Arcticterntalk.org

The blog of a travelling psychiatrist and football lover. Who happens to be a halfway decent photographer. Takes a cynical view of the world

Archive for the tag “stockholm”

06 Dec 2013

Weather Report from Scandinavia


It seems I am replicating the Grand Tour but instead of Italy am focusing on Scandinavia. All that I am trying to do is get back from Copenhagen to London. However last night having got onto a plane and sat there for 2 hours it became too windy for the ground staff to work. This also meant that they could not connect the air bridge so we were all stuck on the plane.  Today the weather is a little less stormy but snow has arrived. Copenhagen airport is chaos, with people and queues everywhere. The pushing and shoving at the gates reminds me of Rugby League. Mr Angry is out in force and has been cloned too. Mr Important is standing there shouting into his phone that ” he has to get to Bejing”. Which is where most folks might wish to place him. Restaurants are packed selling high priced pizza and hot dogs. Most folks are surgically attached to wine or/and beer glasses.

Somehow I escaped on a plane to Stockholm that then promised me a trip to London however the london flight was cancelled along with most other flights. So I am here in Stockholm Arlanda Airport, most likely all night. The queues to book at the SAS ticket centres stretch around 200 yards or longer and just keep on getting longer. The staff are doing their best and remain cheerful and pleasant and SAS cannot be criticised at all.

For those of you who would like to experience this joy a few photos. As for the weather, well cold, windy, actually very cold and very windy and lots of snow here. Posted 8 pm. A glass of wine for me

The Hilton hotel is at Copenhagen airport and the sky shows that snow was coming. The queues you will have to just work out as they were endless. The pushing at the Gate. Well thats easy. The folks sitting on the baggage carousel was last night at Copenhagen. They may well still be there!photo

GATE Q photoh photok photoq photoq2 photosnow

Posted in Uncategorized and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment
13 Feb 2013
1 Comment

Stockholm


SnowAlthough I have been to Stockholm a few times I have never truly appreciated what a pleasant city it is. This time snowbound, everything looked cute but everything worked. Trains and planes and cars were all on time, taxi drivers spoke eloquently and engaged passengers in meaningful conversation. The people all looked young. Maybe the old ones get locked away in some sinister plot. As one arrives at Arlanda Airport, they really do play ABBA music to welcome you and photos of famous people like ABBA and Roxette adorn the walls of the luggage reclaim area. T

There is a price to pay and that is literally true. This city is expensive and is best visited when someone is paying the bill. A Croque Monseiour would cost you over 12£. Coffee usually is around 4-5£. Hotels are pleasant places where receptionists are helpful and smile. They are also warm. One of main complaints this last winter has been arriving at Marriott hotels to find that the room heating has been switched off for seemingly the last millennium. On my arrival it happily gets turned on but then takes the length of my stay to warm the room up.

The characters in Stockholm also are straight from the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. I could have cast that film many times just by sitting in a cafe and looking around. Lastly the food. It is good. The restaurants have a kind of laid back attitude where service is good but not to the point of being obsequious. Tables have gingham cloth covers and serve you pretty much what you want. I had Meatballs. I could have had massive Steaks. This is a place to come back to, but please someone invite me and pay my bills while I am there. The street names are right out of the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo like Sodermalm.

Posted in Cities EU, city of culture, Countries and Cities, stockholm, Uncategorized and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
13 Feb 2013

Dirty Pretty Wings


ImageImageImage

Posted in Uncategorized and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment
14 Oct 2012
1 Comment

Reflections of Sweden. A country where the Wi-Fi is free


Spending time in Sweden is not a hardship. The country is a vibrant and exciting country and populated generally by happy and well meaning people. Perhaps the only real surprise was that not all Swedish speak English. I flew into Stockholm and most people travel into the city centre on the Arlanda Express,  a sort of cheaper and better version of the Heathrow Express. The main city is full of restaurants mostly and of course the Ice Bar in the Nordic Light hotel. An OK hotel but the rooms were tiny and some larger clients may have had interesting times trying to fit into their bathroom/toilet area. But I spent most of my time out of Stockholm travelling to other places. Firstly a short flight to Malmo on Norwegian airlines. Now I mention them specifically as not only did they text me a boarding pass without me asking ( for an early flight) but also because they were on time. Flight was scheduled for 7.30 am and that is the minute it left the runway. However when one gets to 10,000 feet they have free wi-fi that comes into operation. Wi-fi in the sky and free. Marriott hotels are you listening?

The small city of Lund is apparently the equivalent of our Oxford and Cambridge university towns ( looked more like Exeter to me) but with amazing sandwich shops. The rolls and cakes are incredible and cheap. A train journey of 3 hours to Gothenburg was less exciting. A packed train. Not a travel method to recommend. Gothenburg however was a lovely city. Again free wi-fi more or less anywhere, hotel room, burger bar or station concourse. Canals running through were reminiscent of Amsterdam.

Posted in Uncategorized and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Post Navigation

Newer Entries →