I woke up and still felt pretty weak from the hellish time I had the day before. I took a nice long shower and felt refreshed. I find that if you try and embrace the start of your day it usually leads to postive things :)
I took a shuttle bus from the center of Kiruna to the Airport. The flight took about an hour and half. No matter how short or long a flight is I always get nervous and scared. I think a part of it is due to my fear of heights and knowing that I don't have control. I arrived at the Airport at 3pm and I touched base with my Couch Surfing Host. She was very helpful in giving me details on how to get to her place. I bought a SL card that I can use any Train, Bus, Metro, or Tram in the greater Stockholm area. I took a bus, train, and then two more bus rides and I was at her place! My Host is from Finland but has been living in Stockholm for the last few years. The first night we just relaxed and got know somethings about each other.
Costs- Shuttle bus ticket- 50 Swedish Kronor(8 US)
SL Card - 280 Swedish Kronor(44 US)
Day 10 Sightseeing with great company
I actually got a full nights sleep! I woke up feeling a little weak but alot better! I have some good luck too...Elina has a day off of work and is going to show me around the city. We went to a nice Swedish Market where I could see all the different types of food they sell. Walked around while it was snowing. We went to the Medieval Museum. Its a great place to really view what the medieval times were like in Stockholm. they have a wall that has been perserved very well. I've always enjoyed this era and getting to know more about the authentic history of it was great. Elina and I then went to Gamla Stan(Stockholm's Old Towne) to a few underground bars. We stopped by a bar that I was at with my family two years ago when we were visiting for my Swedish Family Reunion. I enjoy getting to know new people and to hear about things that there passionate about and how they live there life... what drives someone to do this or that and I was really impressed with Elina. Afterwards I felt I knew a great deal about her and the conversation was rewarding to me... In life we all choose on how you value everything... your time... your money and to me meeting and getting to know interesting people is like a gift and Couch Surfing is like Christmas! Later on I picked up Vicky at the bus station. She is a Couch Surfing Host I stayed with in Ireland from a previous Euro Trip.
Day 11 Sigtuna- Oldest Town in Sweden
Vicky and I both used our SL cards and went to Sweden's oldest town Sigtuna. It begin in 980 and its a very loveable place....small... but you'll fall in love with it. We went to the Museum and got to know some history about Sweden. There was a nice Cafe where we ate and enjoyed the normal chatter about each others lives. Then we went back home to relax before a night out in the city. I cooked up some delicious hamburgers that were so thick they took forever to cook. There was a CS(Couch Surfing) meeting at a bar called Kvarnen. It was nice to meet some new people but the place was so loud that it was hard to keep a conversation going. Vicky and I followed two other Surfers to a bar called KGB. There was a Heavy Metal band there and it was okay.. not really my type of music but its nice to try different things. Afterwards we walked around Gamla Stan. It was funny to hear both guys tell me " You remind me of someone" at the start of the night and then later on both tell me I look like Tom Green... haha
Ended up at a fast food place called Max.. Its like the Swedish verison of Mcdonalds. I was standing in line for a very long time and both lines on the side of me were moving along alot faster... I asked the Cashier in front of me what the problem was and they said the computer was down but there fixing it right now. A girl asks me if they waited on me yet and I said no. Then out of the corner of my eye I see this girl and her friend go in front of the line to the left(Vicky's line) and order food.... The Cashier just went along with it and helped her... mannnnnnn I was Furious! I was tired, hungary, and now pissed off... After they ordered I told them you know what you just did was really RUDE. She said oh but you already ordered... I said no I didn't and you know that... Ohh It must be a language misunderstanding because shes Swedish she says. Swedes speak English very well and it just made me even more Angry. I went ahead and ate my three hamburgers and called it a night.
Day 12 Skansen
Vicky and I went to the oldest open air museum in the world called Skansen. Its so big that it probably has its own zipcode. It has over 150 Buildings that showcase the history of Sweden. Nordic Animals were Awesome! I really enjoy to see how my Ancestors lived and what the normal life was like back in those days. Elina's friend Eric was having a party later on that night so Vicky and I joined her. His mother was from the States so he spoke perfect English. I really enjoyed the Party and drank just a little bit too much... Good Times :)
Skansen ticket- 70 Swedish Kronor(11 US)
Day 13 Vasa Museum
History about the Vasa
Vasa was a Swedish warship that was built from 1626 to 1628. The ship foundered and sank after sailing less than a nautical mile (ca 2 km) into her maiden voyage on 10 August 1628. Vasa fell into obscurity after most of her valuable bronze cannons were salvaged in the 17th century. She was located again in the late 1950s, in a busy shipping lane just outside the Stockholm harbor. She was salvaged with a largely intact hull on 24 April 1961. She was housed in a temporary museum called Wasavarvet ("The Wasa Shipyard") until 1987, and was then moved to the Vasa Museum in Stockholm. The ship is one of Sweden's most popular tourist attractions and has since 1961 attracted more than 28 million visitors.[2]
Vasa was built top-heavy and had insufficient ballast. Despite an obvious lack of stability in port, she was allowed to set sail and foundered a few minutes later when she first encountered a wind stronger than a breeze. The impulsive move to set sail resulted from a combination of factors. Swedish king Gustavus Adolphus, who was abroad on the date of her maiden voyage, was impatient to see Vasa join the Baltic fleet in the Thirty Years' War. At the same time, the king's subordinates lacked the political courage to discuss the ship's structural problems frankly or to have the maiden voyage postponed. An inquiry was organized by the privy council to find someone responsible for the disaster, but no sentences were handed out.
Vicky and I went to the Vasa Museum and both loved it! This was my second time being there and It was worth it to see it again. Its funny a failure can be turned into something postive. Great way to look at Life. :P We took a Viking Line Cruise from Stockholm to Helsinki. It departed at 16:45.
Costs- Vasa Museum ticket 110 Swedish Kronor(17 US)
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