Somewhere in Stockholm

One of the things that I wanted to do in college was study abroad. The one question that I needed to figure out was where exactly I wanted to go. I remember hearing people talking about wanting to study in Spain, England, France, and Italy. Although those are all great places, I wanted to study somewhere, I guess for the lack of better terms, more unique (sorry to all the people studying in those places that are reading this).

I eventually scheduled a meeting with a study abroad advisor. After looking at all the places available, I narrowed my options to three cities: Amsterdam, Stockholm, and Vienna. I ended up choosing Vienna, because of its location, abundance of IGOs and NGOs, and overall livability (it has been ranked the most livable city several years in a row).

When I got settled down, I began to look for cheap flights throughout Europe. One flight that I didn't expect to see was Stockholm. I thought it would be nice to go see one of the other cities that I considered studying in. When I arrived in Stockholm, one of the first things that I noticed was how modern everything was. Vienna is a mix of both old and new. Stockholm was clearly much more new than old. Something that makes Stockholm very interesting is that it's on an archipelago. One island included mostly just museums, another was an open area, and the main one included the Royal Palace, the Riksdag, and the Old Town.

I chose to walk everywhere to try and save money. Although the flight to Stockholm was cheap, everything else wasn't. I used to complain that the coffee shops in Vienna were super expensive. Once I got back Stockholm I became more thankful for the coffee shops in Vienna. However, I would highly recommend that you get some cinnamon rolls while in Stockholm. They're called Kanelbulle there, and they're incredible. I definitely spent a good chunk of my money on those. I'd also highly recommend trying some of their licorice if you like it. When it comes to real food, try some gravlax, and of course, Swedish meatballs.

When I went around Stockholm, I soon realized that it isn't a very flat city. This made walking to all the places I wanted to go a lot more difficult than I thought. In the end, I was able to see what I had wanted to see in a weekend. The picture that I included was from an area called Skinnarviksberget. This an amazing place to go if you want to get some nice views of the city. Although it's pretty difficult to get to, it's definitely worth the walk. 

To be honest, Stockholm exceeded my expectations. I don't think I'd say it's better than Vienna, but it's definitely a very magical city that everyone should visit if they get the chance. I know that I'll go back again soon. One last thing to add is that the best way to see Stockholm is to get lost somewhere in Stockholm.