Clap Clap Clap

“ The Nobel Prize for this year goes to Twesha Ghosh for …”
Wait what?
We are in Sweden going through the Nobel laureates bio in the amazing Nobel Museum. I could already imagine myself standing on the stage giving my acceptance speech.
How inspiring the museum was. After the amazing trip to the museum, we checked out the H&M and IKEA. H&M, the store with the trendiest clothes and IKEA, the trendy and very Scandinavian Home Store are both Swedish. Did I mention the word ‘trendy’ yet? What more
do you want? A country that rewards inspiring individuals, home to trendy homes and clothes…let our Swedish journey begin.

Stockholm

Our trip to Sweden revolved largely in and around Stockholm. We reached Stockholm late in the evening, but Scandinavian summers are full of daylights well into the night. Even though the Hotel had expensive parking, free accessible parking was right in front of the hotel. Stockholm is perhaps the most accessible city I have visited. The Clarion Hotel where we stayed had a very modern music themed decor. The elevators were named Jazz, Melody and Guitar.

Nobel Museum

This is an absolute must see. The museum is in Gamla Stan. Nobel prize was started by a Swede, Alfred Nobel, with the money he received from his very successful invention of dynamite. Nobel Prize is awarded yearly to individuals/groups in the areas of Peace, Physics, Chemistry, Literature, Medicine and Economics.   The Museum is an archive of all the Nobel laureates and their work. Every Nobel laureates picture is hung from the ceiling on a moving rail , similar to the way shirts are hung at Dry Cleaners.  There are media rooms where you can see short films on some of the winners. The museum also has details on the life and works fo Alfred Nobel. A very inspiring place.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  • The entire museum is accessible.
  • The front entrance has stairs. The accessible entrance is from the back of the museum which is at the corner of Kallargrand and Slottsbacken. You need to approach a museum staff from the front entrance to help you get in from the accessible back entrance.  A wheel chair is available for use.

Gamla Stan

Gamla Stan is the historic old town with winding roads, cafes and antique shops. The Gamla Stan square is all cobbled stones, lantern lit and a very lively part of the town. The square has a very festive look and you will find people spending  a lot of time in the Cafes and people watching. When we first drove into Gamla Stan we wondered how to move around since Cobbled stone is not very wheel chair friendly. However, the main street in Gamla Stan is very plain and very easy on wheelchairs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  • The region is mostly cobbled stones and difficult for wheelchair users.
  • The main street (drottninggatan)is smooth, and it has the most cafe, souvenir shops and restaurants

The Royal Palace

You can witness the change of guard in the Royal Palace. This is the King’s official residence. The palace is always open to the tourists. A word of caution: Do not get too close to the guard to take a picture. They will shoo you away. First hand experience :-). The Palace has a garden, theater, church and a pavilion.

  • Accessible parking right next to the entrance of the palace
  • Elevators available in the West Vault.
  • Steps/Ramps with handrail available.
  • More information at http://kungahuset.se

The Stockholm City Hall

 

This is an excellent spot for taking pictures of the historic Gamla Stan. There are guided tours every 10 min. The City Hall tower is open from May to September. You can get breathtaking view of Stockholm from the top of the tower. The tower top can be reached only by stairs. An elevator will take you half way to the top.. The summer months ( June & July) are busy, so it is advisable to book early. The city hall is also the venue for the banquet after the Nobel Prize ceremony.

  • Parking is available outside on the curb
  • The elevator only takes you half way to the top off the tower.

The Archipelago

The Stockholm archipelago consists of 30000 islands, rocks and skerries. The best way to get a feel of the archipelago is to take a ferry from Vaxholm. Vaxholm is a little harbor front town with lot of tourists during the summer. You can spend some time people watching before you get on the ferry. There is no need to book tickets in advance. We visited starts, Sandhamn and Grinda. These are small islands in the Stockholm Archipelago. If time permits, you can even get off, spend a few hours in these islands and then catch the next ferry to your next destination.

  • Wheelchair recommended as sometime the ramps are very steep.
  • Ramps have rails on both side.
  • All the Islands are fully accessible with accessible jettys.
  • Grinda even has a restaurant that is fully accessible.

Skansen

One of the oldest open air museum in the world showcasing the whole of Sweden. This is a park showing the Swedish heritage beautifully. During summer months you can enjoy Swedish folk dance every evening.

  • The entire park is fully accessible.
  • Wheelchair recommended because the ground is not plain everywhere.