Stortorget -- Best-Rated Attractions -- Facts, History, & Tourist Info

 Stortorget

Malmö’s main square, known as Stortorget, is a fine widening space precisely at the heart of the city. A meeting site for centuries, Stortorget continues to be a significant public space, bordered by shops, hotels, and bars.

The old square was conceived way back in the mid 1500s and laid out in that time period, causing a big change in the city’s overall appearance. Medieval structures were removed to pave the way for the few landmarks which adorn the square today.

The most beautiful of these buildings happens to be Rådhuset, Malmö’s town hall, standing on the square’s eastern side. Despite being constructed in 1546, its present façade, sporting a colorful Dutch Renaissance style, came about in the 1860s.

The 2nd most-photographed structure on Stortorget is perhaps Apoteket Lejonet, sitting in the square’s southeast corner. Going back from the 1890s, it’s one of Sweden's best-preserved 19th-Century pharmacies.

It’s worth approaching the pharmacy's central entrance, where a gilded lion-fashioned sculpture watches. Enter and observe the elaborate gothic interiors: they’re adorned with wrought iron, oak and walnut cabinets, and stained glass. The store still operates as a pharmacy now and, although the ground floor is filled with modern potions and lotions, the top level is in sharp contrast with the rest of the shop, having been left to appear as it would have about the era of the store's construction.

Near the heart of Stortorget you'll find a bronze statue of King Karl X Gustav on horseback. This Swedish ruler, who reigned in the mid-17th Century, took on a crucial role in shaping Malmö’s history. 

The king coerced the Danes, who have long been controlling Malmö, to eventually return the city to the Swedes. 

Visiting

Stortorget is approximately 250 meters south of the Central Station. Cross Mälarbron, go south along Hamngatan and you’ll come across the square before you.

Stortorget
Malmö

Most Famous Must-See Tourist Attractions in Sweden

Jungfraujoch -- 8 Top Must-See Tourist Attractions in Jungfrau

 Jungfraujoch, Jungfrau

Junfraujoch which means "maiden saddle" in German, is a saddle linking 2 notable 4000ers belonging to the Bernese Alps, and functions like their official viewing point because of its incredible height. Either a cogwheel train or a cable vehicle could transport you there.

Jungfrau is filled with several natural attractions like mountains with extremely high wall points. In this region you'll discover more than enough to occupy you in pursuing amazing attractions. You'll be awed instantly and at a total loss where to begin, once you get here. 

But to ensure your trip here is nothing but memorable, continue reading my list of 8 top must-see tourist attractions in Jungfrau.  

1) Jungfraujoch Railway Station.  It's Europe's highest train station at an elevated peak of 3454 meters beyond sea level. It's train ride offers a pleasant journey beginning from the lowest possible point and stops at its station.

Passengers will see delightful tunnels and some restaurants. The estimated travel height is 3454 meters.

2) Hiking Monchsjoch Hut.  Without doubt, hiking is the number one reason for coming here. The adventurers' "ultimate destination" is 3885 meters which begins from Monchsjoch Hut. It can consume many hours to reach this towering height. So, prepare yourself both mentally and physically.

3) Jungfraujoch Sphinx Observatory.  Situated above Switzerland's Jungfraujoch, it's an international research station and one of the world's highest observatories.

You could visit the open viewing deck, or Sphinx observation deck to get a far better look and what else you may want to explore. 

4) Snow Fun Park.  Now you can revive the old but familiar summer feeling in the snow again by enjoying winter sports. Visitors could easily rent gear and equipment and indulge in a broad range of activities such as snow tubing, skiing, and snow boarding.

5) Alpine Sensations.  It's a display showing a 360-degree audiovisual panorama, plus a 250-meter long hall, loaded with panasonic projectors.

You'll enjoy seeing Jungfraubahn's beginnings, along with bright images from the period of the tourism dreamers.  

6) Ice Palace.  Guides in 1930s created the Ice Palace with the idea of a frosty world in mind, at a temperature of minus three degree Celsius.

Here, you'll come across neat and interesting objects such as a bear and an eagle and much more, all frozen. 

7) Trummelbach Falls.  Nearly concealed inside the Schwarze Monch, the falls race below in 5 rushing cascades which twirl via a corkscrew-formed vertical gorge etched out by the meltwaters from massive ice walls.

Elevators now transport visitors inside the mountain where you'll find walkways for observing individual waterfalls.

8) Grindelwald.  As if out of a movie filmed in raw nature, Grindelwald sits at the base of the stunning ledges of the Elger's sheer north face, with nearby valley's characteristic landmark--the 3,104 meter Mettenberg as well as the 3,701-meter Wetterhorn.

In the village, visit its little museum and learn something about Alpine daily life, cheese-making, and history of mountaineering and skiing in the valley. Each year it hosts the intriguing World Snow Festival.

Most Famous Must-See Tourist Attractions in Switzerland

Kilmainham Gaol -- 5 Fascinating Facts -- Horrors, Executions, Shocking Conditions

Kilmainham Gaol, Ireland

 

Kilmainham Gaol should be on every serious tourist's to-do list. Don't worry about what there is to do while in Dublin, where you'll find many worthy historical places and sites that tell a moving story such as Kilmainham Gaol. Here are definitely the 5 top facts you must learn about the infamous former prison.

1. What is Kilmainham Gaol?

By just having read history textbooks back in college, you still may not know what Kilmainham Gaol is only from reading its name. But if you love history, then you already surmised correctly that it's a prison, or more precisely, a medieval prison. Now, it serves a very different purpose as a museum to relate the horrors that once occurred here to tourists.

2. Short History Lesson

It was constructed in 1796, managed by Dublin's Grand Jury. The new prison was built in 1796 to replace the last one and referred to as the new Gaol as a distinction from the old one. Many Irish revolutionaries experienced their death here at the British rulers' orders.

Infamous for its awfully filthy and revolting living conditions, it housed many criminals, men, women, and even children as young as 10-years-old. Gaol did not distinguish inmates based on gender and often men and women were imprisoned together in a frequently overpacked room.

3. Men received better treatment than women

It was quite sad the reigning discrimination. Both male and female inmates were not just kept locked together, but the females were treated far worse than their male counterparts. For example, the bedding: while male prisoners slept often on metallic cots, female inmates slept either on the cold hard floors or on straw. This double standard and awful debasing treatment is astonishing.

4. Usually, prisoners were hung outside

Public executions took place only a few centuries ago. It provided some kind of sadistic pleasure to a certain crowd of people; in addition, they were means to ensure that everyone in jail followed the rules and instilled a healthy dose of fear in them.

From beheadings to the guillotine, public executions were very popular and it was the same in Dublin between the 17th and 18th century. Prisoners receiving a death sentence were hung in shame in front of an audience. But after some time, when the need for the hang man's noose diminished, a small hanging noose materialized, getting incorporated into the prison's design and blueprint.

5. Kilmainham Gaol's restoration

The prison's operations stopped in 1924 because the then government disliked the image it portrayed which wasn't the message its government wanted to transmit.

After a while, the structure was abandoned in disrepair till there was a decision made to restore it in 1958. Eventually, after the historical society lobbied a lot, funds finally came for its renovation. Following years of restoration work by paid helpers and volunteers, Kilmainham Gaol opened at last to the general public in 1971. Since then, it has turned into a museum for visitors to tour and perhaps even "relive" a one-thousandth part of what former prisoners underwent.

Most Famous Must-See Tourist Attractions in Ireland