Stockholm – The Capital City That Floats On Water

0
7814

Sweden’s capital is a city of islands where palaces and peaceful hideaways line the shores, and where cobbled streets lead to city shops, cafés and lively cultural attractions.

The novelist Selma Laferlöf called Stockholm “the city that floats on water”. Nowhere do you see this more clearly than from the dizzy observation platform on the top of Kaknäs Television Tower (Kaknästornet), Ladugårdsgärdet, which rises 155 meters (508ft).

Stockholm – The Capital City That Floats On Water
Kaknäs Television Tower in Stockholm

Below, Stockholm spreads out in a panorama of blue water, the red of the old buildings contrasting with the stark white and glass of the new, and swathes of trees and grass. This pretty low-rise city, designated Europe’s first Green Capital in 2010, rests on its 14 islands, for all the world like a raft traveler drifting down a lazy river.

Stockholm – The Capital City That Floats On Water
View from Kaknäs Television Tower

Fresh and salt water are separated by the island of Gamla Stan (Old Town) and the great lock gate of Slussen, at the southern end. The island barrier is where Stockholm originated some time before the 13th century.

Stockholm – The Capital City That Floats On Water
From Gamla Stan (Old Town) in Stockholm

Today with a population of more than 2 million in the greater metropolitan area, Stockholm is a modern and sophisticated metropolis, famous for Scandinavian design in furniture, textiles and interiors, and a hotbed of innovation in information technology – Europe’s Silicon Valley.

Stockholm – The Capital City That Floats On Water
Interior shop in Stockholm

The city features some of the most exciting cuisine in Europe. Stockholm’s nightlife has exploded into an array of young, hip clubs and older, more sedate nightspots. Infusing the old with the new is a specialty of today’s vibrant Stockholm.

Feature image (on top): Stockholm archipelago (Visit Stockholm)

Stockholm – The Capital City That Floats On Water, written by Tor Kjolberg

Find Hotels in Stockholm


Read also:
Copenhagen- The Capital City of Green Spires
Oslo- The Nordic Capital City of Light

Previous articleNorway’s Maritime “Information Highway”
Next articleWhat Tourists Want to Know Before Visiting Norway
Avatar photo
Journalist, PR and marketing consultant Tor Kjolberg has several degrees in marketing management. He started out as a marketing manager in Scandinavian companies and his last engagement before going solo was as director in one of Norway’s largest corporations. Tor realized early on that writing engaging stories was more efficient and far cheaper than paying for ads. He wrote hundreds of articles on products and services offered by the companies he worked for. Thus, he was attuned to the fact that storytelling was his passion.