Some Swedish Basics

Yesterday we took a nice long walk along the edge of Sodermalm.  Boat creepin as we went, til a dirt trail where people were strollin/running/biking as well.  The trees would have either fallen into the river or been split somehow, and continue to grow out of the water.  Marsh-like.  There, Fernando told me a sad sad story of his bike getting stolen because he wanted to test Stockholm's kindness.  After 4 days with no chain it disappeared into oblivion. I smacked him upside the head. "YOU DIDN'T FUCKING CHAIN IT?!" Well... now I gotta admit I JUST noticed that half the bikes I have drooled over so far in fact don't have chains.. woops. But still. 

Vacation homes

Lil reggae cafe set up

Passages to an underground city...? hehehe

Our view - on some rocks - where we decided to drink our boxed wine

The park just behind us across the path

Max - the Swedish equivalant of McDonalds :P had to, and it actually was very good. AND came with cucumbers 

Following some gypsies

Old Town

The walk home

Ran into some gents who gave us this (literally ran into)... complete with chocolate flavored papers as well. How nice right? 5g for 600kr, you can go ahead and convert that... not to self incriminate ourselves, just sayin... Swed dealers are quite nice... and very smooth

Mmm

Tubed cheese with shrimp 

Swedish bread with said-cheesey-shrimp spread

Monki, one of my favorite magazine's retail stores.  Found it by chance, and I was in heaven.

Mangle Vintage

The nicest girl worked here. Chatted a bit til some small explosions went off from the large parade of people coming down the street chanting - there was a big game vs a team from S. Sweden beginning in a couple hours.  The polis were going to have their hands full later that night.

Leftovers for dinner

Early morning

Some Skansen history of old Sweden

Traditional Sammy: cold meatball on bread with radish pickle and lettuce

More grassy dwellings

LYNX!!

When in Skansen...I ate some moose 

Some more important things I learned other than traditional eats, snacks, weed prices, and bike etiquette was of course, some basic words for my sorry ass:

Thank you = Tack-so-mycket (tax-so-mee-ket)

Sorry = ursäkta (uur-sheck-ta) as in, sorry I suck and can't speak Swedish

Welp, that's all for now!

KL

Crawling Distance

"Slept" at 2AM Thursday, with my flight at 7AM, meaning I had to be at the airport by 5.  The Tube doesn't run that early, meaning I had to get a cab.  Booked it in advance, costing me £30.  But of course come 430AM, the cab calls to say that roads are closed and this and that.  I'm confused, and Tom's about to kill me because I woke him up to tell the cab driver where to go.  Now, what the hell kind of cab is this? Uggghhh it was so frustrating, but I just grabbed my shit and ran outside walked up and down the street for a bit and finally say it turn down a street and chased it down.  It was about a 15 minute drive to Terminal 5, and then crashing in through there no desks were open yet.  Now, I didn't have my REF #. BECAUSE I booked my flight through another agency, and not directly through British Airways I had to get there first before checking bags etc.  I met a fellow American who was in the same boat.  Who would have thought out of all the people in this jumbled crowd of people I happen to ask him what the hell is going on? Hah, well he was a real pal, Kyle.  Just finishing an internship that was in London, going home to Boston. After I had to check in my backpack (lame) he was waiting after security check and we grabbed a coffee.  aka HE grabbed a coffee and I took refuge with a large cup of water. He was so nice, and gave me one of his extra sandwiches, I believe he had stayed with family, so he took advantage of the grub :P  I hadn't eaten anything yet, wasn't sure if I felt sick because of the vodka just 5 hours ago, or when the taxi was lost and then drove like a bat outta hell, or if I was getting butterflies before runnin north to Sweden.  Whatever it was, the sandwich helped.  

Did I mention I the ONE thing I left in the middle of my room back home was my headphones? God, what a fucking drag. So I burned £11 for a pair at the airport...

Finally arriving in Stockholm, the first thing I felt steppin off the plane was... fresh. Yeah, as smelly and disgusting as I was, this airport was ridiculously clean, it was nice.  Whatever, I think to myself, and when I get to the doors (note- plural) which have handles, they're all motionactivated. ALL motion activated... Okay.. buy my train ticket to Stockholm Central to meet Fernando 130kr (about 20 USD), pass more shiny clear as day motion doors to - shut up - motion activated escalators.  Maybe I've just been living under some heavy fucking rocks, cause I was the largest goon that morning walking back and forth between 3 escalators because I couldn't tell which went DOWN, because they were ALL just dead stop til you walked up they'd start moving.  Star Trek much? -_- Cheesus Christ, the station itself was covered in faux-rock and had nature bird chirping noise playing.. What the hell is this? The Peter Pan ride at Disneyland? 

