Begin your day as you did on day one of your two perfect days, but on this gorgeous, sunny Stockholm day, you'll exit the Radisson SAS Strand's front door and head to your right instead of to your left.
Follow the water and the walkway that curves around the harbor. Take a moment to breathe in the view when you reach Skeppholmsbron ("bron" means "bridge"). Looking across Norrstrom harbor, you're admiring the Royal Palace. You're also looking at your next destination, Gamla Stan.
Stroll along the waterway, passing the Grand Hotel. You'll want to peek inside to admire the Grand's regal public spaces. Make note of the Cadierbaren, which offers a high-tea service that you're not likely to forget.
Continuing along Stromkajen, cross the street and Strombron (remember "bron" is "bridge") to Gamla Stan, the "city between the bridges." Walk up Palace Hill, nod to the guard at the top, then head down to begin exploring Stockholm's birthplace.
The House of Parliament is on your right, and it's not unusual to see fisherman in waders hauling in trout from the lake waters than run beneath the Parliament. The locks at Gamla Stan separate Lake Malaren (60 miles long) from the Baltic Sea.
The medieval old town, with its charming cobblestone streets, museums, shops and restaurants, straddles three of 14 islands that make up Stockholm. The well-preserved Old Town features the original network of streets, and some of its buildings date from the Middle Ages.
Gamla Stan is relatively small, so it's okay, even preferable, to lose yourself here. After you've walked past the Royal Palace, you'll come to Gamla Stan's main pedestrian street, Vasterlangatan ("the long western street").
You can cross all of Gamla Stan on Vasterlangatan. If you were do so without stopping and with no crowds, you could make it from one end to the other in 10 to 15 minutes. But Vasterlangatan can be crowded from mid-morning to mid-afternoon when the weather is nice, so unless you enjoy walking shoulder-to-shoulder, belly-to-back and toe-to-heel with thousands of others, you'll need to permit yourself to be detoured.
Make your way along Vasterlangatan for only a block before turning left up Storkyrkobrinken, which leads to your first stop, the 15th-century Gothic Storkyrkan ("Stor" means "large;" "kyrkan" means "church"), also, thankfully for the English tongue, called the Stockholm Cathedral, or Church of St. Nicolas. No matter what you call it, the church features Scandinavia’s largest medieval monument, a wooden sculpture made of elk antlers and oak carved in 1489 representing St. George battling a fierce Dragon. Make a mental note of the sculpture. You'll see another version of it, outside, today.
After the changing of the guard, return to Stortorget, Gamla Stan's largest square. Stortorget was once the venue for public hangings and site of the "Bloodbath of 1520," the mass execution of Swedish nobles by a Danish king that led to revolt and Sweden's becoming a sovereign state.
Stortorget today is stunningly beautiful and bordered by tall, narrow, colorful Amsterdam-like buildings, the Nobel Museum and one of my favorite Fika shops, the uber-charming and aforementioned Chokladkoppen. Take a seat inside or out for a hot chocolate or coffee and kanelbolle. Time for another fika. Afterward, the Nobel Museum is worth a gander. If you can't do the full tour, step inside the cafe and look under the chairs. It's okay. They're light enough to lift, but do so carefully. Nearly all are signed by Nobel Laureates who once sat in the chairs.
Directly across from the Nobel Museum, find your way to Svartmangatan, walk about a block to Kindstugatan, with its shops, then turn right on Sjalagardsgatan. Before doing so, however, walk up to admire the other version of the monument to St. George and Dragon (remember I told you to make a mental note of the one in the church?)
Return to Sjalagardsgatan, making your way back to Svartmangatan.
Turn on Tyska Stallplan, a short alley that leads to Prastgatan, where you'll look for a very narrow alley to Marten Trotzigs, the restaurant so named for a German copper dealer who lived here in the 16th century. Half of Stockholm's Middle-Age population was German. At Marten Trotzigs', you're back on Vasterlangatan, but at the opposite end, having avoided the bustle and crowds.
The entire walk has taken a leisurely two hours, with visits to cathedral, the changing of the guard, and shopping. For lunch, you have quite a few choices. You're probably fika'd out by now, but if not Stockholm's oldest fika cafe is near the square. Or you can stop for lunch al fresco at Martin Trotzig at Vasterlanggatan 79. After lunch, make your way to back to Gamla Stan for more exploration, or head to City Hall to admire the Blue Hall, where the Nobel Prize banquet is held annually, and the Golden Hall, with its more than 18 million glass and gold mosaic pieces. Nobel prizes are awarded each December, except for the Peace prize, which is awarded in Oslo. Climb City Hall Tower for a bird's-eye view of Stockholm.
At Stadshusbron by the City Hall, board the steam-powered SS Drottningholm, built in 1909, for a voyage through Lake Malaren to Drottningholm Palace, an hour’s chug away.
A brilliant example of a northern European 18th-century royal residence, Drottningholm has been home to the Swedish Royal Family since 1981. Building began here in 1662. Join a guided tour, and be sure to visit the court theater, built in 1766. Don’t miss the wonderful Chinese Pavilion.
You can spend most of the afternoon on the excursion to Drottningholm.
When you return, find a special place for dinner in Gamla Stan before returning to your hotel. The favorite of Evert Taube, the famous author, artist, composer and singer who lived from 1890 - 1976, was Den Gyldene Freden (the aforementioned Golden Fleece), which has been a restaurant in Gamla Stan since 1722. Taube's bronze statute stands nearby.
Although the sky isn't completely dark when you exit the restaurant at midnight, your day is coming to an end, and with it, your two perfect days in Stockholm.
In two full turns of the clock, a mere 48 hours, Stockholm has revealed something of its soul to you, but trust me, there’s much, much more. We’ll save that for another day, another time, another visit.
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