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SUNDSVALL |
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Known as the "Stone City", SUNDSVALL is immediately and obviously
different. Once home to a rapidly expanding nineteenth-century sawmill
industry, the whole city burned down in 1888 and a new centre built
completely of stone emerged within ten years. The result is a living
document of early-twentieth-century urban architecture, designed by
architects who were engaged in rebuilding Stockholm's residential areas
at the same time. This was achieved at a price, however: the workers who
built 573 residential buildings in four years became the victims of
their own success, and were shifted from their old homes in the centre
and moved to a poorly serviced suburb.
The materials are limestone and brick, the style simple and the size
often overwhelming. The Esplanaden , a wide central avenue, cuts the
grid in two, itself crossed by Storgatan , the widest street. The area
around Stortorget is still the roomy commercial centre that was
envisaged. Behind the mock-Baroque exterior of the Sundsvall Museum (Mon-Thurs
10am-7pm, Fri 10am-6pm, Sat & Sun 11am-4pm; June-Aug 20kr, rest of year
free), four late-nineteenth-century warehouses have been developed into
a cultural complex called Kulturmagasinet (Culture Warehouse), devoted
to art exhibits and city history. The Gustav Adolfs Kyrkan (daily
11am-2/4pm) - a soaring red-brick structure whose interior looks like a
large Lego set - marks one end of the new town. To get the best
perspective on the city's plan, climb to the heights of Gaffelbyn and
the Norra Bergets Hantyerks Och Friluttsmuseum (June-Aug Mon-Fri
9am-4pm, Sat & Sun 11am-3pm; Sept-May Mon-Fri 9am-4pm; free; skvadern@telia.com
), an open-air crafts museum down Storgatan and over the main bridge.
From the train station the centre is five minutes' walk away, with the
tourist office in the main Stortorget (Mon-Fri 10am-6pm, Sat 10am-2pm;
summer also Sun 10am-2pm; tel 060/61 04 50, info@sundsvallturism.com ).
There is also a small summer tourist office in the harbour with free car
parking. The bus station is at the bottom of Esplanaden. The hostel (tel
060/61 21 19 from 4 to 6pm; £5-10/$8-16) at Norra Berget has recently
been renovated at last, but takes about half an hour to walk to from the
centre. The tourist office will help book accommodation for a 20kr fee,
but does not book private rooms; otherwise Svea Hotel , Rådhusgatan 11
(tel 060/61 16 05; £20-25/$32-40), has doubles. For eating , Storgatan
is lined with restaurants, most offering daily lunch menus, or Spezia ,
Sjögatan 6, has bargain pizzas for around 45kr.
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