We disembarked from the ferry at Stockholm and were allowed on our way without any further checks – Covid or otherwise. We headed south west along the coast and stopped at the medieval city of Sönderköping (sounds like serder-sherping) alongside the Göta Canal, a 390 Km waterway, part of a series of lakes and rivers connecting the Baltic with the North Sea at Gothenburg.
There was a municipal parking area for camper vans by the canal just a few minutes walk along the towpath from the marina with shops, cafés and restaurants. Leisure boats, both power and sail, travelled in both directions along the canal. Visiting boats were moored up alongside long wooden pontoons.
The weather was warm and sunny (22°) and the towpath was crowded with families, dog walkers and cyclists as well as the boating people. All through the day thirty or more very patient people formed an interminable queue outside the popular ice cream parlour. Later that day we wandered up to the marina to get something to eat. On our way back we lingered on the pontoon to chat to boat owners who were sitting on deck enjoying the evening sunshine – that used to be us!
The whole area had a wonderful holiday atmosphere. Everyone was friendly and, of course, they all spoke excellent English. It took me a few hours to work out why folk seemed so happy and and outgoing until it finally dawned on me that no-one was wearing a face mask and we were experiencing normal human contact.
