This Swedish soap opera follows the lives of the captain and crew of the MS Freja, a cruiseferry that travels on the Baltic Sea between between Stockholm, Sweden and Turku, Finland.

Stockholm in the 1920s. Young Roland lives with his socialist father, Jewish mother and a boxing brother. His mother sells condoms illegally, and from them, Roland makes slingshots which he sells. His rebellious ways has gotten him the special attention of his school teacher, who always makes sure that Roland is punished. Roland also tries to make extra money by repairing bicycles, a successful business that in the end lands him in hot water.

Two days in young Rasmus life. Day one he tells his parents that he has AIDS. Day two when he dies, in the wake of the disease.

"I Will Become Sweden's Rembrandt or Die!" - About the life and art of the Swedish painter Ernst Josephson (1851-1906), his many travels in Europe and about the psychological crisis in 1885 which changed Josephson's artistry completely.