Recently I went on an adventure to Stockholm. It was a short city break but we packed a lot in!

I was traveling with Eldest, a Mum and son adventure. Our first taste of Sweden was at Stockholm Arlanda airport. The quietest, and most pleasant airport I’ve ever visited. People spoke in hushed tones – even the children in the play area sat quietly reading!

There was seating for so many people… no need to sit on the floor here! How civilized!

There was no problem finding out where to go to get the train into the City Centre! What a stunning station…

And here comes the train…

Our first impression of Sweden was incredibly positive….

…if a little bit colder than what we had left behind at home!

The view from our hotel room (above) was amazing – look at the frozen waterways below! The building with the golden tipped tower is Stockholm City Hall – where the Nobel Prize celebrations take place. There will be more on that later on…

On our first evening we headed out for a stroll to get our bearings. It was really rather chilly, but incredibly beautiful.

This building (above & below) belongs to the Swedish parliament.

And this square looked like something out of Bladerunner when it was lit up at night!

Back at our hotel our view came alive at night.

On the first full day of our trip we headed by tram through the City Centre to get to somewhere I just had to visit…

….the ABBA Museum!!

It was amazing and told the story of all four band members from their childhoods to their 1974 win at the Eurovision Song Contest and beyond…

I will be writing another post about all the museums and buildings we visited because there is too much to put into just one post!

Suffice to say, it was magnificent and a must-visit for any fan of ABBA!

Lunch had to be at Starbucks – I was traveling with a fan of the place and as we don’t have one in Gibraltar it’s a novelty. We did have a taste of Sweden though – this Cardamom Bolle was utterly delicious.

Talking of edibles. We had no end of giggles at the name of the chocolate (which is very nice by the way!)

I couldn’t visit a new country without going into a crafty shop could I? I was very restrained though and only bought one ball of yarn… but I could’ve got so much more if I had a bigger case!

Late afternoon/early evening we headed out to a dinner date which had been planned for us by Mr Postcard in advance. I think he wanted to make sure we tried some proper Swedish food, so he booked us a table at an award winning restaurant.

The atmosphere was cozy and welcoming, and the food very interesting…

We had crispy pork rinds with smoked mayo & dill flower as an appetizer. Then pork & chicken skewers, with baked cabbage with buttermilk & lovage. And for dessert, Petrus Bun bread pudding with Swedish punsch crème. The flavor combinations were completely new to me but very tasty.

Then it was back on the train to the hotel for the night…

On day 2 we crossed over from our hotel to visit the City Hall.

It’s a magestic building and only around 100 years old. This amazing golden hall took just 2 years to complete the mosaics! It was stunning to see.

It’s also the home of the Stockholm City Council….

… the council chamber has the most amazing ceiling.

After the City Hall, we took a tram to visit the Nordiska Museet (Nordic Museum).

Another imposing building…

With a rather regal gentleman to greet you as you enter!

It documented all kinds of Swedish life, from homes & furniture to celebrations and death. More will follow in part 2 of my Stockholm postcard.

On our wanderings we passed the Royal Palace (above) and had a mooch around the old town on the island of Gamla Stan…

…which is charming and full of character.

As night began to fall, we headed back out again in search of something we couldn’t come to Sweden without tasting….

….meatballs!

They were a bit special! And washed down perfectly with some Swedish beer! And that lovely meal brought our fabulous few days in Stockholm to an end, this was our last sunrise before heading back to the airport and flying home.

Thank you Stockholm for having us to stay and making us feel so welcome, we had a wonderful time and hope to return one day!

Remember that chocolate with the funny name? Well being the mature individual that I am, I had lots of fun with some other words I spotted on my travels…. (I will never truly grow up!).

Next week, I will share more about the museums we visited and the City Hall. Look out for part 2!