Stockolm, Sweden (Day 1)

 We docked on time this morning around 8 am.  Our tour wasn't until this afternoon, so we had a leisurely morning.  Our tour was to the Ice Bar and Walking Tour of Old Town.  The Ice Bar was in the Radisson Blu Hotel.  It's really a tourist thing.  I'm sure locals don't go here.  The entrance is tucked down an alley, although you can find it from the lobby of the uber-cool hotel if you try.  The actual bar is rather small so they limit the number of people entering at a time.  We were a group of 29 so we had to wait until our scheduled entry time and everyone else had cleared out.  They give you a warm, lined poncho and gloves and you enter through a sort of door lock thing to control the temperature inside.  Entry was included in our tour, but otherwise, it is about $20 for entry and one alcoholic drink, and $19 for a non-alcoholic drink.  The whole thing is made of ice, obviously, but there were cushions on the few seats scattered around.  The bartenders work on a 30 minute shift.  Supposedly the temp is kept at around 20 degrees, but it didn't feel that cold - maybe it was a dry cold.  Anyway, we had our drink in the ice glass, which tasted more fruity than like alcohol, took a few photos and left.  I guess it's worth doing once, but no need to repeat if we're ever back in Stockholm.

Entry to the "lock" system.

Then we had a walking tour of Old Town where the guide used the radio system so we could all hear her while we walked, which is a very good system.  The streets are all cobblestone and not at all even, so you really have to watch your step everywhere.  

St. George slaying the dragon

This is actually a named street, not just an alleyway.

A Rune carving

A cookie store since 1860, if the sign is to be believed.

Stockholm is a lovely city built on 14 islands connected by 57 bridges.  The central part is easily walkable.

Trivia today included Michael since Lois and Patrick were still on a tour.  Came in third again.  We had dinner at Prime 7 a Deux and returned to the cabin afterward.  No show tonight, but they had an ABBA party up in Galileo's lounge.  It wasn't until 9:30 so there wasn't much chance of us making it. (We learned in trivia that ABBA is also a seafood producer in Sweden and you can buy ABBA canned tuna. The company was founded in 1906 so they claim that the pop group borrowed their name.)