We just returned from a trip to sunny Scandinavia - a post will follow shortly on our time in Copenhagen, Denmark. I had to write about Stockholm first though, since the weather was perfect, city lovely, and people friendly... it was a city to which I would like to return.
We landed at Arlanda and though we took a taxi to our apartment for the week, we could have easily taken the airport bus to the central station, and hopped on a T-bana from there. Once we arrived, we found the nearest grocery / wine shop in a Lindhagen complex -- a store called Maxi, which had everything we needed for the week. Due to Sweden's alcohol monopoly, we had to pick up wine and beer from a store in the same complex. En route, we passed a few playgrounds, one of which we couldn't help but swing by on the way home. The little guy loved it, especially the waterfront playground.
On our first full day in Stockholm, we bought 72-hour transit cards and went straight to the Old Town for a tasty warm lunch at the Bistro Nobel. We wandered a bit around Gamla Stan, around the Parliament (with a crawling break on the lovely grass of the grounds there, for the small one), and photos. We returned to the Nobel Museum in time for free entry at 5 pm on Tuesdays, and then headed back to the apartment for some homemade tofu penang curry over rice for dinner.
Day 2 was spent in town. We started with a Swedish lunch at Vendetta (it has a new name, but was still delicious) and after a hearty lunch and coffee, headed off to the financial district for some shopping. After visiting Topshop, H&M, Zara, and a few other favorites, we stopped for pastries at the Hotorgshallen. We had another quiet home-cooked meal after another playground visit - the kiddo sure does love those gardens. We managed to get out for drinks with a lovely view of Stockholm's sunset, at Sodra Teatern.
Day 3 was the best of all. We started early at the Vasa, where we spent far too much time learning about the ship that sank on its first day sailing, and was under water for 333 years...then lifted up and nearly perfectly preserved. The museum was so rich, and their cafe was surprisingly delicious - especially the cakes! Since the weather was too nice to be inside a dark museum, we headed next to Junibacken, housing stories brought to life by one of my favorite childhood authors, Astrid Lindgren. The little guy was in heaven on the first of many playgrounds, and though he may have been a little overwhelmed by the time we got to Villa Villekula, he explored it all like a champ. Important notes: Junibacken is free for kids under 2, and there's a free mini-Junibacken at Arlanda airport!
The storybook train definitely lived up to the hype, though the stories were pretty dark (a girl jumping off a roof and nearly killing herself? Two brothers leaping to their death so they could be in heaven together?)... it was a good thing the little guy was too young to be scared by it all. The final stop was the bookstore; although the English section was small, I found a few treasures as well as some pretty cool (poster) art designed locally. Finally, it was back to the apartment, but not before a pit stop at a Stadtsmission thrift store in Sodermalm for some unique finds, and Flipping Burgers for dinner. The burgers were a bit pricey for the value, but it hit the spot after a lot of walking.
We spent the morning on the last day playing mini golf, lounging about, and taking our time at the airport. We had heard that Stockholm was a very expensive, but lovely city -- done right, it can just be enjoyed as a lovely city worth a return trip (we never did get out to the archipelagos...).
On our first full day in Stockholm, we bought 72-hour transit cards and went straight to the Old Town for a tasty warm lunch at the Bistro Nobel. We wandered a bit around Gamla Stan, around the Parliament (with a crawling break on the lovely grass of the grounds there, for the small one), and photos. We returned to the Nobel Museum in time for free entry at 5 pm on Tuesdays, and then headed back to the apartment for some homemade tofu penang curry over rice for dinner.Day 2 was spent in town. We started with a Swedish lunch at Vendetta (it has a new name, but was still delicious) and after a hearty lunch and coffee, headed off to the financial district for some shopping. After visiting Topshop, H&M, Zara, and a few other favorites, we stopped for pastries at the Hotorgshallen. We had another quiet home-cooked meal after another playground visit - the kiddo sure does love those gardens. We managed to get out for drinks with a lovely view of Stockholm's sunset, at Sodra Teatern.Day 3 was the best of all. We started early at the Vasa, where we spent far too much time learning about the ship that sank on its first day sailing, and was under water for 333 years...then lifted up and nearly perfectly preserved. The museum was so rich, and their cafe was surprisingly delicious - especially the cakes! Since the weather was too nice to be inside a dark museum, we headed next to Junibacken, housing stories brought to life by one of my favorite childhood authors, Astrid Lindgren. The little guy was in heaven on the first of many playgrounds, and though he may have been a little overwhelmed by the time we got to Villa Villekula, he explored it all like a champ. Important notes: Junibacken is free for kids under 2, and there's a free mini-Junibacken at Arlanda airport!The storybook train definitely lived up to the hype, though the stories were pretty dark (a girl jumping off a roof and nearly killing herself? Two brothers leaping to their death so they could be in heaven together?)... it was a good thing the little guy was too young to be scared by it all. The final stop was the bookstore; although the English section was small, I found a few treasures as well as some pretty cool (poster) art designed locally. Finally, it was back to the apartment, but not before a pit stop at a Stadtsmission thrift store in Sodermalm for some unique finds, and Flipping Burgers for dinner. The burgers were a bit pricey for the value, but it hit the spot after a lot of walking.We spent the morning on the last day playing mini golf, lounging about, and taking our time at the airport. We had heard that Stockholm was a very expensive, but lovely city -- done right, it can just be enjoyed as a lovely city worth a return trip (we never did get out to the archipelagos...).
Comments
Post a Comment