OK, first and foremost i would like to write a retraction from my last story. I did not go to the city hall in copenhagen for a tour, the Nobel Prize Banquet is not held there, it is held in the city hall of Stockholm, Sweden. I'm sorry i got my days mixed up. I'm writing this a month late people and there is a damn good reason that this blog is called blurred memories!
So, i went to Sweden. And did a city hall tour in Stockholm evidentally. Sweden is lovely. There is unfortunately not as many tall, tanned, blonde, handsome young men named Sven as i was hoping but hey, maybe thats one of those unfair stereotypes. (On a similar note i got asked today by an old pommy guy if i was lived in summer bay - smartarse).
Anyhow Stockholm is lovely. Its alot like Copenhagen in the fact that there are more bicycles on the road than there are cars. No wonder everyone looks so fit and tanned. (Pay attention England and Australia! I think they are onto something here- if you provide good cycle roads people will ride to work, reduce traffic, and be healthier- it's not bloody rocket science!) Stockholm is made up of lots of little islands that are all interconnected. Its really pretty. There is an old part of the city called gamla stan (i think), and its all alleyways, cobbled streets, cosy stores charging ridiculous prices...that sort of thing. At the edge of this sort of is the royal palace. I went to the changing of the guard here too. Very different to the Danish one. Denmarks was musical and cheerful with fit looking mainly young men. Swedens was much more 'military', it was more like 'we are gurding something and not just putting on a show for the tourists'. Sweden is also a much more equal oppotunity employer in their armed forces. People i saw as part of the guards included: women, a woman who looked awfully like a man with a crew cut and everything- very g.i. jane, an old guy who looked at least 60, a fat guy,and a guy in sunnies. I thought it was pretty good.
After that we went to one of the more famous, yet embarassing museums in sweden, the Vasa Museum. This museum holds a very well preserved, very old boat. The story goes that in the 1500 or 1600s (can't remember the exact date) a big boat was built called the Vasa. On the day it was launched they put it in the water, it sailed about 1km, and sunk. I think it only lasted a few hours. Turns out the guy who built or designed the boat didn't really have much idea how buoyancy worked, and the thing was built all wrong and was always going to sink. Lots of innocent people died cos someone was a bit of a dill....or maybe just not very good at his job. The museum was really interesting, about 400 years after the boat sank they managed to dig it up from the harbour. It was in really good condition and alot of it was quite well preserved, sails, equipment, rigging, and the bones of some of the poor people that went down with it. Definately worth a visit, 2 thumbs up.
Stockholm was a very laid back relaxed place. I did the essential touristy things: boat ride, ate real swedish meatballs (no Damien the ones from Ikea don't count), saw the worlds first IKEA, shopped at ridiculously expensive prices, got lost, ate a lovely mixed plate of deer, reindeer, and elk. The first 2 weren't bad, but i didn't much like elk- much too strong of a flavour. When i ordered the plate i asked the waiter when it arrived which was which. He was pretty good but he completely forgot the word for deer. He stood there perplexed for a minute and said...'you know, um, Bambi!'. Needless to say i pissed myself laughing and enjoyed my bambi. We also went to one of the first ice bars. You know one of those places where everything is made out of ice and you wear a silly polar thing. It wasn't bad, but i expected there to be more ice.
The campsite we stayed at wasn't too bad but was in one of the outer parts of Stockholm. (NB be careful of lifts in train stations- you never know when the buggers will just stop without warning with you in them beteeen floors!- a few nervous moments there going into town!)Nearby there was a really lovely lake which we had campfires at 2 nights in a row and i got fully aquainted with my bottle of Baileys. The only problem was that the lake also seemed to be the drunk teenager hangout. I know this may be a gross generalisation but drunk swedish teenagers are some of the most irritating little buggers on earth. And some bastard stole poor Gavo's beer!
Good times, off to Norway next. Damn it i ran out of Baileys! And everything is soooooooo expensive! Scandi tan not making any progress really.
