I've been blogging for the past couple of weeks from Sweden but more importantly from my family hometown of Visby Gotland. With all of these posts I haven't told you much about Visby so today I thought we would have a look.

A former Viking site on the island of Gotland, Visby was the main centre of the Hanseatic League in the Baltic from the 12th to the 14th century. Its 13th-century ramparts, and more than 200 warehouses and wealthy merchants' dwellings from the same period make it the best-preserved fortified commercial city in northern Europe.  

 

Currently, there are about 11 Cathedral ruins inside the city walls and a couple more outside the city walls. During the Hanseatic League, the people of Visby were quite well to do. In gratitude many private people and families would build churches to show their abundance. As Denmark, took over the island and shifted the merchant capital to Copenhagen, Visby fell into ruins. The people of Visby couldn't afford to up keep all of the cathedrals so they just took care of one,St. Maria. It still stands today and has concerts and services weekly. At one time there were more than 21 Cathedrals inside the city walls but as time went by many of the ruined Cathedrals were used to construct new buildings in Visby. Nowadays, many of the ruins are open in the summer and house great concerts and cafes.

 

The other gem of Visby are the roses. Believe it or not, Gotland is in the banana belt of Sweden. This island is very warm and mild most of the year. There are just a couple of months during the year which blow a bit but nothing severe. Roses have been known to bloom into November.  Enjoy!