Sweden
Report
Days 5, 6 & 7
Gothenberg
We were picked up at
the hotel in Boras by Shih Tzu breeders Carina Ohman
and Kate Johannsen who were to be our hosts for
the next few days in Gothenberg. We enjoyed the
pleasant drive to the city and getting to know each
other. We were checked in to the beautiful seaside
Arken Conference Center which was also the location
of the seminar for Tuesday night. We enjoyed an
afternoon of 'doggie talk' on the hotel patio overlooking
the harbour and eventually the Atlantic ocean.
In the evening we
went to a very popular amusement park, Liseberg,
Scandinavia's largest, primarily for a very excellent
restaurant located there, and to travel to the top
of the Liseberg tower for an panoramic view of the
city. The restaurant served yet another gastronomical
meal starting with a caesar salad topped with grilled
chicken and a fillet of veal covered on one end
with a delicious Bearnaise sauce and a tomato pesto
sauce on the other. Again served with grilled veggies
and the potato this evening could only be described
as 'executive chef wedgies'....delicious. The park
also featured an 'Elvis Country And Western' concert
and was crowded with thongs of fun seekers enjoying
the beginning of the summer holiday season and the
awesome weather.
Gothenberg is a beautiful
city developed in the 1600th century as a western
fortress city for Sweden. It is Sweden's second
largest city and was developed for the Swedish King
by Dutch architects because in was situated in a
low clay marshland. What resulted were a network
or rivers and canals which afforded early inhabitants
with natural defenses as well as the man made fortifications
of moats and stone walls which survive today. It
is a beautiful city with many historical areas and
highlights surrounded by magnificent wooded areas
and water. Originally a trading center, a major
ship building area it is now sustained as a sought
after tourist destination as well by several major
industries and major corporations such as Volvo,
Saab, SKF and Hasselblad.
On Tuesday we were
treated to a driving tour of the city and onto Carina's
to do what we always enjoy, is to visit with fellow
Shih Tzu breeders and see their dogs and how they
do things. We spent a pleasant afternoon chatting
about dogs, coffee and cake and with Wendy doing
a bit of grooming demonstration. Presentation of
the Shih Tzu in Sweden places a lot less emphasis
on grooming as we have seen in Asia or America.
In the evening we enjoyed
doing a Shih Tzu breed demonstration for 35 eager
participant breeders and several local judges. The
emphasis was on explaining the fine points of Breed
Essence and reinforcing with them that the Shih
Tzu and the standards from around the world are
very similar. Obviously there are stronger and weaker
points associated with each country, but a good
Shih Tzu of excellent breed type can compete anywhere
in the world.
After the seminar we
enjoyed coffee with the attendees and then off to
the hotel dining room for a late dinner. We were
joined by Dr David Doane, his wife Marge and Bob
Paust who had drove down from Boras for the seminar
and to do some sightseeing the next day with us
in Gothenberg. Our choice for dinner was similar
to the one we thoroughly enjoyed the previous evening.
The baby veal covered in a wine teriyaki sauce,
with vegetables and sliced roasted potato was devoured
by our famished bodies at this late hour.
On Wednesday we went
into the city with Bob Paust, David and Marge Doane
for some serious sightseeing....we spent a delightful
day which included a boat cruise around the city's
rivers, canals and moats enjoying the beauty and
history of this beautiful city. We did some shopping
and browsing in various stores from antiques to
the local farmers market. In the afternoon we took
the ferry which services the over 5,000 residents
who live on the islands of the Southern Archipelago.
The 2 1/2 hour excursion had stops at all the major
inhabited islands. It was amazing to see another
aspect of Swedish culture as these people live a
much simpler life on these small coastal islands,
fairly isolated from the hustle and bustle of the
city. With sightseers like ourselves, this quiet
lifestyle of the locals is disrupted each summer
as it is a popular destination for hikers, campers,
fisherman and sunbathers. In the evening we were
treated to an excellent dinner at an Italian restaurant
in the downtown area known simply as 'The Avenue'
with Carina and Kate. We spent the rest of the night
bar hopping at the many sidewalk patios, terraces
and pubs. It was a very enjoyable late night and
with the help of Carina as 'designated driver' we
were able to 'let loose' in a very exciting city
with great company.
On Thursday morning
Carina dropped us off at the train station for the
trek across the country to Stockholm. We said our
sad goodbyes with the goal of Carina and Kate looking
into traveling to America next year for the American
Shih Tzu National in April as first time spectators.
We would miss them both.
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