Monday, August 3, 2009

I come from Sweden

The next port of call on the cruise was the city of Stockholm in Sweden. It was the first of a few Scandinavian countries that we would be visiting and we were all really excited. We started our day at the Vasa Museum, which is dedicated to a very famous Swedish ship that sunk on its maiden voyage. It had lain on the bottom of the ocean for 333 years before it was found and pulled up to the surface. The ship is in great condition due to the type of water in the cities harbor and would not have survived like it did in many other places. The ship was incredible and the museum had some great exhibits on life as a sailor in the 1600’s. After leaving the museum we did some walking around and ended up at a traditional Swedish village park, Skansen. The area had a village showing 18th and 19th century life in Sweden. The little city had operating bakeries, glass blowing and people dressed in native outfits. It was so easy to immerse yourself in the culture and feel like you had just stepped back 200 years. There was also a small zoo around with traditional Scandinavian animals. Wolverines, Bears, huge elk and Reindeers were the highlights. The goats were also entertaining as they were constantly making calls one after another.

We walked around Galma Stam, the old town, for a couple of hours in the afternoon. The area was made up of cobblestone streets lined with markets and shops. The local people are all very attractive and that always makes the people watching more entertaining. We also explored the local shops and looked at the very funky Tamrac Trolls. Some things that other countries are known for are just funny and weird. We only had a couple of hours left until the ship sailed so we went into the main part of the city to check out the Icebar. It’s a bar that is entirely made out of ice and they serve drinks in glasses made of ice. The temperature is below freezing so they give everyone these warm jackets and they made everyone look like a blue marshmallow. You cant stay in there too long and it doesn’t help when most of us were wearing shorts but it’s a fun experience.

Overall it was a really good day. Stockholm is a beautiful city and I would go back there in a heartbeat. Swedish people live up to their reputations for being beautiful and the city is equally nice to look at. The traditional European architecture and multi-colored buildings make Stockholm and great city to visit.

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