Day 13 - Stockholm Sweden

Pouring Rain - all day



Vasa Ship Model



Morning came early for me with the final time change back to 6 hours difference or +2 GMT. When in St. Petersburg we were at +4 GMT.

It was a miserable morning in Stockholm Sweden as it was cold and wet. It rained solidly during the night and it seemed it would continue through the day. It was only 8 degrees outside. We had our breakfast in a very busy Horizon Cafe and sat with some Iranian people who were not really enjoying the cruise. They complained of the food and the inconveniences which contrasted with our experiences. Fortunately the encounter was brief.

We joined the the tour process of getting off the ship for the third and final time. The tour we were on was to visit the Vasa Museum and to visit the City Hall. It was planned as a 4 hour tour and even though we had tried to cancel the tour the day before we were happy to be on it as navigating through Stockholm in the rain was not going to be fun. The tour guide was knowledgable and local and she was well prepared and experienced. She chatted to us aboard the bus as we drove to our first destination. Stockholm is a clean orderly and beautiful city. It is a place I would like to return to one day as we were seeing it in the worst light. It has a deep maritime influence as all of the people and businesses are focused on their maritime lifestyle. King Gustavo Adolphus ( the second I believe) had ordered the building of the Vasa battleship back in 1600 and something. It was very large and in the end the king ordered that an additional deck be added to the design. The architect protested to no avail and the ship was built. On its maiden voyage filled with soldiers and their families the ship listed one way and then the other and then it sank into the Stockholm Harbour. A few hundred people died and many of the locals watched the tragedy from the shore. In the 50's some adventurers found the ship at the bottom of the harbour pretty much intact. After much planning it was floated to the surface and once there the hull was capable of floating to shore. The last movement was to a place where a museum was built around the ship. Over the more cent years the ship has been re-constructed and preserved so it could be viewed by millions of tourists each year and scientists could learn from the experience of 400 years under the sea. It was a very interesting 90 minutes at the museum even though it was a very busy place on this rainy day.



Corner in Gold Room - Excellent use of Mosaic Tile

Our trip across town was pretty uneventful but we observed many nice buildings and enjoyed the seemingly tiny streets of this city. The City Hall visit was much more structured as people had to be in groups as this location was a functioning office building for city officials. The architecture and finish were the attractions here. The architectural design and finish were engineered by a local architect who won great praise for his work. Some of the bricks used in the construction were carved and we saw one that weighed 8 kg by itself. The main atrium and the gold room are large halls that can be rented for special occasions. This is also the place where the banquet for the annual Nobel Peace Prize dinner is held each year. I guess that is the real attraction for folks. It was a brief but interesting tour. We then boarded the bus and drove to old town for a very brief and wet walk to the centre square to get a feel for the history of the city. It was too cold and wet to really enjoy it but it has an attraction for us and we hope to return one day - preferably on a sunny and warm day. We then drove back to the ship as we were departing Stockholm at 2 PM. I was looking forward to cruise through the Stockholm Archipelago as it would show us about 85 km of cottages, homes and many boats of all sizes. That proved to be a high point of the afternoon and it took about 4 hours to clear the archipelago.



Lunch on board was crazy as everyone had just returned to the ship and wanted food at the same time. We ended up having burgers sitting in a protected but cold place as the were no seats inside. In the afternoon I sorted some pictures and fought with the Internet trying to do some blog work. I was unsuccessful as the network seemed to be bogged down.

Freddi and the Royal Guard

As it was formal night again, there was much activity on the Atrium decks. I managed to secure a copy of my account on board and reviewed its details. Naturally there were some discrepancies which I corrected and then we planned our dinner. The group chose to eat together again in Divinci as it was lobster night. During the late afternoon and early evening I felt a scratchiness in my throat that lead me to believe that I was catching a cold. I retired early as others went to the show for some entertainment.



Old Town - Gamla Stan Stockholm