Our Trip to Stockholm Sweden

February 22-24, 2013

When my parents make their annual two week visit, we like to take them on a mini trip so they can see some place other than London. This year we decided to take them to Stockholm, Sweden. Stockholm is the capital and largest city in Sweden. The inner city is made up of 14 islands connected by some 50 bridges on Lake Mälaren, which flows into the Baltic Sea. Here is a great link with more information on this beautiful city. http://wikitravel.org/en/Stockholm

Upon arrival, we took in lunch at an Italian restaurant across the bridge from our hotel. The kids made fast friends with the owner who gave them special sweets and various musical instruments to play with!

After lunch we went off to explore the city and take in some beautiful sights despite the cold temperature and snow.

On day two we went down towards the harbour where we went to Vasa Museet, or Vasa Museum. The museum displays the only almost fully intact 17th century ship that has ever been salvaged. The 64-gun warship, Vasa, sank on her maiden voyage in 1628. The museum opened in 1990 and according to the official web site, is the most visited museum in Scandinavia. http://www.vasamuseet.se/en/

Here is an informative link to the background and history of the Vasa

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vasa_(ship)

Some beautiful building we passed along the way!

The sights of Old Town and the Harbour...

Skansen was one of our final stops on the trip. Skansen is the world's first open air museum, founded in 1891. You can walk through five centuries of Swedish history and get a real feel for the past through the historical building and characters in period dress. There are houses and farmsteads to visit, a zoo with native Nordic animals, shopping and authentic food and drink. Due to the time of year we visited, much of the museum was not fully operational however we were still able to get a good feel.

Stockholm is a beautiful city even in the colder weather. Keith has been back many more times on business and says that it is even more amazing when the weather warms and the flowers begin to bloom. Definitely a country I wish we had more time to explore, but overall a great time with family exploring Stockholm.