FAMILY ADVENTURES IN SWEDEN--PART 12

STOCKHOLM--DAY 2--JUNE 30, 2010

Perhaps you are familiar with the Swedish author, Astrid Lindgren, and her beloved books about a nine year-old mischievous girl named Pippi Longstocking.

 If so, you will know why today's morning adventure at a children's museum named Junibacken was one of the highlights of our trip. The name comes from the home of one of Astrid Lindgren's most loved characters, Madicken.



One bit of advice reads, "An absolute must if you are coming to Stockholm sometime in your life (which of course you have to) is a visit to Junibacken." It's a house on the island of Djurgården in the heart of Stockholm that is brimming over with stories.

Immediately upon entering, the first thing that you come to is Storybook Square. You are taken directly into a world of fantasy, and many of the most loved characters from children’s books live around the square, with its cobblestones and old-fashioned street lamps. It is a living exhibition where children can play, climb, and have fun with everything they see.

Then we all boarded a storybook train, an unconventional ride that both rolls and flies through brilliant dioramas detailing some of Lindgren’s most popular tales. The narrator’s voice, the music, sounds, lighting, the fantastic scenes and the atmosphere all combine to make this journey something that will touch everyone, large and small children alike. The Storybook Train is available in 12 languages. You can be guided along your journey in Swedish, Arabic, English, Finnish, French, Dutch, Italian, Japanese, Chinese, Russian, Spanish or German. That's just the beginning!

The train journey ends at Villa Villekulla. Here, at the home of Pippi, the strongest girl in the world, you are free to play wherever you like. You can ride Pippi’s horse, Old Man, slide down the slides, play in Pippi’s kitchen, dress up, paint and draw, play hopscotch, and do lots of other fun things. Near the house there was a very funny drama for all of us to watch (all in Swedish, of course,) with Pippi Longstocking as the star as her mischievous self!

Hours of fun for both children and adults...

It is a truism that one of the best ways to instill a love of books in children is to read aloud to them starting at a very early age. Bonnie has made that an integral part of growing up for Dugan and Sage. That was also a high priority for Judy raising Bonnie and Maia.

Bonnie has read many of Astrid Lindgren's books to the kids, much to their delight! As one avid reader put it, "Pippi Longstocking. An icon. A symbol. A wonderful book!! I have the opinion that a select few books ought to be issued you at birth, and this is one of them!!" Another wrote, "Pippi is in everyone's heart...if you have Swedish roots you must read this book, it doesn't matter if you are five or fifty!!!"

There is one last very wise quote about reading from the creator of the weekly radio show, "Prairie Home Companion," Garrison Keillor: "One reads books in order to gain the privilege of living more than one life. People who don't read are trapped in a mine shaft, even if they think the sun is shining."

After several hours of being immersed in this world of Astrid Lindgren's many colorful characters, we reluctantly bid Junibacken farewell and walked down the road to an outdoor restaurant with a lovely setting and an amazing buffet lunch.

On the same island was another fabulous museum, built to house the 17th Century warship Vasa, which was pulled from the mud of Stockholm harbor. The Swedish name, Vasamuseet, translates as "museum of the remains of an important old ship." The mighty Swedish warship, the Vasa, was the most powerful vessel of her day, having an infrastructure of 64 guns. It was commissioned by King Gustavus Adolphus in 1625 as one of a fleet of battleships in the war against Poland. It was intended to be the pride of the Swedish navy.

Tragically, due to problems with her stability, the ship keeled over on her maiden voyage in 1628, only ten minutes after it was launched, and sank killing around 40 of the 150 people on board. It was not until 1961 that the remarkably intact wreckage was salvaged by the Swedish navy. This is the only almost fully intact 17th century ship that has ever been salvaged. This was the first opportunity for Bonnie and family to see the museum, and they found it very informative.

Also on the island of Djurgården is the Nordic Museum, (Nordiska Museet) which we only viewed from the outside while enjoying relaxing beside the water and walking out on a long pier to view the many boats there. The Nordic Museum contains fascinating exhibits of how people lived in different parts of Sweden throughout the ages. There are more than a million exhibits encompassing costumes, tools, furnishings and dwellings.

As we walked on the island enjoying the picturesque scenes along the way, we came to an ice cream stand where everyone decided that we had to have an ice cream treat!

Scenes of Stockholm as we continued to walk through the city...

In the spirit of celebrating all things international, we decided to have dinner at an Ethiopian restaurant, the EthioStar, which Tina recommended. In fact almost everything we have done has been because Tina thought it would be a great idea! We have always enjoyed Ethiopian meals, first being introduced to them in the home of some very dear Eritrean friends in Cincinnati. In fact, Tina also enjoyed Ethiopian food with those friends of ours during the year she stayed with us in Cincinnati. The food at this Swedish/Ethiopian restaurant was excellent and plentiful.

Tina and Egi at the EthioStar

Dugan and Sage certainly love Tina and Egidio!

Since this was our last evening in Stockholm before spending tomorrow night near the airport before our return flight, we stayed at our hotel with Dugan and Sage while Bonnie, Dug, Maia, Tina and Egi went out on the town together for the evening.