Dragging my laptop bag behind me while trying to find my passport, I suddenly appeared at the baggage area within minutes of our on-time arrival at Arlanda Airport. Puzzled at the speed and ease with which I reached the baggage carousel, I looked around slowly, noting a screen announcing our bags would be arriving in nine minutes, which, of course, with hallmark Swedish efficiency, they did.
“Where are the long lines at Immigration?”, I mused, but with no airport employee in sight to ask, I groggily assumed this was the way of the second most innovative country in the world (according to both The Global Innovation Index and Bloomberg), and proceeded to the taxi stand.
Since I had flown from Dubai via Amsterdam, there was no passport control, both Sweden and the Netherlands being one of the 26 Schengen countries without border control or security checks between member nations. While I knew about Schengen, I had not flown in from a member country before, which led to momentary panic later on at the hotel until I verified with a few other hotel guests and ever-trustworthy Google that passports are not stamped when coming from a fellow Schengen country. Phew! I heaved a huge sigh of relief that I would not be investigated by immigration police on my way out, after all.
The hotel I stayed at, an über trendy version of the Best Western chain called “& hotel”, was located right smack in the city centre, which, naturally meant super compact rooms, so economically-sized and efficiently-arranged that Ikea would have been proud. Speaking of Ikea, I never did see that beloved blue and yellow sign during my jaunts around Stockholm since they are located outside the city centre.
As I was in the Swedish capital on a relatively last minute trip to attend an innovation accreditation course by Innovation360 Group, I hadn’t planned on doing too much sightseeing (or travel research) except on my last day there when I was finished with the course. Given my unexpectedly early arrival at the hotel, however, I was able to catch a boat ride I had been eyeing, and despite my getting slightly confused about the location of the pier, I arrived breathlessly with 15 minutes to spare and, more importantly, to snap pre-boarding photos.
Cruising the Inner Archipelago
Since I wouldn’t have time to actually explore any of the 30,000 islands of the Archipelago, the “Best of Stockholm Archipelago” tour was ideal for me to get a quick overview of the islands.
Cruising slowly from the pier to the Inner Archipelago (the islands are divided into three areas – Inner, Middle and Outer Archipelago) took about a half hour, my body humming along with the gentle rhythm of the boat. En route, we bypassed some of the city-centre’s 14 islands, including the green island of Djurgården, which hosts the world’s first National City Park, some 17 museums and an amusement park with brightly coloured rides. The noisy cheers of the revelers as we sailed by made me smile as I remembered the rollercoaster-riding days of my youth.
The two-and-a-half hour tour passed many small islands, most of which were summer homes and not generally inhabited during the colder months. “Some of the larger islands are connected to the mainland and act as commuter hubs where the residents can drive or take the boat to work”, the chirpily-pleasant tour guide informed us, her soothing voice adding to the calm of the shimmering blue waters.
There were even tiny islands that only housed one or two homes, their miniature size comically amplified when a large cruise ship ahead of us was momentarily stationed next to it. Some of the islands were reminiscent of Canadian cottage country homes made of painted wood, complete with a swimming dock and little white boats tied to the jetty.
After a fairly long flight with the layover, it was simply bliss to zone out, sleepily admiring the lush green islands on the tranquil waters of the Archipelago, daydreaming about how wonderful it would have been to be able to canoe from one island to the other and jump in for a dip (in warmer temperatures, of course).
Despite the sunny 18-degree day, it was rather cold on the water and I shivered in my jacket, having just arrived from Dubai where the temperatures were already soaring in the mid-30s to low 40s. The crisp cool air nipped at my cheeks as I pulled my pink scarf tighter around my neck and tucked my unruly curls, which had been blowing across my face, into the hood of my jacket. Brrr…. As I returned to the cabin, I gave myself a pat on the back, pleased that I lasted outside for an hour and a half, longer than many of my boat mates.
Strolling down the Royal Queen and King Streets
After the end of my wonderful accreditation course (Yay! Congratulations to me, an Innovation 360 Licensed Practitioner!), I headed to Drottninggatan (Queen Street), one of the bustling pedestrian streets filled with retail shops and restaurants, connecting two large districts to one another.
It was also where the terror attack happened last month in April when the terrorist drove a truck and plowed down the street full of shoppers, killing four and wounding 15. While I had known this had happened near my training centre and hotel, I chose not to learn of its exact location until I returned to Dubai so as not to mar my experience of the city, nor did I allow it to dissuade me from going on the course despite its proximity to where I was staying.
On my way out to dinner on my last evening, I was marching merrily along the very busy Drottninggatan when I spied a little entry way with a pretty, curly cursive sign saying “Central Badet”. Peeking in, I was thrilled to discover what could only be described as a fairy tale-like secret garden. I entered tentatively into the courtyard filled with a canopy of trees; most alluring to me was the pink cherry blossom tree perched proudly on centre stage, in its full bloom magnificence. The splendid tree had its petals strewn all across a wavy-shaped pond, in the middle of which stood a statue of a drinking seraphim atop a fish, creating the most idyllic environment. Although the building is mainly a spa, the courtyard also houses a few restaurants around the pond. Ever the romantic, I gushed over this little tranquil oasis, hearing harps played by cherubic angels in my head, experiencing a mystical and magical atmosphere right in the middle of the busy city centre.
