Actually, we didn't get all the way into Ystad last night - our BnB was located outside the city in the middle of farm fields. This was a curious place - the four rooms were fully booked, 10 guests, and it had one toilet/shower for all. We took showers the night before, as some other guests did as well - and somehow the morning "movements" went off without a hitch. One reviewer had written "imagine the chaos should one guest get into intestinal issues". Yah, it wasn't immediately evident during booking of this weird situation (to us and many other guests as per reviews). They've been here a goodly amount of time, with high ratings, so apparently the simple but nice breakfast smooths over any possible lasting bad impressions. It's not entirely a soundproof design either - but we have noticed that Scandinavian travelers are very considerate after 10pm. And that's all we have to say about that.
We check out of the BnB and head for a beach...initially seeing acres and acres of farms, and little villages...
That's a Sun-baked sign for the beach - but not today, the skies are looking threatening once again...
...yes (or noooooh), it's starting to drizzle...
 |  ...and now it's out-right raining - oh well, we weren't exactly planning on taking a dip today, but the beach here is actual sand for a change. Don't know who the owners of the shoe and shoes are, there's no one in sight, and moreover, why is there a "shoe" and "shoes"? |
Navigation to the next site was a bit tricky - the GPS took us to a farmer's lot, but then we backtracked and found one guidance sign pointing off to a side lane, winding a kilometer to the coast, we discover we're supposed to park at a marina and fisherman's village.
"Ale's Stones (Swedish: Ales stenar or Ale stenar) is a megalithic monument in Scania in southern Sweden. It is a stone ship, oval in outline, with the stones at each end markedly larger than the rest. It is 67 m (220 ft) long formed by 59 large boulders, weighing up to 5 tons each.
The carbon-14 dating system for organic remains indicate a period about 1,400 years ago. That would place its creation towards the end of the Nordic Iron Age. The function and purpose of Ale's stones is much disputed, and there are many different theories. It is generally believed to be a grave monument or a cult center, but another theory is that it is a sun calendar."
It's just a 1/2 mile walk up the coastal slope to the site...
The carbon-14 dating system for organic remains indicate a period about 1,400 years ago. That would place its creation towards the end of the Nordic Iron Age. The function and purpose of Ale's stones is much disputed, and there are many different theories. It is generally believed to be a grave monument or a cult center, but another theory is that it is a sun calendar."
It's just a 1/2 mile walk up the coastal slope to the site...
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It's back to drizzling, but with a good breeze tossed in - "Ale Stone" man is ready.
We thought of this place as the Stonehenge of Sweden...
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 |  An Ale Stone provides a brief respite from the weather... |
We walked about a hundred yards off to the side to look down the bluffs over the Baltic Sea.
There must be some sort of sailing regatta going on - we see 6 sailboats going out and then back - who else would be out "enjoying" the crappy sailing weather?
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Back to the "bathtub" marina...
Anyone for some smoked fishy fish...
Now we see Ystad...
"Ystad is a town in Scania County. The settlement dates from the 11th century and has since become a busy ferry port, local administrative center, and tourist attraction."
"Ystad is a town in Scania County. The settlement dates from the 11th century and has since become a busy ferry port, local administrative center, and tourist attraction."
Trellis apples...
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Many half-timbered structures were found around every corner...
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Now at ye olde monastery...
"The Greyfriars Abbey is a medieval former friary. Together with Vadstena Abbey, it is one of the best-preserved medieval monasteries in Sweden. It houses the Museum of the cultural history of Ystad.
According to an inscription from the 14th century, the monastery was founded by a donation from a knight called Holmger and his wife Katarina in 1267 and inaugurated by the Bishop of Reval. "
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Back to the half-timbered places...
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We finished Ystad with a German-style brewery.
After leaving Ystad, Google Maps suggests there's a brewery and cider out here somewhere's....hmmmm, here's a sign "Musteri", Swedish for cidery, we press on along the country stone lane...
| Here it is, apparently it has down-sized to a self-serve, honor-system cider locker...we bought a bottle and signed the registry and we were done.  |   |
Done...except for checking out the floral scene nearby, compete with bumble bee.
Skanör - the guides says this sea-side community has some colorful beach huts to behold...
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Ah, there they be, over yonder...
Now back to the "little" boats...
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And here's some real white beach alongside the marina...
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We head to Malmö for the evening...
 |  "Malmö is the largest city in the Swedish county of Skåne (Scania). It is the third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the sixth-largest city in the Nordic region, with a municipal population of 357,377 in 2022. The Malmö Metropolitan Region is home to over 700,000 people, and the Öresund Region, which includes Malmö and Copenhagen, is home to four million people." |
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