Stocholm, Uppsala and Idre, August 17
Södermalm Observation Deck, Stockholm
Early in the morning our ferry from Turku, having made its way through
the maze of Åland Islands, arrived at the port of Stockholm. Hopes to
look at the shores of the suburbs of Stockholm were not fulfilled,
because it was foggy...read more 
Evert Taubes Terrass, Stockholm
After the observation platform of Södermalm, we went to the Stadsholmen
island, and on the way briefly looked at the embankment of the Knight's
island (Riddarholmen). Before the reformation, the island belonged to a
monastery of the Franciscan order and for several centuries was called
Gromunkeholmen (Island of the Grey Friars)...read more
Palace Hill, Stockholm
From the embankment of the Knight's island, we head to the very center of the Swedish state, the Stadsholmen Island...read more
Church of St. Nicholas (Storkyrkan), Stockholm
The Stockholm Cathedral or Great Church (Storkyrkan) is located at the
highest point of the island of Stadsholmen next to the outer courtyard
of the Royal Palace. It is believed that the wooden church on this site
was built on the instructions of Jarl Birger and named after the patron
of sailors Saint Nicholas (Sankt Nikolai kyrka)...read more
Changing of the Guard at the Royal Palace, Stockholm
An indispensable attribute of most monarchies, and not only monarchies,
is an honor guard in full uniform at the building where the Supreme
power of the state is located. In the old days, the Palace guard served
as a security service, but now this work is performed by "soldiers of
the invisible front", and the Palace guard in full dress uniforms is
just a tribute to tradition...read more
Stockholm Royal Palace History and Architecture
The highest part of the Stadsholmen island is occupied by the Stockholm
castle (Stockholms slott), which is more often called the Royal Palace
(Kungliga slottet)...read more
Outer Courtyard of the Royal Palace, Stockholm
After walking along Slottsbaken Square to St. Nicholas church, turn the
corner of the Royal Palace and find yourself in the so-called Yttre
Borggården, sometimes called the Parade Square...read more
Trångsund Street, Stockholm
From the outer courtyard of the Royal Palace, we went to
Storkyrkobrinken Street. Here begins the oldest part of Stockholm, Gamla
Stan (which translates as Old Town), whose development began in the
12th century...read more
Stortorget, Stockholm
Trångsund street led us to the oldest square in Stockholm, Stortorget
("The Big Square"). This place was built up in the Middle ages without
any plan, and was originally just a street intersection. After a fire in
the 15th century stone houses were built in this quarter and by the
16th century the center of social and commercial life Gamla Stan was
formed...read more
Schantzska huset, Stockholm
The most attractive and famous house on Stortorget square was built in
1650 for the secretary of king Karl X Gustav Johan Eberhard Schantz, so
it is named "Schantzska huset" (House of Schantz)...read more
Stockholm Stock Exchange Building (Börshuset)
The entire northern part of Stortorget square is occupied by a large
neoclassical building topped by a tower. It is now owned by the Swedish
Academy of Sciences, but was originally intended for stock trading...read more
Stortorgsbrunnen Fountain, Stockholm
In 1778, the stortorgsbrunnen ("Fountain on Stortorget") public water
supply source was opened on Stortorget square, again by Erik Palmstedt.
The water was intended for household needs as well as for extinguishing
fires...read more
Grillska Huset, Stockholm
In the Eastern corner of Stortorget square is the Grill's house, which
is considered one of the most beautiful In Stockholm. The history of the
house goes back to the middle ages, it is known that in 1640 it was
purchased by the merchant Hans Bremer and 1949 carried out a large-scale
reconstruction, adding an attic in the Baroque style...read more
Runic Stone, Stockholm
From the Schantz house, follow the narrow
Kåkbrinken lane that leads to the embankment and descend to the next
street, Pråstgatan. In the basement of the corner house, you can see a runic stone, used as a building material...read more
German Church, Stockholm
After passing from the Runestone up Prästgatan, we will see the сhurch
of St. Gertrud (Sankta Gertruds kyrka) on the left. The cast-iron gates
of the сhurch are decorated with a gilded bas-relief of the Saint and an
inscription in German: "Fürchtet Gott! Ehret den König! " - "Fear God!
