Malmo, Sweden

Moving outside of Denmark for a moment, one of the places I plan on visiting during my trip is Malmö, Sweden. Malmö is about 30 km from Copenhagen. The two cities are connected by the Øresund Bridge which, at 7.8 km, is Europe's longest. A train runs between the two cities every twenty minutes between 5 a.m. and midnight, and hourly after that.

Malmö was founded around 1275 when this part of Scandinavia was part of Denmark. It rose to prominence as an important port of trade frequented by the Hanseatic League. For a long time it was the second biggest city of Denmark. In 1434, the first citadel was built. In 1527, it became one of the first cities to official convert to Lutheranism. Following the Treaty of Roskilde, Malmö and the Scanian region became possessions of Sweden.

Currently Malmö has about 600,000 residents if you include the metropolitan area. The city has had a rough time adjusting to post-industrial existence but has recovered somewhat over the last decade. Malmö has a relatively high portion of immigrants, including a large number of Danes who commute to Copenhagen for work.

Some places to visit in Malmö:

- There are several famous squares in Gamla Staden (the old town). One is the Stortorget, which has a statue of King Karl X Gustav and many historic buildings including the 16th century Rådhuset (town hall) and the Apoteket Lejonet a pharmacy running since 1571. Other squares include the Lilla Torg and Gustav Adolfs Torg.

- Another attraction is Malmöhus Castle ("Malmö house," pictured left). You can tour the royal apartments, the Stadsmuseum ("city museum") and the Konstmuseum ("art museum"). Located nearby is the Kommendanthuset arsenal and the Teknikens och Sjöfartens Hus, a technology and maritime museum.

- There are boat tours of the cities canals that run from April through September. You can find out more by visiting Malmö's official tourist site here.