I took the overnight train from Stockholm to Umea. It left an hour late so I was very grateful to have my own compartment so I could easily get ready for bed. The shared compartments had 6 beds! It was similar to the experience I had on the overnight Amtrak train, though I did have my own bathroom, which was a great perk. I fell asleep pretty easily and son heard the wake up call letting us know we were 45 mins away from arriving and breakfast was available in the bistro car. The available food in the bistro car was pretty disappointing, all premade and cold, not like the hot food on Amtrak. A breakfast box was included with my ticket – yoghurt, muesli, roll, cheese and pancakes. I had some coffee and are a bit of it then went back to my room to pack up.
It was just after 7am when we pulled into Umea. The hostel I was staying at had given me the front door and luggage room codes, so I headed over there, only a short walk from the train station. Once I got my things stored away I explored the hostel, found the breakfast room and got a coffee and pastry. I was delighted to find that they had an espresso machine that makes really good coffee! I continued my wandering, found a lounge with a comfortable couch and spent the next 2 hours reading and napping. I was still tired from my cold and the places I wanted to check out in town didn’t open until 11.
Eventually I got moving and discovered what a lovely place Umea is, right on the river with lots of parks, old buildings and public art. I checked out the small women’s museum where there was an interesting exhibit on incense and another on women’s efforts in Sweden during WW II.
Next I headed to the local art museum – I found an exhibit on textiles in the 70s, it had a few photos of school classes from that time that were virtually indistinguishable from the ones from when I was an elementary school student during that time! Also saw a variety of other exhibits.
By that time I was tired and ready to check in to the hostel. I was happily surprised by how spacious my room was and that it had its own sink! I napped for a couple of hours then took the bus to a sculpture park on the other side of town. It is situated on the grounds of what was originally a mental care hospital but has since been converted to a multi use area with a school, library, health clinic and housing. The sculptures are done by artists with connections to Sweden and are incorporated into the school grounds and surrounding forest areas. It was very impressive and fun to wander around while hearing kids having fun playing at the park.
On my way back I stopped at the local ICA to get soup and salad for dinner. A very sweet young woman helped me figure out the stove in the kitchen as it was different from anything I’d used before. Finally I headed to bed way to sleep and think about the next days journey by bus to Pitea where my great grandfather was from!