“The best way to get comfortable with a new place is to roam around, by foot, alone, with a decent map, and ample time”
– Aditya Bhushan
Considering its one my own sayings, I had to follow it (practice before preach :) ), and so I did. Well not completely sticking to it, as was not alone, but I did cover a few kilometers of the beautiful central Stockholm by foot, second day of my arriving here. I had two excellent talking maps with me (Sheenam and Richa, pun unintended..), ample time as we had left early, excellent weather as it was still ‘summer’ and enough curiosity to keep me moving for quite a few hours that day.. :) .. So here’s an account of my first experience of true “European Culture”.
Took the green line of metro (Tunnelbana or ‘T’ as they call it here) and got down at the ‘Slussen’ station. At the station we were pleasantly welcomed with a free sample of Strawberry flavored yoghurt (it was good marketing.. I have been buying quite a few of those since then)..
Katarinahissen
Views from the Katarinahissen
Our first stop was “Katarinahissen”, just outside the Slussen station. In theory it is just a public lift that takes you from Slussen to Sodermalm which is located at a height of around 40Mts. But the breathtaking views of the city from the top make it a tourist attraction. Instead of taking the lift, we took the stairs (to keep us in good health, and more importantly good wealth ;) .. it costs to take the lift, just 10 SEK though).
Moving along the Stockholm shoreline
Left to Right: An open air cafe, The beautiful shoreline, Small restaurants along the beach
The places I have been impressed most in my life invariably have a water body around. Be it Goa, Mumbai, Kerala, Langkawi (Malaysia), San Francisco or Los Angeles. And Stockholm is no exception. The city is situated on the shores of “Baltic Sea”, and the sea water trapped between the Stockholm Archipelago is clean and calm. No big sea waves, no gushing river water… its just kind of still, like a big beautiful lake.. a really big one.. And the shores along this water are huge tourist attractions.. So coming down from Katarinahissen, we started walking along the shore, moving from Slussen, towards Gamlastan. The shoreline was very well maintained, with numerous open air bars, cafe’s and restaurants (A Europe speciality). And as the sun was shining bright, there were people all around, with women in ‘interesting’ attires.. :).
The city had started to get inside me, making me feel as if i belong here…
The Royal Palace
Left to Right: The main entrance, Information, The courtyard inside
The next destination in our day’s excursion was the The Royal Palace. Being used to seeing the grandeur of the forts in India, specially the ones in Rajasthan, this one was bit of a let down (and its supposedly one of the biggest in Europe!). Still, the interesting sculptures, funny attire of guards standing outside and a peek into the museum made it an interesting visit. But we didn’t stay there for long and moved on…
The City Hall
Left to Right: City hall from a distance, The lawn at the back of City hall
Next we moved on to the City Hall, which is termed as the main symbol of Stockholm city. The building with three golden crowns on its spire, has a museum (which we didn’t go inside), a souvenir shop, and a beautiful sculptured lawn at the back. There were at least 10 Christian weddings solemnizing simultaneously there, so this must be one of the most sought after wedding venues in Sweden.
And how can i forget the ‘Falafel Burger’ that we had just outside the city hall at one of the street side cafe… To date, its one of the best Falafel’s that i have had.. Sad, the store is closed for winters now.. :(
The T Centralen market (Drottninggatan Street)
Left to Right: The market street, and.. That’s me
The final destination of the day was the T Centralen market on the Drottninggatan Street. T Centralen is the central location of Stockholm. All trains (T, J, Regional, Arlanda Express etc) pass through this station. This is place where you can trains and buses to various locations across Europe as well.
But for us, it is the most happening place in Stockholm. All major brand stores, various restaurants and pubs and amazing crowd (you know what i mean!). The place is bustling with activity all day round, and on weekends, all night round as well. That day, we just walked across the street, admiring the views, cursing the prices and enjoying every moment.
That brought an end to a day, which transformed me, from a complete stranger, to someone who felt like being a part of the city since God knows when!..
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