gamla stan, the royal palace, & walking all over stockholm

it's about 8 o'clock here in stockholm. i am amazed at the unbelievably gorgeous weather we have been enjoying since our arrival: sunny and perfect temperature wise, i'd say somewhere around the high 60s to low 70s. it cools down considerably and quickly once the sun begins setting. the sunsets have been spectacular-- cool salmons and corals spreading across the sky as the sun recedes, reflected in the unblemished surface of stockholm's pristine urban waters (america's urban dwellers could learn a thing or a million from stockholm's uniform cleanliness).

anyways, the rundown of our day: woke up early and went on a solo run (a few miles) before the sun was high. there were tufts of fog obscuring the harbor and my eyes stung and ran tears from the chill. came back to the hotel and joined forces with mama becky, making our way to the delicious breakfast the hotel serves every morning, which is an experience unto itself i intend to document before this trip concludes. yesterday we had tried to make it to gamla stan, which is a separate island containing stockholm's oldest architecture as well as the royal palace. there are structures in gamla stan that date from essentially the late middle ages.

we wandered into gamla stan in high spirits, amazed again at the perfect weather and luxuriating in our utter lack of schedule or time constraints. gamla stan is awesome, in the inducing awe denotation of the word. you can practically feel the vibration of accumulated years and eras, layers of history and human life, banality and suffering and everything in between. some highlights:

house of nobility.

 the oldest church in stockholm, if not sweden. consecrated in 1300 as a franciscan monastery. majestic. my favorite sight of the day.

another view...

another gorgeous church with technicolor stained glass windows.

how i plan on securing swedish citizenship, because i am not coming back.

we also toured the nobel museum, which was fascinating and unstuffy. very thought provoking and moving. highly recommend if you are ever in stockholm. we spent a couple of hours in the royal palace, where cameras are not allowed in the interior. i have never seen a castle or palace and i was breathless. after hours of sight seeing, we deserved a break...

i cannot get enough of the cafe action here!

 photo credit to some nice chinese lady this time.

i spent my first several hour stretch solo today, roaming a street until it ended into a larger highway. i ate dinner at an indian restaurant by myself. i stopped when i wanted and sat until i was ready to wander some more. this wandering, being lost and anonymous and alone, reminds me where i really am in a greater context. it is elevating, traveling.

until tomorrow....