travel Making A Splash in Sweden

The greatest ship never to sail out of Stockholm left its anchoring place near the old royal palace on Aug. 10, 1628. Hundreds crowded the banks to watch King Gustav II Adolf’s warship, adorned with more than 700 sculptures, take to the seas. Less than a quarter mile out, the mighty Vasa listed and sank. Raised from the depths three centuries later, and now permanently moored in its own museum, this iconic emblem of Stockholm’s harbor is one of Scandinavia’s top visitor attractions. “It was an epic failure, but the most beautiful failure to happen to Stockholm,” says my museum guide. “And of course, it took place on the water. Everything in Stockholm comes back to the water.”

Officially, Stockholm is a city on 14 islands, but an actual tally of all the outlying islets, outcroppings and skerries—just glance at a map of the jig-sawed archipelago—pushes the number over 25,000. So, while many cities are best explored by land, when in Stockholm, it’s best to float. Private Zodiacs, public ferries, kayaks, vintage steamships, rowboats, canals, pedestrian bridges—these are the ways Stockholmers get around. Set between Lake Malaren and the Baltic Sea, the city is 30 percent water and another 30 percent green space. Compared to other cities, venturing out by car isn’t really a thought.

“When we’re not on the water, we want to be,” our guide tells us from a rocky cliff in Sodermalm, the stylish island where Greta Garbo grew up. “We jog along the water, have our fika (afternoon coffee break) sitting alongside it and stare at it from our windows. We dream about it. Water feeds the spirit in Stockholm.” The city’s heart spreads through a meticulous metropolitan hub to primeval forests on fairy-tale islands. It’s distinctly Scandinavian, an urban smorgasbord that balances medieval and modern conservative grandeur with freespirited fun; herring connoisseurs and Abba fans. Sodermalm

The Grand Hotel is the quintessential place to take it all in. The 1874 landmark opposite the Royal Palace has a Michelinrated restaurant, a sleek Nordic spa, and a ballroom that’s an exact replica of Versailles’ Hall of Mirrors. Across the street, boats depart for every manner of excursion all year long.

Inverness Castle In Gamla Stan, the Old Town, my wife, son and I explore Stockholm’s birthplace, a labyrinthine kingdom of alleyways. Established in 1252 it is charming to behold, with an equally charming origin story. At Marten Trotzigs Grand, the narrowest street in the city at less than a yard wide, we learn the legend of Stockholm’s founding. To safeguard against pillagers, settlers filled a hollowed-out log with gold and let it drift along the water. They dubbed the spot where the log came to rest “stock holm,” or log islet.

If Gamla Stan is Stockholm’s cradle, Djurgarden, just across the bay, is its playground. Many of the buildings, as well as the sculptured bridge to the mainland, date to Stockholm’s 1897 World’s Fair. Junibacken is a cozy museum devoted to the work of such Swedish children’s book authors as Astrid Lindgren. The old-timey amusement park Tivoli Grona Lund which opened in 1883 features a carousel and fun house. Skansen has the world’s oldest open-air museum, bustling with tanners, glassblowers and silversmiths in a replica 19th-century village.

Glimpsing Stockholm’s future starts with boarding a 1912 steamer to explore the Skargarden, as locals call their archipelago. Leaving from the Grand Hotel, the Gustafsberg VII glides past luxury apartments, past cruise liners and out of Stockholm proper into the channels that comprise the city’s island suburbs. The passage narrows into a bottleneck as we enter the Baggenstaket Strait, so tight it feels like you could jump off the boat right into someone’s garden.

Fortunately, Artipelag, the first stop, is the perfect place to catch your breath. Founded by Bjorn Jakobson, creator of Babybjorn, Artipelag is a monumental art space, dining spot and respite midway through the island chain. With rooftop moss gardens, the latest in technology and clean blond-wood design, it feels like an artist’s conception of Scandinavia circa 2025, albeit with traditional menu items like the beef-and-gravy dish skomakarlada (literally “shoemaker’s box”).

Push on and the wider sea beckons. Usually reserved, Swedes don’t shy away from adventure, as evidenced by the number of high-speed RIBs (rigid inflatable boats) zooming through the archipelago. An RIB excursion involves donning a waterproof jumpsuit and life jacket and holding on for dear life. Located at the farthest part of the outer archipelago, Sandhamn has been a destination for urban sailors since 1897. Best described as shanty chic, its views are sure to entrance the imagination. Spend time watching the characters on Trouville Beach, near the cafes and in ice cream shops, and you’ll understand why Stieg Larsson set parts of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo here.

Depart Sandhamn mid-morning and by 12:45 p.m. you’re back at the Grand Hotel, enjoying the views from the veranda. That’s how things work in Stockholm, going all the way back to the Vasa, really. Just when you think you’re sailing out of town, something tips the balance and you can’t quite pull yourself away.

For more information on a vacation in Sweden, call the travel advisors at Regency Travel, Inc., at 901.682.9065 or visit www.regencytravel.net.