![]() For my final part of my Scandinavian tour, I headed across to Oslo. This beautiful capital city situated in the south of Norway, offers an abundance of architecture, museums and restaurants. The one good thing I did enjoy about Oslo, that you have the option of purchasing a city pass, or if not, there is plenty do and see that is free of charge. I got to see many splendid places during my time in Oslo, for which I didn’t have to pay to visit and I will share these with you, these can be great money saving places as Norway can be quite an expensive city to visit. Slightly smaller than the other Scandinavian Capital cities, what makes Oslo great is the vast number sculptures and water features that are dotted all over the city centre and not to mention how clean the city is, not a drop of litter anywhere. If you travelling by air, then you can access Oslo city centre via commuter train, I choose to purchase a seven day pass, which gives you access to commuter trains, busses, trams and the subway, it only costs 300NOK or around £30 and can be purchased from any Seven Eleven stores, for which there is on in the airport opposite the train station entrance. These travel passes give you unlimited travel access, so it is something I would definitely recommend you buying in Oslo. You also take the Express Train into Oslo however this comes with a hefty price, and the commuter train gets you there just as quick. ![]() A short distance by tram, you can travel to Vigeland Park. Vigeland Park is the world’s largest sculpture park and is home to the works of Gustav Vigeland and offers more than two hundred pieces of Gustav work. The sculptures themselves are made, mainly out of granite and represent different human emotions, some of the sculptures represent love, hate and anger, and the attention to detail that has been put into these sculptures is stunningly beautiful. If your visiting during the summer months, the park itself is spread over one hundred acres, giving you the option of soaking up soon and having nice a little stroll. There is also a café (which is a little on the expensive) which has outdoor seating, which is great for the summer months and there is a little gift shop, located with in the park, so you can have pick up those all-important souvenirs for your friends and family back home. Something which I too spend too much on. For more information, click on the link I've added below One thing I have mentioned in my previous blogs, is that I always like to visit the Royal Palaces and watch the changing of the guards, that is if the city I am visiting has that option. Situated at the top of Karl Johans Gate is the Royal Palace of Norway and home to King Harold V and Queen Sonja. At 13.30 every day, there is the changing of the guard ceremony. The changing of the guard ceremony is a daily event at royal palaces around the globe and is something that is worth watching f you are looking for something to do or have some spare time, you never know what might happen, something which I found out on the particular day at The Royal Palace. ![]() Whilst we were stood waiting, when I say we, myself and the other tourists, for the ceremony to start, one the guards, on horseback, started to ask everyone to move back, and whilst she was a little bossy, I was thinking, what’s with her attitude, she clearly doesn’t know me, for her to tell us we had to move back as the King and Queen were going to come out on the balcony to watch the ceremony. So there he was, a round of applause from the tourists, the king and queen stood and watched the ceremony along with everyone else. The most I’ve seen of our Queen is when she is on the television, I have never seen a monarch in real life, so this well and truly one of those moments I will remember for years to come, seeing the King of Norway in the flesh. Whilst talking to my Air BnB host about this, he actually said it was very uncommon for the king to come out to watch the changing of the guard, and he would only come out on days like nation day which is 17th May. From the changing of the guard ceremony I headed to Akershus Fortress a short distance and easily accessible by tram. Akerhus Fortress is a medieval castle that was built back in the 1200, early 1300s to provide protection the royal residence of Oslo. The castle during its time has also been used as a military base. Today some of the ruins of Akerhus Fortress still stand and no additional cost you can visit the fortress where you can experience a unique historical environment, which is well preserved and well kept. On the outskirts of the fortress you will find a visitor centre where you can buy those much-needed souvenirs or even purchase a beer or coffee. Guided tours are also offered for a small price NOK 100 (£10). A great place to visit if you are wanting to know a little about Norwegian history. The fortress also offers stunning views of the Oslo fjords, and the inner Oslofjords water, now I’ll talk about this in another blog, as I will recommend a great day’s excursion and a reasonably cheap price, but for now, that’s all I’m saying on the Oslo fjords. A short distance walk from the Akershus Fortress is The Oslo Opera House. Home of the Norwegian National Opera and Ballet, and the national Opera theatre in the Norway this stunningly designed building has been built to look like it is rising from the Oslo fjords. Whilst I had a little nosey inside the building, and I’ll share the link of the Oslo Opera House so you can read more about the interior, what drew me to visiting this place, was that you can walk up to the top of the roof up the slanted design of the building, where you are greeted with gorgeous views of the Oslo Fjords, and a clear