From this place the scenery is full of beauty and variety; every
moment presents another and a more lovely view. Sometimes the
waters expand, sometimes they are hemmed in by islands, and become
as narrow as canals. I was most charmed with those spots where the
islands lie so close together that no outlet seems possible, till
another turn shews an opening between them, with a glimpse of the
lake beyond. The hills on the shores are higher, and the
promontories larger, the farther the ship advances; and the islands
appear to be merely projections of the continent, till a nearer
approach dispels the illusion.
The village of Sixtuna lies in a picturesque and charming little
valley, filled with ruins, principally of round towers, which are
said to be the remains of the Roman town of Sixtum; the name being
retained by the new town with a slight modification.
After this follow cliffs and rocks rising perpendicularly from the
sea, and whose vicinity would be by no means desirable in a storm.
Of the castle of Rouse only three beautiful domes rise above the
trees; a frowning bleak hill conceals the rest from the eye. Then
comes a palace, the property of a private individual, only
remarkable for its size. The last of the notabilities is the Rokeby
bridge, said to be one of the longest in Sweden. It unites the firm
land with the island on which the royal castle of Drottingholm
stands. The town of Stockholm now becomes visible; we turn into the
portion of the lake on which it lies, and arrive there again at two
o'clock in the afternoon.
FROM STOCKHOLM TO TRAVEMUNDE AND HAMBURGH
I bade farewell to Stockholm on the 18th September, and embarked in
the steamer Svithiold, of 100-horse power, at twelve o'clock at
noon, to go to Travemunde.
Few passages can be more expensive than this one is. The distance
is five hundred leagues, and the journey generally occupies two and
a half to three days; for this the fare, without food, is four
pounds. The food is also exorbitantly dear; in addition to which
the captain is the purveyor; so that there is no appeal for the
grossest extortion or insufficiency.
It pained me much when one of the poorer travellers, who suffered
greatly from sea-sickness, having applied for some soup to the
steward, who referred him to the amiable captain, to hear him
declare he would make no exception, and that a basin of soup would
be charged the whole price of a complete dinner. The poor man was
to do without the soup, of which he stood so much in need, or scrape
every farthing together to pay a few shillings daily for his dinner.
Fortunately for him some benevolent persons on deck paid for his
meals.
