Two Days in Umeå

We spend another relaxed day at the campsite in Rödviken, washing a few clothes (you can make a decent detergent from grated gall soap and water), and generally tidying up. Speaking of tidying up, next to us parks a motorhome that could easily be a travel bus. I've taken it upon myself to assess the different camping constructions for fun, and this one definitely ranks in the Top 10 of the most interesting vehicles.

After that, we take advantage of the good weather to play a round of mini golf and enjoy an ice cream. So far, this day has been the coziest at a campsite, as we are not just checking off to-dos and riding away, but letting our souls relax a bit. The mood is perfect for this; there is no checkout time and the reception is always staffed by teenagers looking to earn some extra cash during their holidays. Therefore, we can just play as long as we want. In the end, we conquer every hole except the one with the basketball hoop, but I am sure it is just impossible (and I'd like to be left in that belief, thank you).

In the afternoon, we set off for Umeå. The city has been our next declared destination for a while, and I am also looking forward to a bit of a big city flair again. Somehow, it has become a tradition for us to listen to Bibi Blocksberg during our trips, though Henry now prefers Bibi and Tina, which has become the soundtrack of our road trips. Park4Night directs us to a spectacular spot. Quiet, situated in nature, and with a lovely 30-minute walk, we reach the center of Umeå.

We seize the opportunity and walk into the city for dinner. For my birthday, both my mother and my father gave me a voucher for dining out / holiday cash. We're putting some of that to good use right away at the 'Guilty Pleasures Café'. We dine splendidly. I indulge in truffle pasta, Henry gets a burger, and we share a Syrian feta dip, a tropical cocktail, and for dessert, strawberries in liquid chocolate. Our waitress is super nice and patient, and she's happy to repeat her Swedish sentences for me slowly so I can practice :)

On the way back, we take a little stroll around the city and plan for the next day. The city is a strange mix of small and large, historical and too self-consciously modern. Right by the waterfront, which we pass on our way home, stands a large white building that looks like it could be a Tesla store/hotel. In reality, it houses a hotel, a community center, and a library, but somehow it just doesn’t seem inviting. The path along the water is utilized by many joggers, and overall, it stands out that this city is quite young. Additionally, the city appears more diverse than the smaller towns (we can't speak for Stockholm though). Notably, there are many people walking around in traditional Sami clothing. They seem to be coming from an event that I couldn't identify in my quick research. But we learn that the Sami tribes also live far further south than I had assumed.

The next day, I wake up with pain and discomfort again, and we decide to put an end to this once and for all. Since we are in a larger city, we should take the opportunity and go to a hospital. With the help of Gemini and Maps, I try to figure out how the Swedish system works and where exactly I should go with my absolutely non-life-threatening symptoms. In the end, I don’t feel much wiser, and after getting nowhere with the national health hotline, we decide to just drive somewhere; the people there will surely be able to help us. I feel a bit bad and am scared of coming off as dramatic, but the hospital/health center seems calm and is almost empty. The lady at the reception only speaks broken English but is trying her best to make sense of my German insurance card. In the end, I receive my own temporary Swedish social security number and am sent to the next waiting room. The entire building feels like a dungeon as we progress further inside. There are so many different waiting rooms that we end up sitting in the wrong one at one point, and the doctor has to come looking for us. In the end, I am prescribed antibiotics, which I can pick up right away at the in-house pharmacy. The whole ordeal takes us under 2 hours, costs a total of 20€, and everyone makes an incredible effort to help us in English.

Enthusiastic about how quickly that went, we drive back to the campsite to have breakfast. From there, we take the same beautiful route along the water into the city and first go to the local fantasy/nerd store. Henry always checks if there’s a Warhammer store in the cities, but they are very sparsely distributed in Sweden. The fantasy store in Umeå is huge and well-stocked. We are particularly impressed by the self-made decorations and the massive selection of colors. It's a good thing Henry already owns everything, and we have no space for new acquisitions in the van. In a side alley, we discover a beautiful café where we take a little break. When we see how delicious a salad looks at the neighboring table, we decide to come back later for a meal. The café 'Rost' in Umeå comes highly recommended!

Next, we walk to the other end of the center to the 'Bild Museet'. The museum is large, modern, situated by the water, and completely free. Currently, they are 'full house', and we can admire an exhibition on each floor.
At the very top, there is an exhibition on AI (how extraordinary; this topic is rarely highlighted), which is entirely interactive. Personally, I enjoyed the very beginning. You enter a stylish foyer and are greeted by an AI that asks what language you speak. You can settle into an unholy mix of a jacuzzi and a couch and talk to the AI. In front of us is a group of young American women who are taking this part, so we move immediately to the large exhibition hall. There, we see a mid-twenties woman sitting in front of two screens; one shows a live video of the foyer, and the other has a text-to-speech program open. You aren’t talking to an all-knowing AI all the time but actually to a student who simply has access to the camera. Henry speculates whether this is also being used for some study and what could be measured. When the American women move on after about a quarter of an hour and see the resolution, they just laugh extremely awkwardly. There is also a game where you have to check and approve or deny insurance claims within a time limit. You need to pay attention to both financial and customer satisfaction. You can always let an AI take over, which makes decisions much faster but also more randomly. I understand what the game wants to convey to us, but in the end, we lose every time we decide ourselves—so is the critique not on AI but rather on the insurance system in general?? What might the.... artist.... want to tell us?
On the middle floors, the works of the graduating class from the Umeå Art University are exhibited. We find all of this a bit too highbrow and only linger at some colorful carpets, each paired with corresponding mini cartoons. I already know what that says about us.
At the very bottom, the children’s book of the year is displayed, created by an artist from Umeå. It comes completely without text and follows a half-hatched chick, aka an egg on legs, on its journey through fields and meadows, as well as its mother in search of her egg. The originals of the illustrations are exhibited in A0.

On the way back, we eat, as planned, the Pad Thai salad, which is served with the first delicious bread of the vacation since Copenhagen (it almost brings tears to my eyes). I decide that my mom will cover the expense for this meal, and to top it all off, we each get a little cake at a fancy patisserie :)