in the Swedish archipelago for a week. However, instead of heading north and going home, we took off in our car for a roadtrip down south! We had a few plans to visit a couple of cities, but we left the camp on a Friday + had a place to stay/be on Saturday. Buuuuut… what about Friday night? What would we do during these wide-open, unplanned 24 hours?! Well, we looked at a map and decided to visit the historical + university town of Lund, Sweden.
I’d never been to Lund before. And Lina had visited when she was a child sometime. So, it was the perfect plan! A chance to wander the streets and see what this city had to offer.
So, after a week of no showers, using a toilet in a building by carrying sea water in buckets to flush, combating mosquitoes, constantly checking for ticks, and simplifying in nature, we splurged (big time) and booked a night at the old Grand Hotel right in the middle of Lund. We believe in balance in life – a theme you will continue to see as I share upcoming blog posts. Wink wink.
We drove into the city and I went in to check us in while Lina waited in the car. We parked the car, then rolled our suitcases of fresh, new, clean clothes down the cobblestone street towards our fancy, beautiful hotel. We passed the marble stairs, rode the elevator to the second floor, and blipped our way into our gorgeous, turn of the century room facing out the front of the hotel. It was breathtaking – and not at all what we really expected.
After we picked our jaws up off the floor, we took turns taking long, hot showers, followed by wrapping ourselves in the robes they provided while getting ready to head out to dinner. Talk about balance! From the middle of nature to this. What a contrast + what a privilege to be able to enjoy both.
We headed to a restaurant that we saw online and asked for a table inside. Not at all what is “normal” or expected when its the height of summer + everyone loves outdoor dining. But, it was a great idea! It was soooo moody + beautiful. It felt like we wouldn’t have gotten the vibe of the place if we sat outside in some random, basic table + chairs. So, we ordered some wine, appetizers, and stone-baked pizza with pears + figs. YUM.
After dinner, we planned to take a walk and find a local brewery that Lina had found out about. Turns out, it was so cozy inside that we had no idea that there was a downpour outside. What to do?! More wine or risk the rain?
We risked the rain! Got soaked. But, also saw a gorgeous rainbow.
And finally found the little brewery where they had 6 of their beers on tap. Now, how to decide which one to try? Lina had a brilliant plan, though. She asked them if we could try all 6! Small tastes – like a flight (since they didn’t have flights). They were open to it + created us our own little flight of all 6 – for dirt cheap! So, we tried all 6 and decided that the one with elderberry was our favorite. It definitely pays to simply ask things. Why not? Who knows what you’ll get?!
After all the evening adventures, we were super excited to get back to our room and just relax before sleeping. So we headed back, snuggled under the thick, fluffy covers, and slept like babies.
Morning came and we headed downstairs for one of the fanciest breakfasts we’d ever had. Super fresh squeezed orange juice. An egg bar with a chef to whip up whatever my egg dreams were. Delicious, hot, strong coffee. And a beautiful space. We soaked it up, fueled ourselves, and then checked out, dropped our bags in the car, and headed out to explore more of Lund.
First stop: the cathedral right in the middle of the town!
The inside of the cathedral was gorgeous. Ornate, majestic, inspiring. But, the highlight of our time in the cathedral was going down into the crypt. Oh my gosh, Soooo cool. So sacred. So historical. Whenever I am in any old, historical space, it’s as if I almost feeeeel the presence of souls.
Feeling inspired and touched by the cathedral, we thought we’d continue the theme and visit some ancient underground ruins that you can enter from the back of a random Italian restaurant. I saw it online and just knew that we needed to visit. So, we walked to the spot and saw on a door that they are closed in July for vacation. Gaaaaaaaaah. We were super disappointed. Totally. But, I guess that means that we have to visit Lund again at some point, because I have got to see those ruins. I was drawn to them.
We regrouped and decided to wander into some stores (especially a paper + pen store) and then find our way to a cool-looking coffee shop we’d found online/on google maps.
The coffee shop was a vibe. Funky. Cool. Laid back. We grabbed some iced vanilla lattes (my go-to drink this summer) and a super cheesy grilled cheese to share. We hunkered down in the corner, sipped, ate, and people-watched. The perfect little ending to our time in Lund.
It was time to move on now! Our 24 hours in Lund was over – and it had been absolutely fantastic. We had looked up a few things in advance of arriving, were able to squeeze most of them in, and did so without feeling like we were ticking things off of a list or hurrying through a super-planned schedule. We took it easy, sauntered slowly, and decided from moment to moment what we felt like doing. It was a perfectly spontaneously unplanned, but inspired, visit to a very historical, cute town.
But, now, it was time to head to the big city in the southernmost part of Sweden – Malmö, here we come!
Stay tuned to see how we spent our 4 days in this most funky, international, chill city!
xoxo. liz.
When we lived in Lund, we looked out our apartment windows to the Grand Hotel! It’s a charming city, for sure!
We happened to hear from Catherine about that – so we were thinking of y’all! 🙂
Oh, that cathedral looks incredible. What a beautiful city!
It was such a tiny little city, but with so much personality and history. I’ve got to make it back there!