Top 10 Reasons To Go To STOCKHOLM, baby

To spice things up a bit, Ellen and I decided to do a top ten list. We have listed ten things that we found absolutely amazing about Stockholm, Sweden. We traveled to this Stockholm on February 2 to the 4th. Many of you might not have know about this trip and other did know. Anyway, we found some very very cheap tickets and decided to go on short notice. It was a great weekend and we really loved Stockholm. Here are some of the reasons...


10. At crosswalks, a green little man is not the only thing displayed when it is okay to walk across the street. They also have "tickers." When you press the button to cross, a ticking sound comes from the pole. If it ticks slowly, it means STOP, do NOT walk! However, if you hear a fast clicking sound, it's a-okay to go, grab your partner's hand, and walk safely across the street. This "ticker" system accomodates to the blind, unlike ours in America. Aye. So, if you are blind, go there. You will be pleasantly suprised and assisted!

9. Like Skate on State in Chicago, Sweden also has this! Their skating park is not as huge but the view is absolutely gorgeous. The vibrant colors of the buildings emit into the air a feeling of happiness, which the ice skaters get to breathe in. We watched an elderly couple dance to the music they were playing, which was mostly light jazz and polka tunes. Then, at the same time, little kids were slippin' and slidin'; they even laughed when they fell and the parents also laughed at them, as well. Also, this ice rink gives out helmets free of any rental fee for whoever, mostly kids use them.



8. The whole city is extremely family-friendly. Seriously, every 10th person you see on the street has a baby stroller. This is so common that they even built staircases that help these parents out. Off to the side of most of the staircases, there are ramps for parents to wheel the strollers up with ease. How about that for social awareness! YEAH! They take their babies everywhere with them. Outside resturants, Nick and I saw STROLLER PARKING LOTS!

7. Their toliets. The Swedes are all about conserving their water. On each toliet, there are two buttons. If you one urinates and nothing else, you should push the button that has only a circle. However, if one does a little more than just...well, ya' know...then you should push the other button that has a half-circle, indicating that it needs more water to flush one's waste down the pipes.



6. Hostels. It is Swedish custom to take our your shoes when you enter a house or an inn. This small tradition kept the hostel floors extremely clean and free from any grime. I'm not sure about every hostel in Sweden but the one we stayed at offered a lot of nice features for travellers who are on a tight budget. They offered FREE tea, FREE coffee, FREE pasta, FREE morning sauna, FREE internet, FREE cable tv, and FREE information from the helpful staff. In addition to those luxaries, the beds that they provided were exceedingly comfortable, like a lower end of the "Tempurpedic" but still, amazing. ALL of THIS for a cheap cheap cheap price that's equivalent to 20 bucks a night!

5. Bike lanes! In Chicago, bike lanes are part of the street...if they exist at all! This can be hazardous to the biker, for she or he may get "doored" by a parked car or just be run over by a unfit driver. However, in Stockholm, bike lanes are on the sidewalks! This location is a lot safer! These bike lanes do not make the sidewalks narrow either. Stockholm is so well organized that their sidewalks are nice and wide! So, pedestrians are not in danger of these bikers! There is enough room for everybody!

4. Bilingual Swedes! Most, almost all, Swedish people have excellent English in addition to speaking Swedish. We were relieved to have such an easy time communicating in Stockholm. In Rome, we struggle with Italian because we do not know that much yet and the Italians generally do not speak English. Not to say that we think everyone should speak English, definitely not. Rather, we are just impressed at how well the Swedes know English. They must learn throughout their years of school in their excellent public education system!

3. Stockholm is a city built on the water. The city is composed of several small islands and peninsulas of land. The bridges connecting each section are numerous. These waterways make the city very beautiful. It seemed like the water was also very clean. We had fun watching the ducks and swans in one calm river. On Saturday it rained so much that the city flooded, but the Swedes just pulled out the viking ships and got on with their day.







2. Health. Not only does Sweden have a great public health system, but they are very healthy in their diets in general. Tasting the food we noticed that Sweden seems to use healthy ingredients in their food. The juice is not made of water and hyfructose corn syrup, it's actually juice! Real fruit, what a concept. Also, they offer healthy alternatives, even in the vending machines! This picture is of a vending machine in the train station. That's right, a juice box and and APPLE!!! By the way, the public transportaion is amazing! The metro is safe, fast, clean, and comfortable.

1. While on the subway, Ellen and I noticed something interesting. Two young boys, about 12 or 13 years old got on the train. A newspaper was laying on one of the seats. One boy picked it up and began reading. He was generally interested in the news. This is rare in the US. We found this interesting. Politically and socially aware youngsters.