Arrived half past two in the afternoon at Stockholmm Arlande Airport. I was feeling alright even though I had an 8-hour transit at Doha Airport, and slept on the floor of the transit lounge with my bedsheets. Qatar Airline has also stopped providing free meals at the airport for transit passengers since May. Was it due to cost cutting measures?
Immigration clearance at the Swedish airport was slow. The staff at the information counter however was friendly, and you could purchase the 99 Kronas bus ticket to the city centre, lasting 50 minutes. I alighted one stop earlier and thus had to drag my for a longer distance. There is a faster train services to the city centre but it costs more.
The City Backpackers Hostel is conveniently located in the city area and is 15 minutes walking distance to the Old Town. The rooms are comfortable and clean and there were free computer terminals at the lounge area. Free pasta was provided in the kitchen.
The supermarket is about 10 to 15 minutes walk away and the food items are generally reasonably priced. For example, a roasted chicken cost US$7 which was good for 4 meal portions. An egg was about US$0.40. As meals in restaurants are expensive. self catering at hostel is a good option
After settling down quickly, I walked along the main shopping area, which was a block away from the hostel, and headed towards the Old Town, where the Royal Palace is also located.
The Old Town was well maintained and painted. The buildings were mainly used asrestaurants and souvenir shops. Tourists wandered along the cobbled streets, and chanced upon a square or a church occasionally. The Old Town itself was not big and could be easily covered in less than 2 hours.
End of Day 1.
I did not have an early start the following morning. Obtained some information from the tourist information centre and headed to the Royal Palace at the Old Town. The Palace was closed on a Monday but there were tourists gathering outside to observe the changing of the guards.
....of course I joined in the crowd.
Honestly, the changing of the guards was not spectacular for that day. I was informed that in September, the grand changing of the guards take place only on Wednesdays and Sundays.
I never got to enter the Royal Palace in this trip as there was a state visit on the following day. Well, as someone said, one must have some regrets when visiting a place so that he or she would want to return again.
I literally dashed to the City Hall so as to make it for the noon guided tour. The City Hall is known for the dinner reception venue for the Nobel prize ceremony.
We were brought around the City Hall, which has three beautiful banquet halls. This is the main one where the Nobel Price dinner reception would be held:
The second function hall on the second level
And further up, my favourite function room:
There was also a display of the cutlery used for the Nobel Prize dinner reception. Apparently, quite a number of invited guests kept them as souvenir after the dinner.
The City Hall is also the place where the Parliament meets. Currently, there are more women Member of Parliaments than men. Parliament meets once in three weeks on a Monday, from 4 to 10 pm. While we were told that we could attend the sitting, I could not find the entrance to the gallery seats on that night. A pity.
You could also ascend the clock tower to have the bird's eye view of the city (extra charges). I however was not keen on climbing stairs and the weather was not great either. Overall the City Hall is a highly recommended place to visit in Stockholm - the guide provided good commentary of the place.
Had a quick sandwich lunch and proceeded to the newly opened ABBA Museum. ABBA Museum is meant more for fans and those who like the movie Mama Mia. Besides the usual exhibits on Abba and the members, visitors could participate in interactive activities such as mixing a song, do a song recording, be the 5th member of ABBA. All the activities participated could be downloaded for your own keep. There is also a Sweden Hall of Music exhibition, which will be more suited for the Swedes. Is ABBA Museum worth a visit? Yes, if you are a fan and if you are game enough to perform the activities.
See More on ABBA Museum
It was past 4 pm when I entered the Vasa Museum, one of the top attractions in Stockholm. Decided to do a quick visit as it was in the same vicinity as the ABBA Museum and also it was a distance away from the hostel.
It was definitely one of the memorable visits in Stockholm. The museum houses a 17th century vessel that was recovered from the ocean bed. The vessel itself was about 7 storey high.
End of Day 2.
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| Monogram by Robert Rauschenberg |
Did not have an early start on the third day. As there was a state visit to the Royal Palace where the main rooms would not be available for viewing, I decided to spend time at the Moderna Muset. It turned out to be a fruitful trip as the exhibits were interesting.
Works of Niki de Saint Phalle
I was excited that a special exhibition on Marcel Duchamp was on. I learnt about him when I took up a Coursera module on visual arts. I like the way he used everyday object and turned it into something unique.
I also had my first proper meal at a restaurant located within the Museum. The pork was good and the side dishes were filling. Views from the restaurant was beautiful.
In the evening, I caught a dance performance Plateau Effect by one of the top Swedish dance companies Culberg Ballet. The venue Hus was just next door to the backpackers' hostel. It was a good performance and the audience was appreciative. Read more on the performance.
Basically that was the end of my Stockholm trip.
A brief introduction to Sweden. Will I be back? Yes, Stockholm is a pleasant city which makes it great to walk around. And of course, there is the Royal Palace.....
