In the city of Gothenburg, Sweden

"From Luossa came a beggar singing to the village folk.
Round the watch fire they lingered while he sang
Songs of pilgrims and of beggars, songs of wondrous, wondrous things
And of his yearning did he sing the whole night long...."
-- from Dan Andersson´s poem, The Beggar from Luossa
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(on Sweden's southwest coast) Gothenburg, Sweden’s chief seaport, is found along the Göta River estuary, about five miles (8 km) above that river’s mouth, at the Kattegat Sea. The capital of Västra Götaland län (county), Gothenburg lies about 240 miles (390 km) southwest of Stockholm. The city was founded by King Charles IX in 1603, on the site of earlier medieval settlements; the location was strategic because the Göta River estuary was Sweden’s only direct outlet to the Atlantic Ocean at that time. Though Gothenburg was destroyed in the Kalmar War with Denmark (from 1611–13), it was refounded by King Gustav II Adolf in 1619. Many of the early inhabitants were Dutch, who built urban canals and laid out the city center. Gothenburg’s prosperity increased in the early 18th century with the development of the Swedish East India Company, and during Napoleon’s continental blockade the port became Europe’s chief market for British goods. A second period of wealth started with the completion in 1832 of the Göta Canal and the beginning of a transoceanic shipping service. A reminder of the past is the moat that still encircles the old part of the city. The 17th-century cathedral and the Kristine Church are notable landmarks, as are the cultural, maritime, and natural history museums in the city. Among the larger parks are Slottskogen, the botanical gardens, and Trädgårdsföreningen (the “Garden Society”); and, Liseberg, an amusement park. Gothenburg is connected to the rest of Sweden by the Göta Canal and railway lines; the nearby Landvetter Airport accommodates both domestic and international air traffic.

+ Visiting Gothenburg Archipelago (depicted here) is a must, as is sampling everything from modern gastronomy to "fika" to the freshly-caught wonders at one of the many seafood restaurants. Neoclassical architecture lines its tram-rattled streets, locals sun themselves beside canals, and there's always an interesting cultural or social event going on. The city is quite walkable; from Centralstationen in the north, retail-centric Östra Hamngatan leads southeast across one of Gothenburg’s 17th-century canals, through verdant Kungsparken (King’s Park) to the city’s boutique and upscale bar-lined ‘Avenyn’ (Kungsportsavenyn) boulevard. The waterfront abounds with all things nautical, from ships, aquariums, and sea-related museums to the freshest available fish. To the west, the Vasastan, Haga and Linné districts buzz with grassroots creativity and an appreciation for well-preserved history. Be sure to take in the Gothenburg Museum of Art, contemporary art at Röda Sten Art Centre, and -- should you visit in August -- the great Way Out West music festival.