A plank versus a boat

Number of layers: not quite enough

1 pair of socks- okay but standing around not allowed

Just jeans boo boo totally should have brought my granny thermals to wear under them

Two themal tops body warmer and a sheep lined jumper

A buff, my best hat and gloves.

Temperature -5 to -7C

First day on my own and big plans

Check out the Mary Rose of Stockholm

Head to the old town

Go to the gym (on holiday whaaaaat- how I have changed)

Home for dinner and movie while Kattis plays padel.

The reality isn't too far off but those that know me the reality of getting up without officially planning or having a time booked doesnt overly work with me.  So I managed to leverage myself out of bed and squeeze my rice sausage, without looking because it presents itself as something no one has a desire to swallow,  into a bowl make a cuppa and consider my day. 

A nudging what's app from Kattis asking how the Vasa (mary rose equivalent) Museum was and I was up and at it rushing for the boat

I charged out the door (not checking where I was) and off to catxh a Ferry. When you start to look at the area - I hunted out a paper map at the tourist info, you begin to realise yes there is the Archipelagio but Stockholm is almost just like it,  made up of of a fair few islands itself. This meant getting to the Vasa museum was quicker and notably more enjoyable by boat.

Funny little ferry, cross between the Hythe ferry and an actual one, in fact its like a mini ferry no cars just people indoor outdoors and upstairs. It potters through the ice strewn water ways past facfories homes old buildings and docks at the island of museums (its not called that but should be as there are aboyt 10 museums inclding a Viking one and an Abba one).

Anway we disembark.....well I do and stroll round the harbour edge looking on to frozen water

Amazing to think in summer this will be full of boats and a whole world of other activity. It was snowing slightly yay(though boo for ice boating)  and rather chilly so in just my jeans and one pair of socks I had to move on and get to the museum.

Sorry Mary Rose you are but a plank in comparison to the Vasa!

Some similarities because I want to make them.....both built for Kings both fell over not far from shore on their maiden voyages......and no offence you don't have to be a boat designer to see that this boat was never going to work that well never mind go to war.

There isnt enough time for me write or you to really read about all that I learnt vaguely remember in the insanity that is involved in both the building sinking and recovery of this ship 333yrs after it sank. So I will provide you with the classic Libby abridged version.....but even that I am not sure where to begin.

The Museum.was quiet and cold (to preserve the boat), I can imagine when the cruise ships come in and its summer, its rammed. I walked in not sure what to expect but the shear scale and preservation of this boat from 1630ish is unbelievable and you spend most of your time slightly jaw dropped in what is a very impressive museum.

Highlights in order of the boats life span

1. The building

A dutch shipwright ( basically the man with the plan- but the plan is in his head yes no measurements /drawings just experience) effectively rents the shipyard a builds the boats for a price.....which is never enough due to inflation. 

The shipyard is a pretty massive island with 200-300 people working full time not speaking the same language and 20 or 30% of them are just doing decorative carvings for the boat to make sure its really frickin heavy......sorry to show that its the Kings ship. Its a wonder they managed it and it only took a year.

The ship was to be the first of it kind, a warship with two decks of canons so its a bit hit.miss and maybe in building it. The sister ship turned out better in that it stayed afloat and was used as a transport ship but never a warship.

The original shipwright died before completion which gave a convenient scape goat when there was a inquistion into what happened.

So the ship was finished and they were aware it was a wobbbly shall we say, apparently with people running side to side the boat was tipping and shipwrights didnt want it to go anywhere. The plan was to move to main warship fleet base to satisfy the Kings request and then try to sort it out more....whoopsy!

2. The sinking

A sunday in August after church everyone had been rallied  to come out and watch in the afternoon arpund 1700.

Onboard were sailors only with their families as they were only doing a short journey out to the base roughly 150-200 people onboard

All the canon ports were open so they could salute themselves (before the sank!) There was not a lot of wind so they had 4 sails out , a little gust came the boat tipped but came back up phew.....then they carried on to where the wind funnels between the land and over she went the canon holes open and the boat filled and sank in 25mins taking 30 people with her, pumps and scuppers stood no chance. Down it went with the 64 bronze canons and 120tonnes of rubble sorry ballast.

3. The recovery

Well first of all they did recover some of the bronze canons from the ship using a diving bell back in 1620 something

Yup it is basically a bell that you stand under and the airpocket get smaller and smaller the deeper you go, no wetsuits! But using this and a stick with a hook on it they were able to find and haul up several of the bronze canons!

The real excavation came in the late 1950s when she was re discovered and the money was raised to haul her out. An absolutely mind blowing feat given its was 30M down, the deep sea diving equipment was still the  heavy metal suits they could spend maybe an hour down plus decompression stops on the way up, she weighed about 700tonnes and they could she see very little. First they dug/hoovered out 6 tunnels under the hull put steel cables through replaced some 600 bolts before attempting to move her to shallower waters twice and then semi re floating her, making her water tight and bringing her ashore

Then discovering hidden secrets, restoring her and buildubg bespoke museum to continually maintain this treasure.....which is currently, sinking/ collapsing under it's own weight so a steel skeleton is being installed. 

There is so much more to this so than I can tell you and you can be bothered to read, not least they didnt right The boats name it was effectively drawn or sculptured...... but I think I might have laughed at a boat coming to war with some of these charactures on the boat. 

I finished here ravenous and then obviously completely indecisive so plans rapidly ran by the way side until I had filled myself with Swedish meatballs negotiated the public transport luckily remembered the shops near the entrance to Kattis flat and made it home to change for the gym. 

The gym.... how I have changed.  I remember how I laughed and sympathised with a friend when she went on holiday with her boyfriend and he wanted to go running (i still have a love hate relationship with running) or to the gym.....on holiday! Anyway I took my alter ego Katerina....Kattis had kindly signed up to some super cheap deal at a 24hr gym nearby.  When i say nearby you don't have to go further than about 100M from her flat for all your possible requirements to exist!

Possibly the weirdest entrance to a gym with barely a shoulder width door that traps you a glass shoulder width cubicle that requires another QR code to get to get out into the gym and a million more to move around. I did sone stuff and then righteously day down on the sofa ice cream in bowl corn popped and watched movie before Kattis returned.