travelogue: gotland, sweden's gem part 2 (the western coast)

the western coast of the island has tons of little treasures to find from lamb feasts to flea markets.  the beaches here are not as lovely as the ones on west, lots of smooth slippery rocks to wade through before being able to swim or stand up without falling over ;)  we stopped in a a smoke house a couple of times and there was a quaint bike cafe too.

göstavs beach
exploring the west side of the island, where we were staying, took us to göstavs beach.  it was such a warm beautifully lit day, we simply lazed until we got hungry.

hotel stelor
i have wanted to visit the stylish hotel stelor, a gotlandic farmhouse built in the 1700s ever since finding it on instagram.  so when our friends suggested a lamb bbq we agreed despite not eating lamb (stefan because of the flavour and me because i really don't want to eat any more animals than i already do).

also, lamb feasts are a thing on gotland and was excited to experience this gotland tradition.  

there was live music, lounge beds in the garden, and a great spread of salads.  i did try the meat - the guy taking care of the bbq provided stefan and i will some nice pieces - and i lked the flavour, stefan too.  but it was a one time thing for me.

loppis
exploring the shops and loppis (swedish for flea markets) is always a welcome activity.  while ximena and i didn't find anything to buy - well, we did but the price tag at swedish flea markets is a little high - we enjoyed looking at all the well chosen objects and kitsch trinkets.

if you're interested in swedish retro, vintage and reclamation, stop into the big old barns to browse, lyckliga gården was a favourite.

recycling and sustainability are really important here and owners hold garage sales often - there are a lot of them! - wanting to find a new home for their once loved things.  they are very proud of their pristine environment.


oh, we come across a smoke house.  the meat and fish we picked up here was so good. we had to return with our guys on another day to buy even more.

we stopped at a bike cafe, the bikeoholic... we just had to :)  bikes are a passion of petter's who as you are reading this is probably back on gotland riding it's perimeter for a few days.  it was a cute little outdoor place, i think behind the owner's house.  the guys say the coffee was good.  ximena and i had ice cream... i wish we could buy gute glass in stockholm but alas it's a 'made in gotland' product, with ingredients right from the island.  it's reeeeally good guys and just the right amount for a single serving.

krusmyntagården
one afternoon after we ate at krusmyntagården, an herbal garden, and took a dip in the sea nearby.  

on our last day, we slowly made our way towards visby to catch the ferry, stopping into few shops along the way, like todej. and berså their way home with us :)

listening to the girls' choice of music

gotland, part 3, visby and a couple of awesome farm to table dining next.