Sweden - Becky Ohlsen [210]
Banken Bar & Brasserie (71 19 11; Åsgatan 41; basic mains Skr110-145, à la carte mains Skr130-200; lunch & dinner Mon-Sat, until 1am Fri & Sat) Based in a former bank, classy Banken has a splendid interior and matching service. The menu includes a gott & enkelt (‘good and simple’) category – featuring the likes of burgers and pasta – plus more upmarket ‘world cuisine’ options.
As ever, kebab shops and pizza joints abound. For self-caterers, there’s a centrally located ICA supermarket (Falugatan 1) as well as a Systembolaget (Åsgatan 19).
Getting There & Around
Falun isn’t on the main train lines – change at Borlänge when coming from Stockholm or Mora – but there are direct trains to and from Gävle (Skr129, 1¼ hours, roughly every two hours), or regional buses (Skr97, two hours) equally often.
Swebus Express (0200-21 82 18; www.swebusexpress.se) has buses on the Göteborg–Karlstad–Falun–Gävle route, and connections to buses on the Stockholm–Borlänge–Mora route.
Regional transport is run by Dalatrafik (0771-95 95 95; www.dalatrafik.se, in Swedish), which covers all corners of the county of Dalarna. Tickets cost Skr20 for trips within a zone, and Skr15 extra for each new zone. A 31-day länskort (county pass) costs Skr1000 and allows you to travel throughout the county; cards in smaller increments are also available. Regional bus 70 goes approximately hourly to Rättvik (Skr50, one hour) and Mora (Skr80, 1¾ hours).
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LAKE SILJAN REGION
Typically, when you ask Swedes where in Sweden they would most like to go on holiday, they get melty-eyed and talk about Lake Siljan. It’s understandable – the area combines lush green landscapes, outdoor activities, a rich tradition of arts and crafts, and some of the prettiest villages in the country.
It’s the picture of tranquillity now, but 360 million years ago, Lake Siljan felt Europe’s largest meteoric impact. Crashing through the Earth’s atmosphere, the giant lump of rock hit with the force of 500 million atomic bombs, obliterating all life and creating a 75km ring-shaped crater.
The area is a very popular summer destination, with numerous outdoor festivals and attractions. Maps of Siljansleden, an excellent network of walking and cycling paths extending for more than 300km around Lake Siljan, are available from tourist offices for Skr20. Another way to enjoy the lake is by boat: in summer, M/S Gustaf Wasa (070-542 10 25; www.wasanet.nu; Skr80-275) runs a complex range of lunch, dinner and sightseeing cruises from the towns of Mora, Rättvik and Leksand. Ask at any tourist office or go online for a schedule.
The big midsummer festival Musik vid Siljan (www.musikvidsiljan.se) is held in venues around the lakeside towns in early July; look for schedules at tourist offices.
Check out the Siljan area website (www.siljan.se) for lots of good information.
Leksand
0247 / pop 15,500
Leksand’s main claim to fame is its Midsummer Festival, the most popular in Sweden, in which around 20,000 spectators fill the bowl-shaped green park on the first Friday evening after 21 June to sing songs and watch costumed dancers circle the maypole.
The tourist office (79 61 30; leksand@siljan.se; Norsgatan 40; 9am-7pm Mon-Fri, 10am-5pm Sat & Sun mid-Jun–mid-Aug; 10am-5pm Mon-Fri mid-Aug–mid-Jun) is on the main drag through town; banks and supermarkets line Sparbankgatan. The library (802 45; Kulturhuset, Kyrkallén), across the street from the tourist office, has internet access (including wireless), regional information and art exhibitions.
SIGHTS & ACTIVITIES
Built by Axel Munthe (1857–1949), who served as the Swedish royal physician and wrote the best-selling memoir The Story of San Michele, Munthe’s Hildasholm (100 62; www.hildasholm.org; Klockaregatan 5; admission by guided tour only, adult/12-16yr Skr90/30; 11am-5pm Mon-Sat, 1-5pm Sun Jun–mid-Sep) is a sumptuously decorated National Romantic-style mansion, set in beautiful gardens by the lake. Munthe built it for his second wife, an