day, which I was fortunately enough to have you can see for miles. Defiantly a place I would recommend to visit in Oslo Something that Oslo has to offer number of parks, where you ca escape and sit back in green space and relax, one park which was suggested to me by my Air BnB host, about fifteen minutes from the city centre and lucky for me this was a two minute walk from my Air BnB, is Ekeberg Park or Ekebergparken to the locals. On the road up to, Ekeberg park was greeted with panoramic views of Oslo and as Io chose to visit the park late in the evening, it was dark and the city was lit up, the views are exquisite, and I could have stood there all night taking in the views. Ekeberg park, has around thirty sculptures and was solely financed by Norwegian businessman Christian Ringnes. Unlike Vigeland Park where the sculptures wee all created by one person, Ekeberg Park features works from many renowned local and international artists, including English artist Damien Hirst. A great park to visit if you have the time while in Oslo and lots of interesting works of art and sculptures to see. Whilst Oslo has all these beautiful places to visit, and there is plenty to do for all ages, there is unfortunately a disadvantage that comes with this. It is an expensive country, and if your looking to go out for a meal and drink, this can be very expensive. Which is why I settled on McDonalds and Subway sandwiches while I was visiting the city. While these were more expensive than back home, they were certainly a lot cheaper than a meal out. Just to give anyone a heads up at the cost of a beer. After a day of sightseeing I found a pub on the main shopping prescient Karl Johans Gate called The Scotman, I headed in and known that the cost of beer was expensive especially branded and international brands, I asked for a locally brewed beer, thinking it would be cheaper, how wrong could I be, the waitress at the bar, was like that 100 NOK, and I was “Pardon”. Basically one hundred Norwegian Krona is equivalent to around nine to ten English pounds. Through talking to the waitress, she was telling me, that Norway are not in the EU and therefor commodities such as Alcohol and Tobacco are heavily taxed, resulting on the high price for us consumers. So if you do plan on visiting them make sure you have plenty spending money. That aside, I would highly recommend Oslo as a place to visit, there is plenty of tourist attractions you can visit for free, this offsetting the cost of anything else in Oslo.
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Stockholm, My favourite Scandinavian City The Vasa Museum, The Riksdag, Skansen and Gamla Stan24/2/2019 ![]() My final day in Stockholm, and my first point of call was to visit a museum called Vasamuseet or quite simple the Vasa Museum. A few friends had recommended this place, and a friend I know from my gym Sue also recommended this place a she had previously visited. When I arrived, I instantly knew it was a hit with tourists as the queue to obtain tickets snaked right around the building. Thankfully with my pre-purchased Stockholm Pass I skipped the queue an got instant access. For anyone who is wondering what The Vasa Museum is, well let me tell you. The Vasa Museum is the worlds only rescued seventeenth century rescued war ship. Before I tell you little about the museum itself, I’ll tell you a little about the story behind The Vasa the same of the warship, and that’s where the museum gets its name from The Vasa. What was The Vasa?So briefly, back in 1626 on the orders of King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden, the Swedish built a warship, it took around two years to build, and on 10th August 1628, The Vasa set sail on its maiden voyage, an after sailing around 1300m the ship tragically sank. A gust of wind had caused The Vasa to heal suddenly towards the port side, the sheets were cast off, and The Vasa for a short period slowly righted itself. Unfortunately a short distance further, a stronger gust of wind caught The Vasa, this time it was forced on to its port side, thus opening the lower gun ports allowing water to rush onto the gun desk, which tragically resulted in The Vasa sinking just outside Stockholm harbour. Hundreds of Swedes had come to watch the launch of the maiden voyage of The Vasa and out of the four hundred plus crew members, only thirty crew were reported to have died. The fact that this was one of the largest Swedish ships built at the time and the fact that it sank with in minutes into its maiden voyage makes this a significant event in Swedish history. Inquests were held with the captain and surviving crew, but I’ll not give too much away, so that if any of you visit The Vasa Museum, you can find all this out yourself. Fast forwarding to the 1950s and the possibility of recovering the wreckage had been considered, a number of recovery methods had been discussed and by 8th April 1961 after a number of planned lifts and years of work and planning, the final lift began to resurrect The Vasa, and on the morning of April 24th The Vasa was returned to the world for the first time in over three hundred year and since December 1988, The Vasa has been fully restored and now sits in its new home The Vasa Museum. Now back the museumThe Vasa Museum is Scandinavia most visited museum with hundreds of artefacts, displays, information boards, Audio and Visual screen, The Vasa Museum, tells you everything you need to know, spread over six floors to which the top floor gives you stunning views of The Vasa and its restored wood work, it truly is extravagant place to visit. The restoration work that the museum puts into preserving this beautiful vessel is timeless. The museum also offers guided