Summer has started, and last weekend we celebrated the summer vacation by going on an excursion to Borgholm here on Öland. We got there just in time for lunch and started with crêpes at the very cozy French-inspired Norrings Crêperie, where we sat by the wisteria in their cozy courtyard.
I ate a crêpes with strawberries and basil crème called A Midsummer Night's Dream, and Olof went for the galet Creamy Shrimp.
In the same courtyard there is also the interior design store Möbleri Mittbrodts, which in addition to its self-made furniture sells furnishings from brands such as Lexington and Mateus. I love to botanize in here, and so do these little whirlwinds, and taking the Elm sisters into an interior design store always feels like pleasure associated with danger. Luckily, the owner picked up a basket of toys for the girls to play with. The doll was full and wanted to sleep dinner in a candle holder. No wonder.
Then we walked the pedestrian street down to the harbor. I think that most people who have grown up on Öland have spent a lot of time in Borgholm in the summers. I myself have worked in two different places here as a teenager, and always think it's fun to come back.
You can easily spend a full day in Borgholm, and more days after that. Two of the most common and well-known places to visit are Solliden and the old castle ruins. But as I said, Borgholm's city center is a real gem. Did you know that the city was founded in 1816?
The cobbled streets are lined with beautiful wooden houses with carpentry delight, and on many of the facades the roses are climbing, and right now it is at its most beautiful, when the roses are blooming in all their colourful glory.
Hanging out in the harbor and spotting calls for ice cream! We cooled off with ice cream from Ölandsglass , which has been around for a long time in Borgholm, and where they make the ice cream themselves.
Don't miss out on the elderberry sorbet!
A little further up in Borgholm, right by the red lights when you drive down to the city center, is the leafy and beautiful Borgholms Handelsträdgård with narrow little paths where you will find shade on sunny summer days.
The market garden was built in 1926 and is one of the county's oldest market gardens. Much of what is grown and sold here is KRAV-labelled or organic, and in the market garden, the old environments have been preserved, and the greenhouses are sunken below ground level.
There was a lot to smell, even at low altitude!
Since it was such a warm and sunny day, we had promised swimming, and when we arrived at Köpingsvik's bathing area just outside Borgholm, the girls ran down to the turquoise water so that the soft sand swirled after them.
It was shallow and really nice in the water!
The girls are like little fish in the water that never want to get up. The only thing that made Evelyn want to get up from the water and come home with us again was the promise that we would buy strawberries on the way home.
Helena Elm, June, 2020
