A full day in Stockholm
We woke up late and waited for the troops to rise. I had to call Josh at 1pm and tell him to take a shower and get out of bed. Once he made his way downstairs, our day began.
We walked over to the Central Park of Stockholm. It is located on Djurgården, the Royal Game Park. It is absolutely beautiful. There are museums, restaurants, open spaces, walks, etc. We walked into the park and went to an area called Rosendal's Garden. It appears to be a small farm. The restaurant there is completely organic. You stand in line and take what you are interested in, like a cafeteria and then get the main courses at the end where the cashier is. It is quite a walk to the area but worth the stroll. We split a few salads that consisted of greens, tomatoes, roasted carrots, , olive puree, cukes, some type of grain, smoked fish and a spicy vinaigrette. We also got a few sandwiches, a few cookies and some local organic drinks.
I love the recycling bins. We should have these in every city throughout the US. Sweden is obviously committed to being green.
After lunch, we made our way back through the park over to the Vasa Museum which is a must. The museum is built around a ship from 1628 that was pulled from the water and is perfect condition. Huge boat with incredible details. Totally cool. When the boat was dredged up there were many intact skeletons inside the boat that the museum was able to take and ecreate the faces so we can see what those people looked like when they were alive. Love technology.
We then walked around the island (this is one of many islands) over to the amusement park where we grabbed the local water taxi and took it across to Sodermalm which is a residential area. Fun to walk around and see the apartments and homes. This area is where all the vintage shops are and is sort of the funkier area. We saw tons of young people with strollers and many cool stores and cafes. Josh had a major score at the Acne store (from Stockholm).
At this point, we were shot. It had been a long day. Lots of walking. The city is really beautiful. Although we are checking out tomorrow and going back to Paris ( for dinner ), I could see staying a few more days. Maybe taking a boat out to the archipelagos which are the 20 some odd islands around Stockholm and doing a few more museums and other areas. There is a really nice friendly vibe in this town and the setting on the water is really magnificent. Thumbs up for Stockholm.
Comments (Archived):
This is such a great city! Fond memories of Stockholm and its food (smoked reindeer!!!). The fact that the water is so much in the city also plays a big role. I’ve actually never been to Sodermalm even if, lately, I ran across it a lot in the book from Stieg Larsson (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo).Have fun in Paris, it’s so quiet at this time of the year: where are you eating?
Loved the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Couldn’t put it down, literally.We are in and out of Paris way too quick but going back for dinner tomorrownight before we head out for Slovenia to Itineraire.
You left the best part out about the Vasa! It sunk on its first trip out of the dry dock. All those cannons made it too top heavy and over it went. The ship builders knew it was a disaster waiting to happen, but no one wanted to stand up to the King. I think “Vasa” is one of those words that deserves to be a noun and a verb.
Hence why 50 pct of the people on board sank with the ship. It looks heavy and the canons are huge. The good news is that because of the quick sink, we can all see the details of an ancient boat perfectly. It is a piece of art.joanne [email protected]
Your pic of the Stockholm skyline brings back memories. Love that fanciful architecture, the turrets with star- and moon-shaped weathervanes? lightning rods? decorations? on top. I was there for three days years ago, but it sticks in my mind as a sort of golden city, the sunlight glinting off the water everywhere (I must have lucked out with the weather). Enjoy the rest of your trip!
We were lucky that the one full day was sunny. Really a beautiful city.joanne [email protected]