Home in Two Places: Thursday, August 25th 2022

Triangeln St. Sation, Malmö, Sweden

Copenhagen is only an hour away from Malmö, a Swedish city. Neither Sarah or I had been to Sweden, so we were interested in visiting. When Tom Bak (Sarah and Chuck's friend from Bangkok) also showed interest in visiting, plans were ON.

Central Station, Malmö

So, early Thursday morning, we headed off on the train across the Öresund Bridge. Passport Control was mentioned on the train announcement, but there was never a need to present them.

The trains were much larger than the local Danish Metro trains - very comfortable and clean. (And no, we did not start out at 5:20 am, this photo is from out return in the evening.) However, we were still able to swipe our Danish Rejsekort cards to pay our fare - the check in and check out machines were in the Swedish stations for these trains. Handy, eh! Especially as both Denmark and Sweden each have their own currency and do not use Euros.

S:t Johannes kyrka, Malmö

The English name for this church is simple - St. John's Church. The way I've written the name in the caption is correct, 'S:t Johannes kyrka'. I kept thinking I must have added the colon accidentally and left off the capital on kyrka, but this is how it's spelled there.

Books Inside S:t Johannes kyrka

When we walked inside, I was struck by seeing books. In all the Italian churches, there was no sign of books, or even pews. This felt very different. I presume they're Hymnals.

Södra Förstadsgatan

As was the case in Copenhagen, there were lovely pedestrian shopping streets.

Idoffcentrum from Östra Rönneholmsvägen

But, it did feel different. In addition to the older buildings, there was a slightly heavier industrial feel to some of the design and there was more evidence of corporate presence.

Neptunigaten, Looking Toward Deloitte and Clarion Hotel

It almost felt like being in an American city sometimes.

Lakritsroten - Malmö Södra Förstadsgatan 17

One thing I have never seen elsewhere, however, is an entire candy store devoted to selling nothing but licorice in one form or another! Everything you see here is some form of licorice confection!

Lakritsroten - Malmö Södra Förstadsgatan 17

I was in 7th heaven - I love licorice, but was reminded after consumption, why I gave it up years ago....consequential inflammation! However, I loved indulging in the excellent quality product available here. However, I was confused by labelling in another language. I was excited by a bar that looked as if it was a huge licorice allsort - turned out it was soap! I think this photo shows Tom helping me figure that out. It gave the store clerks a good laugh!

Admission Tickets to Disgusting Foods Museum

One of the reasons Sarah had wanted to visit Malmö was to visit this Disgusting Food Museum. My curiosity was also activated, but when we were presented with three barf bags upon our arrival, I thought they must be joking.

Are They Kidding?

I also thought this sign must be a joke, but by the end of our visit, it had been changed and they said it was legit! But the museum points out, that we are drawn to experiencing danger with safety parameter around it. In the same way as a roller coaster might upset stomachs, this museum is just way more open about that possibility.

Vegemite

I'm not going to try and disgust you here, any more than I have already. You can Google for more information if you want to 'go there'. I found only one other disgusting food museum in the world - in Berlin. The one here was begun by an American who has lived in Sweden for two decades. Many of the displays were about food practices that most of us would regard as repulsive, but there were others, like my beloved Vegemite, that are only repulsive to some of us!

Toxic Oil Syndrome

Another underlying theme was, not so much about the taste of things, but the industrial food practices that have led to people being legitimately hurt. This one told of a food scandal from Spain in 1981 when 20,000 people fell sick and 300 died in the first year and thousands more in subsequent years. In this particular case, the source of the toxin was never confirmed - one theory was that it was from a rapeseed oil with aniline added, and a later theory was that it was from tomatoes sprayed with pesticide. Doctors and scientists who posed the idea of is being pesticides were silenced, fired or threatened by the Spanish Government. This was not the only industrial example given others were the Austrian glycol in wine scandal from 1985, New Brunswick Tainted Tuna from 1985, swill milk from the 1860's and many more.

Kunga Cake

While it's not a pretty photo, I thought the Amelia Park Neighborhood Association might like to know about this one for the midges on Simmons Lake. It is a food that comes from Eastern Africa. When the midges are invading, entire villages work together to trap the flies by swinging dampened or oiled pots and plates through the swarm. The captured midges are then mushed together to form patties, which are cooked and eaten, much like a midge hamburger. The sign said it is very high in protein and has a slightly nutty, musty taste. It also can be dried and crumbled into other dishes for an umami flavor. Perhaps we can try it for the next July 4th picnic?

