Have You Heard About The Vasa?

So far we have heard the story of the Vasa about 5 times. Don't get me wrong, it's a very interesting story - but there has to be something else in Stockholm other than the Vasa!

Let me share the story with you.......

You see - There was this ship - the Vasa that was built by King Gustav II and he was insistent on having an extra floor on the top - to which the builder said "whoa Gus, that will make the ship tip over!". But the King was having none of it and the ship was built to his specifications - they sailed it out amidst huge fanfare and after 28 minutes there was a gust of wind and the boat rolled one way. It righted itself and then rolled the other way. Because of all the whooha going on the cannon portholes were open as they were giving it some canon action on the way out and water started gushing in the portholes, causing the ship to sink right there and then. The Stockholm bay, where it sunk was only 30 metres deep, so when it hit the bottom the top of the masts were sticking out of the water. The King was more than a little embarrassed about this and just cut the masts off and said, "um..... show's over. Nothing to see here" and that was that. 300 years later, they rose her from her 30 metre, watery grave and built a museum around her. They were very lucky because of the water in which the Vasa sank was a special type of briney water that doesn't have wood eating worms - so the wood on the ship was preserved rather than eaten by worms! Hence, she's a museum now that has the masts sticking out of the roof so you can see how tall she was......and apparently that's all that Stockholm has to talk about! Great story hey?

This chap was in the next tour bus to ours - when in Sweden........