It finally happened! Sweden opened its borders with the UK and our parents were allowed to visit. My parents came for the first four nights of our Höstlov break followed by Rob’s parents for the last four nights.
Due to limited time we decided that meeting in Stockholm would be easier when we would be coming and going to and from the airport a few times during the week. From Arlanda airport you can get a 20min Arlanda Express train which is much easier than a 80 min train to Gävle.
With my parents we did a lot of walking, enjoying the fresh air and avoiding the crowds. We visited some classic parts including the old part of town and even did some new things like the Viking Museum.
It’s a little pricey but it’s very informative and includes a short ride that follows the journey of one particular Viking. We enjoyed it and even discovered Rob could easily be a descendant of the Vikings with his stern expression.
The walks through the old town are always beautiful, it is the home to some of my favourite photographs.
During our time in Stockholm, the Christmas lights were slowly going up and the days were getting shorter. It was a nice atmosphere.
Even though we didn’t do a lot in particular it was just so nice to spend some quality time with my parents. We talked, we laughed, we hugged and we simply enjoyed being together. It had been 4 years since we had been together in person and it I didn’t realize how much I missed them until we were together again.
On the same day my parents left, Rob’s arrived. In between one’s leaving and one’s arrival we grabbed some dinner and caught sight of an old tram in the the rain.
The last four days we spent with Rob’s parents sitting outside coffee shops enjoying the fresh air.
We explored even more of the old part of town discovering a fabulous Christmas shop tucked down a side street and a beautiful cafe which had an excellent selection of gluten free treats for Evelyn.
We found some amazing restaurants during our time with our parents. We found a great sushi place called Naked Fish Sushi Bar.
And tried a very nice Vietnamese restaurant called ChiÔi.
We had lunch at Greta’s, a 1920s inspired cafe at the Haymarket Hotel.
And we even found a local Chinese that was a big hit.
It was so lovely spending time with Evelyn and Trevor. It was relaxed, playing games, taking in the fresh winter air off the water and catching up which was long overdue.
It was busy and a little tiring but it was full of family and our chance to reconnect. We were so lucky with the weather and we came away with some wonderful memories.
We will be heading back to Stockholm soon but this time for the Christmas markets. Unfortunately our plans to meet up with Robyn, Kieran and we found out later Les, were foiled by the new Covid variant and we are gutted but hopefully we can still make it a weekend we will enjoy.
Until then… SP x
The Travelling Holts 