We left Gotheburg bright and early on the Monday (well, okay it was 9:30) ready for our visit to IKEA. Little did we know that just getting there was going to be as much of an experience as being there. We had decided to save some money on the train tickets so we didn’t get reserved seating. This was how we had travelled around Scandinavia and so far it had worked well, but not so well today. The train was crowded and we ended up moving seats about three times (no easy feat when you consider the amount of luggage we were hauling).If that wasn’t challenging enough, our train was running late and I started to get concerned about making the connection in Halmstad. I even asked the conductor, as we were getting closer to the station, if we would be alright - would the train wait? He assured me that we would be fine and maybe we would have, if we had known where we were going when we arrived at the station. We had to catch our connecting train two platforms over which meant going up some stairs, through the pedway, back down the stairs (did I mention we were really loaded down with luggage?) and down the platform to where the train was waiting. It was a relief to see our train still there until we noticed the conductor getting back on board, then the train started to move. We ran down the platform, waving our arms frantically, only to see it pick up speed and move right past us. This was the one time I saw Dennis really angry, I was glad I wasn’t the person at the ticket office. It wasn’t so bad though. They extended our tickets so we could catch the next train which would be in an hour. This just gave us a little more downtime than expected.
In due time, we arrived at Älmhult. We discovered that, unlike most train stations, there were no lockers for storing luggage at this station. However, the people at the ticket office graciously allowed us to leave it there so it wasn’t an issue after all.
After a short walk we arrived at the IKEA complex. I have to admit I was a little disappointed with the flagship store - except for a sign in the entryway, it looked like every other IKEA I‘ve ever been in. However, I did pick up a Dala horse baking pan and I’m not sure you’d find that anywhere else.
When I called it a complex earlier I wasn’t kidding. To get to the store itself we walked by a couple of big warehouses and across the parking lot we saw the IKEA hotel and restaurant. I wondered if it was furnished entirely with IKEA product. In lower level of the hotel was an IKEA museum. After we finished shopping, we decided to have a look through it and see what would be there. We arrived just before 3:00 (which was the closing time) but the staff there encouraged us to go through anyway and to take as much time as we wanted. It was basically a history of IKEA (as expected) and had rooms set up with furniture from the different decades - similar to how the stores have their demonstration rooms. We also received a book talking about the life of Ingvar Kampar and the evolution of IKEA. The book was actually written as an internal training tool for new employees so gave a fascinating glimpse into the whole philosophy. Just as an aside - that’s how he came up with the name IKEA - Ingvar Kampar Elmtaryd (family farm) Agunnaryd (home parish)
After leaving IKEA, we spent a little time looking around the town square (bought a Dala horse for myself and a few more things for the kids) then got back on the train and headed for Copenhagen.
In Copenhagen we had booked a CabInn hotel about 5 blocks from the train station so once we got our bearings (or rather once Dennis got his bearings since I’m directionally-challenged) we set off to find it. Once there, we discovered that this room was probably the smallest and least luxurious of any we had stayed in yet - really brought definition to the term ship-shape. I’m pretty sure it was even more compact than our ship cabin, even had bunk beds. Oh well, we had decided while planning the trip that hotel rooms were only a place to lay our heads at the end of the day so this fit that purpose.
After a nice supper at an Italian restaurant (Vesusius in Copenhagen, go figure!) we wandered around the area for a little. We saw a few shops that we pegged for visiting the next day (to hopefully fulfill the quest for a Danish vimple). We also saw a pair of buskers dressed as Native Americans (the full headdress and everything) but their music was nothing like I was expecting - mostly pan flutes, the Sound of Silence, that type of thing. Oh well, they certainly drew a crowd and I guess that was the point.
It had been a long day so we went back to our little hotel room (Dennis opted to sleep on the pull-out bed rather than the top bunk) and prepared to rest up for whatever adventure the next day might hold.
In due time, we arrived at Älmhult. We discovered that, unlike most train stations, there were no lockers for storing luggage at this station. However, the people at the ticket office graciously allowed us to leave it there so it wasn’t an issue after all.
After a short walk we arrived at the IKEA complex. I have to admit I was a little disappointed with the flagship store - except for a sign in the entryway, it looked like every other IKEA I‘ve ever been in. However, I did pick up a Dala horse baking pan and I’m not sure you’d find that anywhere else.
When I called it a complex earlier I wasn’t kidding. To get to the store itself we walked by a couple of big warehouses and across the parking lot we saw the IKEA hotel and restaurant. I wondered if it was furnished entirely with IKEA product. In lower level of the hotel was an IKEA museum. After we finished shopping, we decided to have a look through it and see what would be there. We arrived just before 3:00 (which was the closing time) but the staff there encouraged us to go through anyway and to take as much time as we wanted. It was basically a history of IKEA (as expected) and had rooms set up with furniture from the different decades - similar to how the stores have their demonstration rooms. We also received a book talking about the life of Ingvar Kampar and the evolution of IKEA. The book was actually written as an internal training tool for new employees so gave a fascinating glimpse into the whole philosophy. Just as an aside - that’s how he came up with the name IKEA - Ingvar Kampar Elmtaryd (family farm) Agunnaryd (home parish)
After leaving IKEA, we spent a little time looking around the town square (bought a Dala horse for myself and a few more things for the kids) then got back on the train and headed for Copenhagen.
In Copenhagen we had booked a CabInn hotel about 5 blocks from the train station so once we got our bearings (or rather once Dennis got his bearings since I’m directionally-challenged) we set off to find it. Once there, we discovered that this room was probably the smallest and least luxurious of any we had stayed in yet - really brought definition to the term ship-shape. I’m pretty sure it was even more compact than our ship cabin, even had bunk beds. Oh well, we had decided while planning the trip that hotel rooms were only a place to lay our heads at the end of the day so this fit that purpose.
After a nice supper at an Italian restaurant (Vesusius in Copenhagen, go figure!) we wandered around the area for a little. We saw a few shops that we pegged for visiting the next day (to hopefully fulfill the quest for a Danish vimple). We also saw a pair of buskers dressed as Native Americans (the full headdress and everything) but their music was nothing like I was expecting - mostly pan flutes, the Sound of Silence, that type of thing. Oh well, they certainly drew a crowd and I guess that was the point.
It had been a long day so we went back to our little hotel room (Dennis opted to sleep on the pull-out bed rather than the top bunk) and prepared to rest up for whatever adventure the next day might hold.
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