Honor the King!"...read more
Västerlånggatan, Stockholm
From the German church, walk one block down the Tyska Brinken, and come
out on the main tourist street of the Old City, Västerlånggatan. The Västerlånggatan ("West long street") was laid out in the 13th
century along the fortress wall and runs through the entire Old town,
from the Stallbron bridge to the Iron square...read more
Iron Square (Järntorget), Stockholm
The Västerlånggatan street at its southern end forms a small square
called Järntorget ("Iron square"). The square was formed at the
beginning of the 14th century, and was originally named Korntorget
("Grain square"), as wheat and corn were brought here for export...read more
Mårten Trotzigs Gränd, the Narrowest Street of Stockholm
At the very end of the Vasterlanggatan, just short of the Iron Square, there is a small alley called Mårten Trotzigs Gränd, which is enclosed by high blank walls and is only 90 centimeters wide. The lane is named after a merchant from Saxony who settled in Stockholm in 1581...read more
School of St.Nicholas (Estonian school), Stockholm
After going up the steps of Morten Trotzig lane from the side of
Vasterlanggatan, we will go out into a small square in front of the
school of St. Nicholas (Sankt Nikolai Skola). This is the oldest
educational institution in Stockholm, it is mentioned in a document of
1315, although according to some sources, the school was still in
operation at the end of the 13th century...read more
Österlånggatan, Stockholm
From the Estonian school we will go down to Österlånggatan. Translated
from Swedish, this name means "North long street" - it really goes
North from Iron square towards the Palace hill. As Västerlånggatan it
was built along the city wall and was one of the main street old
Stockholm...read more
Köpmantorget, Stockholm
At the top of the Österlånggatan is a small triangular Köpmantorget
(Merchant square). The name comes from the Merchant's Gate
(Köpmanporten), which led to the fish market (Fiskatorget), located
outside the city wall...read more
Bartelska huset and Brända tomten, Stockholm
Very close to Köpmantorget, on the corner of Köpmangatan is another
architectural monument - one of the oldest houses in Stockholm, built in
1549...read more
Iron Boy Sculpture (Järnpojke), Stockholm
If you go around the Finnish church, you will find yourself in a small
square called Bollhustäppan, which is not even a square, but a courtyard
that can be recognized by a well-marked spiral staircase. The square
appeared in the 60s on the site of a ballroom for dancing and playing
ball (Bollhus - "ball house"), built in the 17th century...read more
Djurgården, the Museums Island
Here is the most important attraction of the Swedish capital, the Vasa
ship museum (Vasamuseet). "If you haven't seen Vasa, you haven't seen
Stockholm" - so say the guidebooks...read more
Uppsala. Gustav Vasa's Palace
After a brief acquaintance with the current Swedish capital, we go to Uppsala,
the ancient capital of Sweden, retained this status until 1523. Uppsala
is now a major industrial, cultural and University center of modern
Sweden...read more
Styrbiskp Bastion and Bell of Gunilla, Uppsala
In front of the northern wing of Uppsala castle is a bastion with a
wooden structure-a belfry, known as the "Bell of Gunilla"
(Gunillaklockan)...read more
Uppsala University Campus
At the foot of the hill where Uppsala Castle is located, there is the main library building of the University (Uppsala universitetsbibliotek), founded in 1447. The library is considered the richest in Scandinavia, with more than five million volumes and 40 thousand manuscripts...read more
Uppsala Cathedral
The Cathedral of Uppsala (Uppsala domkyrka), the main Lutheran church in
Sweden, is also the seat of the Archbishop of Sweden. Its history goes
back to the Viking age, which at the turn of the 11-12 centuries built
the first Christian church in Old Uppsala...read more
The Interiors of the Uppsala Cathedral
After looking at the majestic towers of the Cathedral, we will get
acquainted with its interiors, made in the style of French Gothic...read more
Grave Of Gustav Vasa, Uppsala
The most important landmark of the Cathedral is the grave of king Gustav Vasa and his two wives. Gustav
Vasa, or Gustav I-Regent, and then king of Sweden, whose name is
associated with the formation of Sweden as an independent state...read more
Forests and lakes of Western Sweden
Our path lies among the forests and lakes of Western Sweden. The area is sparsely populated and the roads are not loaded...read more
Pernilla Wiberg Hotel, Idre
After passing through western Sweden, it was late in the evening when we
arrived at our first overland overnight stop on this trip. Today we were sheltered by the Idre ski resort, which is currently empty
near the border with Norway. This modern complex is well known not only
in Sweden, but also throughout Europe...read more