An ensemble of backyards became a heaven for creative expression in Dresden's Neustadt ("new town"). Each courtyard of the district explores a different theme through various form of art, and the quarter is peppered with small boutiques and galleries. Most eye-catching is the odd-looking cascade of pipes and funnels running down the blue house, which plays music as rain water runs through it.

Ottenby, on the very south of the island of Öland, is one of the top areas for birding in Sweden — 377 species have been observed here. A visit to Öland offers fantastic opportunities for bird studies all the year round. Ottenby Bird Observatory was founded in 1946 and has ever since performed studies on migrating birds. Around 20,000 birds are ringed each year. Also, the bird observatory is involved in bird migration research projects on the island of Capri, Italy, and in Nigeria.

Himmelsberga is Öland's most authentic village, now preserved as an open air museum with enclosed farms built along both sides of the narrow village road. The heart of the museum consists of several large farms with buildings dating back the 18th and 19th century. The cottage is still has the original furniture, and the old stables are packed with all the tools and equipment that were used on the farms. The coffee shop sells freshly baked bread and hot pies, and you can buy genuine Öland handicrafts in the village shop. Himmelsberga holds exhibitions of arts and crafts in its two galleries. There's also an art museum with a collection of older and modern Öland paintings.