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Greetings!
As I write, I am in Panama. Today we off to Taboga Island for a short day-trip to look for birds and do some hiking. It is a 30-minute ferry ride to get to Taboga and a cute little island village for a nice visit.
Tomorrow, we will have a full day visit to one of the Pearl Islands. The Pearl Islands are located off the coast of the Pacific side of Panama and consist of over 200 islands and islets in the Gulf of Panama. It is a 1.5 hour ferry ride to the island and we hope to see a few pelagic birds, as well as whales, along the way. Once there, the swimming, snorkeling, and beach walking is perfect. In February, I have several trips to Panama on the schedule and there are a few spots left. The water is warm and crystal clear, and the beach is soft sand.
Just so you know: There are only 91 day until Christmas! What are you plans? You should come to Stockholm, it is a wonderful and a memorable time to be in Sweden.
This tour is a combination of birding, history, and experiencing traditional Swedish Christmas customs. Stockholm has fantastic museums and we will be visiting a few of the best. We are only taking a small group of 6 people and if you are thinking of joining the trip, now is the time to sign up. Only 3 spots left.
Keep scrolling or click here for more info: Stockholm Christmas
Stockholm is city of islands, which makes it especially convenient for boats, sightseeing, walking and birding year-round. The city is full of great history, art, music, museums and restaurants. There are palaces, cathedrals and many historic buildings to visit. The Stockholm subway is considered the longest art gallery in the world at 68 miles in length.
Stockholm stretches across fourteen islands where Lake Mälaren flows into the Baltic Sea. The original old town, known as Gamla Stan, is in the heart of the city and is a charming, picturesque historic neighborhood. Just outside the city and along the Baltic Sea coast is the island chain known as the Stockholm archipelago, which includes approximately 24,000 islands and islets. The area has been settled since the Stone Age and was founded as a city in 1252.
Weather on Winter Solstice: Sunrise 8:43 am, Sunset 2:48 pm, 6 hours of sunlight. High temperatures during the day are often in the mid to high 30’s and low temperatures are high 20's - low 30's. During the holiday season, Stockholm is completely decorated with lights and displays. The best time to see and experience this is when it is dark, so don't be concerned about the short amount of daylight.
Boat lodging: On this tour, the lodging will be aboard permanently moored boats and yachts in the Stockholm waterway. On all the boats, the rooms are small and “cozy”, like most ships, but all the rooms have beds “on the floor”, meaning no bunks.
M/S Rygerfjord: The Rygerfjord was built in 1950 at Mjellem & Karl’s shipyard in Bergen, Norway. After 45 years of passenger service within Scandinavia, Rygerfjord docked at its present position at Söder Mälarstrand in 1995 and has been slowly converted and upgraded over the years to accommodate over-night lodging.
Den Röda Båten (The Red Boat): The Red Boat is a wood and steel tugboat boat; built in 1914 it was previously a working boat that served the Göta Canal. There are two sister boats moored next to each other to accommodate travelers.
The Mälardrottningen: The history of the Mälardrottningen is very interesting and it is always a special treat to stay on the yacht. Here are a few paragraphs copied from the hotel website: "The ship was built in 1924 for C.K.G Billings, a millionaire from New York, and the ship at that time was the world’s largest diesel driven yacht. The ship was later bought by the Woolworth-millionaire Frank W. Hutton. Barbara Hutton, the Woolworth heiress received it as a gift from her father on her 18th birthday. Barbara lived an extravagant life among royals and movie stars and in the 1940’s she was married to Cary Grant. During the fifties the ship was used as a passenger ferry between Stockholm and Åbo in Finland. Since 1982, Mälardrottningen has been at her current location and only leaves the dock for maintenance every fifth year”.
There will be six very special dinners on this tour:
1) M/S Waxholm III Dinner cruise and traditional Swedish smörgåsbord (Julbord) aboard a classic archipelago ship from the maritime golden age; built in 1903. This dinner will also be a 2-hour cruise through the many islands of Stockholm.
2) Diplomat Hotel The historic Diplomat Hotel, was built in 1911 as a residential palace. During the 1940’s and 50’s, the building housed the embassies of Romania, Chile, Persia, Hungary, Italy and Canada and in 1966, was converted to a hotel. Elements from the former state apartments have been carefully preserved for the now 130 rooms of the Diplomat Hotel. Dinner is a multi-course meal of traditional and modern Swedish foods.
3) The Grand Hotel Christmas Day traditional Swedish Christmas Smörgåsbord, also known as Julbord, will be at the Grand Hotel. Built in 1874, the Grand Hotel has been a center piece for important events in Sweden and it is truly an opulent, grand old hotel. Similar to the Mälardrottningen, when you step into the lobby of the Grand Hotel, you are walking in the footsteps of royalty, presidents and movies stars. From 1901 – 1929 the Nobel Laureate Banquet was held at the Grand Hotel.
4) Michelangelo Italian Restaurant offers a tasty Christmas Julbord in a beautiful setting. The dinning rooms date back to the 16th century.
5) Wallmans This amazing Christmas Party is dinner theater and a fantastic musical show with a Christmas theme.
6) Sjatte Tunnan (Medieval Cellar) Is fun anytime of the year. The food, staff, and atmosphere is true to the old medieval ways. They don't even have forks....
Evening Events: Depending on the local schedule there will be some evening events such as concerts. If you have special interests such as opera or theater, please let us know in advance so we can get tickets for you. Both the Royal Swedish Opera House and the Dramatic Theatre House are extremely beautiful and opulent.
Museums: Every day there will be time to visit a museum and there are a lot of museums in Stockholm. We highly recommend the Vasa, National Museum, Asian Art Museum, the Medieval Museum, and a visit to the Royal Palace, just to name a few.
Vasa Museum: The Vasa is a Swedish warship built between 1626 and 1628. The ship sank after sailing for only a few minutes into its maiden voyage in August 1628. After most of the valuable bronze cannons were salvaged in the 17th century the ship was largely forgotten until it was located in the late 1950s in a busy shipping lane just outside the Stockholm harbor. In 1961 the ship was brought to the surface and with much of it still intact, it was restored and now is open for viewing at the Vasa Museum. It truly is amazing because the ship is 226 feet long, and 90% of the boat is still original.
Please see the Stockholm Christmas web page more details and photos.
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