thefouramigosblog

we have been coming to Antigua for three years yet never spent more then a night in a hotel in Guatemala City.  It was time to spend a little time in the capital although we had heard so many warnings about the dangers and perils of being in the city.  I am a New York City girl so very little scares me.  And my friend Adriana has traveled the world and has lived in LA.

We hired a local driver to take us in and we got an early start at 9. It took almost two hours getting into the city with the traffic.

I couldn’t believe how congested it was.  And for the most part, it looked rundown and not very impressive.  We decided to stay in one zone so we chose zone one where the National Palace is located.

It is located on a park.  We took a tour of the palace.  It was in Spanish and Adriana interpreted for us.

The palace’s architecture Spanish style but the ceiling on one floor is Arabic andthe chandeliers are European crystal.

The floors on each floor are different styles as well.

The murals depicted the beginning of the Mayan culture and the introduction of the Spanish into Guatemalan history as well as the battles that occurred.

The main entrance room houses the peace statue where the Peace Acoord was signed in 1996, after 36 years of Civil War.

After we left the palace we went to La Merced, Guatemala City, a Baroque style church built from 1780 to 1813.

The church is to the left of the palace on the Central Park.  The inside of the church was not overly interesting although it supposedly houses some of the artwork from its sister church La Merced in Antigua.

We were ready for lunch but it was really difficult finding a place to eat.  There was McDonals, KFC, Burger King! And Taco Bell.

Finally we found a little cafe inside a building.  I ordered chicken.

We had to drive about 25 minutes to the train museum, even though that was still in the same zone.  This was the highlight of the trip.

It was virtually a train graveyard but was so interesting how Guatemala had once had a fairly large train infrastructure in place.  It was baffling that it has all disappeared.

Does anyone remember this one?

The museum also had a large display of safes.

It was a lot of fun looking at these old trains but it was time to head out of Guatemala City.  Heading to our car, we passed this interesting idea of how they repurpose items.

Our ride back to Antigua took only an hour this afternoon.  We stopped to have an afternoon cup of coffee.  I had macadamia pie and Bruce and Adriana had a blackberry cake.  What a great way to end our day!

 

 

#GuatemalaCity#nationalpalace#lamerced#trainmuseum

 

 

 

After our friends left, we had coffee with some friends we knew from last year and met a few other old acquaintances in the park.  We had pizza at San Martin for dinner and called it a night.

Saturday morning we made our way over to Caoba Farms.  We bought lots of great produce.  It’s all organic, but I’m not always sure what I’m buying.  I thought I was buying onions and it turned out to be fennel.  Oops!

There are many vendors selling everything from paintings to lotions.  I ended up buying some green slime that’s supposed to keep the frizz at bay.  We will see.

We walked around the farm and looked at all the plants.  Neither of us was hungry for breakfast but really only came for the produce.

There were beautiful flowers everywhere.  I wish I knew all their names.

On our way back to our apartment, Caoba Farms offered a van service to take us part of the way.  That was great because we were lugging the veggies and a few other odds and ends.  We’ve been averaging about five or six miles a day walking, so when offered a ride, we took it.

We bought some tomatoes that were very different looking.  Someone said they were delicious, and I am game to try most anything.

I told Clara I would come and see her at the weaver’s market, so we walked up there after we dropped off the produce.  I met her adorable grandson.

Clara has very beautiful table runners and scarves that she sells.  Many of the items are made on the backstrap loom.

Bruce and I walked back to the Parque Central and a band was playing music.  On Saturdays, Antigua is very busy and alive with activity.

We stopped to have a bite to eat at Cafe Barista where I finally found a bag of decaf coffee.  I don’t usually drink decaf, but it was interesting to find it here.  We also stopped at the chocolate store for ice cream.

We made our way back home for a swim in the pool and a few minutes in the hot tub.  This has been a wonderful place to stay with it beautiful gardens and pool.

For dinner I made a large omelet using all the fresh produce from Caoba Farms.  It was delicious.

On Sunday we were meeting Adriana to go to lunch at Cerro San Cristobal. We walked down the avenue and took in the sights.