tours in English, by experienced guides, so you get to learn even more about this tragic ship and the circumstances surrounding the tragedy. The cinema offers short movies both in Swedish and English explaining what happened The Vasa, with videos showcasing what happened after the event, with like sounds it makes the whole experience more lifelike. My suggestion would be to visit the museum as early as possible, it can get very busy, and during Swedish school term, is popular with school trips, something which I found when I visited The Vasa Museum. Defiantly make a visit if your ever-visiting Stockholm, I spent a little under two hours at the Museum, but you could easily spend longer if you take your time to observe all the areas of the museum. When I am ever visiting different cities, I always like to visit the parliament building and the royal palace of that particular country, that’s if the country has a monarchy. What stood out right across the city of Stockholm, were posters which were either, red, yellow or blue, representing the three main political parties of Sweden. During my time in Stockholm it was three weeks until their general election, and these posters were everywhere. Stefan Lofven and the Social Democrats would eventually be re-elected to office three weeks later, and after I spoke to both my AirBnB hosts in Malmo and Stockholm, they were both unsure of who would win the general election. Unlike the United Kingdom where you only have two main political parties, Sweden like a lot of other Scandinavian countries, have lots of political polities and therefor generally one party will never win a majority. In the most recent general election, the Social Democrats were the largest party winning 100 seats and they needed 175 to have majority, this means forming a coalition government with one or two other parties is the only way a party can lead a government in Sweden, they also need to rely one confidence and supply from another one possibly two political parties as well to form a government, to form that majority. ![]() The main government building in Sweden situated in Stockholm, is called the Riksdag, and unlike the Danish government building which also doubles as a royal palace, the Riksdag is solely a government building. Situated on the small island of Helgeandsholmen, lying directly next to the Island of Gamla Stan and the Royal Place of Sweden, The Riksdag is open for visits throughout the year, open times vary throughout the year, so I would advise a quick visit to there website (see link above) and double check their opening times. You can visit the Riksdag and have a guided tour, tours are done in Swedish and English and you can also attend a public debate or hearing. It can get really busy during the summer months, so if you have a guided tour book, I would advise you to arrive around fifteen minutes early, to give your enough time to get through security check points. ![]() Literally within a stone throw, located in Stadsholmen on the Island of Gamla Stan is the royal place of Sweden. Whilst this is the Royal Palace of Sweden, it is not the official residence of the King and Queen of Sweden, the Palace is only used by Carl Gustaf XVI whilst he is performing royal duties or hosting royal events. The official residence of the King and Queen of Sweden is Drottningholm palace, situated a short distance outside the city of Stockholm, Drottingholm is a popular tourist attraction, open for guided tours and easily accessible by public transport, it’s something I unfortunately didn’t get to visit, but would have liked to, and its free with your Stockholm Pass as well. Moving back onto the Royal Palace, overlooking Lilla Varten (the name giving to the stretch of water), the place offers a number of different museums as well as The Royal Chapel, again all these are included in the cost of The Stockholm Pass, and as with most Royal Palaces around the world at 12.15 daily you have the changing of the guard ceremony, which is free of charge and if you have witnessed some changing of the guard ceremony’s it is usually good thing to watch. ![]() One of my final call points in this beautiful city, was to an open-air museum called Skansen. Skansen is Sweden’s first open air museum and Zoo and is located on the island of Djurgarden, a short distance walk from The Abba Museum. If you have visited Beamish in County Durham, then you will have an idea of what Skansen has to offer. The museum takes your five centuries of Swedish history and it also Stockholm’s only Zoo. At Skansen you can see how the Swedes lived hundreds of years ago, they replica houses to showcase the type of lifestyle they have, and even have people dressed up in traditional old time Swedish costume, who can talk to you and tell you all about life in Swedish life. There is so much to do and see at Skansen, you would need to plan potentially three to four hours, to get around the open-air museum. Around the museum there a number of food and drink outlets, as well as plenty of seating areas, so you can sit and refuel before heading further around the park. There is one place situated in the museum called Baldersluden food court, which offer a number of options from a light snack, drink, ice cream, alcoholic Beveridge or full lunch, meaning you can spend a good few hours at the museum, without going hungry or thirsty. There are also a number of picnic areas, so if your visiting in the summer months, when the weather can be particular warm, you bring your own food and sit and enjoy a picnic. Towards the top of Skansen is Stockholm’s only Zoo which hosts a number of animals including Nordic animals. Some of the animals that you can have the opportunity of seeing