Gothenburg: Sweden’s second city has some serious green credentials
- From botanical gardens to the country’s only preserved Viking ship, there is much to explore
- A fairground ride that pumps electricity into the national grid shows its commitment to the environment
I have always loved fairground rides but Loke, which sends me skywards, high over leafy Gothenburg, is a first. Not because it’s the fastest or the highest but because, as this pendulum-like ride propels thrill-seekers through the air, its powerful deceleration generates electricity, which is fed into Sweden’s national grid. And it’s not the Liseberg theme park’s only nod to sustainability. Six of its restaurants are MSC (Marine Stewardship Council) certified.
Often overshadowed by Stockholm, the capital, Gothenburg – ranked the world’s most sustainable city by the Global Destination Sustainability Index in 2016, 2017 and 2018 – has an independent streak and a passion for innovation and adaptability. That is perhaps because of its past, the city having twice been burned to the ground, first in 1611, courtesy of the Danes, and then in the 1700s, when a series of fires – most of which started on the riverbanks, where wealthy traders had built timber mansions – prompted the government to decree that only stone houses could be built inside the moat encircling the city centre. Not that you’d know.
Haga Nygata, a pedestrianised street in the Haga neighbourhood, is lined with buildings constructed in the traditional landshövdingehus style, with a stone lower floor and wooden upper floors, which allowed builders to bypass the restrictions. Highlights of this neighbourhood include Café Husaren, famous for its enormous cinnamon buns and 19th century glass ceiling, and Café Kringlan, with its painted crockery, floral wallpaper and home-made cakes, piled high on a wooden cart propped outside.