Stockholm, Sweden

We depart by air from Bergen to Stockholm.  Forgot we were doing carryon luggage.  Got to security and had to bag all of our liquids and creams.  Got them bagged

Carried them through the line to where you put all your stuff in the bins to go through.  The lady took my shampoo and conditioner.  Bottles to big even though less than half full.  Went through and yep, my hip set off the machine, so had to get the pat down routine.  Then the guy on this side of security ask to check my plastic bags again.  He confiscated my hair gel.  Since Terry and I had decided to I would bring the hair products and she would bring the face products, we now have no hair products at all.  Ha.  Ah well, theres a drug store someplace I 'm sure.

Only an hour flight, so we arrived and this time our taxi driver was there to meet us.  A little better beginning for Stockholm.

The city of Stockholm is made up a seveal islands connected by bridges.

We have a pass that gets us on all modes of transportation and into all museums and sights.  As our hotel is a ways from center city we hopped our first bus and got off in this pretty park area.  Grabbed a quick bite to eat and then walked into the old city on the island of Gamla Stan.  The city of Stockholm was oiginally founded on this island.

Crossing the bridge into the old city

Narrow streets

and alleys

Yeah, the Swedes have decaf coffee.  We also tried

Kanelbulle, the Swedish Cinnamon Bun.  Pretty good.

We had a tour of the city the next morning 

and went on to each of the islands making up the city.  

Afterwards, we decided to go to the Vasa Museum and see the old ship which sank in the harbor on her maiden voyage.  We took the ferry to Djurgarden, another island to find the museum

The Vasa was one of four ships commissioned bt King Gustov Adolf in 1625.

She had 120 ton of ballast on board which was not enough to cope with even a small squall.  Considerably more ballest was needed, but then her gun ports would have been too close to the water line.  The hull should have been designed wider and deeper, but alas soon after she sailed she keeled over in the wind and sank with crew and passengers on board.  The efforts to raise her from the harbor floor began in 1957.  A series of tunnels built under the boat and then using steel cables and pontoons, she was raised from the clay in one piece to a level of 15 metres.  

By 1961 after being made water tight, she was raised to the surface. On May 4, 1961, on her own keel, she was hauled into the Gustov V dry dock, afloat after 333 years.

Along with the ship they found many skeletons of the crew and passengers with most of their bones and some artifacts intact.  They were able to determine who and what some of them were doing at the time of the disaster.  Using forensics and skulls they have been able to creater very life like likenesses of many of the crew and a woman who was aboard.  This guy was particularly real looking.

Gustav

 Beata was 25 years old and one of two women on board.  She was a guest and would have left the ship at its first port

Filip was 30 and was found near the helm.  It is almost certain her was the Steersman

Quite an amazing effort to preserve this history of Stockholm's Ship Vasa

As we exited the museum, it began to rain.  We did catch the trolley pretty close by.  By the time we got back to where we thought our bus stop was, it was raining pretty hard.  Stupid us, we neither brought our umbrellas or raincoats.  By the time we found the correct bus stop we were drenched.  We went back to our hotel to dry out.  More tomorrow.