:: Sunday, September 05, 2004 ::

Stockholm, Venice of the North

Update: Buzznet finally fixed their servers, so the links to the pictures finaly work. Definitely click away if you think you missed any of them!

After the difficulties with the weight of my luggage in Amsterdam, I finally arrived in Stockholm on Saturday, August 14 after a brief layover in the Prague airport (I wish I could have seen the city itself - perhaps some time in the next year). Most of the day was taken up by travel, between cities and between the cities and their respective airports, but I arrived at Stockholm's Central Station somewhere around 4:00 pm. Once again leaving my suitcase in a locker at the train station (and after buying my train ticket from Stockholm to Falun on Monday), I found bus 65 to Skeppsholmen and was on my way to the Youth Hostel af Chapman & Skeppsholmen.

The hostel is actually two hostels in one - the 19th-century rigged sailing ship af Chapman and an adjacent building on the island of Skeppsholmen itself. The af Chapman was originally built in England in 1888. Named Dunboyne, she sailed as a trader for 25 years under British and Norwegian flags. She was moved to Gothenburg in 1915 and renamed G.D. Kennedy, serving as a private training ship. The Swedish Navy took ownership of her in 1923, renaming her af Chapman, and trained ship's boys upon her until her final voyage in 1934. Towed to Stockholm in 1937, she was permanently moored to Skeppsholmen to serve as navy accommodation. After WWII, the navy sold her to the city of Stockholm for 5000 Swedish crowns, and the Swedish Touring Club restored and renovated the ship, opening her as a youth hostel in 1949. The adjacent building of the hostel was originally built in 1785 to store firewood for the Royal Palace. In the 19th century, it was completely rebuilt as quarters for navy craftsmen. After subsequently serving as a post office and grocery store, it was opened as a youth hostel in 1983.

I had reserved space in the hostel ahead of time, but did not know where my room would be. Checking into reception in the main building, I discovered I had been given a bunk on the ship! I joined the International Youth Hostel Federation, and boarded the ship, where I discovered I was sharing a room with 7 other guys, mostly Italians. I chatted with them for a few minutes, "stowed my gear," and went topside to look around.

The af Chapman is moored on the island of Skeppsholmen, and lies just across the body of water called the Strömmen from Gamla Stan (Stockholm's Old Town), the Riksdagshuset (Parliament House), and the Royal Palace. It's also very close to the Skeppsholmsbron, the bridge linking Skeppsholmen to Blasieholmen on the mainland and the city center. Since it was so late in the day, I decided to just explore Skeppsholmen itself, and its connecting island Kastellholmen.

Skeppsholmen once served as a naval base, and many of the buildings on the island are restored naval buildings, most dating from the 19th century. The island is also home to three museums: the Östasiatiska Museet (Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities), the Moderna Museet (Museum of Modern Art), and the Arkitekturmuseet (Museum of Architecture). Unfortunately, they were all closed so late in the day and I never had time to visit them. Near the af Chapman, however, is the Admiralty House, as well as Skeppsholmen's salute battery, four 57-mm cannons fired to mark national and royal special occasions such as the birthdays of the King, Queen, and Crown Princess. Also on Skeppsholmen is the Skeppsholmskyrken, the island's Empire-style church, built between 1824 and 1842. My exploration of Skeppsholmen mostly completed, I passed through Långa Raden, a "Long Row" of buildings now used by the State Board of Culture, but originally a barracks built around 1700 to house Karl XII's royal bodyguard. On the other side was Kastellholmsbron, a bridge built in 1880 to the island of Kastellholmen.

Just across the bridge on Kastellholmen is the pavilion of the Royal Skating Club (built in 1882), which used the water between the two islands when it was frozen. Kastellholmen's real draw, however, is the Kastellet, a medieval-style castle built from 1846 to 1848. Every morning since 1640, a sailor has hoisted the three-tailed Swedish war flag at the castle. Kastellet also has a battery of four cannons that fires a salute from the terrace whenever a visiting naval arrives. From Kastellholmen, one can also look across the Nybroviken to Djurgården, the large island that was formerly a royal animal reserve and hunting ground and now forms part of the Stockholm National City Park, the only one of its kind in the world. One can also look across the Saltsjön to Södermalm, an area of cliffs and steep hills south of the city center, added to the city in 1436.

After only a few hours in Stockholm (even with intermittent rain), seeing the vista from the deck of the af Chapman and wandering through the parks of Skeppsholmen and Kastellholmen, I was already in love with the city. I had so little time in the city, and saw so very little (although I did manage to see a lot), that I have to go back. It's only three hours from Falun by train, so I'm definitely planning to spend a few more weekends there. And if I end up being able to stay in Sweden, I may very well try to make Stockholm my new home. It is such a beautiful city, with its collection of islands and waterways (not to mention the wider Stockholm Archipelago and its 24,000 additional islands and skerries), that I fell in love almost immediately. Words and pictures really don't do it justice.

With night fast approaching, I decided to go looking for dinner, crossing the Skeppsholmsbron into Blasieholmen on the mainland. Another major museum is located here, the Nationalmuseum, built in 1866 and housing Sweden's largest art collection. It was, of course, closed by this time, and I had no time to visit it later. A little ways further up Södra Blasieholmshamnen is the Grand Hotel, Sweden's only five-star hotel, built in 1874. Every year since 1901, the Grand Hotel has provided accommodation for the Nobel Prize winners, and until 1929 hosted the Nobel Prize banquet, at which point the event outgrew the location and was moved to the city hall, the Stadshuset.

In Blasieholmen, I took a short tour of Kungsträdgården, formerly the royal kitchen garden in the 15th century. It is home to statues of two of Sweden's kings: J.P. Molin's statue of the warrior king Karl XII, unveiled in 1868 to mark the 150th anniversary of his death, and Erik Göthe's statue of Karl XIII, who reigned from 1809 to 1818. Bordering Kungsträdgården are the Kungliga Operan (Royal Opera House), the 17th-century Jacobs Kyrka dedicated to St. Jacob, the patron saint of wayfarers, and Sverigehuset (Sweden House), home to the Swedish Institute and the Stockholm Visitors Board. All of course, were closed by this time, and though there were a few cafes open, I decided to head back to the af Chapman. The hostel has an attached restaurant/cafe, where I ate a simple but good dinner accompanied by pear cider. I then spent some more time on deck, enjoying the Stockholm evening, before heading to my bunk so I could make the most of my one full day to come in Stockholm.

Next: The Royal Palace

:: posted by Rob 5:32 PM [+] ::

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