6 September

I walk the Cultural Trail through Gällivare, past the artwork, new and old church, sports ground with grandstand and portal, The Plupp Forest, and Heritage area. Concludes with pastry in Cafe Nyfiket. Meet in the rain my friend who is coming by bus from Ritsem.

Neighboring room snore, so I wake up in good time for breakfast. Before I go down to breakfast I take the opportunity to document the hotel room and take a self portrait with the help of full-length mirror. Eat my usual breakfast, i.e. the same as yesterday. Should I go to "Åke on the top" on Dundret or cultural trail? My own local weather forecast, my back, my brain and the culture, propagate all for the Cultural Trail. Then it will be that.

Peeking through the window to the spray house, i.e. the fire museum. There are fine old fire engines, including one devoted to one horsepower. It is open to the church, it is being prepared for the morning service at eleven o'clock. The priest is busy, I light a candle in the candle bearer, sit down and listen to when the organist rehearse. Walk over to the "Other Side", and the walkway along the river Vassara. The old church is closed today, too. Too bad, it is beautifully situated among the birches at Vassara River, would like to look into it. After the church is some 1700s house, rectory and "Lapphärbärget". The vicarage seems to be a home, perhaps the priest lives there today. Outside Lapphärbärget, once a school, swing two women two children.

At the railroad crossing I let an empty ore trains to pass, it feels better that way. Continuing to walk along the Vassara river until Gällivare camping. Before hiking in 1981, we camped in Gällivare, maybe it was here, but I do not recognize anything. Adjacent is Sweden's most northerly windmill, built in the 1860s. I like football, go onto the pitch. On one side is a nice wooden grandstand. It looks to be renovated or canceled. Hope the former. The entrance, the GSK-Portal, to the football field is impressive, but is also in poor condition. On a plate is Gällivare SK - ---. Looks not to have been used for a while. Asking a man with a nice dog. "Gällivare first team plays in the Malmberget, note here". My cultural journey continues to the English barracks, so called because it was built for English workers during the construction of the railway. It is barred. The cafe Strandcafé looks nice, built in the 1890s and once infirmary. But closed. The gate to the lapp camp (Lapplägret) is locked with a padlock. Apparently, the tourist season is over.

Take the bridge over the river Vassara to the Plupp forest. There is a grove of trees, nothing more. Plupp, Inga Borg's invisible blue-haired children's book character who lives far up north, I see nothing. It's obvious, because he's invisible to adults, I have no child at heart any longer. At the river is a small old water mill. I sit on the riverbank and eat my sandwiches. Strangely, some have already taken a bite out of one of the sandwiches. Perhaps Plupp who was hungry? That is fine with me.

Going back over the bridge and studying the old houses. Yrtivaaragården, house built by settlers from the 1800s. Ullatti farm, in this cottage were religious Laestadian meetings held can I read on the information about the farm. Other houses are a shop, bakery, storehouse, missionary. All of them closed up, the tourist season is short. One can see in through the windows of some of the buildings. There are beds and tables in there, maybe you can rent a bed here? The mission house is the end of the cultural trail, it's now raining slighlty  and it has become somewhat chilly. Good I did not choose Åke on the top.

I continue walking my own culture trail, café culture is also a kind of culture. I will conclude with coffee and cake at Café Nyfiket, Åhults successor. It is a tradition to have coffee there. The shop assistent asks if I want a cake from yesterday for half price? Sure, there's nothing wrong with it. It is almost full, it's me and about thirty schoolchildren. When I go at closing time the shop assistent asks if I want a cake for free, or else they throw it, it will soon be too old. I must look like a good pig and cake monster. But an entire cake, I can not eat. I have to say no.

Rest for a while at the hotel before I go and meet with A whos is coming with the bus from Ritsem six o'clock. It's raining heavy now. The evening is spent at the Chinese restaurant with ducks and, hmm can not interpret what I wrote in the diary. Is it woked reindeer? Tastes good is it doing.

Links

Hotel room

Self portrait

Hotel breakfast

Spruthuset

Inside church

Andra sidan

Lapp church

Lapp church

Vicarage

Lapphostel

Footpath

Windmill

Grandstand

GSK-portalen

English barrack

Strandcafé

Closed for the season

From bridge

Plupp forest

Forest

Water mill

Yrtivaara farm

Ullatti farm

Mission house

Nyfiket

Hotel Dundret