STOCKHOLM

We were up and ate a hardy breakfast and in a taxi on our way to the airport.  We checked in and since our bag fit in the mock bin we decided not to check our bags.  Well, our memory is short and the minute we walked over to the security line we remembered all the liquids in our suitcase.  We both just laughed because we just haven't flown that often since arriving in Europe and we hadn't given any thought to all those bottles.  Fortunately they had a nice area where you could unpack your suitcase if necessary.  We didn't  have to go that far but we did have to bag ( which they had a nice supply right in the area) a bunch of stuff.  Fortunately they don't really care how many bags you have.  

We were laughing going through security after we completed our task and the security people were really nice and apologized for having to take bottles that were over the 4 ounce limit even though they were almost empty.  The only thing we lost was our hair products.  Who needs clean, conditioned, and volumized hair anyway.  

We arrived at the airport in Stockholm and were picked up by a cab which transported us to our hotel.

We checked in and recieved our Stockholm Card with our voucher which allowed us to go on a Panorama tour of the city, take the sightseeing boat for Djurgarden, entrance to major museums and unlimited usage of public transportation.  

By the time we got settled in ( they had shampoo  in the room so we wouldn't have to do that right away) it was after lunch time so we decided to  head to the city center which we found was a bit of a walk but an easy bus ride and get a bit to eat there.  We got off in a lovely square filled with little outdoor eating places, grabed a bit and headed down the street to explore.  I  remembered going to the old town from a previous trip to Stockholm so we decided that would be a good place to spend our first afternoon.

Stockholm, Sweden's capital city spreads out over 14 islands in Lake Malaren and looks out to the Baltic sea to the east.  It is one of the most beautiful cities in the world.  The history of Stockholm dates back to the 13th centruy, and the best place to discover it is in Gamla Stan, the Old Town.

It is a maze of winding medieval alleyways, small squares, ancient churchs and the Royal Palace.  It's now filled with retaurants, taverns,  shopping stores and lots of people.  

The gate leading you to Gamla Stan.

I was a little bit under the weather so we decided to stop for a coffee or tea and guess what - they had decaf so we enjoyed a cup of coffee and had a swedish treat called 

Delicious!

Cute little coffee shop.

One could spend a a lot of time just wandering around and enjoying all the shops and sites.  Unfortunately I had run out of steam so we asked what would be the quickest way back to the hotel and someone in the coffee  shop suggested the metro and told us where to catch it. 

Everywhere you walked there were outdoor eating places and shops.  We got to the metro and now to find the right train .

We studied the map.

Found our stop and headed to the hotel.  We found a great Italien restaurant not far from our hotel and enjoyed a wonderful meal there that evening. The waiter was a young man who was very friendly and helpful - recommended a great wine! I don't mind spending the money if its worth it!  

The next day we got up early and headed to the town center to catch the Panorama bus tour.  We went from island to island and learned much about the history of Stockholm - much of which was pretty bloody.  We were taking pictures from the bus and although Sharon and I had stationed ourselves on opposite sides it was difficult to get any real great shots.  It's such a pretty city with the various buildings, bridges, and water.  

Snaping those iPads and cameras .

One of the amusement parks in Europe the Grona Lund located on Djurgarden.  It was bilt in 1880 and is one of Sweden's oldest amusements parks. 

                             

                     

The Nordiska Museet - a museum dedicated to the cultural history and ethnography of Sweden from the Early Modern age ( which for the purposes of Swedish History is said to begin in 1520) until the contemporary period. 

Swedish Musical Hall of Fame

"Mama Mia"!

                   

                          

Markets.

The Opera House.This was buillt by Gustav III who was a benefactor of the arts and literature and was the King of Sweden from 1771 until his death in 1792.  He was  an enlightened though controversial leader.  He eliminated torture as an intrument of legal investigation, freedom of the press was established, religious toleration was accorded,  free trade was promoted, the navy was strengthened and in 1777 a comprehensive currency reform was carried out.  His reforms aroused dissatisfaction among the nobility and he turned to an aggresive foreign policy.  The end result was that the King was shot by Captain Jacob Anckarstrom while attending the Stockholm opera house Masquerade ball. The king died two weeks later.

