HEL-STO 31/10/2015 17:00
STO-HEL 02/11/2015 09:30
Välkommen! This is the ‘welcome’ word from the capital of
Scandinavia-Stockholm. The mysterious discount Silja cruise tickets lead us to
this homeland of IKEA and H&M, while our purposes are no limited to
shopping, more for the culture, food and fun time.
Silja Symphony’s virgin launch was in 1991,
Turku, and re-decorated in 2014. This lady is with total length 203 meters,
width 31,5 meters, 13 floors, and the capacity on holding 2852 passengers in
total. Our Promenade cabin is facing the shopping street, and very cozy and
fully equipped. After duty-free, souvenir and sauna checked; at 19:00 Sushi
& Co. feed us with high quality nigiri and maki dinner, its miso soup is all
you can pour: tofu, seaweed and fresh green leak.
When the supper is over, the show time begun! We especially appreciate the dancing show, which combines both of stage drama and comedic element. The Irish bar has live bands to join, the casino is exciting, while the karaoke and disco start from twilight on the 13th floor to the hours of dawn.
In the early morning, at 9:30, Silja Symphony arrives at Stockholm harbor. We only have approximately 7 hours on land, so the sightseeing routes divided as three: Gamla Stan & breakfast, NK department store, street roaming & teatime. Taking metro from Gärdet station to old town only takes 8-10 minutes, since October 31st a windy Halloween, so we first enjoy hot chocolate, Belgium waffle and espresso at Café Öppet. The cashier lady is very friendly and generous (check the huge ball of chocolate ice cream she pour on the plate for me), we have full energy to walk forward. Unfortunately we are not interested in repetitive souvenir stores, so we first head to Royal Palace and Parliament House for photos, then cross the bridge and achieve NK department store to discover more.
Founded in 1902, opened in 1915, luxury
department store NK (Nordiska Kompaniet, the literally Nordic Company) brings
both international and local designer’s brands together, from Hermès to Acne. I enjoy the lower ground floor of how café and pastry
stalls present, and the 3rd floor of beautiful books. Of course I try Acne
Studios’ linen t-shirt and knit wear, after I find them not my style, then we go
straight over to another shopping area, Bibloteksgatan.
Unlike Helsinki, where most of the design stores close on Sundays, a lot of places in Stockholm operate at least 4 hours for the quick shopping. Unfortunately Prada, Stella McCartney and Louis Vuitton are closed, still Dagmar and my favourite Marc by Marc Jacobs are welcoming. With spacious store interior, MBMJ has full ready-to-wear collection on Men’s and Women’s, also the handbags and small leather goods display in playful ways. Two staff are in funky and vibe African looking, and while I take some time choosing my third MBMJ gold-plated earrings, they are very helpful, and wrapping my final choice delicately in purple silk paper, in a mini cub MBMJ shopping bag.
Satisfied and being reluctant to part the
city, returning to cruise by 16:15 is our priority. Whereas there are new
performances awaiting us: acrobatic professionals at hallway, dancing show at
deck 7 and Michael Peña’s comedy is making people laugh. Between the shows, we also taste
the juicy Angus beef, pork chop and the hot potatoes wedges at El Capitan. Though
the trip takes 48 hours only, but the food, culture, entertainment and shopping
experiences are overwhelming, I would like to visit Stockholm again (perhaps
next year) and take more astonishing pictures for my art project.
Special Thanks: JMH
Photography taken by iphone 5C
@visitstockholm
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