We took a bus up to the top of a mountain overlooking Antigua.  It was quite a ride up, one where our palms got a little sweaty.  Hairpin turns on single lane roads with no guardrails.  The driver beeped his horn to let anyone know we were coming.

It was worth the ride up.  The view was breathtaking.

We had a marvelous lunch overlooking the volcanoes.  I had shrimp quesadilla, Adriana had a salad and Bruce had nachos.

We stayed there quite awhile just enjoying the lovely day and our friendship.

We could see Fuego puffing away from up here.

We went through a greenhouse where they were growing some lovely orchids.

What a wonderful place to spend the afternoon.  Delicious food, spectacular views and warm friendships.

On Monday we went to Casa Jackson to sign up for volunteer work.  We ended up volunteering a few hours with the malnourished children.  Bruce had a good time playing with his new pal, Clyde.  That’s not his real name.

The school Nuestros Ahijados is the major part of the compound and Casa Jackson Hospital for Malnourished Children is part of that.  I have volunteered here before and it’s a wonderful program.  The campus is beautiful and it’s a great place for the children to attend school and for babies to recover from malnutrition.

We met with Juana in the park and checked out some neat things she was selling.

For dinner we ate pizza at San Martin again.

On Valentine’s Day we started our Spanish lessons.  A woman named Carmen teaches us at our apartment.  She gave us lessons two years ago.  She’s very good.

We didn’t make any exciting plans for dinner so we ate at this cute Italian restaurant.  They only served pizza.  All was good!

After dinner we walked to the park so a Bruce could smoke his cigar; then we called it a night.

 

#Antigua, Guatemala

#Casa Jackson

#

One of my favorite trips in Guatemala was to Tikal, a large complex of Mayan ruins located in the northern jungles of this amazing country.  Bruce and I traveled there in 2017 by shuttle.  Actually it was a 9 seater van holding 10 backpackers and us.  And it was a grueling 10 hour drive.  I wanted to take our friends there, without being tortured, so we opted for a one hour plane ride from Guatemala City to Flores and an hour drive from Flores to Tikal.  Our driver, Eduardo, picked us promptly and we were on our way.

The plane was small, but big enough to provide beverage service.  It was a new plane, very clean with fairly comfortable seats.  The airline was TAG airlines which I never heard of before I booked our flights.

There were a few hiccups with our arrival in Flores.

Our driver was waiting for us and he drove us to the Banco where we could buy our tickets into Tikal.  From what I read, if you went into the park after 3pm one day you could go in the next.  We also wanted to go in for the sunset and sunrise.  We were told we needed to buy 3 separate tickets which came to 350 quetzals apiece.  This actually was only $44.  But it seemed like we were getting snookered.

After all the business was taken care of, we had a lovely ride to Jungle Lodge in Tikal stopping for a moment by a beautiful lake just beyond Flores.

Bruce and I stayed at Tikal Jungle Lodge two years ago and loved it.  The hotel is little cabins with double beds, netting for the beds, luxurious bathrooms complete with a large soak tub.  Many birds nest among the foliage and the hotel is walking distance to the entrance to the park.

We decided to get a quick bite to eat before setting off into the park.  The hotel has an outdoor restaurant serving everything from pasta to fish.  Up at the front desk, we met this English speaking man, Tony or Antonio, who was to become our guide.  If you remember Clint Eastwood’s movie “The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly,” he reminded me of Eli Wallach’s character, Tuco, quite the character and a bit of a scammer.  Unfortunately, we all forgot to take pictures of Tony, which was a major miss for my blog.

Tony gave us a brief tutorial from a diagram on the wall in the reception area.

Afterwards, Tony walked us to the park entrance where we handed over our sunset tickets.  After that Tony left us on our own.  It was still early and light so we could see where we were going.

Our our first sight was the back of Temple I.  As we walked around we came upon the Grand Plaza.  Temple I rose out of the earth in all its grandeur.

We spent several hours wandering around looking at the amazing structures.

Everytime we came upon a group of people with a guide, the guide would ask where our guide was.  Obviously we were not supposed to be wandering around the park in the dark.  So we said our guide was Tony and he was somewhere around.  Finally, we needed some guidance in finding the Temple where we could see the sunset.  One guide was very helpful and we followed him.