Kungsträdgården street (King St) is another main road which leads to the King’s back garden, an urban green space behind the royal palace that has a square for events and outdoor cafes next to the Royal Swedish Opera House.
During my time there, Manchester United was playing in the Europa League Final against Ajax which 
meant there were football events at the square as well as the mandatory, rather loud singing/chanting hoards of British football fanatics around town. It really was quite a sight to see and hear the lads shouting their football anthems at pubs and even at the local McDonald’s, a unique experience in a land whose people are stereotypically more reserved and quiet.
As a side note, it was this loud roaring that startled me last summer in London, a few days after the attempted coup d’état in Turkey, when I had thought there were midnight protests going on outside my Piccadilly Circus hotel. Despite my anxious calls down to the front desk about whether such a revolution put us in danger, I was repeatedly assured that “Ma’am, this is a usual Friday night occurrence”, something I did not quite appreciate until I saw it for myself. Ironically, the very next day, I actually witnessed a protest first hand, an incredibly quiet affair with people merely holding up signs with nary a whisper or raised voice.
Medieval Old Town
I arose early on my last day in Stockholm to ensure I would beat the flocks of tourists to Gamla Stan, the Old Town, where Stockholm was founded in 1252. As it was Ascension Day, 40 days after Easter, and a national holiday, I had a peaceful 20-minute walk there, encountering very few people on the empty streets. Well, that was excluding the first 15-minute detour I took when I turned right instead of left outside the hotel – Google Maps did not tell me how to get out of my hotel and my human brain had no clue which way was Southwest!
I arrived at the Royal Palace, official residence of His Majesty, the Swedish monarch, and one of the largest palaces in Europe boasting 600 rooms, before the busloads of tourists arrived. As such, I managed to capture some relatively unobstructed photos of the palace and its blue-uniformed guards as well as Gamla Stan, one of the 14 islands in the city centre.
Being one of the largest and best preserved medieval cities in Europe, Gamla Stan is a pretty little town with cobblestoned streets and tiny lanes, with one that is just 90 cm wide, although I did not find it myself. It is the perfect place for getting lost in and I, being directionally-challenged, enjoyed stumbling my way through the quiet little alleyways and just taking in the quaint storefronts.
In the centre of Gamla Stan lies Stortorget, the oldest square in Stockholm and located on the oldest street in Stockholm called Köpmangatan. There are brightly coloured, story book-type buildings lining up the square, where the Nobel Museum is located, along with a fountain from which I could just picture medieval maidens fetching water.
Unfortunately, most of the cafés and stores were still closed and I missed gorging on the Fika pastries (Fika is loosely translated as a coffee culture with cake on the side) advertised on the café walls. While I did try a cinnamon bun later that day, I didn’t enjoy it very much, unlike the delectable Swedish meatballs I feasted on at breakfast almost every day.
Djurgården, the Green Museum Island
From Gamla Stan, I walked to Djurgården, where the entire island is a lush, green national park spanning about 27 square km. Having seen it from the water on my boat cruise, it was lovely strolling along the tree-lined promenades, conducting a walk-by visit of the outside of the majestic, Renaissance-styled Nordic Museum, Skansen, the open-air museum, and Gröna Lund, the amusement park. Given the holiday, the line-ups outside were tremendously long, human chains snaking their way around various corners.
Being a fan of the most famous Swedish pop group, I stopped to snap a few shots outside the Abba Museum and did a few quick head bops to “Thank you for the music” as it blasted out from the speakers. Having seen the “Mamma Mia!” musical three times and loving it even more each time, I wished I had time to attend and be a Dancing Queen at “Mamma Mia the party!”, a live dinner event.
Sitting on the plush green grass under a large, leafy tree, I looked out at the Djurgårdsbrunn canal, watching two girls doing yoga on the pier and a gang of cyclists riding energetically along the glistening dark blue water. It was a much-needed break after my six hours of walking, making me lament not renting a bike as my old legs were quite tired from the 30,000 steps I had taken, according to the Samsung Health mobile app.
As the sun shone upon us, a balmy breeze caressing the curls that fell out of my ponytail, my eyes feasted greedily on the surrounding chlorophyll-filled environment of which I’ve been deprived in Dubai. It was a blissful cornucopia for my senses which were simply drinking in the glorious greenness. Against a musical backdrop of birds chirping merrily, I sighed with sheer contentment, a large smile and song dancing in my heart.
Jeanette Teh is a legal and corporate trainer, adjunct (assistant) professor, non-practicing lawyer, writer, coach, and founder of Kaleidoscopic Sky. You can find more about her at: http://www.linkedin.com/in/jeanette-teh-601115
Love it. Well written and able to picture the scenes you described.