The Beauty by the Sea

Last week I was blessed to be able to venture up to Stockholm, the beautiful capital city of Sweden. It certainly rings true to its image of being the "beauty by the sea". If it were a person, i would describe her as being majestic, creative, classic and humble.


Myself and two friends also on exchange in Lund, James and Chris, decided that we wanted to organise a trip to Russia ourselves! In order to obtain a Visa we needed to go to the Russian consulate in either Göthenburg, Sweden's second largest city, or Stockholm. Having wanted to visit Stockholm anyway, although Göthenburg was closer, we thought we may as well go the extra distance there (four hours on the train) and make a trip out of it! 


I caught the train up on the Tuesday with Will and Terry who joined us on the trip, "wowwing" at all of the beautiful lakes we passed and enjoying traveling through the heavy mist in amongst the forested areas.


A friend of mine from New Zealand, Krystal, who is living with her Swedish boyfriend Olaf in Stockholm kindly had us to stay. Was SO nice to have some fun girl company, and joke around New Zealand-style. We even stooped as low as getting gangsta to the beats of Savage, P-Money and the Decepticonzzzzz...

"Now drop it looooow and let me see your hips SWING

Down to the floooor now let me see your hips SWING

Down to the floooor now let me see your hips SWING"

Haha!! Oh the joy! THANK YOU Krystal and Olaf for having us to stay! You were the most hospitable hosts and far too kind.

I cannot even describe how beautiful Stockholm is. It is made up of over 14 islands, excluding the extensive archipelago that you can explore by boat. Over 30% of Stockholm is water and another 30% is made up of parks and green spaces (according to Wiki). 

We wandered through Gamla Stan, the "Old Town" of Stockholm, which is a cute medieval-style area. Central to this is the stortoget, the main square, where the well-known Stockholm Blood Bath occured. There is also the beautiful German church on the corner - such an elaborate church that is rather square in shape. This is where the royals get married. The Nobel Prize Museum is also situated on the Stortoget. It is Swedish is origin after all, although the Peace Prize is giving out in Norway. Was neat to go to it - there was an exhibition on about the invention of the telescope. Very fascinating.

Krystal and Tez being very patriotic just like the Swedes to the left, Will and Tez in the old phone booths to the right

Gorgeous streets of Gamla Stan...

We also took a wander across from Gamla Stan to Norrmalm, considered the most central part of Stockholm. It certainly wasnt as pretty as the rest of stockholm with horrible 80s architecture and busy streets filled with the usual department and chain stores. Certainly felt a bit grubby in comparison to everywhere else.


The photo below was taken at dusk as we walked over the bridge from the wealthiest area of Östermalm to the island of Djurgärden on our way to Nordiska Museet. Following the museum we walked along the most prestigious street called Strandvägen, a boulevard lined with super-yachts and launches, parrallel to the large apartments opposite. One of the most stunning views at night. This was the actual colour too!! Couldn't believe it.

The island of Djugärden also houses the beautiful botanical gardens, along with Skansen, the open air museum which shows in real size, how Swedes have lived in the 19th Century, including their native Sami tribe. There was even a zoo! Will and I voted the owls our favourites. Watching their necks move put us in hysterics! Walking around this island, with the autumn colours splashed everywhere, certainly took my breath away. Unfortch my camera died and i forgot the charger, so i could not capture the beauty of the place, but it certainly has been captured in my mind!

I spent a lot of time exploring the island of Södermalm that connects to the Southern end of Gamla Stan. The photo below is taken of Gamla Stan from the bridge connecting the two islands. Södermalm is one of the largest and most populated islands and one of the trendiest! The area south of Slussen, a well known innovative traffic intersection connecting the two islands, is known for its second hand shops, boutiques and cafes. It is known as the bohemian area of Stockholm, relabelled SoFo with all the shops located South of Fulkgatan (one of the main streets). It used to be a working class area but due to gentrification has undergone transformation, housing more of the alternative and artsy dwellers who have some money. Its a bit of a treat walking around this area - you really can get away with wearing anything, no matter how outrageous it may be. A highlight for me was sitting in one of the quirkiest cafes where you could purchase the second hand furniture you were sitting on if you so desired, feeling inspired by the styles of those that wandered by. Then subsequently getting lost in the shops, searching for some warm winter buys was a bit of fun too. If i lived in Stockholm, this would certainly be a neat place to live.

The north eastern area of Södermalm is characterised by its views. Krystal works in a restaurant called Herkules that is situated right on the edge of the cliff, looking back across to the other islands. Possibly one of the best workplaces with a view! It is such a gorgeous view too. The north western area of the island was characterised by its art galleries and also its stunning views along the cliffs. As i was walking to the cliffs, i ventured into the galleries. Lucky for me i managed to find myself in an exhibition showing old nude people, many of them in rude positions, that my innocent and young eyes just shouldnt have seen! It was only when i saw the second photo that i realised there was a bit of a theme to what i was seeing. Trying to look interested, yet feeling rather startled, i picked up my pace and got out of the exhibition swiftly. What surprised me was the large number of older people looking at the photos and seeming far too interested in what they were seeing...

Getting the Visa was a bit of a mish - due to my stuff-ups (yes, more than one) it ended up taking a couple of days to get it sorted. Obtaining a Russian Tourist Visa is harder than most places. You need to get "invited" by an organisation in Russia (we paid someone to invite us), have all your accommodation booked and documented, fill out the Visa application in a specific way - cant make a mistake at all, have to go to the consulate yourself - cant send it in, and basically not be a criminal (definitely the hardest part). Then once you arrive in Russia you have to "register" at every new place you go to - thats $30 NZD down the drain everytime. You can only stay in Russia for 30 days too, which makes it especially difficult for those wanting to travel along the Trans-Siberian railway as well as the large cities. Whilst in Russia you have to keep a copy of your passport, visa and registration whereever you go, otherwise you can receive a huge fine and be followed up by the police, which is not a fun situation in a country with a corrupt police force. Basically the whole process is just a whole lot of documentation of the documented documentation that required a lot of documentation of documents. Enough said.

All in all, a very lovely and successful trip to Stockholm. Definitely have to go back there. Its one of the cities that i have visited to date that i would seriously consider living it. I'm hesitant to say it, but i would probably consider it my favourite city in terms of quality of life. I loved the fusion between the stunning natural landscape and the creativity expressed everywhere; in the buildings, the fashion and ingrained in the culture.

For a visual snippet of Stockholm click here for my photos