Stockholm

Thanks for the recommendations guys. Here's my round-up.

1. Vasa Museum - great. Very impressive. Sad story of a ship that never fulfilled its intended destiny, but without it sinking it may not have been preserved for us to see now. Photos can't capture how spectacular it is.

2. Östermalms Saluhall - great. Delicious. Came out incredibly poor. 2 open sandwiches and a coffee cost me £32. Delicious sandwiches. Busy atmosphere.
   Your wallet will be raped.

3. Toss up between Bonbon and Bakfickan - Bonbon won because we already had reservations, and we were closer. Amazing food - Michelin style, small plates, well presented. All dishes cost 50 SEK and it's "Dim Sum style selection" - where waiter comes around with a tray and if you want one, you take it. Scallops were the highlight. Chocolate tart desert also needs mentioning. Lovely white wine selection too, had glasses of the Bordeaux and the Chablis on the board. Highly recommend Bonbon.

4. Went to Bavabici - http://bavabici.com/ and met Simona. She was saying that there are just not enough girls who cycle. Huh? I was puzzled, I saw MANY lady-cyclists.
   But I think the difference is girls who cycle for recreation, enjoyment and a hobby vs. those who use it as just a form of transport.
   I was surprised that she could only get 2 to do the Rapha Womens 100.

5. Pelikan - good place for a Swedish feed. Meatballs were great. Us, two girls, who don't look like we're from around 'ere, were sat next to school teacher Rickardo's stag do table, and met him and his mates. One of their crew was from the Stockholm Black Label Bike Club, but he was down the end so didn't get to chat about bikes n' shit.

TV producer Anders, who I was next to, was very nice and informative. We heard about what they did for their stag-day, a day of Segway, champagne, beer, and the Swedish feast they were having now. They got the Princes feast(?) where they get all they can drink, beer and schnapps and a meal of a starter and giant pork knuckle. This pork knuckle was MAHOOSIVE. They gave us a taste and it was one hell of a salty cured hunk of meat. Perfect for them in their drunken state!

Finally they told us to go to Patricia - the night club boat in Slussen, Sun night being the gay night. We were wrecked, maybe next time!

Stockholm, love it. Next time I'll get out on the bikes, didn't this time.

Glad you liked it ! Was the wasa really great? Maybe i should go :)

the Vasa museum is great - also really enjoyed the free walking tours when I was there

Mands only just seen this thread. Glad you had a good time there. My brother used to live there 10 years ago, I visited a couple of times. Vasa museum and the ferry ride were my favourites too.

I just remembered the Modern Art Museum was good too.

What's the name of the zoo/museum thing on the hill? That was cool, bears and wolves, reconstructions of C17th Swedish streets, and 2000 year old Finnish houses. All in one place, overlooking the city. Like a theme park without a theme I guess

Also Boda Borg, like Crystal Maze (don't touch the floor! etc), don't know how far that is from Stockholm though

Skansen.

Also just remembered, I stayed in a converted prison whilst I was there - Långholmen, STF Hostel, a really cool hostel with a great all you can eat buffet breakfast. On a nice quiet island too.

Theres also this hostel, right next to the museum of moderna arts so abit more central than the prison.

Newly arrived in the archipelago and been getting settled (trying to get a fucking place to stay) and getting my bearings on nightlife/bike activity etc. I've opted to avoid soulless suburbia for a wee house in the country which is pretty cool, but also pretty isolated even if only half an hours bus ride from the city.

Seems to be two main bike clubs here-Fredrikshof and Valhall (seems a bit too serious for me...) with not much winter activity between them anyway but is there any less formal fixed social stuff or beers? Slowly (quickly) remembering how antisocial Sweden can be in the wintertime!

Any locals on here fancy a beer or a coffee then give me a shout.

Newly arrived in the archipelago and been getting settled (trying to get a fucking place to stay) and getting my bearings on nightlife/bike activity etc. I've opted to avoid soulless suburbia for a wee house in the country which is pretty cool, but also pretty isolated even if only half an hours bus ride from the city.

Seems to be two main bike clubs here-Fredrikshof and Valhall (seems a bit too serious for me...) with not much winter activity between them anyway but is there any less formal fixed social stuff or beers? Slowly (quickly) remembering how antisocial Sweden can be in the wintertime!

Any locals on here fancy a beer or a coffee then give me a shout.

How long you staying?

I'm not in Stockholm, but there's a group of guys that go on rides every thursday more or less. There's other clubs around ofc but they're often the usual road training bunch. Not sure how many get out in this weather, but later on when spring settles in they'll be out there.

http://www.fixedgear.se/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=17211

Think I'll be staying a few months at least, rather fantastic that I just this very day broke up with my swedish gf and reason for coming here but I'm pretty committed to a course of action and don't have much choice but to stay.

I just found the fixedgear.se site tonight and was pointed to the very same thread but thanks for posting, I'll definitely check it out though I'm not sure i'm going to be any kind of company for a while anyway. Fucking hell.

all i can say is commiserations for splitting up withscandie girl
sure a few months of sitting around chatting over fika will sort you out. good luck

Damn. Sorry to hear that! Quite the welcoming :/

FG.se can be quite dead this time of year too. That's why i'm hanging out over here.

If you're ever in the area around Örebro (2h west) give me a shout!

all i can say is commiserations for splitting up withscandie girl
sure a few months of sitting around chatting over fika will sort you out. good luck

When you put it like that... I'm fucked, aren't I?

nah man.,
enjoy the city and all the country, Scandies like nothing more than debating and discussing imo, just being around crowds of lovely looking people gotta be a win! find your niche, get into it

Found sodermalm very pleasant a few autumns back. The light on a sunny day is beautiful, as are many of the locals. Found it quite easy to chat to people actually. Get yourself a hotdog and then down to a Hammarby match

Cheers chaps.

Going to have to tough this one out whichever way I can... Good thing I just joined the local pool/sauna-will help to keep the blues at bay. Some spiked tyres for the tourer will probably help too...

jezus. is it national breakup week over there?! harsh, but hattip for committing!

i dont know bout you, and don't know bout the mood it al blew up but fuck, alone, fresh in a 18/24h dark country with snow and having to work over a breakup?! hattip? thats actually put lightly...

more like 'that's putting it pessimistically', surely?

Well I'm not sure I even deserve a hattip, I had to take some risky decisions to come over here and well, I've too much riding on it financially to leave without 'making good' as it were. So, I'm stuck. And as much as I would love to say I've better alternatives elsewhere, really I'm not sure I do, so this will have to suffice until I have a better alternative.

I'm just really fucking gutted-I would have put a ring on this girl's finger the first week I met her and the hard thing is he reasons for split are nothing to do with us or me.

^^yes it does, but they were posted in awe of bravery and balls.. hard to depend on internet text and not my mother tongue in these kind of predicaments.

chin up grüber, effin' #3...

fair enough! wishing uber' all the best, anyway. as it happens i can think of a million more places less like to be trapped.. stockholm would actually be brilliant right now.
face this challenge head on and if nothing else you'll be able to say to people 'i lived in stockholm for a bit' which sounds interesting already