Yahhhhh....I'm in Stockholm ya know.
It's in Sveeeeeeden don'tcha know.
YA YA!!!!!
Ya, Ya....I WAS in Sweden last October (brrrrr). So, why am I writing this in March? Because I'm waaaay behind!!
This was another Home Exchange trip, for 7 days. Stockholm is the furthest north I've ever been. It's horizontally across from Oslo, Norway, and across and slightly below Helsinki, Finland.
I took over 200 photos on this trip, but don't worry, I'm only (only) publishing a smidge over 100!!
Off I went from nice, sunny, 60's Mallorca.
Taking off from the Palma airport
Two cruise ships in port and the Balearics ferry headed out to either Barcelona or Ibiza.
One of the BEST things about this trip was being able to meet up with one of my BFF's Scottie. He and I have been friends over 40 years (since I was 3....ahem, cough, cough) but it had been well over a decade since we had seen each other. He so happened to be in Rome (he lives in Tokyo) and thought of coming to visit me in Mallorca since he was 'close by'. But, I had the Stockholm trip. So, he came to see me in Stockholm!! His flight arrived 30 minutes before mine, so he was waiting for me at the gate when I got off the plane. WOW...what a sight for sore eyes!! Over the course of his short stay, it was if we just picked up where we left off some 12 or so years ago.
I flew from Palma to Zurich, then Stockholm. My RT airfare amounted to $151. Stockholm's airport is amazingly modern. Scott made the comment 'if the rest of the city is like this airport, I'm moving here!'.
Since we both had only carry-on bags, we hoofed it to the train station in the terminal, but stopped along the way to purchase a multi-use transit pass. Before I left Palma, I had purchased a Stockholm City pass which provided free access to numerous attractions. All I had to do is have the pass scanned, which was loaded on my cell phone, at each venue.
We were on the train headed for the Home Exchange apartment when I wondered where my cell phone was. With travel being exhausting and stressful, it wasn't much of a surprise that my brain was filled with fog. After searching umpteen times, I came to the conclusion I lost my cell phone. Scottie wanted to go back to the airport but I was tired and just wanted to get to the apartment. We could go the next morning.
We re-traced our steps in our minds and came to the conclusion there were only 3 places I could've lost control of it....the bus that took us to the train connection, the counter where I purchased my transit pass, or another counter where we made a bus inquiry. I concluded my cell was a gonner. No one would bother to turn it in. They'd just keep it and try to break past the security. That's the USA way.
Scott told me, in Tokyo, they have an amazing lost-and-found system. It's standard practice to turn in ANYTHING found...whether it be a pair of gloves, an umbrella, keys, hat, cell phone, wallet....anything. 98% of the time, you'll find what you're missing at the Tokyo 'lost and found'.
Good for Tokyo!!! But, it ain't gonna happen here.
The HE apartment was located just 3 blocks from a train stop which made it amazingly easy to go anywhere we wanted. And, on the way, was a small grocery store where we were able to get anything we wanted during our stay.
After we settled in, we yacked for hours until 2am when we finally crashed.
The next morning, we headed BACK to the airport to re-trace our steps. The bus information counter didn't have anything. They also called their lost and found to check if anything was found on the bus we took. Nada. Then we went to the counter where I purchased the transit pass. I was pretty confident that's where I lost track of it. They said whenever they find something they turn it into the airport Lost and Found. They checked around their kiosk and asked others. Nada. We headed downstairs to the Lost and Found offices, but my cell wasn't there...lots of OTHERS, but not mine. It was a gonner...and the City pass that was loaded on it, too.
After killing several hours doing all that, we headed to central Stockholm to be tourists.
Scottie has a LOT of international travel experience given his profession. But, both he and I found the transit system very confusing. It wasn't very intuitive and significantly lacked helpful signage. But, like most European cities, one pass allows you to travel on almost every mode of transportation, whether it be a subway, surface tram, funicular, or bus, and sometimes ferries.
It was a cccccold day with intermittent showers. We headed to Gamla Stan, the old town, where all the old architecture can be found. I consider the rest of Stockholm to be relatively bland. There seemed to be endless apartment buildings with no architectural contributions to the character of the city...just boxes. The vast majority live in apartments.
The old town of Gamla Stan is on a small island...one of what seems to be a zillion islands around Stockholm. We wandered the cobblestone streets (much to the chagrin of my knee) and found a charming cafe to have lunch.
The cafe was just switching from lunch to a dinner setting. The only seating available was in a small room and we were able to grab the last tiny table. BUT, a young couple arrived with their young kids and baby. You guessed it....screaming ensued (not from me). Then we discovered there was a whole downstairs available to us, so we picked up and moved there.
