Stockholm, Sweden

Day 2

Sunday commenced with a basic complimentary breakfast of hot chocolate and a ham and cheese roll at the Hotel.

Then we headed into the City to see the local sights. High on our list was the old City area, where old meets new, and also the Vasa Museum.

On our walk into the city we came across a local Sunday Market where locals were buying and selling everything from Fur Coats to Mobile Phones.

Don't drink and drive, drink and ride!



Sunday markets in the City

We made our way to Central Station and onto the Subway for the short ride south to the Old City, which comprises the entire island, of only a few square kilometres.

This island contains a large number of Stockholm's Museums, however there apparently around 70 different Museums in Stockholm alone!

Group Hug




A Traditional Viking Ship


Obelisk adjacent the Royal Palace


Church Steeple

After walking around the Old City and getting a feel for the culture and a quick coffee in a warm Cafe, we made out way towards the next island which includes the Vasa museum amongst others.

Icy Waters on our Ferry Crossing

Vasa Museum

We headed for the Vasa Museum via a Ferry over the waters that separate the numerous islands that make up Stockholm. The Vasa was a brand new war ship that sailed for less than 2 miles on its first and last journey before tipping over in the breeze and sinking. The ship itself was quite high and was also top heavy, a large error in judgement at the time.

Approximately 50 people lost their lives during the disaster. Using unknown methods soon after the disaster, the Vasa was rotated from its side to its correct orientation, all done underwater, before being successfully raised from the sea floor some 300 years later, when it was 'rediscovered' by a local shipwreck enthusiast.

The ship itself was well preserved underwater over time, due to the low saline content of the water, this saline level resulted in much lower degradation from the sea worms which are found in abundance elsewhere in oceans. The ship was slowly put back together with replacement timbers being used where the old timbers had been lost over time.

The photos show the lighter and smoother timbers as the replacement sections, with much of the old ship still original and intact.

It was moved into its very own building, and the tour included a film on its history, a guided tour, and many displays on the rescuing of the shipwrecked vessel, cannons used on the ship, models of the original layout, etc. For anyone going to Stockholm, this is a must see!

The Vasa


The Vasa Model turning



The Vasa Model



Stockholm Streetscape

Ice Bar

Later that afternoon we made our way to the Ice Bar in the Nordic Sea Hotel. The Bar comprises a small room with ice chairs, ice tables and an ice bar. We enjoyed cocktails in glasses made of Ice. This was a great relaxing spot, and we even met two more Aussies from London in the Bar. What are the odds!?

The first cocktail was included in the entry price, however it was well worth the cost of about ten pounds each to chill out in an ice bar!

Chilling out in the Ice Bar






It doesn't matter how dodgy your hat is as long as you stay warm...

After the Ice Bar, we enjoyed Thai for dinner at a restaurant near the Hotel, then headed to bed for an early night. The next day we were up at 3am to make our way back to the airport for our 6am flight. Red eyed for the rest of the day we were..

We look forward to seeing what Stockholm will be like in the Summer.

Stockholm, Sweden

Day 1 - Saturday

We were due for another overseas trip and to match the cool weather in Bristol, we thought we would try out a Scandinavian Winter!

Phil and I organised the trip after talking Nada and Megan into the excitement of another cold country! We bought our 99p flights with RyanAir (plus taxes), and flew out from Stansted Airport (north east of London) early Saturday morning. Phil's Grandmother kindly let us stay overnight Friday at her place very close to the airport, which made the early start a little easier, and not so early.

The flight was under 2 hours, and we then had a 100km bus ride to Stockholm, as the Skavsta Airport is located well out of the Capital.

Typical city centre streets of Stockholm

Upon arriving in Stockholm, we managed to get our bearings and decided to head to the Hotel to drop our gear off.

On the way to the Hotel, we stopped for lunch at a local cafe, and enjoyed lasagne and salad, for a reasonable price. Sweden does not use the Euro, but the Kroner, which is worth about one tenth of a Euro. Hence with the exchange rates, 16 Kroner's equal one Pound. This made comparing the value of everything in the country quite difficult!

These Lion statues are all over the City at Mall Entrances

Once we dropped off our gear at the Hotel, we headed back into the City centre on the local subway, and we made our way towards the Globe Arena, where Sweden were playing Russia in an Ice Hockey game. We had previously booked tickets online, and this was one of the main reasons we went to Stockholm on this weekend.

Globe Arena - Ice Hockey Stadium


Fireworks before the Ice Hockey match


Game Action




More Game Action

Outside the Arena, ticket scalpers were everywhere, as were the locals selling merchandise - not sure how official some of it was though. It was a great atmosphere outside, and inside the Arena, the atmosphere was almost electric once the game had started. We had a great view of the game from our seats, and the Puck was quite clearly visible from the stands. Sweden scored two goals in quick time, and it was a match winning start to the delight of the locals in the crowd.

The final scoreline was 6 - 2 and Sweden scored some great goals, and Russia's 2 goals were also impressive. We did not see too many big hits on the ice, but there were a few bumps and 2 broken sticks, one of which belonged to the Goalie.

Shaking of hands after the match


The Globe Arena at night

After the game, we headed back into the City Centre on the subway and headed to the Hard Rock Cafe for dinner. They were booked full, so Phil bought his shot glass and we went to a nearby steakhouse. A reasonably priced meal was enjoyed by all along with some local beers, before heading back to the Hotel for the night, to recover from a long day.

Snow Falls in Bristol

The weathermen predicted snow for last night, and it actually did snow! But not much in Bristol. Elsewhere in Wales, and England, they got up to 15cm of snow falls. Nada and I woke to see some snowflakes falling from our balcony window, but by the time we left for work it had turned into a very light rain and the temperature rose.

A few photos below of the views from Queens Square.

Light snow on Queens Square footpaths


Snow on the cars


Flowers around the trees during winter

Chester 28.01.07

Chester's Old City Walls

The next day we drove back to Bristol via Chester.

The city of Chester still has its old city walls intact, and they completely surround the old city. Over time the City has expanded and now dwarfs the old city and its walls.

We took the 4 mile walk along the walls, and saw some great sights, although the weather was quite cool.

Wall


Note the Football Guernsey

As the weather warms up I am hoping to get the Carlton Guernsey out a little more!

More Wall

The old Chester Castle had some parts being renovated, however we did not go inside, as many of these castles tend to look alike after a while...

Chester Castle


More Wall Views

Outside the walls, there was an old Roman Garden that had been reinstated to its former glory.

Old Roman Gardens outside the wall


More Wall

The second most famous Clock in England, behind Big Ben, is the Chester Clock, located on Eastgate Street, whilst walking the along the old City Wall, you actually walk under the Clock.

From the website:

Standing majestically close to the city centre of Chester on Eastgate Street, is the Eastgate clock. Chester's best known land mark and the second most photographed clock in the world after Big Ben. The clock was placed on the Eastgate in 1899 and commemorates Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee of 1897. The wrought-iron was made by John Douglas's cousin James Swindley of Handbridge. This clock is by J. B. Joyce of Whitchurch. Until 1974 it was hand wound once a week.

More can be found on the following website:

http://www.chestertourist.com/clock.htm

Chester Clock




More views of the Clock

To finish off our visit to Chester we walked around the Cathedral, but as time was running out on our parking meter, we headed back home to Bristol after an enjoyable weekend.

Chester Cathedral


Leaving Chester through the Wall