Welcome to my hometown Uppsala! the university town about an hour north of the capital Stockholm. It’s the fourth largest city in Sweden but has captured that small town vibe. About 200 000 people live here yet everyone has at least one friend in common.

The number one means of transportation is the bicycle. That’s right, all the car drivers in Uppsala need to watch out because the bikers here are fearless and will show up in the car lanes even though they have their own assigned pathways. It doesn’t matter where you are in Uppsala, you can always bike your way to your destination in town. Uppsalas city centre is very small but has its own charm with a nice mix of cool new edge architecture, historic buildings and Swedens longest lake, the beautiful Fyrisån running through it. The city centre is very small with walking distance to all you need to cross of your list. So I thought I’d give you a quick tour in writing about the main highlights of this town.

Among the “must see’s”, if you get the chance to visit is the powerful Uppsala domkyrka (seen on the picture). Uppsala domkyrka is the oldest Nordic cathedral and was built in 1270. Feel free to go inside and have a nice look at the beautiful paintings. If you’re lucky you might be able to walk up to the 119 meters high towers.

We now leave the church and walk up a really steep hill to get to Carolina Rediviva, an old building nowadays transformed to the university library. Not super exciting you may think but guess what? Inside is a beautiful and much protected silver bible. Might be worth having a look! While you are there you also may enjoy watching all the anxious students while you are on holliday 😀 From Carolina Redivia we cross the main road and there we find the gigantic Uppsala castle. Besides the building itself you get a beautiful view of Uppsala on one side and of the botanical gardens on the other.

I understand if people don’t travel across the world to experience Uppsala. But if you do find your way to Stockholm spending a day in Uppsala is definitely worth it especially if you want a break from the high pace in Stockholm. You can easily get to Uppsala by train ( runs multiple times an hour). Our how about the budget version that not a lot of people seem to know about, the bus! Buy a turn return ticket for 80 crones (about 10 dollars) when you book the bus online.