touring bornholm

Bornholm is south of Sweden (one hour by ferry) and the north of Poland... the main industries on the island include fishing, arts and crafts like glass making and pottery using locally worked clay, and dairy farming. (the milk here is great, as with all the food and baked goods!)

some stats
population: 42,817 (year round)
area: 588 km² (227 sq mi)




yesterday we visited...


our tour guide told me that there are about 40 homes on the island that have thatch straw roofs. there is a team of two people and it takes them two months to complete one roof which they build by hand. the pros and cons are that it breaths while keeping the moisture out and it's beautiful(!) but it's expensive and needs to be replaced every 25 years. the funny thing is that they import all the hay from Sweden since the climate on the island prevents this hay from growing here.


they experience "indian summers" here so the warmest month is usually September and can even be in October.
being a relatively small island on the sea creates a micro climate where it almost never snows and fruits like figs, cherries, raspberries, apples, and a variety of coconut grow.






poppies grow everywhere here, so lovely.

Baltic Sea Glass is a very beautiful and successful glass studio/shop/gallery ran by an American(!) who invited us back to talk more with him.




with a number of pieces, they have inspiration material next to the final glass piece. this beehive structure was so beautiful and well done. they also had made a huge variety of corn kernels.

the oldest round church on the island, Østerlar, built around 1150. the church was used both as a place of worship and for protection against enemies from the sea.

the view from the top window