City walk in Stockholm

The starting point for our city walk in Stockholm is the central station. On the opposite side is the World Trade Center, a huge shopping center. But for the moment, we are not in the mood for shopping. We want to get an overview of the city.

Thus we go along the Klarabergsgatan to the Sergels torg. The large square is an ideal meeting place. Here is also the tourist info. We get a map and brochures about the sights.

Klara Church – Santa Clara kyrka

The inner courtyard of the church grounds forms a green lung in the inner city. It is quiet here and you can quickly shake off the stress of the city.

The area once housed a convent, but this was torn off in 1527, by order of Gustav Wasa, the king of Sweden at the time. Afterward one erected the Klara church. But it was only after a renovation in 1751 that it got its present appearance.

The church steeple is 116 m of high and the second highest steeple in Scandinavia, after the one of the Uppsala Cathedral. It is the also fifth highest building of Sweden.

Gamla Stan

Through the pedestrian zone (Drottninggatan and Riksgatan) we reach the Gamla Stan, the old town of Stockholm. Now we see why Stockholm is also called the Venice of the North.

Gamla Stan is an island which is connected to another small island, the island of Helgeandsholmen (Holy Spirit Island). Here is the Parliament House, Riksdagshuset. Two monumental gates connect the parliament house with the half-round assembly room situated in the west.

Many bridges cross the channels separating Gamla Stan from business district Norrmalm. Norrmalm is also called Stockholm City.

Directly after the parliament building, we come across the imposing Stockholm Palace. We will visit the palace on another day.

From the Strombron, a wide road bridge, we have a great view over the Grand Hotel Stockholm. It is always flagged with the flags of the countries of origin of their guests. If you only see Swedish flags, then the hotel accommodates state visitors, e.g. at the Nobel Prize Ceremony.

Further west, we see the Royal Opera, Kungliga Operan. It was the place of the assassination of King Gustav III, during a masked ball on March 16th, 1792.

A variety of monuments adorns the city. Most of them show Swedish kings.

The quay east of the castle is called Skepsbron. We look at the ships and boats before we dive into the street tangle of the old town.

After visiting the old town we cross the river and are impressed by the scenery of the Riksdagshuset and the castle.

Dramaten

Our city walk in Stockholm ends at the Royal Dramatic Theater, Kungliga Dramatiska Teatern, called Dramaten for short.

Built in 1908 by the Swedish architect Fredrik Lilljeqvist, it is the Swedish national theater. The Art Nouveau building has an appealing, artistic façade.