Sunday, July 17, 2011

Sweden, Continued

We have been enjoying our time in Stockholm for sure.  I think we all can agree that we are feeling a better vibe in Sweden...it's more metropolitan, more history and an abundance of water.  Our 6th and final full day of the study tour is jam packed with sketching stops and opportunities for photo ops.

We awoke to a rainy day in Scandinavia but we pressed on anyways.  Our first stop was the Stockholm City Hall; also the building that holds the Nobel Peace Prize Award Ceremony.  It is a heavy brick building right along the water and a huge tourist destination.  We were unfortunately unable to enter into the building but from the outside it was still impressive.




Next we headed to the Stockholm Library, another pretty impressive structure that had a huge, circular space to house the books.  Like all other stops, we got a quick tour and explanation of the space and then were encouraged to take the remained of the stop to sketch.






Next it was lunch on our own...as usual, I ate my pre-made sandwich that I made with leftover breakfast foods and snuck out with.  Delish, but I don't think I can eat anymore ham, salami and cheese sandwiches...I feel it is all they serve here at our buffets, but it could be worse I guess.

After lunch, we were told to be on the bus at 1:30 sharp to depart for the remainder of our day trip.  At 1:25, I boarded the bus with a delightful Asian called Issac.  While sitting waiting to go, we saw a few of our comrades getting onto the bus with some wine and liquor.  Now, you may be asking yourself, "So what?"  Well, in Norway and Sweden, the government owns and distributes the liquor and monitors alcohol content levels in the beers (the max. containing 3.5% alcohol).  Liquor stores close at 6PM, and we're never back from our trips until, at earliest, 8PM.  Throughout the entire trip we have been left to purchase "the standard" Carlsberg (which we're all pretty much over at this point) at a whopping 3.5%.  So, we ask our classmates where they got such things...and they point a block away.  Without exchanging words, Issac and I sprinted off the bus, past classmates and chaperones in the complete opposite direction to the liquor store.  At 1:26 we arrived out of breath and sweating.  At 1:27 we couldn't decide between vodka or whiskey.  At 1:28, we decided to get both.  At 1:29, we saw 4 other classmates running in as we were paying.  At 1:30, with no bags, just booze in hand, we sprinted down the street and onto the bus.  At 1:31, we felt like winners.

Now, with everything squared away, we pressed on to check out a church and then it was onto a 3 hour tour of Woodland Cemetery.  By this point in our trip, we're all exhausted and take any opportunity to relax and nap...so why not on the front lawn of a cemetery?



It is a huge, well manicured plot of land outside of Stockholm that is home to several chapels, a crematorium, cemetery, and other things.  It was creepy.  Not exactly my idea of a fun place to spend an afternoon but, what can you do?






For our last dinner in Stockholm, dinner was on our school at a very nice restaurant where we ate, yup, Swedish Meatballs...booyah.  They were delicious.  It was great to eat all together and recap our trip a bit.  We were told by some of the girls working for the school that there was a free concert going on that we needed to check out.  Long story short, we ended up being a lot more tired than we expected, and the group that I was with, never made it but instead decided to find a square to hang out in and people watch.

1 comment:

  1. Swedish meatballs were a highlight for me! Oh and the beer paid for by DIS!

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