Stockholm i mitt hjärta, Part 6 - Sigtuna

Today, we are visiting the beautiful town of Sigtuna, a one hour's journey by train and bus from Stockholm. It is the oldest town in Sweden, founded in 980 at the shores of Lake Mälaren, and one of my favourite places. It has a picturesque medieval town centre with Sigtuna rådhus, the town hall, built in 1744.

Stora gatan, the main street with its beautiful old buildings, takes you from one end of the town (the bus stop) to the other and down to the harbour and water front.

At the harbour, we stop and have a cup of tea in good company, soak up the atmosphere and get ready to explore the town.

Along Strandvägen, there are many opportunities to stop, sit down and enjoy the views over the water. More intimate ones...

... and bigger ones, where you can meet the locals.

There are many runestones in Stiguna, ...

... and some church ruins too. The ruins of Sankt Olofs kyrka, the church of St Olof, built in around 1100 and situated in the churchyard of Mariakyrkan.

Climbing up a little green hill, an old bell tower is hidden among the trees.

At the edge of the town centre, we come across the ruins of Sankt Pers kyrkan, the church of Saint Per, also built around 1100.

Can I get a job here please?

We're back in the main street...

... but before we head to the bus stop and off back to Stochkom, there's time for a cup of tea and a slice of blåbärspaj med vispgrädde (blueberry tart with whipped cream) at Tant Bruns Kaffestuga. You simply can't go to Sigtuna and not visit Tant Brun. Tant Brun is a character from the much loved childrens books about  Tant Grön, tant Brun och tant Gredelin by Elsa Beskow (1874-1953). The building is one of Sigtuna's oldest, and the café among the oldest cafés in Sweden. And the pies and cakes are delicious.

Stockholm i mitt hjärta, Part 5 - Södermalm

It's been absolute ages since the last part of my little Stockholm series but there are still a few places to go and sights to see. Last time, we've visited the told town, Gamla Stan. Today, from there we're crossing the bridge and take a stroll around parts of Södermalm. First we walk up to the thop of Katarinahissen, from where we enjoy the view over Slussen and Gamla Stan...

... and Ryssgården square and the city museum, Stockholms stadsmuseum. On a fine day like today, we can see all the way across the water Kungsholmen and with its dominant Stadshuset.

We then climb a bit further up the hill and enjoy the sun and a cup of coffee at Mosebacke.

Refereshed from the break, we explore walk on eastwards past Katarina kyrkan...

... and through the small cobblestoned Mäster Mikaels Gata with its charming old cottages, many of which built of wood.

We walk along the top of the steep cliffs, enjoying the beautiful view of the Gamla Stan across the water as well as the local wild life.

Why not stop at the little cafe with the beautiful view and enjoy a delicious ice cream. It is, after all, a lovely and warm spring evening.

Let's cast one last look back over the water, to the lush greens of Djurgården, before we head back to the bustling city.

Next time, we'll head out of the city again to visit the oldest town in Sweden. I hope you'll join me again.

Stockholm i mitt hjärta, Part 4 - Gamla Stan

I've meant to post some drawings, sketches, or even paintings after all the photography posts, but I just haven't got round to doing much. So I'm sharing some more photos today, another part of my Stockholm series.

And oh my, it has been ages since my last post in this series - June, to be exact, and not June last year, but June 2013! High time for a new post, and there are still some more places I to go to. Last time, we visited lovely Djurgården and spent some time in the outdoor museum Skansen. Now let us venture into the heart of the city, the old town, that dates back to the 13th century - Gamla Stan. Let us stroll through the narrow alleys, preferably the quieter ones, away from the crowds.

Gamla Stan is probably the most photographed part of Stockholm, and it seems that it's always the same lanes, places and corners that get captured. So I've played around with textures, to try and make them look a bit different.

Can I get a job here, please?

Even though the main alleys and squares can get very crowed during the holiday season, Stortorget (the big square), is still worth a visit. Not only because of the beautiful old buildings surrounding it, but also because of one of my favourite cafés - Chokladkoppen. A big cup of hot white chocolate is just the perfect thing to warm you up on a cold day. And in summer, you can sit outside, and watch the people on the square and enjoy the mild air, and a slice of white chocolate cheese cake.

Tyska kyrkan (the German church), or Sankta Gertruds kyrka, was founded in 1571.

There are, of course, many more interesting sights and buildings in Gamla stan - among them Stockholms slott (Stockholm palace), also know as Kungliga slottet (the Royal palace). But we'll leave the old town now, for some more exploring. I haven't yet decided yet where we will go next time, but it will definitely a nice place.

Stockholm i mitt hjärta, Part 3 - Djurgården & Skansen

Welcome back to lovely Stockholm! It's been a while since my last post in this series, but today, we're going to spend a lovely late summer's day on the island of Djurgården, visiting the outdoor museum Skansen, and enjoying a nice cup of coffe and a slice of cake. The best way to get to Djurgården is to walk along Strandvägen and across Djurgårdsbron. There are some great museums, the impressive Nordiska Museet, the fascinating Vasamuseet, and the charming Junibacken. But it's such a nice and sunny day, that it is best to spend it outdoors.

There's so much to see at Skansen, the outdoor museum, that we head there straight away. We're taking the the main entrance, which means you can take the escalator up (you could of course walk, if you wanted), and then wander around the little village with all its different and craft workshops for a bit. Then why not take a cup of coffee in the shade before setting off to explore the rest of the place.

Skansen is full of historical buildings and sites from all over Sweden, it's a walk through time and space.

I think it's time for a refreshing ice cream now, after all the walking...

