Thank you Leanne! Despite your Port Talks being crap, I attended them anyway due a recurring case of FOMO. Her talk on Visby enabled me to save $200, as the tour I had been booked on, was clearly something I could do myself independently! The town of Visby turned out to be eminently walkable, and could be accessed from the Pier, eliminating the need to pay for the shuttle bus. 14,000 steps later, I had made the right decision.

A little bit about Visby:

Visby is a beautifully preserved medieval city and UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1995. It is situated on the Swedish island of Gotland in the Baltic Sea. It's known for its 3.4 km long well-preserved town wall (Ringmuran), a medieval fortification incorporating 27 defensive/watch towers dating back to the 13th century. The town's many churches include the grand, 12th century St. Mary's Cathedral (Sankta Maria) and the medieval ruins of St. Nicolai and St. Karin, which are frequently used for concerts and events. The main square, Stora Torget, has cobblestone streets lined with cafes and restaurants. The mild climate here means it is also famous for its diverse road varieties and exotic trees today thrive here.

The city flourished, thanks to the German Hanseatic League and in the first half of the 14th century (1300–1350), Visby was at the height of its wealth and influence. However in 1361, Gotland was conquered by Valdemar IV of Denmark. 1,800 Gotlanders were killed in battle in front of the city. Valdemar added "King of Gotland" to his title list and retained Visby as a Danish city.

An invading army of Teutonic Knights conquered Gotland in 1398, destroyed Visby and guaranteed peace with the Kalmar Union of Scandinavia by selling the island of Gotland to Queen Margaret of Denmark, Norway and Sweden.

In 1411, the Norwegian, Danish and Swedish King Eric of Pomerania had the castle of Visborg constructed, during which the city virtually became a pirates' nest, and the commerce halted. As of 1470, the Hanseatic League rescinded Visby's status as a Hanseatic town.

In 1525, the final blow came, the Lübeckers successfully attacked Visby and set the city on fire from four sites. But unlike widespread belief, several churches survived at first. With the reformation, all churches except St. John, which became the city parish, were closed. In 1533–34, the new Danish governor, Henrik Nielsen Rosenkrantz, demolished St. John's and St. Peter's churches to improve the defence of his castle Visborgs slott. St. Mary's Cathedral remained the last functional church and became the new city parish.

Gotland was again taken into Sweden's possession in 1645, by the Treaty of Brömsebro, after 300 years of Danish rule. It seems many other Scandinavians seem to dislike the Danes. After a plague in the mid 1700’s had reduced Visby's population, some attempts were made by Swedish government officials to improve living standards, but little was accomplished. In 1808, Gotland was briefly conquered by Russia but was peacefully taken back by the Swedes after only a couple of months.

Visby remained in this state with no attempts were made to rebuild the churches affected by the Reformation. This preservation of the Medieval street grid is now almost unique in Europe, with Tallinn, Estonia similarly preserved. Gotland is a popular holiday destination for Swedes and now houses one of Swedens major universities.

Our visit today coincided with Almedalen Week. This annual event is Sweden's largest public political forum, which brings together politicians, journalists, and the public in Almedalen Park. Fortunately, being on a cruise ship eliminated the need to fight for Hotel rooms; there was not one to be had! There was a marked trail from the cruise port into the town, although it confusingly split into 2 paths with the same sign “Old Town”. As it was early and not too hot, I took the path that seemed to ascend (meaning that I would be descending later!). The path ended at one of the main gates into the City, but instead of entering the old City, I took the opportunity to walk along the city wall for a short distance, providing great skyline views and then of St. Mary’s Church. I then walked downhill throughout the medieval street layout admiring small neat houses adorned with roses and other flowers. The amount of shops and cafes began to increase, and I was then in the centre of the old town. It was very busy, what with a cruise ship and the people attending Almedalen week. There were political stall set up, streetside interviews being carried out, also in little tented booths. It was almost overwhelming, hearing all the Swedish around you, from every direction. There were no seats in any of the cafes, which was great for local trade, but also meant that I wouldn’t be parting with my cash for food and my tummy would remain empty until I got back on board Crown Princess. I did buy some souvenirs though, you’ll be glad to know!

The return walk back to the ship was mainly flat, at least not uphill, and I ended up at the same fork, as on my inward walk. They could have labelled the sign, upper walk and lower walk, but I’m nitpicking as the roundtrip walk was quite straightforward.

A relaxing afternoon after some Princess Pizza for lunch, as I crossed off stop 2 of 5 (in 5 days, I would need to pace myself afterall). Next stop is Helsinki, where my tour to an Artisan Fair was cancelled due to low numbers booking. Therefore another day to do my own thing in this relative metropolis!