It’s been many, many years since my first and only visit to Stockholm so far. I took the opportunity to visit it again by combining a trip to Sweden with a trip to Denmark to visit my partner and meet some of his friends at a yearly meetup they have.

The first part of the journey was all on my own though, and I figured that if I visit Stockholm, I might as well also visit Uppsala, where I’ve never been before. On the day of my flight, I landed very late at 23:30, and then took a train to Uppsale. Covid safety was still a big thing in Germany, but here almost nobody wore masks, which felt strange. The place was buzzing, even at midnight. I finally arrived at the hotel around 00:20 and went straight to bed. Sweden’s chilly.

On my first proper day of travel, I woke up at my usual time despite the very late night. I headed out at 10, but turns out the city was still asleep. Most shops open at 11 or 12, and being a holiday, half wouldn’t open at all.

I wandered around Uppsala and up to the Castle (there was a marathon), then explored the surprisingly beautiful Botanical Gardens. Eventually ended up at the cathedral—the largest in Scandinavia! Very impressive, but looked like… a cathedral. Perhaps I’ve already seen too many cathedrals in my life, they don’t impress me anymore.

In the evening, I went to Bork Con, a local board game event. The people here were super nice, and I met the designer of Whirling Witchcraft and played Cascadia with him. Later I played Dune Imperium with some very nice, though slow, people—including an older man. After that I was done for and went back to the hotel.

On my second day, it was time for Comic Con. I had been really excited when I found out it coincides with my visit to Stockholm, followed by disappointment, since it was sold out… but got lucky with a secondhand ticket! It worked, no issues. The hall was small and mostly had Swedish books, and the cosplay was… limited. And the whole con had only 4 guest stars (cool ones though).

I queued for the Felicia Day Q&A around 11. I’ve followed her since Geek & Sundry—I’m not a hardcore fan, but I think she’s fairly cool. She was funny and talked a lot about food. Sadly, most questions were about Supernatural (which I never watched), which was kinda boring.

Later, I queued for Sean Astin. He was really fun, but very long-winded in all of his answers. He really liked to talk. It was still worth it. Funny how I wouldn’t go to Comic Con at home, but while traveling? Totally different vibe. Maybe I’ll even cosplay next time… 🤔

There wasn’t much else interesting at the con, so I took the train to Stockholm, checked into my tiny hotel room, and went for dinner at a burger place. Then just rested. It was raining, and I wanted to save energy for the next day.

My third day was a really weird day. Stockholm didn’t feel welcoming—maybe because I’ve been here before, or because I was still recovering from a cold, or because it was just cold. Very cold.

I went to Gamla Stan around 10 and got bored fast. Trashy tourist shops everywhere, way more than I remember from my first visit in 2007. The only highlight was the Science Fiction Bokhandeln. Then I walked to Södermalm next—supposedly a hip area, but I found it meh to trashy. There I had a weird scare when a guy was walking way too close behind me. I stopped and let him pass, but it really shook me. The neighborhood started to feel real shady, so I took the Tunnelbana back to the hotel.

Later, I went to a mall, sat briefly on the stairs there to drink something, and immediately was told off to not do that by a security guard. That kinda sent me spiraling into feeling depressed and I felt unwelcome.

In the evening, I wandered Norrmalm (which was much nicer!) and saw The French Dispatch at a cinema. Beautiful movie, but so weird—even by Wes Anderson standards. Then: pastries.

On my fourth day, I escaped the rain and cold by visiting some museums.

First stop was the Vasa Museum, which I already knew from 2007: It’s still impressive. I learned  a lot here — possibly the same stuff I learned 13 years ago and forgot since then.

Afterwards, I went to the museum Vikingaliv, a new Viking museum nearby. It was really nicely done, and even had a little Disneyland-style ride.

Finally, I went to Historiska Museet, a free museum with a fantastic Viking exhibit and more artifacts than Vikingaliv, and less flash. I also explored a philosophical exhibit before calling it a day.

Then I went to a board game meetup at a nerd store in Kungsholmen. The games were fun. The people… less so. Two were clueless, the other two serious and humorless. One left (yay), but the guy who sat next to me after had horrible breath. I left.

On my fifth day, I took a 3-hour cruise through the Stockholm Archipelago. Maybe it’s beautiful in summer? In November, it was mostly grey. Cute red houses on little islands though.

The regular guide for this tour was sick and the replacements were mediocre. Also, my neurological issues (linked to migraines) flared up a bit. I suppsoed I’m getting older…

After the cruise, I had spicy Pad Thai at a food hall. Immediately regretted it (spicy food kills me). Then rested, then returned to Gamla Stan at night. Took more pics and visited Science Fiction Bokhandeln again.

Went to a board game meetup at a pub. Weird again. All the Stockholm gamers were… peculiar. I played Puerto Rico and party games, then noped out.

My sixth day was a travel day. I woke up way too early, and I couldn’t stand the hotel room anymore. I got to the station an hour early and took the SJ Snabbtåg to Copenhagen. The ride was not particularly impressive —it’s Sweden, not Norway (I once took the Bergensbanen in Norway, and that was the most beautiful train ride ever).

My train accumulated some delay, and thus I missed my connection in Copenhagen, and arrived in Sjællands Odde only around 16:30. There I reunited with my partner and we spent a few more days playing board games with his friends. Then we drove home all the way from there back to Düsseldorf (which took roughly 8 hours).

To summarize, my second visit to Stockholm was very strange. I assume I felt so strange about it because it was winter, and it’s just not so much fun (for me) to travel in the cold and dark of winter. Perhaps one day I’ll be able to revisit this city in more welcoming conditions.