Fortunately upon arriving in Stockholm I was able to switch right over to the local time and schedule so when I arrived at 7am that morning I was up and ready for the day. I had planned on meeting up with my friends for some sight seeing once they arrived a few hours after my flight. Unfortunately due to some maintenance issues they had their flight canceled last minute and weren’t able to leave until the following day. So after working for a while in my hotel room I decided it was time to get to know the area since I’d be here for a little while. After I’d been walking for a bit I realized I hadn’t eaten all day so I stopped in a little cafe to have some food and of course a latte for dinner. As I sat watching people walk by I had a funny thought, Stockholm is a city of strollers, stilettos and coffee. This was especially noticeable in cafes where mothers of all ages had all 3 going on. This is quite impressive when you consider their walking around pushing a baby stroller on 300+ year old cobble stone roads. It was also quite interesting seeing mothers meet in the cafe with their friends then a short bit later (presumably after work) husbands and other friends would arrive have a coffee then everyone would leave together for dinner, this seemed to be the norm through out the trip despite the day of week.
While walking around I found a great museum I’ll need to look up the name. I walked around it a bit but didn’t pay the admission because I didn’t quite understand the conversion rates it was about 300kr (which ended up being about $50) to go through but aside from the price their only english tour wasn’t until Sunday when I would be at the conference. I did manage to take a photo of the inside, not great lighting but it was the only shot I could pull off before being told no photos and once you’ve been spotted with a large digital SLR it becomes really difficult to sneak in those covert photos. I did however take a fun shot of the interior courtyard of the museum.
For the most part the first day I stayed in the downtown area of Stockholm, fairly close to my hotel the Nordic Light. When asking for a nice local place to enjoy a pint with friendly locals it was suggested I go checkout Strouhof it was a little classier crowed where most the investment bankers hung out after work. I made quick friends with Michal the bartender who pointed me to all the great areas of Stockholm I needed to see, while avoiding any potential tourist traps.
