The Vikings left a treasure trove of both treasure and history. From golden dragon heads to wonderful stories of the gods. Well, the ones that were fun, anyway. It all went a bit downhill when Christianity turned up. Imagine having stories of Thor and his fishing prowess, then swapping it for that classic do good Jesus stuff to learn around the longhouse fire. I know the one I’d prefer.
Denise and I were treated to the whole Viking gamut today when we visited the Historiska Museet in Stockholm.
Of course, we visited Fabrique first, so that Denise could experience her very first cardamom bun and a hot chocolate with marshmallows. When the woman asked if she wanted the marshmallows, I wanted to know what kind of question that was. She smiled and plopped in two.
Then, naturally, we had to catch a tram. I mean, how could you possibly go to Stockholm with me and not catch a tram? How is that even a question?
It was awfully cold in Stockholm. The average temperature for December 14 is -1°. Today was -6°, but the breeze made it feel more like -20°, at least. Not that we let that stop us wandering around Kungsträdgården, admiring the Christmas lights and the ice rink. It was all very festive.
We saw a few ‘tourists’ slipping and sliding on the compacted ice not on the ice rink, but we were safe and secure with our spikes.
Actually, the spikes came in handy a number of times. Most effectively when we were searching for a Persian grocery shop that was supposed to be near Haymarket. Because of the nature of the big open square and heavy footfall, the ice was particularly treacherous. Of course, this wasn’t an issue for any locals who happily marched across however, to people not brought up on slippery surfaces, the spikes are essential.
Needless to say, we didn’t find the Persian grocery shop. We did find the Historiska Museet though and spent a delightful hour or two, learning everything there was to learn about Vikings and the delicious sandwiches in the museum café. Denise also learned about Swedish tea making. It was not a pleasant experience.
Here is a previous tea drinker that we spotted at one of the outside tables.
It should have been a warning.
There was also a bit of high drama at the till when Denise tried to buy the shop out. The poor woman at the check-out was only newly working in the area and couldn’t work out how to sell something that didn’t have a barcode. She then asked her colleague who came over and had forgotten her glasses and found it a bit tricky reading the screen.
It was all very good-natured fun and there were no frayed tempers. I’d like to think it gave them something entertaining to talk about around the dinner table.
Mirinda, meanwhile, was attending a board meeting at home. Or should that be bored? I’m not sure but I think she may have preferred to have been with us.
