Day Seven - Is Varberg Swedish for Ghost Town?
I grabbed a scone and a mocha and hit the road, traveling back into Sweden for a trip south. It was a long drive and I was in no particular hurry, with only travel planned for this day. While the radio stations were not high in number, those I found played a good mix of music, mostly from from the US and UK.
Esaias Tegnér, a Swedish Bishop and poet, called Varberg the least appealing place in Sweden. Rather than reject the notion, the small coastal city often uses it as a marketing tool. Unlike Esaias, I found Varberg to be charming place filled with friendly people. Though, almost everything shuts down very early. After checking into the hotel, I walked around town and saw almost no one out in the streets or city center. All the shops were closed and it very much felt like a ghost town. Fortunately, there were a few pubs that were open.
I wandered into Bar n Beer, an aptly named pub, just at the start of the US - Spain match in the Confederations Cup. I met up with a Scot named Willie, who captains a boat of some kind, and was at the bar watching the game. We had a great time watching the US upset Spain 2-0! and talk about travel, Sweden, and everything else. Before long two local girls, Anna and Emelie, joined us and we continued to drink and chat late into the evening.