As we climbed the stairs at the Temple, we saw a family of spider monkeys.

I think seeing the monkeys was more fun then seeing the ruins.  But we also did get to see a pretty spectacular sunset.

And then there was more!

Then we descended the staircase trying to hustle out of the jungle before it became too dark.

It had been quite a hike up as you can see from the stairs down.  We almost made it out before total darkness, and thank goodness Keith had a GPS.  One of the guides came back looking for us.  That was good to know if, in fact, we had been lost.

The next morning we were woken by Tony at 3:45am so we could get an early start to Temple IV.  Coffee awaited us in the lobby and a box lunch.  We also had a group of 7.  Off we went fueled by coffee in complete darkness only with tiny flashlights as our guides.  We stopped along the way and he translated the carvings on one of the Mayan monuments.

We made our way in the dark surrounded by the cacophony of jungle sounds.  The harsh, guttural call of the howlers intermingled with the squawking of parrots made our hike seem ever the more enchanting.

We made our way up to the top of Temple IV in the dark and waited for the sunrise.

Sunrise never came.  It was far too misty and cloudy but it was still worth the early morning adventure.

We left Tony in the Park with the others and made our way back out.   We stopped to check out some of the sites.

Our ride ice to the airport was scheduled for 11am so we packed up and hung out on the front porch.

The flight back on TAG Airlines was not quite as luxurious.  It was quite a bit smaller and no beverage service.  The airport also charged us an airport tax when we got there in order to leave.  I think there are some hinky things going on but, when in foreign countries, we comply.

After our return, we ate dinner at the Porta Hotel.  I had pork, Bruce had fish and Keith and Terri had vegetarian dishes.

It was a marvelous trip and great fun with friends!

#Jungle Lodge Tikal  #Porta Hotel Antigua  #TAG Airlines

Over lunch one day in early October, my two friends, Barbara and Barbara, who I will call Babs, and I hatched a plan to visit New York City just in time for the holiday hullabaloo.   Barbara and I had tried to do this several years ago but it never came to fruition.  We weren’t really sure this would either but we started checking airfares, hotels, Airbnb’s and other places to stay.   Babs would be flying from Baltimore and Barbara and I would fly from Charlotte.  Plane reservations went smoothly.

After looking at hotels, we settled on a lovely little 3 bedroom 2 bathroom apartment on 30th Street, right in midtown Manhattan.  What a find!

It was such a fabulous location we could even see the Empire State Building lit up while walking down our very secure, neighborhood street.

On the corner was a great little restaurant, the Banc, where we had delicious salads and scrumptious bread.  I forgot to take pictures of our food!  I didn’t bring my camera on this trip so I wasn’t thinking photography all the time.

It seemed like the Gods were with us in this case and throughout the trip. As soon as we stepped out of the restaurant, we caught a cab uptown to the Gershwin Theatre to see Wicked.

Wicked is a wickedly dazzlingly musical based on earlier times for the witches, Glinda and Elphaba.  The beginning was slow and I felt myself dozing a bit.  However, the musical score picked up and by intermission it even began to charm me.  It’s been on Broadway for 15 years so it’s popularity enthralls the young and old alike.  The set design was colorful and the flying monkey scene was mesmerizing.  Elphaba, the wicked witch, had a Broadway theatre voice that was absolutely fabulous.  Of course, the good witch Glinda was uproariously funny and she brought the house down with her comical one liners.  All in all it was a wonderful evening on Broadway.

We began our first full day in New York City leisurely.  We drank coffee, chatted a bit and made decisions on which way we planned to walk.  Our first stop was the Empire State Building lobby.  We didn’t go to the top since we all had been there on previous visits to the Big Apple.

Next we stopped for brunch at LePain Quotidien on Park Avenue.  They had a very interesting menu.  I had avocado and feta with scrambled eggs.  Barbara had salmon and scrambled eggs.  And Babs had an over easy egg with other accompaniments.  I was too late to get a picture of hers!