are, moose’s, wolves, bears, seals and otters. With regards to the Moose’s, my friends in Canada have told me stories about moose’s and how big these magnificent creatures are, and until you get to see one in the flesh which I did at Skansen, you can’t begin to imagine how the bog the actually are. There is also a children zoo, where children can visit and get to hold smaller animals such as rabbits and mini pigs. One of my favourite parts of the zoo was the brown bear enclosure. I’ve heard stories about brown bears from my Canadian friends, and between a brown bear and black bear, a brown bear is one’s path you do not want to cross. However seeing these creatures in their enclosure, especially the cubs, playing it way to adorable and you wouldn’t think for one moment that these beast would be the fierce hunters they are. Whilst Skansen is great place to visit for the day, do be prepared for a lot of walking, whilst there are lifts in places where there are stairs, for less abled people and wheelchair and pushchair users, there lot hills and banks to walk up, however this doesn’t spoil how much of a great. Gamla Stan![]() The final thing I want to talk to you about, which Stockholm has to offer is the Old Town, I paid a few visits this beautiful little place, for coffee in the afternoon to some alcoholic refreshments in the evening. Gamla Stan is perfect of you wanted to escape the city and come and relax and chill for a few hours. Your spoiled for choice when it comes to coffee shops, restaurants, bars, and souvenir shops, something which I always look out for when I’m on my travels. In the summer, sitting outside in the sun, looking around at the small narrowed cobble streets it simply divine, and most of the bars and restaurants offer outside seating. The town dates back to the 13th century and the building look that, giving this place a well and truly old town feel. Also situated on the Island is the Stockholm Cathedral and The Nobel Museum, which is a museum featuring fact, information and artefacts on the Nobel Prize. The Nobel Museum is free with Stockholm Pass, and as for the Cathedral I didn’t visit this, but usually for a small price you can enter the Cathedrals. One bar I came across while exploring Gamla Stan was an Irish Bar called O’Connells. I’ve growing fond of Irish Bars and I’m looking forward to my visit to Dublin later this year. Located in the narrow streets of Gamla Stan O’Connells has true Irish feeling to it, with a great atmosphere. I was lucky enough one evening to visit and there had and Irish band playing traditional Irish Music, it just made the whole evening more enjoyable. Unfortunately prices for a locally brewed beer at not just O’Connells but other pubs around Gamla Stan were costing around £7, so it isn’t cheap, but it worth it. To sum up Stockholm is absolutely gorgeous little city, unlike Copenhagen, Stockholm defiantly has that Scandinavian feel, you may or may not degree with me on that one, but Stockholm is defiantly one of my favourite places I have visited in Scandinavia. I would visit again in a heartbeat, and would absolutely spend more time here, giving me more opportunity to see and visit more attractions. I mean I could, write, write and write about my time in Stockholm, you have to truly understand how much of an amazing city Stockholm is.
Oh and one final thing, I think I may have mentioned it once or twice, but purchase a Stockholm Pass, it is defiantly worth every single penny, and will save you a small fortune. Thats it for now guys, keep your eyes posted for my next blog, which will be about my visit to Oslo. ![]() My second day in Stockholm I started with visiting The Abba Museum. The Abba Museum is not included in the price of the Stockholm Pass and you have to purchase your tickets either from the ticket office at The Abba Museum or online. I opted to purchase my ticket online as this also gives a queue jumper. The cost of the ticket us 250 SEK (Approx. £20). Easily accessible by tram, if you’re an Abba fan or your like Abba like myself then this a must visit, it truly is a magnificent place. The museum not only takes you through the history of Abba, you can also get on stage and sing and dance along, sing in karaoke booths or dress up in virtual costumes, making it whole lot more enjoyable. Each room and exhibition play different tracks of music released by Abba, from some of your well-known songs to some the less popular songs that the released over the years. The museum will also take you through the lives of each of the singers, Bjorn, Benny, Frida and Agnetha, where they grew up, what their lives were like, how they met and how they got into the music business. There are videos and audio clips throughout the museum showcasing everything about Abba, making the museums experience even more enjoyable. Everything in the museum, from the costumes, instruments, dressing room, have all been used or owned by the members of Abba, replica dressing rooms have set up in exhibitions so can truly see how Abba evolved over the years. ![]() Once you reach the end of the museum, there is a little gift shop that sells a vast array of Abba Themed gifts and souvenirs, I opted to purchase an Abba fridge magnet to add to my ever-growing collection of magnets. Unfortunately this gift shop does not accept cash, though if you know how much you want to spend, then you can buy a gift card, pay cash and then use the gift card to purchase what you need from the shop. Which I could not have been happier as I know have an Abba magnet on my fridge. It was defiantly the best £20 ever spent and it would be top of the list for suggestion for things to do in Stockholm. The website states that you will walk in and dance out and you