Stockholm

It was nice. 

My first days were a bit depressing because the clouds were low which managed to make the colourful buildings in Stockholm look gloomy. Luckily the weather picked up and the sun shined brightly until the end of my trip. 

One of my favourite things to do was to simply wander through the city. I mainly spent my time roaming Norrmalm, Gamla Stan, Östermalm, and Söldermalm. The last three mentioned were probably my favourite places to explore. 

Gamla Stan is Stockholm's Old Town, which is a really concentrated area of old buildings and winding, cobblestone paths (I'm really glad I wore comfortable shoes). Gamla Stan has the most character and is most beautiful at night. The shadowy alleyways and narrow streets were really atmospheric and always had me looking over my shoulder. I actually felt a bit scared on my way back to the hostel after learning that about ninety noblemen were beheaded one after another in Stortorget (the oldest square in Gamla Stan) after Stockholm fell to the Danes (some time ago... can't remember). It's said that you can still here the swishing of the axe followed by the thump of dismembered heads at night in the square. Gamla Stan is really worth exploring, especially if you do research beforehand or go on a guided tour. 

Östermalm was great for its lively atmosphere. I would say that it's quite similar to Gamla Stan but not as old. You still get the same winding cobblestone streets but the buildings don't look as dated. We had lunch at Östermalm's Saluhall, a hall reminiscent of St. Lawrence Market which houses a collection of open restaurants, bakeries, and vendors. I ordered herring fried in butter with a side of mashed potatoes and lingon berry sauce (given a choice of fish, I will always take the fish). And I definitely didn't regret it. The herring tasted slightly nutty from the butter it was fried in which was balanced by the tangy flavour of lingonberry sauce. 

But I would say that the best thing about Östermalm is the view you can get of the islands facing it. While walking, I could hardly take my eyes off those islands which looked so beautiful in a slightly cloudy but still sunny morning. We were actually 20 minutes late meeting our friend at the Vasa Museum because I couldn't help stopping to admire the view. 

And then there is Söldermalm which is a pretty laid-back part of town. Söldermalm is quite different from Gamla Stan and Ostermalm, it feels more laid-back and it has a lot of rocky cliffs! 

(Note to self, this was written.... maybe 4 years ago. Jeez, time flies)

To Stockholm and Back

Finally, I went on vacation! And about time too, I was beginning to feel demotivated so this trip away from Finland did me good. This vacation, however, wasn't very relaxing. First of all, I had never been to Stockholm so my time was spent exploring the city. I walked so much, I can feel the newly formed callouses under the ball of my feet... (probably too much information there). Secondly, I lived in a hostel so I didn't have the chance to sleep too well.

Anyway, the stay in Stockholm lasted for six days. Since we stayed for so long, there was no rush. We spent most of our time browsing through the different areas of Stockholm and eventually went on a guided tour to give us some more background knowledge of this city.

As mentioned earlier, we stayed in a hostel called Old Town Lodge which is situated in, surprise surprise, Old Town (Swedish: Gamla Stan). It's a quaint and well maintained hostel. The building is about 600 years old. You can find a part of what was once the city's fortified walls. I had mistook the holes in the wall for seats for people queuing for the toilet... but they're actually openings in the walls for cannons. So this hostel definitely wins in the culture and atmosphere categories. However, a hostel is still a hostel so it only provides what is necessary: Wi-fi, a small breakfast, several small washrooms and bathrooms, and ear plugs (just in case someone snores like a freight train...).

So one of my favourite features of Stockholm is the degree into which the city has been preserved. Sweden hadn't been at war since the early 1900s (where they lost Finland to Russia) and had remained neutral during the First and Second World Wars so most of the city's cultural landmarks still stand to this day. So there is nice integration of modern themes into the traditional infrastructure. Haha, I probably don't actually know what I'm talking about. I think it just looks nice to be able to see old and new juxtaposed together. So there.

I didn't interact much with the locals and sometimes I couldn't tell tourists from natives. But people in Stockholm really don't pay much attention to traffic lights. Actually, the same observation could be made in Finland where about 50% of the pedestrians actually follow the lights. On the other hand, it feels like only 10% of the people follow any signals and the other 90% just read the traffic and cross whenever. So waiting for the green light to walk can actually feel quite futile and stupid. Soon enough, I started crossing intersections whenever there was a gap in traffic too.

(again, 4 years ago!)