And off we go again, to visit some of the animals in the zoo. Of course there has to be reindeers and mooses, they're so typical of Sweden, aren't they. The reindeers don't seem to enjoy this hot late summer's day very much, they are all lying on the ground panting. And the moose seems to prefer to lie in the most muddy patch - I guess it's the coolest place there.

We enjoy the views over the city one more time, before leaving Skansen to go for a little stroll to some other parts on Djurgården.

Walking northwards along the water to Waldemarsudde, where we spend the rest of the afternoon in the café, enjoying the sun, a nice cup of coffe - and a delicious blåbärspaj med vispgrädde. No wonder, the little bird is eyeing the cake enviously, it really is most yummy!

There's a lot more to see and do, you can spend all day on the island, walking around and visiting galleries and other places of interest. But we'll leave Djurården for now, after all, there's so much more to visit and explore in Stockholm. I hope you enjoyed our little tour, and will join me again in the next part of this series, which hopefully will be up soon.

Stockholm i mitt hjärta, Part 2 - Daytrip to Vaxholm

It's time for another visit to lovely Stockholm, but before we venture into the city to take in all the sights, we go on a little day trip. A few miles north of Stockholm, on Vaxö, one of the many islands of Stockholm's archipelago, lies the town of Vaxholm. To travel there in style would of course be by boat. But as someone who loves to be at the sea, but prefers not to be on or in it, I took the bus. The journey takes about a good half hour, if I remember rightly, so a little walk was the thing to do first upon my arrival. I walked along the water, not really knowing where I was going, just following the path. And a very nice path it was.

Eventually, I came to a lovely little bay, Norrhamn, the northern harbour. What a beautiful sight it was, even if the sky was rather grey most of the time of my visit.

At the other side of the bay was a lovely café, Hembygdsgårds Café. It's back garden at the water offered a pretty view. As it was lunchtime, I decided to stay there for lunch and had a delicious meal, of which the café's cat was obviously very envious.

After lunch, I set out to explore the rest of the town. But alas, I didn't get very far. The cake's buffet was just far too tempting. I mean, who could resist a lovely Polkagris Cheescake? Not me, certainly. And anyway, it's a holiday. So where was I going to rush to anyway?? So cake it was, and a cup of coffe, and I was lucky enough to get what was probably the best seat on the entire island, on the café's porch. And the sun came out for a short time too. Perfect.

Now I really set off to see some sights. I walked back the same way I had come, simply because it was such a lovely walk, and then took the little ferry to take me to Kastellet, Vaxholm's castle, which sits on its own little island. It's origins go back to the early 15th century, but to be honest, I don't think it's a very exciting place. There's a museum, but I didn't go in. Instead, I just walked once around the island, and once around the courtyard, and then went back to catch the next ferry. 

What I did like a lot, though, were all the little details in every corner. Flowery bicycles and boots, and a perfect corner to spend the evening reading in the afternoon sun.

It was getting late in the afternoon, and so there was just time for an ice cream and a stroll around the town's centre and harbour, before it was time to get the bus back to Stockholm.

I'm trying very hard to stick to the "less is more" principle with my photos, but I'm afraid I'm not doing a very good job. But I've got just too many of them. Believe me, this is still just a very small selection, I've got loads and loads more. And I hope you'll join me again next time, when we will finally venture into the city of Stockholm.

Stockholm i mitt hjärta

When I arrive at Arlanda, Stockholm's international airport, it always feels to me like I'm coming home. Ever since that day in July 2001, when I, an exchange student full of expectations and a very basic knowledge of Swedish, arrived in that country and city (and it was my first ever visit to Scandinavia), that was going to be my home for the following 12 month, I felt I had come home. And it still feels like home, every time I go there. And even when I’m not there.

Last year, after not having been up there for a good 6 years, I decided that it was high time for a visit. I booked a one week's holiday, all on my own deliberately. This was going to be a week of just me and the city, a trip down memory lane, a week of re-visiting all my favourite places. I was so excited when I left for my holiday. What would the city be like, look like, feel like, after all these years? Again, it immediately felt like home.

One of my first trips led me up to Frescati, where the university is located. It was my first visit up there after ten years, and I admit that I chose a Saturday morning for my visit on purpose - when the university campus could be expected to be relatively empty. Yes, I was a little bit afraid that this visit might turn into a bit of a sad, melancholic experience, but I'm happy to say that I spent a wonderful Saturday morning and early afternoon up there. I wandered through the corridors that connect the six buildings of the university's Södra huset, popped into the university library, where I spent a good many hours, and treated my self to a big bag of my favourite sweets at the shop.

I then walked up to 'Lappis', the student housing area, and looked up to the window of “my” room, wondering who was living there now, and if they enjoyed their time there as much as I had. The university campus is situated in Norra Djurgården, which is part of the city's national park. As I had done so many times before, I followed the path behind my "building" to Lilla Värtan, along the strait on the one side, and Stora Lappskärsberget on the other, and on to Lilla Lappskärsberget and into the woods of Lilla Skuggan.

I was looking for a very specific place, a little lake in the middle of Stora Skuggan area, where I had sat many evenings, enjoying the long Scandinavian summer evenings. It was a wonderful day, blue sky, mild temperatures, a light breeze (that would bring some rain only a few hours later), and I spent a good hour there, enjoying the silence, reminiscing, and eating far too many very sour, but oh so wickedly delicious 'godis', before returning to the city centre.

I spent a wonderful week in Stockholm, and I was surprised, and pleased, how little had changed - all my favourite shops, cafés, places, everything was still exactly how and  where it had been 10 years ago. I visited many more great places - so watch this space, there'll be more coming.