I mention 7 hours in the title because I was inside Sweden, in the city of Stockholm for just 7 hours. And adventure is not what anyone would normally imagine. No heroics. No tiger chased me in some deep interior forest. And I didn't climb any mountain. What made the entire trip adventurous was the time constraint I had. It was 10 AM when I left the cruise and set my foot on this amazing country which has given us Ingmar Bergman, Björn Borg, the Ericsson and Alfred Nobel! My return cruise was to leave Stockholm for Helsinki @ 5 PM the same day. So I had just 7 hours to see all that I want to. I did manage to see a lot. Or I should say, "experience" a lot. And yes, I did struggle (as usual) to catch my cruise in the evening, which made this trip very memorable :)
Before I move on I must tell something about the setting. The temperature was close to double digit in the negative. Dense snowfall had painted the city pure white. Whiter than the purest white I had ever seen. (Helsinki streets were filled with snow too, but it didn't seem so clean then.) And it was just a week before Christmas, and so it was celebration mood everywhere. All this together gave me a dreamy feel. If you are a fan of the Potter series you can relate it to how Mr. Potter felt during his first visit to the Hogsmeade village! This is the closest and the best comparison I can imagine. :)
My short stay at this foreign city was made comfortable and easy by my friend from college and later colleague at workplace - Vijay, without whom I wouldn't have seen as much as I did. He made the trip cheerful, unforgettable and exciting, not just for me, but also to my 2 friends (Athi & Anto) who came with me from Helsinki. Vijay even brought us his friends' travel cards so that we need not waste some Swedish Kroons (which we exchanged for Euros inside the cruise middle of that Nordic sea!!). He met us near a "Tunnelbana" which is the Swedish term for Stockholm metro stations, and we headed straight to the old town area. From my previous visit to Tallinn, the capital of Estonia, I learned that the best place to visit in a European city is its old town area. The new, urban areas of all the cities have no distinction. They all look the same. Shopping malls, McD, clubs, etc.
The first couple of hours were spent in roaming around the old town area (called "Gamla Stan"), looking at the narrow streets decorated for Christmas, petty souvenir shops, Churches, etc. We saw the Royal palace where the guards changed duty at the hour (Sweden follows Constitutional/Parliamentary monarchy). Then we saw the Swedish parliament. While we were clicking some photographs in front of it we saw a lady come out of a room, lock it and drive away in her car. Vijay joked she could even be a member of the parliament! We were told, the MPs there are very simple (should I mention 'unlike ours'?).
We then moved to a small junction which seemed like some market place, with several souvenir shops, lots of pigeons, buildings painted in many interesting colors, Christmas gift shops, etc. Those tiny streets led me to the Nobel Museum which houses lots of information about the life and inventions of Alfred Nobel. I also remember seeing his Will regarding the Nobel prize awards. That one hour spent there was definitely worth it.
When I came out of the museum it was quite different than how it was an hour earlier. There were lots of kids, playing with a Santa, and someone was arranging mikes and speakers. Within few minutes the cute little kids starting singing some songs, should be Christmas choirs I guess, which was lovely!
By this time we started feeling hungry. Being a 'strict' vegetarian I don't expect to get veg food everywhere. During such trips I prepare myself to mange with just some chocolate bars and energy drinks. Those are enough for me to keep myself active. But still, at that time we felt it necessary to eat something. Vijay said the local McD serves Veg burger, which I didn't believe. We decided to try my luck and started marching towards the McDonalds without knowing that I would remain hungry throughout the remaining of the day. :(
(To be contd..)
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