Refreshed and nourished, we trekked to our next landmark, the New York City Library.  We took a walk through it, realizing we could get lost for hours in the vast labyrinth of marbled walled passageways.

After perusing the bookstore, we made our way out onto the street and walked several city blocks to our next landmark, Grand Central Station.  The celestial ceiling which was redone from the 1914 version in 1945 is amazing to look at.  It’s wonderful that the City preserves some of this old architecture.

We made our way to Fifth Avenue and visited Lord & Taylor’s, which is going out of business, Cartier’s, and Sacks.   A visit to St. Patrick’s is always on my list with a moment to sit and reflect.

We stopped at a few more churches on Fifth and strolled up to Central Park.

Our fitbits registered close to six miles of walking.  It was time to take a subway back so we could get ready for dinner and a show.

We caught a cab right outside our apartment.  But it went at a snails pace all the while the meter spun very quickly.  It was the lighting of the tree at Rockefeller Center and the city was alive with thousands more people than usual.  Unfortunately our cab was headed in that direction.  It took us 45 minutes to go about 1.5 miles but we were dressed for dinner and the theatre so we didn’t want to walk.  We made it to the Japanese restaurant 20 minutes late, but they were gracious enough to hold our table.  We had a wonderful meal at Natsumi on 50th Street.

This night we went to see King Kong on Broadway.  The reviews were mixed some very unflattering so our expectations were not very high.  What we all walked away with was a delightful evening with more enthusiasm for this show than we had when we saw Wicked.  First, Kong was magnificent.  The puppeteers made him come alive on stage, his full mass standing before us in all his glory loudly bellowing his rage towards those who confronted him.  His eyes showed his pain at being betrayed by Anne, the woman he trusted.  Kong was no longer mechanical but a seeing, breathing, feeling entity.  The dancing and movements on the stage, especially the scene where the ship is departing New York makes the audience feel they too are on the ship.   Kong climbing the Empire State Building, Kong running through the jungle were electrifying.  How could you not be sitting on the edge of your seat.  Anne’s  performance was sensational.  Her voice was strong, her delivery spot on.   But again the true star of this show is King Kong.

To end our evening we decided to go to Junior’s on Broadway to have a slice of their famous cheesecake.  Yummy!

On our last full day in New York we decided to head downtown.  I took Barbara and Babs by my old home on 21st Street.  Me, being who I am, couldn’t resist ringing the bell to see if I could check the place out.  I haven’t lived there in 35 years but I was curious to see inside.  The loft was 2000 square feet and when I lived there I paid under $500 month rent.  It’s a co-op now and worth over $2 million.  The people who live there let us in and let us have a little look.  It didn’t look anything like it did when I was there.  But it was a nice visit and great to see inside.  I didn’t take any pictures – didn’t want them to think I was casing the joint.

We stopped for a bite to eat at a little restaurant that makes its own cheese, Beecher’s.  It was great.  We had grilled cheese with fig and Tomato soup.

We strolled through Union Square Park checking out the vendors selling scarves and jewelry and other items.   It was my walk on a daily basis when I attended college at NYU.  We reached Washington Square Park which is at the center of the University and walked around.  A pianist had brought his piano to play by the arch.  For a moment I thought it might be the same person who played there so many years ago but alas it was someone new and younger.

We walked and walked through Greenwich Village, Soho, where we went into a few galleries, then to Chinatown and Little Italy.  We stopped at a tea place for cake and coffee and tea.

We did stop at one point because the paparazzi were out in full force.  Nobody seemed to know who was coming out of the building but the crowds were building.  Finally someone said it was Kylie Jenner.  So we moved on.

At the end of this day we had walked nearly seven miles.  We were so full from the cake we couldn’t eat in Little Italy.  Next time.

What a wonderful trip!  Lots of laughs, good food, great company and a lot of walking – New York City is certainly about the walking.

We set off for a two day adventure to Yosemite, the first big trip for Lilly Ray to celebrate her two week birthday and Fathers Day.

Bruce and I had our coffee on the deck and took a little stroll around the neighborhood while Kami and Eric packed up Lilly’s stuff.  I forgot how much stuff is required when taking newborns’ places.  And we can’t forget the diapers!