Arlanda Station

Stockholm Central

Anyhow, you get the picture.  It was about a 20 minute ride, and stumbled off to meet - my cousin's boyfriend's best friend Fernando. haha, try saying that 10x fast. No, don't. I don't care.  Anyhow, like the good strong man he is, he helped lift my backpack and we began to walk back to his apartment to drop off said-backpack.  But first, we did grab lunch in Old Town, his treat.  That was a toasty heaven.

Fernando pondering horses

View crossing the bridge

It was a very hot day, I must have brought the sun with me, but with all the water and hills was a nice breeze from time to time.  It saved us... or else I'm sure my jeans were becoming a part of my skin because I was sweating so much, yes gross.  Grabbed some beers and wine because you can't purchase it after 5 or 6pm here and hung out on his balcony while I kind of just figured out my things and all that. It has a sweet view on the 5th floor. 

Dinner for 75 krons (11USD) saved half for breakfast.

Met up with some of Fernando's friends at this bar called Garlic & Shots.  Around the corner and down the street, I met Linda, Anthony, Annalie, and a fellow visitor Marije from Holland.  A real nice group of people, outgoing and interesting.

830PM

The Bridget Jones Game

Marije making a proper toast

Done hanging outside, we made our way downstairs where the decor was highly moto-related, old signs, license plates, photos etc.  Def felt homey and just chatted away.  Danced with Annalie and Anthony for a minute and then just got plain ol drunk.  Welcome to Stockholm.

KL

Mystery Wallet

Back to the Camden Market to replace my bag with something lighter and less bulky.  Handmade right there in the stall ranging £20 - £65

I spy swans :)

Met up with Tom to check out his house off by Baron's Court Station, and quieter area by a lil stroll through the Margravine Cemetery.  

House creepin

Freakin out over a wallet that just appeared on the bathroom floor.

No one knows who the owner is

But they know how to organize

There were many theories on The Wallet.. a drunk robbed another drunk, then walked by the house and tossed it into the second story window of the bathroom...or someone broke in to rob their home, and left his wallet behind... but all we knew for sure was that this Anthony character was a baller with his British Airways elite membership shit and star cards here there blah blah blah. And he liked to keep all of his receipts... and a Ferrero Rocher wrapper.

My last night, we finally went to this place called BE AT ONE (been walking by it everyday!), serving a fantastic happy hour of buy one get one free cocktails. Tina, and I got a banana/chocolate liquor ice cream cocktail... and lemme tell you... it was so delicious and perfect for the hot sweaty day, I wanted to swim in it. Then split a burrito from a little foodchain called Burrito Cafe. It wasn't bad, and kind of  like a Chipotle.  The bigger miracle is how I haven't disintegrated yet from lack of Mexican food...

After all that, said my sad sorrowful goodbye to Tina and went to FOUNDATIONS; launch party, north in Harrow (a grimy suburbia town) for some upcoming DJs with Tom and Mikey, organized and all by Chris Thiele and friends.  It was at this bar called Trinity, and the music was definitely goin off in some ways I haven't before; deep house music with some off beats, and grimy twists and drops. Bass/Garage, etc. Plus a white guy jumpin up spillin smooth lines of Jamaican talk over it all was pretty awesome too. If you wanna take a listen you can check some of it out here below.  Otherwise, the bar was pretty... interesting.  2 vodka energy drinks for 5 GBP..  Walls purple and red on the inside, with some velvet wall cushion spots, disco ball hanging from a cross on the ceiling, giant painting of Gandhi, and pentagram above the dancefloor.

www.soundcloud.com/tdb

https://soundcloud.com/vinayman

https://soundcloud.com/kaveman42

https://soundcloud.com/jammin-beats

www.soundcloud.com/six_6

Darkness.

So, what makes London so great?  The amount that's invested in the city.  The transportation, the maps, the way that it's designed to meet halfway with such various paces of life within it.  Thanks to the friends who hosted me, and showed me around. It was truly a pleasure, and I'm very glad it was my first stop. Couldn't have asked for a more random time, people watching the ancient porn cinema across the street. Yes, I see you same old men going in and out there everyday, as well as the same people going next door to the mosque, alongside the routine police sirens that pass the window.  The hoots and hollers down Shoreditch, and the hustlin bustlin down the Pacific Beach version of England.  CHEERS!

KL