Industrial Pork Production - Antibiotic Use

One of the other underlying themes of this museum is to challenge our ideas of what is disgusting. In some cases, the suggestion is that we should develop a sense of disgust around some practices, like antibiotic use in pigs .......

Lobster

...... and in other cases to eliminate our ideas of disgust around foods that might be beneficial. They give the lobster as an example of a food that has changed people's perception of what is desirable to eat. Its abundance and low cost led it to be a food that was fed to animals, prisoners, apprentices, servants and the poor. In some places, there were contracts made that prevented them being served more than twice a week, as they were not considered appealing. This museum proposes the idea that some of our current food practices are hurting the environment and that we would be well served to change our ideas about eating some foods like insects or lab grown meats (for example) to create more environmentally sustainable sources of nutritious food.

Tasting Challenge

To provide such an opportunity, they offer a taste test before one leaves the museum. This is where things got tricky! I'm not going to say much more than the fact that both Tom and Sarah tried EVERYTHING that was offered. I was very prudent in my choices. Some of these things I've eaten already, so I just tried a few of the cheeses and the licorice. Let me say that it looked as if the last items - all hot sauces - were the ultimate undoing of most people. Beyond that I shall say no more!

Tom and Sarah Try the Mad Dog Plutonium Hot Sauce

After giving our adventurous tasters a chance to settle the extreme heat from the hot sauces, we continued our explorations.

Laundry? No, It's Art?

Generally speaking, I have not seen laundry hanging out of windows in this part of the world. I think they mostly dry on racks inside, like I do, so I think this is art. I tried looking on Google to see what it's about, but I didn't find an explanation. However, I love laundry, so here you have it!

'Way to Go', Shoes on Davidshalls Bridge

We were intrigued by these shoes on the edge of a bridge we crossed. It is an art installation by Åsa Maria Bengtsson which consists of 19 pairs of bronze shoes representing artists from different professions and ages.

Plaque Identifying the Artist Who Wore the Shoes

These shoes belonged to Carl-Gustaf Kruse af Verchou, who was a Swedish ballet master, choreographer and baron. He died in Malmö

in 1964. All the people represented have a connection to Malmö.

Malmö Rådhus, Town Hall

The Town Hall, or Rådhus, was suitably splendid, especially with the fountain in front. It was built in 1546, so it looks as if it is holding up well. It must have been a very imposing building when first built, as it's still pretty impressive. At that time, it was not part of Sweden and its wealth came from herring fishing.

Malmö Lighthouse from Neptunigatan Bridge

Malmö is a harbor town. It is Sweden's third largest city and is a transportation and industrial hub. It has a population of 330,000 and city inhabitants come from around 180 countries and speak some 150 different languages. Many of the new residents are fleeing war in their homelands.

The Knotted Gun/Non Violence

This scupture was created by Swedish sculptor Carl Fredrick Rueterswärd in 1980 as a tribute to John Lennon, who he had known personally. It represents the gun of the shooter with the barrel twisted to stop it functioning. I thought it was an expressive, powerful work. It is not a unique piece, there are others around the world and there are now versions being produced from 'humanium metal', which is created from illegally owned guns that have been seized and melted down.

LantMånnen Grain Silos

The signs of industry are here, with these grain silos near the harbor. While these seem to be still operating, there are others that are no longer being used and there are efforts to find other uses. One idea created by university students was to turn them into vertical crematoriums. Hmmm, wonder how that might turn out!

Toward the Frans Suell Monument

I loved the waterways through the city. This little yellow building on the canal/river was so attractive, I thought is must be something important. In fact it's a Media Company, ProAd Sweden AB. However, in front of it you can just discern a statue - which ends up being the consequential focus of the photo. It depicts Frans Suell, who is the founder of the port of Malmö in the late-1700's. His success came from importing tobacco directly from North America during the disruption of the American Revolution.

People Out Boating

We were not the only people out enjoying the waterways in this delightful afternoon. There were lots of rental boats enjoying the perfect weather.

Well Stocked With Drinks and Food

As they went under the bridge, we found, that they were enjoying more than the boating - there were all the goodies needed to make the afternoon very enjoyable - including the dog!