The giant pine trees are doing their thing right now and yellow pine pollen is everywhere.  If you live in South Carolina, you know the stuff I’m talking about.  These enormous trees drop the largest pine cones I’ve ever seen.  In fact so large, you want to be careful where you park your car.

After Lilly and company were all gathered up, we began our adventure to Yosemite.  Our trip took us around Lake Tahoe again where we stopped for a quick photo op.

Our first real stop was in Walker, California.  Lilly was hungry and so were we.  We stopped first at an antique shop that had some metal artwork in the parking area.  Very cool!

Then on to Walker Burgers, a hamburger stand that had garden dining in the back.  Good food and charming atmosphere.  A great find.

Our bellies full, we headed on.  It was a long trip.  Over five hours.  We stopped at Mono Lake.  The aqua water was surreal.  It appeared as an apparition in the distance.

Although the temperature was getting close to 90, we could see snow covered mountains all around.

We drove through Yosemite on our way to our Airbnb in Mariposa.  The park was amazing.

It was a 38 mile – one hour drive to the house from the park but it was a lovely place with a wooded yard.

After unpacking we headed into Mariposa for dinner and a little food shopping.  We ate at a tasty little restaurant, Savory.

Sunday we spent the day exploring Yosemite.  What a glorious place.  Upon entering the park, boulders formed a small tunnel in a natural formation.

Between the enormous granite boulders and the giant cedars, the majestic park takes your breath away.

We took Lilly Ray on her first hike up a mountain.  I have to say I couldn’t make it all the way.  But Kami, Eric and Lilly Ray went up to the Vernal Falls foot bridge.

It was an amazing view from where I stopped my hike.

After all the hiking, we had a delicious dinner at the Yosemite Lodge.  Lilly Ray was a perfect angel.

Last night we had a crescent moon over the park.

Today we headed back to Truckee with another drive through Yosemite.  We stopped at a little roadside restaurant for breakfast sandwiches before we ventured forward.

Our goal was to do one short trail to a Falls today so we went to Bridalveil Falls.  We thought the park would be less crowded but the summer brings people from all over the world.

Bruce and I did our usual selfie.

A few more Yosemite pictures and then we headed for home.

What a glorious trip!

Today we woke to the cool, crisp breezes and bright sunshine which is so much a part of the climate that brings thousands to this region.  Bruce and I sat out on the deck as I savored the coffee made in a French press.  A friendly tabby came by to say hello and a blue starling squawked loudly as though we were intruding in his territory.

After the family woke, and Lilly Rae had her morning fill, we went to Jax Diner in downtown Truckee for breakfast.

Bruce and I had eggs, sausage and pancakes.  Eric had shrimp tacos and Kami had some salad breakfast thing that looked quite interesting.

Truckee looks like an old mining town and I really need to delve into its history.

After a delicious, but filling breakfast we headed over to Squaw Mountain to check out the little village and the mountain.

Next stop was An overlook of Emerald Bay.  The waters were emerald green and a royal blue.  Amazing!

We relaxed and enjoyed the clean air. And Lilly slept away.

What a beautiful place to live and breathe.

I am really loving This part of California which reminds me more of a Maine.

We went to a beach with its sandy shore and large driftwood.

There was some sort of dwelling built from sticks.  Of course it was not weatherproofed so I am sure whoever built it was just in the process of making it or it had been abandoned some time ago.

The lake water was crystal clear and several people had braved the cold temperature.  I was not one of them.  The beauty around Lake Tahoe is much to behold.

I finally captured a moment with the blue starling in a tree.  Not that this was a big deal because they are a rather common bird around here.  But they are not so common for me.

We drove through a tunnel through the mountain.

At the end of the day little Lilly Ray was sleeping soundly.

Well we are back on the road again.  This time a quick trip to California to meet our newest granddaughter, Lillian.  She was born the 1st of June to Bruce’s oldest daughter, Kami and her husband Eric.   Lillian is our seventh grandchild – 4 girls and 3 boys.

We left Columbia on Wednesday afternoon and arrived in Reno that evening.  We made reservations at the Peppermill Resort and casino.  Of course I booked a room through Priceline for $55 and when we arrived, they upgraded us to a suite.  Very sweet!

