after my visit to the allotment gardens yesterday, i found myself in need of sustenance.
here then are various photos of around the house treats.
i found a killer bakery a few doors down. who knew swedes had the market cornered on fresh baked bread? and all this time i thought the french & italians were the kings of bread. how wrong was i? apparently…very.
beautiful rustic loaves of every type imaginable.
as you can see from the top photo i fell for the olive cheese loaf. it was because the young woman gave me a knowing look and said, “and THIS one is very special.”
but of course it would have been in poor taste not to have also selected a kanelbulle – “a classic swedish bun with cinnamon and cardamom. you must try!”
ohhhh okay, i reluctantly agreed.
when i got home i texted my personal swedish interpretation minister of culture, INGRID, and she said, “that is the swedish flagship of fika!” then she sent a photo of the tray she had just baked for our consumption in a few days time.
honey baked goat cheese salad with roasted beets and other things!
and a ginger soda.
that was my first meal the other day on my bus adventure.
one of my acquisitions at the market. swedish bacon. who freaking knew? very thick. vegans, avert your eyes!
very different from american bacon and definitely unlike bacon i’ve tried in other countries. again, i took one for the team. girl reporter takes her job seriously. ya know?
last night around 10 i got a wild air up my kazoo and headed out into the world. the sky was putting on a dazzling show.
the streets were full of revelers.
i headed towards kåkar, an area in vitabergssparken with clusters of old wooden houses. i only made it as far as nytorget before i just started wandering here and there.
noticing signs and house numbers…
reflections
blissfully strolling on a lovely friday evening in stockholm.
then of course i spotted a bus stop
i whipped out my bus map and that’s all she wrote of the little wooden houses.
it was a ride into a blazing golden sunset.
which i failed to capture, but was so lovely i gasped.
a young couple with a baby buggy boarded and placed the buggy in front of me, then went and sat down.
i resisted the urge to pick the baby up, hold him up to the window, and say, “look at the world you’re alive in! isn’t it magnificent?”
but then i saw this and hopped off and headed towards the water.
night was falling on stockholm.
meanwhile, i kept stopping to consult my metro map, and my bus pass fell out of my pocket… unbeknownst to me!
it wasn’t until i had hoofed it over to the metro station that i noticed it wasn’t in my pocket. oyvey!
i retraced my steps all over kungsholmen, trying to remember all the places i had pulled the map out.
finally on a dark sidewalk by a little park i found it. the little white ACCESS letters glowing up at me from the walkway.
hi ho hi ho back to the metro i go!
by the time i got home it was officially dark. i remembered the access code to get into the building – good thing because i didn’t have my iphone with the text containing the original information with me. but now i couldn’t find my keys. i took everything out of my pockets, rummaged, and finally found them. in my mind i had already checked into the hilton by the water for the night. it’s always good to have a backup plan. and even better when you don’t need to use it.
today we’re going for a boat ride, you and i. misadventure may accompany us… be ready!
Love your sense of abandoned adventure. You didn’t seem to get flustered when you lost your bus pass, couldn’t find your keys and didn’t have your phone. How are you ever going to get some sleep with those long days. Enjoying your posts immensley.
Taking notes for my next trip to Stockholm while reading and enjoying your adventures! I have to see Kakar, love the tiny wooden houses! I especially love that you explore Stockholm far away from the tourist places. Gamla Stan and Djurgarden are beautiful places, but there are so many treasures besides that. Thanks for taking me there, too!
That bread looks great! It’s hard to find good bread nowadays in Germany. We used to have the best bread (and the biggest varieties worldwide), but more and more traditional bakerys close and are replaced by “breadshops” where you get cheap, factory made “bread”. It’s sad to see how this wonderful old craft slowly disappears…
Open to joy! That is what I thought after re reading Saturday’s post. The tastes sounds sights and spine tingling adventures… So nice of you to share it all.
