Day 2: Stockholm

First, I must say that the most beautiful people in the world live here. Literally, the streets are teeming with gorgeous men, all of whom I've named 'Sven.' :)

Yesterday was a walking tour day, mostly of Gamla Stan (old town). We walked to the Sweden House, a tourist information center, on one of the main shopping districts just a few blocks from our hotel. It was there I purchased a map of Stockholm (we had two before, but both were 'general' maps, not nearly as comprehensive as we needed them) and we stopped at a public art display of 'Signspotting.' Signspotting is a collection of humorous signs from around the world all on display for your amusement. I laughed and laughed. I've taken plenty of pictures so you'll see them here when I return.

Also at the tourist center, I found out how to get to the world's largest IKEA. Happiness and joy are mine.

From the Signspotting exhibit, we wandered down a street towards the Royal Castle. Yes, Sweden still has royalty but much like the British royalty, they are ceremonial. Walked around the castle to the changing of the guard ceremony. Only about 10,000,000 tourists, as to be expected, were there but we did get a good view. Lots of pictures of the pagentry were taken.

From the castle we wandered out to find lunch at a local cafe. Meal prices here vary from middle to expensive, depending on time of day. Lunch seems to be the most economical, with salad, bread, drink and entree for about $12. Dinner last night, for example, was about $100 for the three of us, and each had an entree with one beer.

After lunch we wandered further into Gamla Stan to the waterfront, where we found some of the ferry tours that we may take today. Gamla Stan is large, with many streets, all of which are interesting in their own right. Many buildings have foundations from the 13th or 14th century and we went into a German Lutheran church in the heart of Gamla Stan yesterday that was built in 1771. To say it was ornate is to insult the place, as every single wall, ceiling panel, pew and railing was hand carved or painted with elaborate decorations. Unfortunately, pictures were not allowed in there, so I have no record of the place except in my memory.

Today is an early morning ferry tour of Stockholm then perhaps shopping this afternoon. It has been absolutely lovely to be here, the weather is perfect, in the 70s during the day and 50s at night. Very low humidity, although the cobblestone streets in Gamla Stan make for a very hearty hike.

Other observations: the national dessert here appears to be ice cream. Everywhere, every afternoon, we see nearly everyone eating an ice cream cone. Not a bad way to spend an afternoon, IMHO, but I can see that this hiking will go for naught as I have enjoyed my share of ice cream as well.

Saturday night, as we walked looking for the restaurant out of the guidebook, the streets were fairly silent, with only the laughter and clinking of glasses from the apartments above penetrating the quiet. To say there are few cars here is almost unfair, there are cars, but mainly there are people in trains, on bikes or on foot. There are designated bike lanes that are protected from the cars and the walking areas are for walking only. It's not at all like Indy where walkers, bikers and cars compete for the same space.

Okay, off to the ferry ...