absolutely do leave feeling on high, which I did myself A short walking distance from The Abba museum or the previous tram stop is the Nordic museum, now I was in two minds as to whether I wanted to visit the place or not as I had quite a lot planned in such a short space of time, but as it was near buy and I had free entry with my Stockholm pass, I decided to pay a flying visit and see what the museum had to offer. The museum from the outside looks like a Nordic Castle, with its large spire in the middle. The museum has a large number of exhibitions in areas such as Nordic Light, folk art, fashion, interiors and tradition. With hundreds of artefacts, facts and displays, there is so much to take in at this museum. Some of the exhibitions I got to see while visiting the Nordic Museum were not only interesting but priceless in terms of value. If you visit and want to experience the whole museum then I would suggest setting a side a good few hours to take everything in. The museum also offers a café on the ground floor, unfortunately like a few other places, this only accepts card payments, so do bare this in mind if your wanting to have some refreshment’s while you’re at the Nordic Museum. ![]() One thing that Stockholm has to offer are a number of museums in particular Viking museums, one of the museums I chose to visit was Vikingaliv, quite simply as I was passing. Vikingaliv is a museum that brings the Vikings to life through an exhibition and even ride. Vikingaliv is based on historical facts combined with the most recent findings. Its free with the Stockholm Pass and is only a short distance from The Abba Museum. It’s not the biggest of museums, its relatively small in all honestly, however it is interesting and worth a visit, and with the museum not been that large, it doesn’t take that long to walk around. It worth a visit and it isn’t too time consuming. One selling point of this museum is that it has a ride, think of this ride as Ghost train, however instead of ghosts, it takes your through Viking life. Something different, but if you have an interest in Viking then its maybe worth a visit. ![]() Another attraction I would recommend and for my next point of call in Stockholm was Sky View. Skyview is a gondola ride with a panoramic view of Stockholm. Situated at Globen about fifteen minutes on the train from Stockholm Central Station, you will also come across the Ericsson Globe or known locally as Globen. Globen is an indoor arena that can house over 16,000 people and is the largest hemispherical building in the world. It can host major sporting events from hockey to handball, as well hosting concerts from Swedish and Global superstars, the globe has a height of over 400 feet, and built on the exterior of the Globen is Skyview. The gondola will take you to the top of Globen, where you will have 360-degree panaoramic view of Stockholm. The Skyview experience starts with watching a pointless video telling you about the history of Globen, and each of the four arena that make Globen, along with some safety instructions, that was ten minutes of my life I will never get back, I would have been happy with just the safety instructions. Anyway we were finally allowed to enter the Skyview Globe, to which we then start to climb the globe and it certainly wasn’t disappointing, the views are amazing. Skyview is dependant on weather and in certain weather conditions it does not operate, so if your planning on visiting, a quick check on their website is all that is needed to save yourself a thirty-minute round trip journey. So that's about it from this blog, keep your eye's posted for a little more on Stockholm, hope you have enjoyed this blog
Chow for now. An introduction to Stockholm and my first evening![]() Situated towards the South East, The Swedish capital Stockholm is a beautiful vibrant city, with plenty to do from Canal Tours, Viking Museums, The Abba Museum, Art Galleries, Museum’s and even an open-air museum showcasing life in Sweden over the centuries. Stockholm does not disappoint, and there is something for everyone. I was spoiled for choice. I stayed in Stockholm for three nights, giving me and two and half days to explore this multi-cultural city, and that was not long enough, I opted to purchase a Stockholm Pass, which gives you access to over fifty tourist attractions in and around the city. There is also another company that offer a sightseeing pass as well, this company is called Iventure. On balance the Stockholm pass is defiantly the better of two, as this gives you access to more tourist attractions, thus giving you more value for money. ![]() I flew from Copenhagen up to Stockholm Arlanda Airport, Arlanda Airport being the main international airport that serves Stockholm. Situated about twenty-five miles from the city centre, the Arlanda Express Train service will have you in the City Centre in less than twenty minutes. Tickets for the Express service are unfortunately not cheap I paid just over £40 for my return ticket, however it was the quick non-stop service that sold it to me. You can use other commuter services; however these take longer, and they are not nonstop. A bonus of purchasing a ticket on the Arlanda Express is your not restricted to getting a specific train at a set time, you can travel on any time train, so this perfect should you encounter a delay with your flight. The Arlanda Express will take you to the main Train Station in Stockholm city centre, the service offers free WIFI, charging ports and comfortable seating. Unfortunately with the Stockholm Pass I had purchased, transportation around the city is not included, however you can purchase a travel pass, which allows you unlimited travel on the commuter