Wow, Wow, Wow.

Although destinations in France and Italy tend to capture the majority of the hearts and minds of Americans dreaming of European adventures, Stockholm is quickly becoming our favorite large European city. I don't know why it took us 6 years to get here, but boy am I glad that we finally made it! We're already dreaming of the day when we can return.

From the very moment we stepped out of our apartment that first day, we felt as if we were home - perhaps it was the fresh air and natural beauty that reminds us of the Pacific Northwest. I have to say also that the Swedes (and the Danes, as well) are possibly the nicest people we've ever met in any of our travels, anywhere. Every interaction has been an absolute pleasure - whether with our bartender Fikri, the girl at the bakery, or the guy that run the video store a few blocks down.

Anyway, with the sun shining bright and Michael's cold making a hasty retreat, we took on the day early and with lots of energy. We strolled through the beautiful Humlegarden which is just a few minutes walk from our place:

 Humlegarden - one of many beautiful parks in Stockholm.

Before we knew it, we were on Stockholm's waterfront where we caught the Open Top bus tour as we often do in new cities. Although they are admittedly cheesy and very touristy, they are a great way to get an overview of an unfamiliar place. We rode the complete circle which took just over an hour, and disembarked at the Royal Palace where we just happened to catch the changing of the guard! Although we didn't have very high expectations for this event (the one at Buckingham Palace in London is kind of lame) it turned out to be a great show and definitely one of the highlights of our trip. Although I was shooting pictures above my head a lot of time, I was able to capture some great pictures of the event. The ceremony lasted for well over 30 minutes, and although I couldn't always tell what was happening, the music was fantastic and the excitement amongst the crowd was infectious:
 

After the ceremony ended, we headed into Gamla Stan once again, where we mostly managed to avoid the
tourist crowds:

 

The quiet alleys are there, if you allow yourself to find them.

Since the sun was still shining brightly, we decided to take a boat cruise which was included with the price of the bus tour. The views of Stockholm's waterfront were breathtaking:

 


 

Storm brewing, but I LOVE this photo.

 

The Vasa museum.



Oh boy, the boat trip is starting to feel like Spash Mountain!


 

Just as quickly as the storm rolled in, the sunshine returned.


 

A sunny corner bar wtih great people-watching.

As you can see from the pictures above, we experienced a variety of weather conditions during our cruise. Had we not been completely covered by the boat's canopy we would have gotten soaked, but under the safety of cover we thoroughly enjoyed being tossed about on the water, watching the rain come down in buckets around us. It was, in fact, an absolute blast and we felt fortunate that we happened to catch the rain storm while stilll on the boat.

After disembarking, we walked into the trendy district known as Sodermalm where we  wound down an eventful and highly enjoyable day in our new favorite city.