Episode 238: kv Kanonen

District: Haga

Photo date: 23 April 2022

Most of this block was re-developed in the 1980s but the quaint facades along Haga Nygata were preserved – much to the delight of all the cruise ship tourists who visit in summertime.

Episode 239: kv Kruthornet

District: Haga

Photo date: 23 April 2022

Sometimes people ask what houses I’ve looked at are my favourites. I usually answer it’s the ones with subtle surprises, that you don’t notice until you actually look closely at the facades. And the Abako-designed house comprising this whole block is a prime example of this. Yes, the Post-Modernist style is a violent break from the general 19th-century look of Haga, but it’s hard not to be delighted by it, so over the top. And then, if you step closer, you see the reliefs… Artist Pelle P adorned other facades too, like the Guldheden church in part 476 of this project.

Episode 240: kv Majoren

District: Haga

Photo date: 30 April 2022

Are libraries a thing of the past? I do believe so; listening to young people on the town who brag about not ever having read a book and being disgusted by the very idea, it seems easy-access knowledge is no longer wanted. Maybe AI is convenient and all that, but I think it’s fun to make and find out things myself. Anyway, the early users of this library here had no other options and made good use of the facilities.

Episode 241: kv Kaptenen

District: Haga

Photo date: 30 April 2022

On a map you can see how narrow these north-south running blocks are, as they follow the line of the old caponier that connected fortress Kronan with the rest of Gothenburg in the olden days. Having heard the stories about people falling into the stagnant water here, I always thought a caponier was a sort of mini-moat. When it was eventually filled in, the land was only deemed suitable for poor-housing, which the Dickson Foundation snapped up in the 1870s before selling it to the Burmans. Might one suspect poor geotechnical conditions?

Episode 242: kv Soldaten, Skansberget

District: Haga

Photo date: 14 May 2022

The little square in Soldaten is the centre of Haga, where you might find market stalls, buskers and other events. In all seasons! But in October-November and January-February the Gothenburg weather is not amenable to outdoors activities with items that aren’t waterproof…

My memories of Skansen Kronan are rather sketchy, and involve the old military museum with slightly spooky mannequins dressed in 19th century uniforms, and waffles. The latter still remains, in the shape of a shed which serves pricey pastries that you really need after climbing all those stairs. Club Cosmos celebrated its 50th anniversary in the fortress, but that was before my time.