Stockholm - Part I

After breakfast at Toftahalm, we began the trek towards Stockholm. We spent the better part of this day on the bus. We had a mid-morning break to visit one of the largest rune stones ever found in Scandinavia. It had been incorporated into the foundations of the local parish church and discovered, when the church was being renovated in the 19^th century. The inscription on the stone is somewhat enigmatic, but it seems

parish church with rune stone

to be a a kind of dedicatory inscription by a father to his dead son. The stone stands near the current parish church, which I would have liked to have seen, but it wasn’t open. Our tour director explained that there were remnants inside from previous church buildings on the site. Unfortunately, very little remains in Sweden of the pre-Reformation church.

We pushed on from there to have lunch in yet another manor house, Loftstad Slott. This was an estate of Axel von Fersen, a Swedish general, who served with the French in the American Revolution. Once again, it was a beautiful property, but we had no time to explore the outside. The last stretch got us into Stockholm at around 4:00. We checked into the Sheraton Stockholm and had a quick turnaround before heading out.

Loftstad Slott

I have to say that I had very little preconceived idea of what Stockholm would look like. As the bus drove to the hotel, I was struck by the openness and lightness of the city. I didn’t hurt that it was a sunny, warm afternoon and the people were out enjoying themselves. Stockholm sits on a series of islands, so there is water everywhere. The play of light on the water only adds the charm of the city that has many more gracious 19^th century buildings than I had imagined.

The first stop on the tour was the Royal Swedish Opera House.We had a fantastic guided tour of this late 19^th century building. Typical for the period, the building is overly ornate, but beautifully done. Since it was a royal opera house, we were treated to seeing the king’s box and his rooms at the opera, which were like a miniature hall of mirrors from Versailles. The tour concluded with a short recital by an excellent soprano and accompanist, who played and sang while we swilled champagne. It was all very grand. We dined in the restaurant that is on the lower level of the house and had another very nice meal. I was happy, though, to get back to the comfort of my room in the Sheraton. It had been a very long day.

View of Stockholm from my hotel room