We had a great time and even came out a few dollars ahead!

We drove the scenic drive to Truckee, CA to meet the newest member of the Clan.

Bruce,  better known as PopPop to his grandkids, has always had a way with children.

We spent the afternoon and evening at Thursday’s in Truckee street fair which happens every Thursday throughout the summer.  Vendors sell their artistic works  and food trucks sell a tasty variety of foods.

It was nice for Bruce to spend time with his daughter since he hasn’t seen her for quite a long time.

And precious little Lillian slept through the entire event.  She is such a good baby!

Yesterday we clocked another 5 plus miles while exploring the Old City in Stockholm.  We had our delicious buffet breakfast than hopped the ferry for our day of exploration.

As we walked over the bridge we thought we were in Disney World.  We ran into none other than the most famous mouse in the world, Micky Mouse.

Leaving Micky on the bridge, we passed  over the canals.  Vendors were selling ice cream and Korv.

Saw my first Swedish guard.  They are nothing like the Brits.  They talk to you and make eye contact.

At the Palace it was total pandemonium and I really did not want to deal with the crowds.  So we decided to pass on the tour and head for a cafe.  I needed my morning fix of coffee.  We found this very interesting place where we had coffee in a  dungeon.  It’s called Cafe Sten Sture.

The place dates back to the 14th century and the walls have different objects from ancient times.

The coffee and bulle were good and Bruce really liked their hot chocolate.

 

Relaxed now and ready to go we checked out the square in the old city.  Like most of the Northern European cities, it was very colorful.

The Stockholm Cathedral was quite an amazing Church.  There was a charge to get in though, which usually is not the case with old churches.

St. George and the Dragon is a large sculpture carved out of oak in the 15th century.

The silver altar is silver and ebony and was donated to the cathedral in 1650.

The painting of the Last Judgement was from 1696 by David Klocker von Ehrenstrahl.

After the church we wandered the narrow winding streets of the old city.

Another a later sculpture of St. George and the Dragon was made of bronze.

Some children were playing with the fountain.

And then another church, the German Church.

And Bruce met a friend on the street!

Another reason we thought we were in Florida!

She was very busy taking notes.  And he’s out enjoying the sunshine.

Bruce thought these were the soldiers from Santa Claus 2!

But we are back at the palace and the crowds have disappeared.  We are going in for a look.  But first check out these cannons.

Not too shabby an entrance.

What was it with paintings on the ceilings? Did everyone spend that much time on their backs?

Oh here is the king, I think!

Some fancy formal wear.

Ok I know this is Sweden!

Some very fancy furniture!  And Knick Knacks too!

Now this was unique, sculptures on the ceiling!

Very long hallways!  This may be where they have the formal dinners.

Cozy!

Not so Cozy!

This is where you’d stay if you were a head of state visiting Sweden on state business.

They do have ave updated bathrooms!  I asked!

They do have old fashioned fireplaces!

The Throne room where royalty meets with people.  The building is being renovated to ensure it is preserved.

We also went to the Palace Chapel – everything is very ornate.

The treasury is where the crowns are kept.  They were very beautiful but we were not allowed to take photos.

We had a nice dinner – Bruce had Swedish meatballs and I had s caprice salad.  It was very good.

As we waited for our ferry I noticed that most of the cars were BMWs, Mercedes or Audi’s.  We also saw Tesla’s and a Ferrari.

Today we planned to have a quiet spa day. We had breakfast then headed to the pool area.

We spent time in the jacuzzi, the Swedish sauna and the hamam.  It was very relaxing.  Afterwards we took the mile walk to Fotografiska, the photography museum.  On our way we saw beautiful cherry blossoms.

We walked along the river and then over a bridge.  We took a wrong turn here and there!

There were four exhibits going on.  We checked out the first one which was a female photographer working with females for 30 years, Ellen von Unwerth.

Then there was Christian Tagliavini who had some very interesting work.

We had coffee up at the restaurant which had amazing views.

It was a great afternoon.  When we returned to the hotel, we went into the pool and jacuzzi again.  Then had a good dinner at the hotel restaurant.

