My first few days in Stockholm have been amazing, to say the least. I stayed near my apartment the first day, finding a grocery store and getting familiar with the area. There are a ton of parks and trails in this neighborhood and lots of families -- the little ones love to play at the park across the street!
As I was exploring, I noticed that every. single. public staircase had a built-in wheelchair ramp. It seems a bit steep to me, but I have never used a wheelchair so I am not sure if this design is usable. I imagine the stairs in the middle are for caretakers to step down while controlling the mobility device? I shall ask my boss when I meet her next week.
I went into Stockholm today, and I truly saw how accessibility benefits everyone. Because all of the sidewalks and walkways are wide enough for mobility devices, I saw SO MANY MORE strollers than back at home. I saw so many independent, disabled people across the city. The best part? No one around them batted an eye. It was normalized for them to be out as functioning members of society, however they can. I swear I almost cried.
The culture of productivity in the United States, meaning that your worth is tied to however much you produce, is not universal. The average person was always willing to give me directions, answer a question, or give a recommendation. They were patient and curious. I anticipated that it would be hard to feel a part of this city, but that is not the case. I feel welcomed into the culture here and have gained the confidence to get things wrong (if you know me at all, you know I typically don't do very well with this). I am even learning Swedish - slowly but surely!
When I got into the city, I had no plans. I literally just walked for 4 hours and explored. At one point, I ended up in SoFo, a young district with a bunch of little shops and restaurants. While it is characterized as a "cobblestone street," the stones are so smooth that chairs can roll over them! I stopped for lunch at this little Italian Restaurant. The owner, Joseph, saw I was sitting alone and came over to chat. He took me through the menu and made sure I was taken care of; I asked him what the most popular dish was and which was his favorite. We chatted for a while and I learned that he has lived in Stockholm for 12 years but is from Italy. He traveled as a competitive latin ballroom dancer and settled down in Stockholm after falling in love with the city while competing. He gave me his phone number and offered to grab coffee with me to chat about Italy - I was quick to take him up on it! Just a small example of how generous and kind the people of this city are.
After lunch, I meandered through a park and came across an outdoor rock concert. Black Paisley was on stage and my goodness, those men could rock! There were a ton of people there of all different ages. I grabbed an ice cream cone (the cone was made of churros, btw) and and walked down the river. There are so many small bars to enjoy a glass of wine while appreciating the river! I will have to go back.
At one point, I found myself in front of the ABBA Museum. While I am a HUGEEEE ABBA fan, I decided to wait until my sister comes to visit in a few weeks. It's an interactive exhibit and I can't live out my Mamma Mia fantasy without my Tanya! (C'mon Jessi, we both know that Bri is Rosie). I decided to go back to the train station, although I accidentally took an hour detour because I put the wrong address in my GPS. . .
I ended up enjoying the extra time, as I wandered through a huge park that was just beautiful. I finally got back to the train station, my feet throbbing, and grabbed some food before heading home.
Now I am back at the apartment, winding down for bed and looking forward to tomorrow. Talk to y'all soon :)
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