trains, metro, bus, boat and trams. I paid 260SEK (£21) for three days, which compared to some places I have visited is a good bargain, or at least I think it is. ![]() After travelling from Malmo to Copenhagen for my flight, it had been a long day. The Stockholm Pass I purchased had to be collected from one of the tourist offices around the city, it was mid-afternoon, and I had already selected my first excursion. A two-hour boat ride around the canals of Sweden. It was a warm sunny afternoon, and this was the perfect opportunity to sit back, relax and take in the sights of Stockholm. There are couple of boat tours to choose from, and with the Stockholm pass if you have enough time you can do all of the cruises, I opted to another shorter cruise the following day. The cruise I had chosen to do this afternoon was called Under the bridges of Stockholm. As Stockholm is made up of fourteen islands there is plenty of sights to see. The boat also has a bar on board so you can buy some locally brewed Swedish Beer, though it isn’t cheap, but it does taste good. The bar also offers, coffee, water, pop as well as some light snacks, so it has everything to offer. The set off point for the boat tour is down opposite the Island of Gamla Stan and The Royal Palace. Headphones are provided on the board, which you basically plug in, select your language so that you can also get an audio guide of the tour. The tour takes you through locks, some of the Islands including Sodermalm and Lilla Essingen. A fantastic was to take in the city and have stress free two hours, crew on board the boat is also exceptionally friendly and knowledgeable of the local area. ![]() For the evening I went for a little wonder to Island of Skeppsholmen, Skeppsholmen Island is beautiful little Island, where you can walk along the water front, there are various boats which a moored up, the island itself offers absolutely stunning views of Stockholm, and at night it look even more stunning, you also had some great views across the water of Grona Lund Amusement Park (Not as nice as Tivoli Gardens Copenhagen might I add). There is also one boat that doubles up as open-air bar, where you can sit on deck, have a beer, and it would have been rude if I didn’t. As this was a clear night, I sat backing watching the moons reflection on the water and as there were not many people around, listening to the rustling of the water up against the boat was so relaxing. Heading back to the train station was an experience, I got lost trying to find my way back to the city centre to head back to the train station, after nearly two hours, I finally got back on track and headed to the train station, only to get lost a second time, and having to rely on a local to get me back to the train station. By god was I glad when I got back to my AirBnB, as my anxiety was through the roof at this point. Thats it for this part of my blog on Stockholm, far too much to write for one blog, so keep your eyes posted for part two and three.
After a few days in Copenhagen, my next stop was Sweden’s third largest city Malmo. The Oresund bridge connects Copenhagen and Malmo and you travel across the Oresund Bridge in less than forty minutes and for as little as £25 return on the train, which makes Malmo a must visit, and this as one of my reasons why I chose this city and if you want to learn a little bit of Swedish history then there are many places around Malmo where you can learn this. Something that I’ve mentioned many times before is my liking for a canal or river tour, and I was in luck again in Malmo. Literally across the bridge from Malmo train station, you come to the departure point of the Rundan Sightseeing Boat, which is an hour’s tour of the Canal and the sights of Malmo. Also situated at the departure point is a little coffee kiosk where you can purchase tickets for the boat as well as some light refreshments. Now there is a little downside to this coffee kiosk, as with a of catering and bar venues in Malmo, they only accept card payments, and I don’t often take my card abroad with me, as I do not trust myself. However about a five minutes’ walk is the Malmo tourist office, where your able to pay cash for the Rundan Sightseeing boat. The cost is 160SEK which is equivalent to about £13 ![]() Unfortunately this canal you are not allowed alcoholic beverages, unlike previous canal or river tours I have done, but that wasn’t an issue, I just wanted to sit back and relax and enjoy taking in the sites of Malmo. The tour starts of heading out to the harbour where you pass the Monument to seafarers lost at war, where you turn around and head back into the Canals of Malmo. Heading along the Canal you pass Malmohus Castle and Castle Mill (Which is a Windmill situated next to the Castle). The tour also takes you past The Town Library, Main Fire Station, The Turning Torso (The tallest building in Scandinavia) and St Petri Church, our friendly guide we had with us, give us a little bit of history on each of the landmarks. The tour takes you under many of Malmo bridges, a few where you must crouch down to prevent you hitting your head. ![]() My first night in Malmo was the closing night of the Malmo Festival. Known as Malmofestivalen is a street festival that takes place in the heart of Malmo every year. With street performers, street food from all corners of the globe, and drink, culture and music from around the world. There is something for everyone at this festival, regardless of your age, religion or gender. Your spoiled for choice with the vast array of street food and international beers. There were two main stages, one of which where I ended up spending thee evening, enjoying a local Swedish beer and listening to the live