Ahoy There! A day in the Vasa Museum, Stockholm

Zagan the motorhome is still on Skeppsholmen Island in the middle of Stockholm, just in a different parking place with another amazing view of the waterfront (N59.32407, E18.08420). This morning, as Jay nipped out to get Charlie’s food from the under-van lockers, ticket checking man was on the scene. We both held our breath as he peered at our 60 Sek ticket, nodded and said “that’s good, thankyou” before wandering off. It felt good to get the OK to stay here, as it just doesn’t feel right that we have this amazing place and view for just over a fiver a day.

Zagan on Skeppsholmen Island in the middle of Stockholm

We needed to work out a plan. Our 24 hour parking ticket ran out at 2.45pm, when we would ideally be wandering around a museum. Thinking caps on and we decided to buy another 24 hour ticket this morning. We could then get a new one each day until the day we decide to head off. Sadly our plan went to pot due to the over-complicated ticket machines. Jay returned crestfallen having succeeded in buying a ticket for less hours than we had left on our current one. Undeterred we ganged up on the ticket machine, pushed buttons and growled at it until a kind Swedish couple stopped to translate the various messages it was flashing at us. As we already had a ticket for today (it must have forgotten that we bought one yesterday too), we couldn’t buy another one so we would have to move. They helpfully recommended a place we could go to by another marina, but just as we were about to head there I remembered seeing another camper in a car park less than 100 metres away. We wandered over and tested out the ticket machine there, it let us buy a 24 hour ticket, so we drove round to our new parking place. I wonder what ticket man will make of it in the morning?

We only had one mission for today and it was a boaty one. A trip to the Vasa Museum. After taking Charlie for a walk around the island to tire him out, we set off on our own for a walk in the sunshine along the waterfront. The quayside was packed with boats, the water criss-crossed with ferries and pleasure craft and the pavements packed with folks out enjoying the sunny weather. We are loving Stockholm.

That’s Charlie sorted for today

Reaching the museum we joined the queue which split once inside. We opted for the shorter queue which was for the ticket machines and these ones didn’t defeat us, unlike almost everyone else. Top tip: if you don’t have a PIN number for your card (which most American’s don’t it would seem) don’t use the ticket machines as you’ll be stood there for ages trying to understand why it keeps spitting your card out.

Pulling open several sets of heavy doors we were greeted with the musty, old wood smell of a controlled atmosphere, and towering over us was the Vasa.

What a sight to greet you as you walk into a museum

If you don’t know the story of the Vasa, which I didn’t until I read it in our guide book, it goes something like this:

In the 1600’s King Gustav Vasa wanted a massive warship, so he got a couple of ship builders in and work began in 1626. On completion ‘Vasa’ was the pride of the Swedish crown and one of the most powerfully armed vessels in the world at the time, sporting two gun decks with a total of 48 cannons. Standing 48.8m tall and 69m long it set sail on its maiden voyage on 10 August 1628. It never made it out of Stockholm harbour. Having been caught by a gust of wind, it listed heavily, its lower gun ports let in water and it sank, less than two kilometres from where it set sail.

Jay looks at a model of what it would have looked like

There are thousands of bolts holding it together and they all need to be replaced as part of its conservation

An enquiry was held a month after the sinking but didn’t find anyone to blame. Reading between the lines at the museum it sounds like King Gustav kept changing the specification after building had started, a bit of a Grand Designs nightmare situation that would have Kevin McCloud beaming. The upshot was the bottom of the ship wasn’t big enough so it couldn’t get enough ballast in to steady it. No one in Sweden had ever built a ship with two gun decks, so that didn’t help, neither did the ship’s designer passing away during its construction, and of course in those days they didn’t draw out plans.

It looks like a toy, but it wasn’t

Vasa’s ornate stern

Replicas of the wooden carvings on the ship, painted how they would have been

The enquiry sadly took me back to my old life working in Corporateland. I was very surprised no one muttered ‘well, we are where we are’ during the enquiry, as that was a stock phrase in our office when stuff went wrong. However in Corporateland if a project failed it didn’t cause a loss of life (although the reaction from management sometimes would make you think it had), Vasa sadly took between 30 and 50 of her 400 crew (no-one is quite sure) with her to the bottom of Stockholm harbour.

Skeletons of some of the people who died when it sank, each has been named

Reconstructions of those who died based on the skeletons

We spent three hours wandering around the museum. We learned about life on the boats in those days, remember this thing sank just as it was setting off, so sailors hadn’t unpacked their chests, the kitchen stores were still full, the carpenters’ tools still in their box and several of the sails were still folded up below deck. We stood on a replica deck and learned the meanings behind the hundreds of statues carved on the ship (which all added to its top-heaviness). We saw reproductions of those who died when Vasa sank and learned how they could work out who they were from their skeletons, clothes and where they were found. If you are ever in Stockholm, this place is certainly worth a few hours of your time.

Jay has a go at building his own ship that won’t sink – has he learned any lessons from today

On the reconstruction of the gun deck

Jay tried out a diving bell, used to try to reclaim the Vasa

Masts on top of the building give you an idea of how big it would have been

Interesting fact of the day – we each give off 75 Watts of heat which affects the ship – infrared me taking a photo of Jay

As we emerged into the light of day once more we walked along the water front by the museum and were drawn in by the ‘free entry’ signs for the Maritime Museum. There were four boats moored to the jetty, an ice breaker, a lighthouse boat and two navy vessels and you could wander around them all.

Before flashing bouys, eight men would live aboard a lighthouse ship to keep other ships safe

Another walk along the waterfront we returned to find Charlie just as happy to see us as if we had only been out for 10 minutes. After the rest of his lunch, a drink and a short walk he returned to his bed for more sleep – our pooch loves his sleep. Tonight we’ll sit staring out of the windows at the view, which rather aptly is the route the Vasa took on its maiden voyage sinking just out of sight of where we are. Jay was talking about staying here for a month before hot-footing it across to our ferry at the end of this October, I assume he’s joking, but this is the first city I’ve seen him really happy to be in for a long time.

Ju x