Segling

Last weekend, my Rotary district organized a two-day sailing trip from the city of Uddevalla out to sea (which was actually a strait leading out to the North Sea).


On Saturday morning, Naomi and I drove with our host mother two and a half hours to get to Uddevalla. I was quite tired after a long week of school. The car ride was very scenic, like most trips around Sweden, but we did pass Koberg, which is the residence of the king of Sweden’s sister. She lives in a manor/small castle like place. I was not expecting to see this on the car trip in the western area of Sweden. The unadorned woods, countryside, and small road gave no indication that we were passing the residence of part of the royal family. My host mom had to point it out, and on the way home I caught a glimpse of the roof. 


We arrived in Uddevalla, met up with about 25 other exchange students from Australia, US, Canada, Taiwan, Japan, Brazil, and France. We first went to a museum with information about the geography, fish, and history about settlers in that region of the southwestern coastal area of Sweden. We finally got on the boat, which was surprisingly large and modeled after an older sailing boat. The boat also had a motor, and we used that 99% of the time.  We went on the boat around six pm, and started our journey out to sea. It took four hours. I was impressed by the landscape. The water was an emerald greenish-blue color. Uddevalla is not directly on the coast, so we boated on a large passageway. The waterway was surrounded by tree-filled hills and cliffs. It was quite a sight when we finally got out to sea. All we could see was water, rocky shore at some points, and distinctive boulders peering out of the water at times. The rock was smooth, rounded and a yellow, orange color. We passed small and large archipelago. At sunset, in addition to a beautiful sunset, coastal towns were lit up, which reflected onto the water.  We all slept below the boat, in bunks piled three high. We finally found a place to stop for the night at the coastal city of Lysekil (pronounced sort of like Lee -sa-sheel, with the “sh”, farther back in the mouth), known for fishing.  It is fortunate we had an enforced bedtime because I was exhausted. 


In the morning we visited an island that was inhabited and went on a small walk to the other side. Our guide said that if it had been more clear we could have seen Norway and Denmark, all from one place. After the walk, we returned to the boat, and began our voyage back. We returned to Uddevalla at four, and my host mom picked Naomi and me up. We stopped and had ice cream. I was tired/trött when I returned home, but I was grateful to have gotten this opportunity to sail, observe the unique landscape, and enjoy the company of other exchange (utbytesstudenter) friends. 

1)Koberg-Residence of the king’s sister (not my picture, but the rest are). We passed the entrance on the way to Uddevalla.
2)Part of Göta Kanal-a manmade passageway connecting much of Sweden. This was on the way to the sailing trip.
3) Our Boat
4)On the edge of an island (ö) out at sea.
5)Aboard the ship with one of our travelling companions. She and her sister came along because their father who was the skipper.
6) The Coastal town of Lysekil

7)Scenes from the boat