As I said we paid extra to do this, a series of light installations by different artists at Skansen accompanied by music and it was beautiful; worth every added Swedish crown. I don't have as many pictures as I would have liked because it had got so cold by the time we did it that I was getting reluctant to take off my gloves and work the camera on my phone. But here are most of the ones I did take.
Magical stuff.
In fact Skansen is a folk museum and Nordic zoo combined all year round, and in December it has Christmas Markets at the weekend. It's a very long time since we ventured there in good weather and we must get around to doing that sometime soon. Meanwhile like every day we were in Stockholm the day we went to Skansen was very snowy. It's also quite hilly which isn't a great combination. I took lots and lots of photos because honestly the place looked like Narnia and it was so beautiful but I'm only going to post a few. Some of the market and some of the animals in the zoo. I was sorry to see that the wolves have gone; no idea where. Maybe they staged a mass breakout? Whatever, their extremely large compound has been taken over by the lynx(es) and I think the place where the lynx was has now been given over to the arctic fox. The wolverine, true to form, did not show itself. I think it only comes out in the summer and on days that don't have a y in them.
We paid extra to go on their Winter Lights Walk - well worth it and a few pictures of that coming up in a day or two.
There were two main things we went to Stockholm for - apart from just the fact that we haven't been since before Covid and before Covid we went there quite a lot. We don't normally go for a week, but we did this time because it flitted nicely between the two Scottish Opera Emerging Artist Recitals. And the two main things we went for were a performance of Rigoletto at the Royal Opera House and a visit to the Christmas market at Skansen.
We did a few other bits and pieces as well. We did a Winter Lights walk at Skansen, we had a traditional Julbord or Christmas Buffet at the hotel one evening, we visited the national gallery - at long last re-opened after several years of renovation and refurbishment, we went to the Marzipan Boat, we visited the shop and cafe at the Vasa Museum ( seen the ship twice, don't need to see it again) and also went to a part of the city we've never been to before to meet up with a longstanding penfriend and her partner. Oh and on our last day at great risk to life and limb we went to Gamla Stan, the old - and nowadays most touristy - part of the city.
So this is what it looked like outside our hotel when we arrived
So last Christmas I got sent a kit to make and decorate shortbread and although the attempts of Son No 2 and I were not particularly successful in the decorating stakes we had fun. So back in November when I saw a 'decorate your own gingerbread men kit' in Shearer's Christmas Shop I bought it so that we could repeat the experience; but with icing that wasn't out of date and horribly runny , and without having to bake our own biscuits.
Kit
Naked biscuits
Clothed (iced) biscuits,
Sorry about the shadow on the picture. It's so gloomy here just now we can't operate without the lights on at any time of day.
I'd like to say that mine were the most accomplished of the six, but that would be a lie. Son No. 2 did a much better job. I suspect it's all the D and D model painting that he does.
I can't comment on what they taste like as we haven't eaten any of them yet! A pleasure to come I'm sure.
Christmas was quiet and I somehow managed to buy the OH a very expensive book which he had already bought for himself (he must have smuggled that into the house sometime). I would take it back were it not for the fact that I blithely refused a receipt as one does so often these days, after wafting a contactless card somewhere in the vague vicinity of the till. A gift to the library I think. Or a raffle prize the next time someone asks.
Meanwhile today is the OH's birthday. I somehow managed not to buy him something he already had. Which was a plus.
Courtesy of the Bonne Maman Advent our little Scandi forest has a new addition. It's really cute - and also seems like the right sort of image with which to sign off for now. I will see you on The Other Side; meanwhile a very happy and peaceful Christmas to all of you kind souls who take sufficient interest in my ramblings - and occasional rants - to read the blog.
Postie brought me some non-Christmas mail today, to wit:-
I wasn't expecting it before Christmas so it was a nice surprise. The top skein is my 'payment' for doing the sample sock - you get paid in your choice of yarn which is great for me. It's a DK skein of the colour Eowyn from the Lord of the Rings collection and its going to become a pair of mittens for me. The pattern is all picked out - although not yet bought.
The rest is a sock set in December's Colour of the Month for which the inspiration was a robin. This will become, unsurprisingly, a pair of socks, I'm just not quite sure which pattern I'll be using, although I have a short list.
I'm feeling a bit odd, Everything got finished by Wednesday and now I'm sort of at a loose end although I have Christmas socks to finish for son no 2 and I'm starting to worry they might not get finished. But I'll do my best.
Son No 2 arrived for his Christmas holiday on Monday and today, everything being complete and even my ironing up to date bar one duvet cover (slated for tomorrow), not to mention the fact that my nose is not now running 100% of the time, we decided to go out for bit of a celebratory treat.
The weather was not very nice, and got worse while we were out, and in any case being reluctant to go as far as Kirkwall, that meant either Celina Rupp or Polly Kettle, both nice places to eat and very local. Celina Rupp won.
Son No 2 and I shared the apple strudel cheesecake which is lovely but far too much for one person - although I'm not sure he agreed. The OH indulged in some Nutella swiss roll and we all had a hot chocolate because it s hot chocolate sort of weather. All very nice.
We'd passed the postman doing his rounds when we went out and were all agog to see what he might have delivered, three parcels and several cards still being on the expected list. Imagine our excitement as we opened the front door - and the anti-climax when all we found on the mat was an Income Tax code change from HMRC.
Ah well better luck tomorrow, eh?
