YET MORE STOCKHOLM

27th - 31st Aug 2020

The City Hall looking north-east from Evert Taubes Terrass.

Left: The little statue of Evert Taubes (1890-1976) on the corner of the terrace on the little islet of Riddarholmen, a bridge across from Gamla Stan. He was a renowned composer, author and singer of the Swedish troubadour variety. There is a free short ferry trip from the Terrass to the City Hall.

I wandered around the City Hall (Stadshuset) and intended to go on a conducted tour inside (I was told it has magnificent interiors), but I got there too late and missed the last tour, and it was closed.

Right: The nearby church of Riddarholmskyrkan. It is where Swedish royals have been entombed since 1290 and home of the armorial Seraphim knightly order. So there!

Left: The grand interior. Quite an impressive pulpit. 

I couldn't figure out where all that Royalty was buried. Under the floorboards presumably.

Right: Storkyrkan cathedral on Gamla Stan. It is Stockholm's cathedral and the one-time venue for Royal Weddings and Coronations. I don't know where they get hitched nowadays; being a very 'modern' monarchy probably in the local Registry Office. I'm not really 'into' churches but these are important landmarks.

Left: The city centre streets were busy. No arsing about with too much anti-social distancing in evidence and not a face-mask in sight. So refreshing!

Right:...and there were some big smart shops. The Åhlens multi-storey shopping centre on Klarabergsgatan was an impressive example. It had a vast array of outlets including, what I came to find out was like an oasis in the desert, a large 'Systembolaget'. More about that later.

Left: There were several street artists performing various acts. Some rather odd, but this little group sang jolly songs.

Now for some real culture. Back to Djurgården island and the ABBA museum.

They may not be to everyone's taste but they were, after all, the third best selling pop group in the 70's and 80's. Only The Beatles and Queen outsold them.

I have a friend who totally derides them but whose favourite 'heavy metal' band of that era, Throbbing Gristle, did not do nearly so well. (and with a name like that...!)

The famous four; L-R Benny, Anni-Frid, Agnetha and Bjorn. Named after their initials, Anni-Frid, Benny, Bjorn and Agnetha...ie. ABBA.

Anni-Frid was married to Benny, and Agnetha to Bjorn.

Their kick-start came when they won the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest with 'Waterloo'.

It is a large and amusing museum (reduced £23 entry for OAPs). It follows the band's fortunes from inception to their later life and has several 'interactive' stations where you can record yourself and play with various gadgets. All their personal histories are laid bare and so I am now an expert on ABBA.

There was a large and formidable team which looked after them including their astute manager, Stig Anderson. They had a marvellous 'sound' man whose name escapes me but famously smoked a pipe and told good jokes, apparently. He operated this sound 'mixer' (left). It looks incredibly complicated.

There were several displays of ABBA costumes. Being a total ignoramus concerning pop groups, I found it interesting to learn of the enormous administrative, logistic and planning effort which goes into organising and producing shows on tour. Very complex and tiring for all concerned.

At great risk of embarrassing myself; ABBA PLUS ONE (below). This went on for much longer and I really got into the swing of it, but they cut filming before I got into my stride.

I took a short ferry ride back to Gamla Stan, passing the little islet of Skeppsholmen where this rather splendid boat was moored.

Right: And got a good rearward view of the Stockholm Fun Fair which, as a potentially crowded venue, was temporarily closed. 

After spending two nights in my 'prison', comfortable though it was, I checked out. It was a longish walk and metro ride to the centre from there. I had found a decent, relatively inexpensive hotel in the city centre and within easy walking distance of the nearest metro (Tunelbana) and the Central Railway Station.

I passed (well stopped in at actually) a bar on the way to the new hotel. Left: The interesting and humorously misleading sign outside. NO cheap, let alone free, beer in this country! The main drawback of Sweden, in general, is the extortionate price of food and drink in bars and restaurants. A small 330ml bottle of beer normally sells at about £6 and a simple main course meal will set you back at least £20. No cheap 'pie 'n chips'.

No supermarkets sell alcohol. Fortunately I discovered the Government controlled 'Systembolaget' stores. They are large smart wine shops were you can actually buy wines, beer and spirits at reasonable prices (vis the one  at Ählens shopping centre, conveniently near my new hotel). They have limited opening hours and close at 2pm on Saturdays until 10am Monday. Useful info!

A bloke was standing outside proudly showing off his pride and joy, a Mustang car (right). I'm not into cars but I know someone who reads this is, so I thought I would mention it. He told me it uses a lot of petrol.

Left: My new accommodation, The Queen's Hotel on Drottninggatan. Very central and conveniently located. The reception staff were incredibly helpful, and rooms comfortable. A good find.

Right: Opposite was the Limerick Bar which was useful. Apart from India I have yet to find a country which does not have a good selection of 'Oirish Bears'. Charming staff in there but no Irish, although one barman was born in Scotland with a Scottish mother. 

That will do for Stockholm for the time being. I am next off 'up country' but will return for a few days to continue to explore this wonderful city. So much more to see, and I won't see half of it.