Beautiful Stockholm at the End of Summer

Beautiful Stockholm! We had already been there about 10 years ago during a tour of the Scandinavian capitals but we wanted to go back, and seizing a great offer from Lufthansa we returned at the end of summer. For them, in fact, summer is over from 16 August while in Italy the heat was blazing! In our peninsula over 40 degrees and up there very pleasant temperatures (lows of -10 -15 and highs not above 25).

We then fulfilled another dream: sleeping on a boat on Lake Malaren; given our age we discarded the option - dormitories offered by a sailing boat moored in front of Gamla Stan - and chose an old ferry that offered (besides hostel-type solutions) also a pleasant "captain's cabin" (that is, a double with bathroom) right at lake level! Waking up in the morning with the spectacle offered by the sunrise and going to bed with the lights of the city in front of us was one of the pearls of the trip. The transfer from Arlanda to the city was excellent with the bus you take just outside the airport; for us seniors (among other things) very cheap = 150 Kr return (that is, 15 euros, the exchange rate is about 10 kronor = 1 euro).

The train option (ARLANDA EXPRESS) is a bit more expensive although much faster (20 minutes versus almost 1 hour) but we decided to adapt to the Swedish timing......they're never in a hurry! Having sorted the check-in at the boat-hotel and unpacked, we immediately went in search of the card to get around the city; there are 2 types; the Stockholm card which costs (I think) almost 60 euro per person for 3 days but which allows access to public transport, metro (Tunnelbana), ferries and entry to 75 museums or other places of interest, or a simple transport card that cost us (again as seniors) only 120 Kr, again for 72 hours.

After a relaxing walk in Gamla Stan visiting the little souvenir shops (all full of Italians....) we went into a restaurant where we tasted prawns in sauce with a nice side plate of salad, while I got directions to find the baccala (torsk in Swedish) which I'll try to eat another evening. The next morning we decide to devote the day to Djurgarden where we spend the morning and part of the afternoon at Skansen Park; it's a zoo, a representation of old Swedish houses and shops as well as a playground for the little ones. Extremely well organised, among other things, very clear in the information provided and very interesting indeed the historical part. There are also old workshops where activities are repeated (making bread or pastries, on the farm etc. etc.) so a very cultural place.

We already notice lots of young people and lots of parents with children; in Sweden it seems they don't have to suffer demographic decline! In the afternoon we then visit the Pippi Longstocking park but we have the misfortune of riding the attraction that tells the story with a Slavic couple, so in their language.... A shame! As the day is very hot (25 degrees!) and it being Saturday lots of people are sprawled on the lawns or by the lake.

We return on an old tram on rails to the centre and from there we decide to go to Sergel Torg (Torg = square) where the music festival has some events going on: We also take a peek at the hundreds of stalls selling books (there really is a passion for reading, perhaps thinking of the long winter) and decide to dine in a place we had already used on the previous visit where they offer about ten cuisines with many different dishes; the advantage then is that the dishes are shown in photos with detailed descriptions also in English. We opt for a "cowboy steak" with fried potatoes which turns out quite good! We then take a stroll in the centre as far as Gamla Stan where a public concert offers Afro-Cuban music.... There too lots of people, especially multiracial youth.

On Sunday we decide to go to one of the surrounding towns (Vaxholm) which we reach by bus in about 1 hour; a holiday town too, also on a lake, with a castle to visit and with lots of tourists both local and foreign. We stock up on fruit at a COOP where we also peek at everyday products (life doesn't appear much more expensive than here) and then we settle in a garden by the lake waiting for the boat that will take us back to Stockholm. Having had this experience too and admired the numerous little islands we pass where we see many little houses with a support boat, we arrive in Stockholm right in the city centre! From here we decide to take another stroll in Gamla Stan where we buy small souvenirs including caviar and salmon.

The following day is devoted to the big department stores and the markets: both to buy clothing and for little household items of Swedish design! Our visit starts at H.M. then continues at Zara and ends at lunch at the Saluhall market (unmissable!). Here I have the big disappointment of learning that baccala is a winter dish, so either I come back in a few months or.... I eat it at home! We settle for superb salmon and a chocolate cake as dessert. Only big nuisance: 2 French girls arguing next to us, evidently over problems of..... amour! In this setting too we find lots of Italians (but wasn't there a crisis?) with whom we swap experiences of the city! We complete the walk by returning to the pedestrian streets of the centre to get back to our boat late in the evening.

There we have a frugal little dinner (toast and tuna salad) and then go out to enjoy the last sunset over Malaren........ Fantastic! The next morning metro to the central station where we take the bus to Arlanda where we arrive very early; so we have time to spend the last Swedish kronor buying other very particular little objects for the house.

Final thoughts; a beautiful city, a beautiful, very civilised people; we should send our administrators there (of whatever colour) to learn how you can live well. We'll have to come back then to enjoy the outskirts too.