Loved taking the night’s outing with you. My impression is that there are very few cities as clean and well swept as Stockholm.
Thanks for the beautifull picks and your great, uncensored stories! I am with you on loosing keys and passes and all sorts of things, allthough i am most often lucky to find them or get my items returned (so many GOOD persons in this world too).
Keep up the good work, my teacher would say, so may i ask you to??
Oh, MAM, so much to SAVOR!!!
As usual, Mary Ann, you don’t disappoint us with your adventures and reporting. Thank you so much for taking us along.
Ah the bakery. I too misplace bus passes and make reservations in my mind for the what ifs. Thanks for sharing your adventures and remind me to be brave. I’m in Paris in two weeks!
It’s a joy to read what you write – feel like I’m on this adventure with you and waiting for the next mishap that translates into a terrific story. Keep up the reporting, Ace.
Still chuckling! Your blog is so much fun!
– Tina
Please take us to a paper store. The kind where you always find all your cool patterned papers.
Oh Mary Ann, I have been away from your blog (bereft in work and graduations) and just stopped to give myself the joy of time with the Dispatch. Oh how wonderful. I feel like I just took the longest, deepest breath full of joy! Thank you. Thank you.
What a adventure were having, glad your brave, always have a back up plan and eat what I want, yum.
Oh! Such wonderful photos…the bread, the olive loaf, the flowers on the fence, the old wooden houses. Eye candy, all of it. What a lovely place to be having an adventure.
What are the similarities/differences, if any, to Norway?
Being so far north, I’m assuming it stays light until very late in the evening?
You almost caused this OCD person to have a heart attack when you couldn’t find your keys (I must check a bazillion times to make sure I have them before I lock a door, then again when you lost the metro pass. I hate to lose anything.
Can’t wait for the boat ride. Give me the keys, I’ll keep them safe while I ride along in your pocket.
Mary Ann Thank you, thank you,thank you for all the beautiful photos and funny comments….PLEASE “dispatch” DAILY !!!!
Can`t wait for the boat ride…
Wow, I love that the streets aren’t filled with tourists, or locals either it seems. Makes for really nice photos. That was a lovely stroll. So nice the bus pass was laying right where you dropped it, waiting for you to return.
Mary Ann, you are one gloriously brave, adventurous woman! And very funny, as we all know and love!
So glad you are bringing us along on your Swedish adventure! 🙂 Thank you! Loving all the pics.
I think I need to go find a snack……………………
You’ve just made me officially ‘starving’ I travel great lengths to go for good home made bread, Stockholm here I come. I’ve been known to go back to a restaurant based on the bread …you had me at the photo alone…Mary Ann, just like a cat, no matter what happen you land on your feet, indeed a back up plan is best when it remains in one’s back pocket. I’m loving the photos…omg, did ya have to tempt me with the bacon????? OMG girl, you had my attention with the bread and now I’m chomping at the bit for the bacon…so many visual temptations……:)
I love our bus rides. This is the trip of a lifetime. Cannot wait for the boat ride. Should I “bring”a sweater?
Loved the travelog — both the pics and commentary. Really appreciated the vegan alert but alas, I saw it too late! haha. Glad you found you bus pass–that was fortunate!
More baking while waiting
Just wonderful! I too loved looking at the various house numbers and signs. It’s such a beautiful city.
Oh thank you, thank you, thank you Mary Ann for taking me with you …
and for your generous abundance of great photos! I love this trip already,
and you as always for YOU! More please?
“sigh” So beautiful!
thank you for taking us on your adventure. I love seeing the wonderful places you visit through your eyes!
Loving Sweden vicariously, I have totally integrated your method of exploring wonderful new places into my being. When I lived in Israel leaving the baby carriage with baby in it while a couple ate or shopped was considered acceptable . You trust your neighborhood to watch the baby. Very cool.
I’m so enjoying “our” trip to Sweden. Such lovely adventures. Hang on to those essentials (keys and passes and such). 🙂