Tomorrow we leave for home!

Our day was planned with a trip to Uppsala to visit my niece and her family.  It was sunny and on the warmer side with a promise to get up to 65 degrees.  We took the early morning ferry to Stockholm Central Station.  We passed a castle as we rode the ferry.

The boats and buildings were alive with color in the brilliant sunshine.

 

We arrived in Uppsala where my lovely niece greeted us.

Jessica took us for a tour through the streets of Uppsala.  We went to the Central Square.

 

Many people love to ride bikes – they even have a bike parking lot.

There was a rushing river where college boys have boat races every year.

 

We met up with Martin, Jessica’s partner, and her adorable daughter, my grand niece, Cleo.

We found our way to a restaurant for brunch where I had Swedish pancakes with lingonberries.

Cleo played hide and seek behind her mom.  We were working on warming up.

Cleo wasnt sure if she wanted to eat what was on her plate.

The many faces of Cleo.  Is she warming up?

After brunch we walked to a beautiful old church.

 

Cleo had more fun playing outside.

 

We walked around the university.

 

We then walked to a castle.  Bruce took pictures of some cannons.

 

Then he caught Jessica and I taking a break.

On our way to their apartment we stopped at a bakery, where they picked up Swedish Braid or what my father called Saturday Special.  They had lots of goodies in the bakery.

We spent some time at their apartment and then headed back to Stockholm.

Walking back to the ferry I took a picture of Bruce with his new car.  A Lamborghini!  Only joking.

Lots of beautiful buildings.

What a great day with my niece and her family!

 

 

 

 

After spending two very worthwhile days in southern Sweden, we were off to Stockholm, the birthplace of my mother’s father, or in Swedish Mor Far.  To his Grandchildren he was Little Baga.  We opted for first class train tickets when we changed trains in Hassleholm for the 4 hour ride.  It was only $20 more and well worth it.

We had comfy seats, a private bathroom for first class, free coffee and snacks.  Very nice.

The landscape was dotted again with barn red houses, mustard gold buildings, and many lakes.  We diligently scanned the landscape for moose but did not see a one.

We arrived in Stockholm with only a minor delay.  We caught a cab that took us to our hotel, Elite Hotel Marina Tower.  It turned out to be a great place to stay.

It it is right on the water and a ferry can pick us up to take us to the museums.  We bought our tickets and even was able to get the senior rate.

We had dinner in the hotel restaurant.  It was quite pricey but good.  We both had fish dishes.  And we both had dessert.

In the morning we had a buffet breakfast that was included with our room.  Swedish breakfast includes cheeses, ham, salami, fruits, salads, yogurts, eggs, bacon, sausage and many different breads.  And of course a good cup of coffee.

After breakfast we hopped the ferry to the Vasa Museum.  The Vasa ship was a war ship that went down in Stockholm harbor on its maiden voyage in 1628

The ship was resurrected from the sea floor in 1961 and the preservation has continued to this day.

There are many carvings that were salvaged.  This is due to the fact that the waters of the Baltic do not have wood eating worms that waters in warmer climates have which would have destroyed the wood under water for over 300 years.

The size of this ship and the preservation methods were very interesting.  The Vasa Museum is one of the most visited museums in Stockholm.

 

We visited the Nordic Museum next, which highlighted furnishings and clothing from 18th century to present.

Just going into the building was a treat.  I thought it was a church at first but the museum had been established in 1873.  The building was completed in 1907.

We stopped for a coffee and pastry in the museum after we hit the 4 mile mark.

From the street, we could see the beautiful buildings.  The canals were as lovely as those in Copenhagen and we saw many beautiful wooden sailing vessels.

We were in Stockholm at just the right time.  The cherry blossoms were in bloom and they were beautiful.  Everyone was out enjoying the warmer air (55 degrees) and sunnier weather.

There is also a Stockholm Tivoli here to amuse the people of this area.  This is called Grona Lund.

We had a light dinner at Cafe Albert.  I had a shrimp salad and Bruce had lasagna.

 

Then we took the ferry back to the hotel and called it a day!  5 miles!