One of the pros with rain is that the colours turns more luscious and vibrant to the grey sky and the soft light. I took these photos yesterday – after rain – when I was out walking around the old, Royal Mounds in Old Uppsala. It is a beautiful and contemplative place that I return to regularly.These mounds were created around the sixth century – 1500 years ago! The place was a religious centre – first for the old, pagan religion – at least as soon as the third century – and later on for the new, Christian faith and the church of Old Uppsala became the seat for the first Swedish Archbishop in 1164.

In the photos to the right above you see  the church of Old Uppsala that was the first Cathedral of the Archbishopric. Uppsala is still the seat for the Archbishop, but the seat moved 1273 to the modern Uppsala where the new Cathedral was built during the 13th-15th century.

If you look closely you see the “new” Cathedral in Uppsala to the left in the photo above – or rather its towers that rises high over the flatlands of Uppland. To its left you can perceive the Castle of Uppsala (located on a cliff)  which origins from the 16th century. The view is more striking on site, and it is amazing that one can see these buildings 5-6 kilometres away without standing on a high point. This peaceful and historic landscape is very good if one needs to unwind. You find more of my photos from there on my flickr page here.

Bluebell and Red Clover still going strong.