Julia Romano

After a year hiatus, I’m back! Let’s jump back in with a travel guide.

In January, my husband and I decided that if we were going to travel, we were only going to go on dream trips moving forward. Last summer, we had both compromised ourselves into a trip that neither of us were particularly excited about, and life is too short (and travel is too expensive) to do anything other than exactly what we want. We decided that we would take our first family-of-three international trip during my Spring Break, and I floated Stockholm as our destination.

I had wanted to go to Stockholm since I visited Minneapolis in 2015, and my friends took me to the American Swedish Institute. I became particularly infatuated with the Swedish concept of “fika,” which I have written about before. I also have a friend who lives in Stockholm who assured us that Sweden is very baby-friendly (it truly is), and so we booked tickets, and I got to achieve a decade-long dream. 

Things We Did And Liked

The Vasa Museum

The first thing I wanted to do in Stockholm was to see the Vasa. The Vasa sank in 1623 and remained in the Stockholm harbor for 333 years, buried under tons of silt and mud. In 1961, after an extensive search from engineer and amateur archaeologist Anders Franzén, the Vasa was raised, cleaned, restored, and brought to what would become the Vasa Museum.

The ship Vasa is a world treasure. The Vasa is the only existing intact 17th century ship, making it invaluable to Swedish, naval, and other historic scholarship. The museum’s exhibits throw you back in time with their detailed readings, military and personal artifacts, and dioramas. But more than anything, the ship is beautiful. I had no idea that it would be so tall (172 feet from keel to the top of its mast) and so ornate. The ship was decorated with over 700 sculptures that were meant to inspire admiration and fear of King Gustav II Adolf. They were also brilliantly colored, mostly in red paint and gold leaf, and steeped in symbolism that would keep a doctoral student busy for years. 

Our experience at the Vasa Museum exceeded my expectations in every way. My favorite part: the unexpected smell of warm wood that greeted us at the door. 

Skansen

Skansen is an open air museum and zoo on the same island* as the Vasa Museum. Despite the freezing rain, which is no impediment to activity for the Swedish people, we tromped around and saw seals, moose, and reindeer, as well as a variety of Swedish homes from various cultures and time periods. There was a robust children’s center where my son entertained himself by running and climbing and giggling for the better part of an hour.  

Nordic Museum

The Nordic Museum is another absolute treasure in Stockholm. The museum is dedicated to the “cultural history and stories about the life and people of the Nordic region.” I particularly loved the exhibit entitled “The Arctic–While the Ice is Melting” that began in a faux iceberg and touched on the lives of the four million people who live in the changing arctic region. The museum’s restaurant is excellent and introduced me to Västerbottensost, a very delicious Swedish cheese (and I do love cheese). And like Skanen, there was a robust children’s center where my son entertained himself by running and climbing and giggling (and playing with wooden chickens) for the better part of an hour.  

Fjällräven

I had wanted a Fjällräven backpack for years, and when I had the very obvious realization that the Fjällräven flagship store would be in Stockholm, I decided to finally buy one. I had vacillated between a burnt orange and a maroon bag, but I ended up with a blue and gold backpack with a Swedish flag patch in honor of what was indeed a dream trip. My son ended up with a little stuffed räv (fox) as his own little souvenir.

Things We Ate 

Under Kastanjen: To celebrate my birthday, we had dinner at Under Kastanjen (under the chestnut tree). My husband had Swedish meatballs with peas, mashed potatoes, and lingonberry jam (a Swedish staple), and I had a mushroom soup that I still think about paired with truffle potato chips. 

Östermalm’s Saluhall: My husband’s favorite meal of the trip was at a restaurant in Östermalm’s Saluhall. We both love the ambiance of a giant food hall à la Cleveland’s West Side Market and enjoy looking at the fresh ingredients cultivated and curated by vendors passionate about their careers and wares, so we’ll typically visit a food hall wherever we go. It was a pleasure to eat french fries and cheese, drink wine, and enjoy each other while people went about their business. I particularly cherished our conversation with an older Swedish woman who took an interest in our son’s Moominpapa. 

Prinsesstårta: My husband ventured out on Easter Sunday (also my birthday) to find me a prinsesstårta. I had dreamed of trying prinsesstårta since I first learned about it in 2015 and it, like the Vasa, exceeded my expectations. The green marzipan, fresh whipped cream, sponge cake, and tart raspberry jam balanced each other beautifully, and I fear no pastry will ever compare to it. The first bite really had me think to myself, “oh, this is that standard for what food should actually taste like.” I simply can never eat a Pop Tart again.  

MVPs of the Trip

• Baby Carrier: We don’t use a stroller and my son gets toted around in the Osprey Poco LT. Even though Sweden might be the most baby-friendly country on the planet, we found the backpack to be invaluable as we traveled through the city (and the airport).  
• Uniqlo Ultra Light Down Parka: I made the grave mistake of checking the actual temperature in Stockholm rather than the “feels like” temperature while packing and tragically under-packed warm clothing. I did bring my Uniqlo Ultra Light Down Parka that easily slipped under my raincoat, and it saved me from pure misery. It also packs nicely in its little carrying bag. I have no idea if Uniqlo still makes this exact product or another iteration; the point of this section is to remind you to check the “feels like” temperature while packing. You’re welcome!
• Stockholm’s Public Transportation: I still won’t shut up about Stockholm’s bus system. We took a tram, the metro, a public ferry (!!), and like 1,000 buses for $50 total for the week. I bemoan that American policymakers and voters are so resistant to effective public transportation. It’s so efficient and easy. 

This trip to Stockholm is in the top five trips I have ever taken in my life. I cannot recommend Sweden enough, and I wish I had more time there.

*Stockholm is an archipelago. Archipelago is also my favorite word, not just because of its visual and aural aesthetic qualities, but also because it has a combination of Greek and Latin roots and is therefore linguistically weird. 

That’s it, and have a great rest of your week!