So the day finally arrived - we were off on our honeymoon!
We set off early on Friday afternoon, keen to make sure no Glasgow traffic jams would prevent us from reaching Prestwick airport on time. But hey, as expected we hit long queues, though it was really a bit too early. After 40 minutes of crawling we came to the source of the build-up - one car towing another, with both broken down! Ah, ok!
Onwards we flew, or rather drove fast, to Prestwick, parked the car and managed to check in a short time after arrival. Then we settled back with a pear cider and a baked tattie to await our flight.
On arrival in Skavsta, 100 km from Stockholm, we got outside just in time for the first of two shuttle buses to Stockholm’s Cityterminalen. And off we went in complete darkness. We arrived at Cityterminalen after 10pm and after a quick peek at our map, had sussed the route to the hotel. Five minutes on foot. And so it was!
The Sheraton in Stockholm is located near a busy flyover, yet the views from the upper floors are amazing. We had booked an superior room and cheekily asked for an upgrade, as we were honeymooners. Unfortunately we couldn’t get an upgrade, as it was the very busy Easter weekend. But they had given us a lovely room facing the old town, Gamla Stan. Wow we were chuffed when we looked out. The lights from stately buildings, old houses and churches were reflected on the water, with the moon low above the skyline, glowing orange. Stunning! But as we couldn’t open the windows all the way (safety catches!) we couldn’t take a photo. Oh well, memories.
A room with such a view!
The bedroom itself was large, with a huge double kingsize bed, a desk and a small sitting area. The bed was the most comfy bed I’ve ever had in any hotel. Bliss! The bathroom was small but comfortable, with speakers to listen to tv/music and the largest showerhead I’ve ever seen. Suddenly, taking a shower felt like standing under a waterfall. Pure bliss!
Anyway, after a lovely first night’s sleep we set off to find a place for breakfast. New in the city, and keen to organise the Stockholm card that gives you access to museums and public transport, we walked the 5 minutes to the train station. While Laurence queued up at the counters (our first experience with picking a number!), I went in search and found a place where I bought filled baguettes and coffees. Didn’t dare order in Swedish though…
After our brekkie, and a browse around the shops at the station, we headed off across the bridge to Gamla Stan. Yes, we could see this was the tourist centre of Stockholm. A warren of narrow lanes, with quaint houses, churches and cafes, and plenty of shops selling touristy nicknacks. We took a leisurely stroll along the lanes, stopped here or there, and just enjoyed the day. I had previously seen an advert for a shop selling clogs in a city guide. So when I spotted that shop during our walk, I had to buy a pair. Sadly a cowprint pair was not available in my size, so I stuck to a pair in black. Not keen on light coloured flowers! So I came home with clogs! One place that I had wanted to see was Storkyrkan - Stockholm’s cathedral. My gosh, it’s the smallest cathedral I’ve ever seen. But a lovely building at the same time. One highlight was the incredible sculpture of St George with the dragon. It has to be seen to be believed.
Storkyrkan - St George & the Dragon
Then it was time for lunch. The sun was shining, temperatures were around 18 deg C, we had our jackets wrapped around our waists. We had come to the other side of the island on which Gamla Stan is located, and found a nice bistro - called Tapas Bar - where we sat outside in the sun. Looking cool, sunglasses on, we sipped Swedish beer (Spendrups - yumm!) and had some prawn and avocado salad. Yes, I even dared ask for the proper pronunciation and thanked the waitress in Swedish. Got a Swedish ‘you’re welcome’ in return. Chuffed!
We sat out there for over 2 hours, relaxing, getting sunburnt, having another beer. Then we took a slow walkie back, through more narrow lanes, in and out of more shops, past the palace and parliament buildings and across another bridge that took us into the centre. The shopping hub. Had a quick nosy there before going back to the hotel for an afternoon snooze. God, we were knackered. And red!
Two hours later we emerged in search of a restaurant. Found one not far from the hotel and sat outside. It was getting cooler but it had been so nice being out in the sun all day, we decided to sit outside for dinner. Good call, even though we needed our jackets. One look at the prices of wines, and we instantly decided on pear cider. The waiter had to check as nobody had ordered that in ages, but all was fine. We got our pear cider, Nik’s. I ordered pasta with reindeer meat. Laurence had a pizza with anchovies. He can enjoy them when I’m not sharing the pizza! 
We sat there for a little while after dinner.
A slow stroll along the streets led us back to the hotel. As we had brought a bottle of wine, we had a little, then fell asleep. Too much fresh air, and good food & drink. A perfect start to a perfect week…
Across the water