entertainment. The festival returns this August and runs from 9th August to 16th August. Something I would defiantly recommend. ![]() My second day in Malmo was slightly more relaxing, my first stop was Malmo Castle or known locally as Malmohus castle. The caste was founded in the early 1400s thus making it Sweden’s oldest castle. For 40SEK or just under £4 you get access to the Castle, Transport Museum, a small Aquarium and Submarine U3, al located with walking distance, and a great place to spend the day. Also located in the castle is an aquarium, a little random and not something you expect but it’s great for families and young children, featuring many different aquatic creatures from around the world. A few minutes’ walk from Malmo Castle is the Technology and Maritime museum, which also houses Submarine U3. The museum takes you though some of the history of Swedish technology and Martine history. You can also climb aboard Submarine U3, if your claustrophobic then not something I would recommend, but you get a feeling. Submarine U3 gives you the chance to learn about submarine life during and after World War 2. A lot of the technical equipment used is still on board the Submarine and you also can hear first hand from veterans what life was like on board. Defiantly an education visit learning about Swedish history. My final stop for the evening would be Lilla Torg. Lilla Torg more commonly known as little square, is a romantic square, paved with natural stones, surrounded by beautifully designed buildings offers a little place to escape, where you escape the heart of Malmo and come from some food and drink. Like everywhere else in Malmo, the bars and restaurants in Lilla Torg are expensive, and while some of these establishments do accept cash payments, not all off them do, the menus on display outside the various establishments will state whether they are card only. I found a nice little bar, that sold light meals and offered some great beers from around the world. Whilst Malmo is vibrant city, by the end of my second day I was looking for things to do, if it wasn’t for the Malmo festival, I could have seen everything Malmo has to offer in one full day, one thing I would suggest is, if you’re in Copenhagen, stay an extra night, and spend one day in Malmo. Trains run from early in the morning to around Midnight, so you would have ample time to explore Malmo, have a light snack, dinner and a beer or two. Finally, if your travelling to Malmo by air, then Copenhagen Airport is by the far the easiest and quickest airport to arrive into as opposed to Malmo Airport. Not only Copenhagen Airport is larger and handles more international flights, it is also actually closer to Malmo than Malmo airport. The train that travels across the Oresund Bridge stops at Copenhagen Airport and get you into Malmo in less than forty minutes, where as the journey from Malmo to Malmo airport is considerably longer and you have to take the bus, which isn’t as frequent as the trains. Following on from my second blog on Copenhagen after visiting Amalienborg, my next visit was to Nyhavn, about a ten minute walk along the harbour you will pass The Danish Architecture Centre, as it was summer there were deck Chairs sat on the decking over looking the harbour and I though it be rude if I didn’t have beer from the stand on the harbour and sit, soak up sun, have a beer and relax for a wee while. Sat people watching was just perfect after been on my feet for a few hours and the beer went down a treat. I didn’t have time to visit the Danish Architecture Centre, however my AirBnB host did recommend it, and it is also covered in the cost with the Copenhagen Card, so its free. Basically, if you did want to visit the Centre, it showcases exhibitions focusing on the city developments. It also hosts the latest international trends in architecture so if this is something that interests you, then head down to visit, you have several other attractions with on ten-minute walking distance as well, so you tick a few things of the to do list. ![]() Anyway, I had finished my beer, so I got up and headed to Nyhavn, I’ve seen pictures of Nyhavn, and it is a truly beautiful places in the heart of Copenhagen. With a small canal in the middle separating either side of Nyhavn I was totally in awe of the place, looking up the kaleidoscope of colours of the buildings, Nyhavn well and truly has a Dutch feeling. Either side of the canal you are spoilt for choice at the vast number of restaurants, bar and coffee shops that Nyhavn has to offer, with most of them offering outside seating, not only that they were several boats moored up at the side, making this place look even more magical. Unfortunately, as this was summer, it was extremely busy as Nyhavn is very popular with tourists, and the only thing that does come with that, this that the bars and restaurants are little on the pricey side, like with all popular places. Fortunately for me I was not planning on eating or drinking here, I purely just wanted to visit to see it looked as stunning as it does on pictures, and it was certainly no let down. If the place was not as busy or pricey, I could have sat in bar outside for hours watching the world go by, this is simply a place where you cannot get bored. ![]() #For my final night, I headed back to my AirBnB, quick shower and my plan was to visit Tivoli Gardens and then head back to Town Hall Square to enjoy pride week (I will write a little about that in a moment). Heading back for my final evening in Copenhagen, I headed straight to Tivoli Gardens to have a look around. As I have previously mentioned Tivoli Gardens is theme park in the middle of Copenhagen City Centre, I arrived around 6.30pm and giving