This is the statue of Gustav II. He died in 1632 and is generally regarded as the monatch who laid the foundation of the modern Swedish state and made it a major European power. After our tour we decided to visit the palace since it was close.

The gardens in front of the palace.

We toured Gustav's III 's Museum of Antiquities which had some beautiful pieces of statuary from Italy which he acquired during the 1780's but no pictures were allowed.   This is from the internet.  

I took these just as we enterd the palace and after that no pictures were allowed.  Many of the rooms which were truly beautiful had varioius exhibits - coats of arms, attire, etc. of the royalty.  It is the official residence and major royal palace of the swedish monarch.  (The actual residence is at Drottningholm Palace).  There are 1430 rooms, 660 with windows and is one of the largest royal palaces in the world still in use for its original purposes.  

When we finished viewing the palace we went to catch a bite to eat and lucky for us we were inside when a downpour hit.  

From the restaurant we could see the Nobel Museum so we decided that would be a good place to visit until the rain stopped. 

It was an interesting museum.  You hear the story of Alfred Nobel and the Nobel Prize and get acquainted with a few of the 800 Nobel laureates that have been awarde the prize since 1901.  There is currently an exhibit of how Nobel Prize-awarded efforts have shaped and continue to shap our world.  

In this display each of the recipients were listed by year and you could view a little of their background.

By the time we finished in the museum we decided to head over to the island of Djurgarden to see the Vasa Museum and the Nordiskit Museet.  We again asked for the quickest waay to get there and was told the ferry and after gettnig directions to the pier we headed out.

We got off the ferry and found the Vasa museum first.  In this museum is the world's only seventeenth century ship, which was restored after resting on the sea floor for 333 years.  

The ship was commisioned to be built by King Gustav II and sunk on it's maiden voyage with over a hundred crewmen as well as women and children onboard.  The crew had received permission to take family and guests along for the first part of the pasage through the Archipelago. 

THE DISASTER

"For the first few hundred meters, Vasa was warped along the waterfront with cables from the shore. The ship did not begin to sail until she reached what is now Slussen. Sailors climbed the rigging to set four of Vasa’s ten sails. A salute was fired, and Vasa slowly began her maiden voyage.

Once Vasa came out from under the lee of the Södermalm cliffs, the sails could catch the wind, but the ship was tender and heeled over to port, then heeled again, even farther. Water rushed in through the open gunports and the ship’s fate was decided. Vasa sank, after sailing barely 1300 meters.

The crew threw themselves into the water or clung to the rigging until rescued, but not all managed to save themselves. Eyewitnesses differ on the exact numbers, but perhaps 30 of approximately 150 people on board died in the loss. After the ship was raised in 1961, The remains of 16 people were found."

More than 95 percent of the ship is original and it is decorated with hundreds of carved sculptures.

One of the questions the museum poses is "Who were the men and women from the Vasa.  Those who died when the Vasa sank are anonoymous to us.  But more than half of them survive as skeletal remains.

How can the skeletons bring us closer to the men and women from the 

Vasa?  Who were they?  How did they look? What had they experienced?  

 

They have consulted many scientific disciplines to get answers.  Sometimes there are no answers- just assumptions that can give wings to our imaginations."

They have reconstructed the faces of many of those who were on the ship.  This is Gustav a 40-45 year old and 160 meters tall.  His skeleton is almost intact.  He was short and his spine shows signs of hard work or illness.

These reconstructions were so real.You could almost feel them staring at you.

Beata was about 25 years old and is one of the two women found on board.  She was a guest and would have left the ship at Vaxholm, in the Stockholm archipelago.  There are clear signs that she had been undernourished and thus her drawn appearnace.  She is wearing the typical blouse and cap of the period.  

We ended up spending a lot more time here than we thought so by the time we got out it was time to head back to the hotel.  We caught the tram back and than we thought we'd catch the Number 2 bus to get us back to the hotel.  Well it started to rain a little, than a lot and we could not find the bus stop.  We ended up absolutely soaked running around trying to find the right stop.  We finally managed to get to the stop - a little worse for the wear but we made it back and it stopped raining by the time we had to walk from the bus stop to the hotel.  That will teach us to go out with any rain gear.  

That night we enjoyed a nice dinner at a little French/Swedish restaurant.

We have a half day left in Stockholm and than we board a ship to take us to Helsinki.   

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