A City of Islands

I soon discovered that Stockholm is one of my new favorite European cities.  It is really quite beautiful!  A huge fraction of the city is parks, and the city crosses 14 islands, with a maze of bridges crossing from island to island.

It's also quite easy to get lost in.  Especially when you loose track of what bridge you are crossing, and what island you are crossing to/from.

Crossing one of the many bridges into Stockholm.

Approaching Old Town Stockholm.  The buildings grow more colorful...

... and the streets more narrow.

One of the main streets leading away from Old Town Stockholm.

The Royal Palace.

Of course, no holiday is complete before being serenaded by a group of singing and dancing Hare Krishnas. 

Swedish Hare Krishnas.

The much more stoic guards.

During the changing of the guard ceremony.

The colorful main square of Old Town Stockholm.

St. George slays the Dragon.

Some streets are so narrow that even street lights have a hard time fitting in.

Meeting the locals.  A point if you can guess who this is.

In Sweden, God comes boxed!

The Swedish, like the Finish, like eating reindeer.

One of the few remaining telephone booths in the world.

An operational Viking ship!

Engineering: Fail

Talk about a bad day.

Stockholm has a truly amazing shipwreck that you can visit.  It is the most well preserved shipwreck from hundreds of years ago... but it all started with a some really bad decisions.  

The Vasa Warship was a ship unlike any ever seen.  It was built in the 1600s.  The warship was magnificent... it had 64 cannons, could hold 450 men, and was decorated with elaborate wooden carvings, each with unique meanings.   

It was also high, so that the crew could shoot down at an enemy ship, and later board it easily.  But its height, while it was its unique feature, was also a tragic miscalculation and a lesson in stability.  On its maiden voyage, after sailing only 1300 meters, a slight breeze caught the sail and caused the boat to tip.  Soon, water rushed in through the cannon ports, and the boat sank into the Stockholm harbor, in front of hundreds of stunned onlookers. 

And this majestic ship, after sinking on its maiden voyage, stayed under the water for more than 300 years.

Then, in the 1960s, a complex salvage operation was made to bring the boat back up.  They raised the Vasa in one piece from under the harbor waters.

The boat was then reconstructed, piece by piece, over the course of several years.  The boat is now 95% original wood.  Once put back together, the ship was sprayed with PEG, a wax that could penetrate the wood and keep it from cracking and drying out, for a full 17 years.  Now, the ship lies within a museum, and you can imagine what it must have looked like when it was brand new.

Bram in a reconstruction of the inside cabins of the ship.  They must have been shorter back then.

And a point if you can guess what this is.

Winning the Noble Prize

After crossing on the ferry (and receiving little sleep), we arrived very early in Stockholm - just after 6 am.  After navigating the subways on very little sleep, we decide to check into our hotel... at 7:45 am.  The man at the hotel took one look at us and at our bags as we walked into the hotel, then one at the clock.  "You want to check in before the hotel breakfast time even starts?" he asks us.  Luckily, our room was ready...

Awesome room!

And we were able to go back to bed for a while.

Then we head out to the city.  Apparently, it's the nicest summer that the Nordic countries has seen in 10 years, and everyone was out and about to enjoy it.

People in the skate park.

Stockholm has lots of waterfront property, given the fact that it spans many island.  A point if you can guess how many (no google!)

The combination of sun and water gives rise to some really nice picnic places.

Of course, the weather is not always like this.  This sign serves as a reminder of the rest of the year.

And of course, no modern European city visit is complete without a cow sighting.

We visited the hall where Nobel Prizes are awarded.  Next time we visit this building, it may well be to receive this award ourselves!

In front of the tower.

Later on that day, we actually did receive Noble Prizes!  Nobel Prizes in ice cream eating.

Stockholm is also known for its interesting metro stops.  If you visit in the winter and the weather is horrible, one of the suggested itineraries is to go from metro stop to metro stop and look at the art.  Our favorite by far was the metro stop decked out in retro video game tiled walls. 

And of course, no retro video game metro station is complete without space invaders...

... in love.

Another one is decorated with "fake" ruins and neon street lights.

Even in the summer, it can get a little chilly.  But the Swedes,  after not seeing the sun all winter, still want to enjoy outdoor cafes.  The solution?  Many cafes provide blankets so you can sit outside and not be cold.