When: 19/08/2011

Where: Stockholm, Sweden

Stayed: Park Inn, Hammarby

Before going to Stockholm, I pictured the city being full of blue eyes and blonde hair. In reality, add to that bronzed, fit bodies with legs up to the heavens and you have a pretty accurate picture of the general population. People watching was a premium experience with the sidewalk doubling as a catwalk as the locals strutted their stuff. We couldn’t work out whether there’d been a huge amount of incest that had taken place or people simply looked very similar. Justin astutely pointed out that ‘Sweden’s next top model’ would be extremely competitive and probably a little unfair to contestants considering the questionable calibre in other countries. Yep we dealt with all the big issues on this trip.

We stayed in a part of Stockholm called Sodra Hammarby-hamnen which was south of the central part of the city. Turns out this was quite a new area, not unlike the Docklands in Melbourne where everything is shiny and new but you could shoot a cannon through the area and not hit anyone. Unfortunately it felt a bit like death by apartment with very little atmosphere. Nevertheless, city access using Stockholms god sent transport system was very easy. As most people know, Stockholm is composed of 14 islands with around 30% of the city being made up of waterways. Needless to say, the best way to see Stockholm is by boat. Being out on the water gave a real sense of just how beautiful the city is.

Cruising between the islands of the archipelago and gaping at the huge summer houses that adorn the islands made us seriously question whether it would be feasible to relocate our lives. We were quickly brought back to reality by the tour guide who informed us that due to the ice in Winter (which can spread as wide as 2.5 miles!), quite often the only way to get around is by helicopter.

Apparently the island inhabitants have ‘the right’ to call for a helicopter should they need transport.

A very foreign concept to us Aussies that’s for sure. 
Back on land and we discovered just how different each part of Stockholm is. Gamla Stan (old town) with its cobbled streets, over priced restaurants and souvenirs, was a magnet for the sensible shoe wearing tourist. Djurgarden, home to a few of the big museums such as Vasamuseet and Nordiska museet ,was very pretty but also crawling with camera bearing visitors. We almost added ourselves to the roll call at Vasamuseet where the oldest ship in history is on display; apparently it sailed for only 20mins before sinking back in the 16^th century. However we left skid marks on the ground in our haste to get away once we saw the length of the queue. We decided to ‘get ourselves some culture’ at a local bar instead.

The suburb of Ostermalm appeared to be more of a local haunt with designer stores, upmarket cafes, some fantastic restaurants and people wearing far more inappropriate footwear (sure sign of locals). We set up camp in Nya Lydmar, a flashy hotel bar, one rainy afternoon and rubbed shoulders with some glamorous locals over a couple of obscenely expensive glasses of wine. Drinking outside our means we shortly hot-footed it back to Sodermalm which has more of a Bohemian feel to it – and doesn’t  give you heart palpitations every time the bill arrives. After receiving some local advice from a friend of my brothers (Jo), we bar hopped our way around this area – Sodra Bar and Och himlen darbill bar to name a few. For dinner we emptied our pockets at a local favourite – Hjordis.

All in all we declared Stockholm in the top 2 of all time favourite cities. If you can suck up the exorbitant prices – the surprisingly friendly people, extraordinarily beautiful, safe and clean city and sensational food are well worth the re-mortgage on your house.

Stockholm top ten:

1.Fully expect to feel like the ugliest person on the street
2.Don’t dilly dally because the public transport timing is incredibly precise and won’t wait
3.Don’t expect to find Swedish food in Stockholm – apparently the Swedes don’t really eat it
4.Some of the Swedes speak better English than we do; pack your best English so you don’t put yourself (and our country) to shame
5.Play spot the rubbish on the street and you’ll be pretty bored
6.Ostermalm and Sodermalm provide the best catwalks
7.Expect to feel like you’ve been robbed on return
8.There are several bars masquerading as ‘Sky Bars’ in Stockholm – beware
9.Unlike London, when the forecast says rain, it’s not kidding so pack your umbrella
10.Unlike London, there’s no need to padlock your handbag to your body in Stockholm

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