Outside the cafe.
Scottie had an open-face shrimp sandwich.
I had a grilled (unknown) cheese and walnut sandwich.
Soooooo gooood!!!
...and shared a salad with cheese, fruit, olives, tomatoes, and eggs.
Stockholm is expensive. I don't know why, it just is. Even though they're part of the EU (European Union) they continue to use their currency known as Krona. One Krona equals roughly10 cents. As an example, if a coffee costs 30 Krona, that equates to about $3. If the price shown on a coat is 977K, you might gasp out loud, but in reality it boils down to approximately $100. A large percentage of Stockholm businesses are cashless...cards are the preferred payment method.
The city of Stockholm is situated on 14 islands, so you can imagine the maze of waterways. We walked along the waters edge of Gamla Stan and admired all the beautiful boats, bridges, and activity.
After lunch, we continued to wander the streets of Gamla Stan. We went to the Royal Palace but it was due to close in a half hour, so we bailed.
I love the ornamental details of old buildings. This guy was next to the entrance. The entire sculpture was probably 5ft tall.
I was in the mood for wine for later that night. You never know what the process is from country to country. Is the booze in the regular grocery store? Can you get it off the shelf yourself or do you have to summon a clerk to unlock the Ft Knox cabinet? Can you get it on Sundays? Or, after 10pm? Or, is alcohol sold in stores for that purpose only?
Scott and I summoned the interwebs on our cell phones. He found one near where we were walking, so we headed there. When we got to the address, it didn't seem right because it looked like a regular office building and there was no sign of any retail activity. The front door was secured, requiring to be buzzed in. Very odd...but what did we know? It was our first time in Sweden!! I looked around the corner while Scott stayed at the front entrance. When I came back, Scott had been buzzed in! He let me in and we checked the roster for the wine store. It was on the 6th floor. Still weird. We took the elevator up and got off into an empty foyer and closed offices. The 'wine place' was closed. It finally dawned on us this was a wine DISTRIBUTOR office! We laughed ourselves silly thinking we were experiencing something very unique in Sweden. We never knew who buzzed us in as we never saw a soul.
We headed towards the subway stop to go back to the apartment. But, we noticed a very active shopping mall and thought we might as well check it out....maybe there's booze in there!! Sure 'nuf, there was a HUGE liquor store on the bottom level with way too many products for me to absorb. Now the question was....what kind of wine should I buy? I know California, Washington, and Spanish wines...but not Swedish!! Clueless, I just picked two and went with that.
Next Day, Sodermahm
The next day, we chose to go to Sodermahm, a popular, hip district on the next island over from Gamla Stan, lined with trendy boutiques and charming cafes.
Slippery rocks!
Love the intricate brickwork on this building.
Scroll up and left/right and zoom in on the windows.
After doing some random walking, we decided to get a bite to eat...but where...which one? We were intrigued by a unique sign in the front window of 'Barobao', so we went in.
It was very busy, charming, cozy cafe.
The sandwiches were small, but oh so muy delicioso!!
As if the sign at the front door didn't tell you this place has a sense of humor....the bathroom sure did!!
LOL
LOL
We headed back to Gamla Stan, then across a bridge passing massive government buildings.
Here's some sights along the way.
Notice the facial figure over the large arch and between the two balls.
Here's a closeup.
I was intrigued, because what I saw was a face....2 eyes and lashes, a mouth with thin stache, a chin goatee, a big, swoopy hairdo, topped by a crown.
But, in actuality, it's the national emblem of Spain known as the Three Crowns!!! The eyes and mouth are actually crowns!! LOL!!
We hopped on a surface tram to take us on a little visual tour over to Djurgården Island where many museums and an amusement park 'Grona Lund' are located.
Passed the Opera House with its beautiful lamposts.
Holy Dancing Queen...the ABBA MUSEUM!!!
This lavender 'thing' was in the middle of a large roundabout. It reminds me of a camshaft!
Water jets surround it, but they weren't operating that day.
After we returned from the tram ride we walked up a wide pedestrian-only shopping street.
Stopped in at this muffin bakery which was MUCH more than just muffins! All kinds of pies, torts cakes, brownies, cannellonis, etc. So much it was hard to decide two things to enjoy! We enjoyed our selections with coffee and sat back and people-watched.
We walked to the subway station, past this cool-looking, boutique hotel, and back to our apartment to call it a day.
Observations:
- Most people spoke English
- Nearly all (if not all) bathrooms were unisex
Next up...
Part II of Stockholm, Sveeeeden!
Part II of Stockholm, Sveeeeden!
Dano
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