What to do in Ostergotland

The must see things in my home county Ostergotland.
The region Östergötland, in Sweden is my home. I have gathered my very Top things to do in Östergötland, and these are things you won´t find in the travel books. Enjoy!
1. Peaceful walk in the beautiful nature in the nature reserve Tinnerö, Linköping. This is one of my favourite places to go for a quiet walk and to take some photos of the animals.

2. A guided tour & café at the lovely Bjärka Säby castle by the lake Rengen. It was built in 1700 and the former owner was a noble Count who sold it for 1 krona (0,1 Euros) a couple of years ago. It has been restored and is a truly lovely place.

3. A boat trip on a sunny day in the archipelago is supernice. Take a boat from Arkösund, on the east coast of Sweden. The Östgöta archipelago has thousands of small islands which are nice for an excursion or just for sun bathing. A nice place to stay is the Arkösund hotel. It has a lot of music performances during the summer. A place you also should visit in the archipelago is the Harstena island.

4. Have dinner and fun at the the combined Theatre-Restaurant Mejeriet in Vadstena.

5. Check out the Kinda Kanal (canal locks) in Sturefors and castle park in Sturefors, Linköping. The park is open for visitors in the summer. The locks in Kinda Kanal was built in 1870 and the one Sturefors is beuatiful and not so known by tourists.
Bring some picnic food and have some lunch by the locks with a view of the canal and lake.

6. Visit Knäppingsborg in Norrköping. An old area sparkling with new small shops, nice restaurants and a fab bakery.

7. In the summertime, enjoy live music with local artists and homebaked cookies and cakes at Adelsnäs Kaffe Stuga (café) by the Adelsnäs castle, in Åtvidaberg. The music performances are on Sundays.

8. Art in Åtvidaberg. Fab Raku ceramics things by Susanne Nyhlin-Åstrand. Visit her shop at Verksg.3 Åtvidaberg. When in Åtvidaberg you should also go to the artists & painters in Åtvidabergsgruppen on Bruksgatan and admire their beautiful paintings.

9. In December, have julbord (Christmas Buffet), it is a Christmas version of the Swedish smorgasbord. My favourite is in Skänninge at the local hotel Skänninge Stadshotell. I read somewhere that tennislegend Björn Borg celebrated his 50th birthday here but I dont know if it is true or not.


10. Avoid the big shopping malls and go for shopping in one of the many small shops and boutiques in the countryside.
Interior design...Elsas Hem in Borenshult, Motala.
Hantverksgården outside Malmslätt in Linköping.
Unnerstad gård close to Ekenäs castle outside Linköping.
Food...Fresh aspargaus at the shop between Linköping and Berg.
The butchers, Britta och Lennarts, Norsholm
Brunneby Musteri, for fresh juices & jams, Borensberg
Bleckenstad, Mjölby
Hargodlarna, Kisa
Boxholms cheese factory is called Boxholms ostClothes&shoes...Blankas butik in Vadstena
Minsjö säteri, Norrköping
Erika Tubbin, Norrköping
Blankas Port, Vadstena

Art...Hjortslunds ateljeer, Kisa
Linnefors krukmakeri, Boxholm

And then - sorry - but I couldn´t resist some things from the tourist travel guides:
For shrimp-lovers: Shrimp-cruise from Bergs slussar (it is not a cruise for shrimps, it is a cruise for those who love shrimp buffets and boat trips)
For ice cream - lovers: Visit the ice cream restaurant in Söderköping, Halvars kiosk in Norrköping or Bosses glassbar in Linköping.