There
is a measured beauty about Scandinavian houses.
The high rise apartment buildings were clean, colorful, and modern, but
I’m not concerned with them here. Most of
them looked like shoe boxes stuffed with hundreds of people. I prefer the little single family dwellings. They’re homey and architecturally more
interesting because more often they reflect the creative talents of individuals
who take pride in ownership - all the more interesting because Socialism
dominates the politics of Norway, Sweden, and Denmark.
The
first picture was taken in Denmark along the Odense River. The two-story is all brick with the windows
encased in Roman arches. (Notice the
little girl looking out at me.) The
other taller windows have an arch style of their own and you can see the
transparent lace curtains. The Danes
have that oval style curtain stylistically more pleasing than what is
fashionable in America. Notice the
windows have darker brickwork contrasting with the tan brick walls. I’ll never know if the owner did it on
purpose or not, but there are crosses in every window. Abundant ivy makes the house a tourist magnet
despite the fact that this photo isn’t even the front of the house.
The
second house is located in Växjö, Sweden.
It’s a barn style with a huge dormer on top. The Swedes love tiled roofs and I don’t blame
them; they must last forever. The
foundation isn’t the poured concrete that Americans are familiar with. It appears to be granite block and Sweden has
a lot of rocks. Even the fence posts are
granite. The overall effect of the house
is stout, well maintained, functional, and pleasingly colorful like the
tradition of accenting their houses with flowers.
My
last picture was also taken in Växjö.
Like the last house, it had a steep pitched roof, brown picket fence,
and multi-paned windows. The pattern on
the door follows that of the windows. The skylights seemed to be a little out
of place, but I guess the owner had his reasons. They need a new seal. Whatever the shortcomings of the house, the
beautiful yard work offset them. What is
that purple privacy bush in front of the living room window? Notice the flowers and evergreen shrubs along
his walkway. They’re tapered from small
to tall making them an organic privacy fence in their own right. The guy knew what he was doing.
I have to say it I was a little embarrassed with I shot these photos of
Scandinavian houses in 1977 when I was young and could walk all day without
getting tired. Sometimes the occupants
would go to the windows and stare at you.
Most American tourists are curious anyway, but when
I look back at the experience and the memories it brings back, I believe it was
worth it.