the time, it wasn’t to busy, giving me plenty of opportunity to explore this place. I used my Copenhagen Card to gain entry and unfortunately that all it does, gives you free entry. There are addition charges if you want to have a ride on the rides or play on any of the arcades, but for me I just wanted to explore and have a walk around the theme park and gardens. If you enter Tivoli Gardens from the entrance opposite the east entrance of Copenhagen Central Station, you immediately come to little path leading down to a selection of bars, fantastic, beer, why not I’m on holiday I might as well. One or two people reading this will be thinking “he’ll be drunk” well al correct you now, I wasn’t before any makes that comment. Sitting down with a beer on a warm summer night watching the world go by, I couldn’t ask for a better way to relax. Walking around a park, you’re not spoiled for choice, with rides for all ages, beautiful gardens to walk around, Tivoli Gardens will not disappoint you. Right in the centre of Tivoli Gardens there is open stage, called The Pantomime Theatre, where Tivoli Gardens will put on regular shows, there were no shows scheduled whilst I was visiting Tivoli Gardens, but I can only image sitting outside in the summer, watching a show would be unique experience. Walking around Tivoli I came across another stage, this time there was a performance on, and there were Ballet performers on stage, this just adding to the relaxing environment that Tivoli Gardens creates. Every evening after doing all the tourist shenanigans and sightseeing, unknown to me, it was Pride week in Copenhagen, with the main event and parade taking place at weekend. City Hall square hosted pride week, and this would be ultimately where I would end up every evening, having a few beers and relaxing after a busy day of sightseeing was perfect, City hall square consisted if a main stage, and a number of stalls from various LGBT+ organisations, most of Danish but a few well known once not to mention a bar that only sold one brand of beer Tuborg as well as spirits, fortunately I took a liking to Tuborg, which is part of the Carlsberg group. I got talking a guy whilst walking round the market area, and he was from a group called Sabaah. Sabaah which if I remember rightly was set around 2007, and the group was created to support the ethnic minority LGBT+ people of Denmark. The idea of the group that it creates a safe place for people from the minority community to meet up, socialise without feeling persecuted for the sexual orientation. The group is brilliant idea, as people who come from a Muslim, sheikh or any other religious background can connect making their lives easier. I thoroughly enjoyed speaking to the guy and can only commend them for the work the organisation does. It’s hard enough for anyone young person to come out as gay or accept their sexuality, but for people from an ethnic background where they can ultimately feel isolated its even harder, and this organisation is truly an integral park in the Copenhagen LGBT+ scene. As well as Sabaah you have your usual market stalls from sexual health stalls, to Danish political group stalls. ![]() The main stage offered several different performances mainly live singers as well as a jazz band. There was never a moment where the entertainment was boring. My last evening however there was a performance from a very popular Danish singer called Anne Linnet. I had previously heard of Anne Linnet, she was a judge on the Danish version of The X Factor, but I didn’t think that was as popular as she was. The City Hall Square that night was jammed packed, and the atmosphere when Anne came out to perform was amazing. She sang in Danish and I didn’t have a clue what she was singing, and the crowds were singing along, but she fantastic, to the point where I was also dancing with a group of Danish girls. After doing some research Anne her self in married to a lady, so I can only imagine this why the Danish LGBT+ community had much love for this singer, and what better way to see my final night in Copenhagen. For anyone wondering Copenhagen pride week is on again 13th August to the 22nd August 2019, so if your planning a trip to Copenhagen, defiantly try to visit during this time. Also Copenhagen will host Euro Pride from 12th August 2021 to 22nd August 2021. All in all, Copenhagen is a truly beautiful city ad with a Copenhagen Card you have access to over eighty tourist attractions. In Copenhagen you will find a wide range of entertainment, culture and shopping n the opportunity to visit classic destinations like Tivoli Gardens and Copenhagen Zoo (something I didn’t do unfortunately). Copenhagen is on of Scandinavia’s oldest capitals, and what come with that is the gorgeous royal castle and old building, but the same time has many new developments and buildings making this a truly unique vibrant city.
Finally, I have mentioned the Copenhagen Card many times through these blogs on Copenhagen, without a doubt this is best money saving card you can buy. You have options to buy it over one, two, three or even more days, the good thing about it, it starts from the time you scan into your first attraction. For example if you purchased a three-day card, and your first attraction you visited was on Monday at 2pm, the card would expire at Thursday 2pm. The Copenhagen card also gives you unlimited access on public transport, so defiantly look into purchasing a one, for more information click on the link below to take you to the Copenhagen Card website. |
James CMy name is James, I'm from Newcastle UK, and wanting to share my travel experiences with everyone Archives
February 2020
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