We awake on the ship to watch the small islands of the Swedish inlet pass by. The route to Stockholm requires the ship to slow down and navigate the many channels leading to the city. Having passed the time-line, we have gained an hour on our morning and thus have extra time to pack up and take a quick look on the top deck as the ship pulls into port. I’m disappointed that unlike in Helsinki, the port we have come into is quite far from the city, in an industrial looking area. We head towards the information and desk and I instantly regret not having consulted them the night before when there was no one, the line at the desk is quite long. The ship has organized a bus to take passengers to the city centre for only 3 euros, and so we rush down and are among the last to climb on. Dropping us at the central train station, we try to gain our bearings to make our way to our hostel. I had booked us a private room at the Långholmen, a hotel and hostel built inside a converted prison. My flatmate Katarina had recommended the place as being inside a nice park, which I’m sure it is in summer, but now it seems a bit of a trek and too far from the city centre. We get a bit lost which dampers our enthusiasm, and are instantly shocked that our metro ride to the hostel costs 80 Kr for two (about 9 euros). However we realize that we had in fact been sold a ticket for all regions in Stockholm (whereas we only needed region 1), even so we realize that this town is quite a bit more expensive than our previous destinations, in fact it is almost comparable to London.
We finally find the hostel but immediately start considering switching, the trek was demoralizing and we realize that if we are out late we may face a difficult return home. On the plus side the metro runs until 3am in Stockholm, an unheard of time in Europe! Our room is a former jail cell which in itself is quite novel, but as far as hostels go it is actually closer to a hotel. Linens and towels do cost extra to rent, however we have an en-suite bathroom and shower, a small flat screen on the wall, a desk, and other amenities one never receives at a hostel. The only downside is the size of the room, with bunk beds (we push the top one into the wall), there is only a small distance between the bed and the wall.We decide to head out and start by looking into another hostel, the only other hostel which interest me is City Backpackers located near the train station which is very well reviewed on the hostel websites, however they are full, so we accept our “imprisonment” at Långholmen for at least the 2 nights. One the 3rd night I have the Sheraton booked as a birthday present to myself.
We buy metro day cards, mostly out of the shock at our 40 Kr single trip, which makes the 90 Kr day pass seem a bargain (though our calculations were off). We ride the metro back to Gamla Stan, the island containing the Palace and historical centre. We stroll about but the wind is cold and it actually begins to snow, further dampening our moods. To seek shelter from the wind we stumble into a side door of a building to find ourselves inside the Stockholm Cathedral (Storkyrkan), the building built in 1279 offers us some peace and warmth, and we slowly wander to appreciate it. Heading back outside we walk up towards the palace and stumble upon a changing of the guard, the sentries wear blue uniforms and helmets which remind me of the German ones from the first world war (with the little spike on the top). Unlike British sentries, these guards are free to move their legs about, smile back at tourists and even talk, it seems a bit lax, but then again it’s a bit of an archaic tradition anyways. Since we are headed to the palace tomorrow anyways we head off.Tatevik visited Stockholm a few years ago with her family and recalls a shopping street under an arch. So we head to the main train station to inquire at the tourist office. The lady believes that she might know what Tatevik is referring to and circles a spot on a map she gives us. We also repay our 2nd visit to the cash machines and exchange offices, having quickly used up what the Kroners we had. We walk to the arch and the shopping street but it doesn’t seem to be what Tatevik remembered, we walk along past the shops and Tatevik buys a fleece headband to keep her ears warm, a red one to match her coat.
We ride the metro south, only because I had heard from several people that “the south is cool”. However we have no idea what we are specifically headed to. We exit by pure chance at the Katarinahissen, a giant outdoors elevator that my flatmate Katarina had mentioned to me. The landscape is such that a giant hill is right behind to road on the coast, there is a winding path leading up to the top of that hill, however the lift goes straight up 83 meters and then has a bridge that takes you to the top of the hill. We ride up to take in the views of the old town and wander, as I vaguely recall my flatmate Rickard telling me that there is a nice place for “cakes and tea” and a park behind the elevator. Certainly there might be in the summer, but the wind keeps people indoors, and so we walk to the nearest park which turns out to be a church with a large cemetery. From outside the church we can hear a classical concert being held and we peek inside, but aren’t interested in buying tickets. We meander down to a main square with a shopping centre, but everything is closed. Feeling a little exhausted we take the metro back to a grocery store to buy food for dinner and return to the hostel.Cooking in the hostel we make a mushroom soup and some chicken, we’re eating when Harry Potter comes on, We finish watching the movie in our room and are on the verge of getting ready when Silence of the Lambs comes on, while we both know we ought to go out, I am tired, and Tatevik is still suffering her cold, so we opt for rest.
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