Changing of the Guard

We stumbled upon the changing of the guard at the Royal Palace on our last day.

They had a band on horseback.

The bandleader.

Drawing their swords.

City walk 3

In the church on Gamla Stan was this statue of St. George and the Dragon. My kids love this story. It was interesting finding this statue considering St. George is an English saint. When we were in London it happened to be St. George's day.

Inside this store they not only had Very Important Clothes, but they also had a good selection of taxidermied animals. The stuffed kitten in the window was a nice touch. You can see a bear's head on top of a rack in the photo.

Inside one of the churches in Gamla Stan we found this sphere of lit candles.

I love the pointed helmets. The guns did not seem like they were just for show. These guards were friendlier than the British royal guards.

Boats

Along the Strand were many gorgeous old boats in various stages of refinishing.

There were lots of great nautical details.

One colour

I figured out how to use a neat feature on my point and shoot called 'colour accent'.

It let me select a colour from the scene and then the rest of the image is in black and white.

Stockholm was a colourful city. These photos are from a walk along the Strand.

Stockholm was definitely a waterfront city. There were many ferries and boat tours.

Unfortunately most of the boat tours did not start until May.

A cafe in Gamla Stan. I think the blankets were to keep you warm, the weather was still chilly while we were there. I never saw anyone eating outside at this cafe.

Sweden is famous for its glass. There were many glass shops in Gamla Stan.

Stockholm at night

The white ship at the left of the photo was a youth hostel.

We didn't have a chance to go in the opera house, but we had dinner at a lovely small restaurant in the opera building on our last night.

The parliment buildings. I didn't bring a tripod, as I didn't want to carry the extra weight. As I wandered around Old Town I placed my camera on any nearby post or sign to steady it for the slow shutter speed. I completely forgot about changing the ISO.

There were at least three churches on Gamla Stan,

they were all dramatic in their own way.

The main shopping street at night. The narrow streets were all filled with cute shops. I visited Gamla Stan twice before I found the main street. The first two visits I thought the street I was on was the main street, but when I returned to my hotel room and looked at the map I discovered that I was on the next street over.

Djurgarden

Skansen, the Nordic museum and the Vasa museum were all on an island called Djurgarden. From our hotel there was a lovely waterfront walk along a street called the Strand to get there.

Buildings along the Strand. Apparently this is the place to live in Stockholm.

Djurgarden bridge is to the left.

Kayak and paddleboat rentals under Djurgarden bridge.

Rosendals, one of the Royal palaces, was also on Djurgarden. They had a lovely garden but it was too early in the season and very little was growing. This stone sheep is sitting in an orchard.

The garden also had a shop and a cafe. I walked around this island on Monday and discovered how many things were closed Mondays.

Nordiska museet

The Nordic museum was a very dramatic building.

It had exhibits on Nordic life, which weren't nearly as interesting as the building itself.

Whoever built this had a grand vision.

The entrance doors.

Behind the Nordic museum was a graveyard. Spring was almost at the same point as Toronto, despite the fact that Stockholm is at the same latitude as Whitehorse.

I took a short boat tour. This is the museum as seen from the water. It had a huge central hall. After the computer programming contest we were whisked away to the Nordic museum for dinner and a concert from a band that played ABBA hits.

I still need to correct the horizon on this picture. The weather was sunny but cold. I thought my spring jacket and a sweater would be enough. I had to put on all my layers and borrow Rodney's coat and I was still cold. I didn't think to pack mittens and a hat.