I haven’t written a Spotswood article yet, but considering I have the day off thanks to 12 inches of snow, I thought I’d give it a crack.
To keep it consistent with Lindsey’s style of posting, let me start off-topic: Souvenirs.
We started picking up souvenirs on our international trips to help remind us of each place we visited. But during our recent trip to Berlin and Stockholm, we got a little carried away. I mean, really carried away.
In Germany, I tried the Red Mulled Wine at the Christmas Market and decided to keep the mug. Berlin also has bear art statues all over the city, which I thought were pretty cool. So, I picked up a little “Buddy Bear” in the Berlin Squares III design. Lindsey literally brought home a piece of history, a real piece of the Berlin wall. In Stockholm, I picked up a Dala Horse which are small handmade wooden horse figurines. We also bought a little grey Vattar, which is a nature spirit that lives underground and protects the land and people from harm.
While out shopping in Gamla Stan, I saw this piece of hipster poster art and couldn’t leave home without it. I love dragons!
Ok, enought about souvenirs. Let’s get back to Stockholm.
I. Loved. Stockholm. It’s cool- literally all the time. It’s hip. It’s clean. It has very nice, hospitable poeple, great food and a great transportation system. It’s got history, art, water, and a great big old warship. It’s a happening place to visit!
One of the first things we did in Stockholm was visit the Royal Palace. It was beautiful. The carvings, the clocks, the furniture, the art. It was amazing! Some of you may know that I love the French artist Jacques-Louis David and I get a little excited when I see his works. It just so happens that while walking through the Palace a particular clock caught my eye… a gold clock depicting my favorite David piece, the Oath of the Horatii!
See the resemblance?
Here’s a few more shots from inside the palace. Amazing stuff, huh?
Now, that’s a dining table!
A ceiling and doorway…
Sitting rooms???
Look at these wood carvings in the walls and doors! The left one is literally carved into the door.
Our next stop was the Vasa Museum. Long story short, the Vasa is a 95% original 17th century, 64-gun warship that sank on her maiden voyage in 1628, just 20 minutes after launching. The icy fresh water kept her preserved (no worm damage) and she was raised back in the 60’s. It’s utterly amazing. Some of the sailors that died were recovered too, some still wearing their shoes and clothes!
The carving on the back of this ship are almost all original… amazing craftsman ship. Get it?
A large full-scale model…
Walking around town was really cool. There are lots of little narrow streets, statues, rivers, and cool things to snap pics at. We spent most of our time walking through Gamla Stan and Sodermalm.
Me in front of the Nobel Museum.
St. George Slaying the Dragon
That’s one narrow street!
Random pics from around town…
We found this little statue while waiting for breakfast one morning. I call it “The Hand”.
I like art, and there is definitely a fine line between art and vandalizing a building. I think these are pretty cool…
A fountain below the dragon.
Food. Stockholm had really good food. Everything we ate was really, really good. I mean like 100 times better than that Currywurst I ate in Berlin. The wait staff were all very courteous and they spoke great english everywhere we went. Anyhow, you guys know we love to eat so here’s some pics of us getting ready to stuff our faces!!!
Yes, we tried the Swedish meatballs: Moose, Boar, Pig, and Cow.
Back up buddy! Get’s your eyes off my Swedish waffles!!!
Whew! Now I’m hungry. It only took me 4 hours to write this post! Stay tuned next time when Lindsey will share her thoughts on Stockholm.
Ciao!
Spotswood House 