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Showing posts with label music. Show all posts
Showing posts with label music. Show all posts
Thursday, December 5, 2013

St Lucia Celebrations!

Photo by Henrik Trygg, Stockholm Visitors Board
Lucia, the festival/celebration of St Lucia, happens on December 13th and is, along with Midsummer, the most Swedish of holidays and many of you have seen a picture of a young girl wearing a wreath of candles (Lucia). Basically, the celebration consists of a procession led by a candle wreathed young woman and followed by other young women (& men called stjärngossar) holding candles. Click here for video ("Lucia for Dummies"). They sing Lucia songs as well as other Christmas carols. The traditional places where this procession takes place is in Swedish homes on the morning of the 13th, where the procession is made up of the family's children, and during the evening in various churches. These days, however, you will find Lucia processions also at different businesses, shopping malls and retirement centers throughout the country. Because of the popularity of Lucia, you need to purchase tickets to see the procession in most churches. If you are staying at the Rival Hotel, stop by and I will help you with tickets.
Lucia at Skansen www.sverigeslucia.se 
These church services, while traditional and beautiful, might be a little problematic for foreign visitors as there is often a church sermon included in the celebration which is in Swedish. Another option, and a good one at that, is to visit Skansen, the open-air museum dedicated to Swedish culture and traditions. Here they will be celebrating Lucia for three days (Dec 13th to the 15th) with processions, historical reenactments and concerts. The main Lucia concert at Skansen will be on the Solliden stage at 6:30pm. Skansen also has a great Christmas market on Saturday and Sunday which you can combine with a Lucia concert during weekend. Skansen is located on the island of Djurgården and easy to get to from the Rival Hotel... with regular ferries (10 min trip) going from nearby Slussen.
AN christmas, music, religion, tradition, winter
Monday, December 2, 2013

Rival Christmas Carol



And now for something a little fun... Benny Andersson, the hotel owner and founding member of ABBA, has written a little Christmas carol that the hotel staff has recorded. While we are in no way professional singers, it is our way of wishing all of our guests (past, present and future!) a wonderful and safe holiday season! See if you can spot me...
Don't forget to join us on Facebook for more hotel information and fun facts! You can actually check availibility and book a room at the Rival Hotel directly on our Facebook page. What will they think of next?
AN christmas, music
Friday, October 25, 2013

Tolv Stockholm- New Entertainment Centre

Exterior of Tele2 Arena.
I was invited yesterday to the premiere of Tolv Stockholm, a collection of restaurants, bars and a nightclub. What makes it even more special is its location... under the newly built Tele2 Arena. Besides being the home arena to two local football/soccer teams (Djurgården & Hammarby), Tele2 will also host other sporting events and function as a concert venue (max capacity of 45,000). The roof of the arena can be closed, making it useable year-round. The arena is located next to the existing Globe Arena as well as the smaller Hovet, Annexet and Söder Stadion venues... creating a huge centre for sport, music and entertainment.
O'Leary's Sports Bar.
As I mentioned, Tolv Stockholm, is a collection of bars and restaurants which compliment the arenas as a place to have a meal or cocktail before or after a concert/match. It also stands alone as a place to visit. For example the sports bar O'Leary's is huge! Here you can eat & drink, watch sporting events as well as play some yourself... with bowling lanes, ping pong tables and (more sedate) racing car simulators in the bar. They even have a Stockholm themed mini-golf course!
Shark themed bowling lanes at O'Leary's.
Other restaurants include Enzo's (Italian), Printz (beer hall and home-made sausage restaurant), Davaj (deli) as well as an ecological salad bar and frozen yoghurt parlour. If you are attending a concert at the arena and feel inspired... try your hand at singing in their karaoke bar. The big news, for many, is the nightclub Solidaritet Arena. It will be able to take up to 1,500 persons with three dance floors and several bars. They will have big name DJ's as well as more intimate live music concerts. It wasn't open last night (premiere tomorrow) but we were given a tour of the locale.
Bar at Enzo's.
"Tolv" is the Swedish word for twelve and refers to the fact that it will be open 12 hours a day, 12 months a year. I am a little unsure of how this will work as it will be hard to fill restaurants on evenings when there aren't any matches or concerts. But I trust that they have that figured out. At any rate, well worth a visit! The Tele2 Arena and Twelve Stockholm are located in the suburb of Johanneshov, just south of Stockholm. It is easy to get there from the Rival Hotel... just take the subway (green line) from nearby Slussen going in the direction of Hagsätra. Exit the subway at the Globen station which is the fourth stop after Slussen.
Gold Bar at Solidaritet Arena Nightclub.
Solidaritet Nightclub... sans guests!

AN alcohol, music, restaurants, sport
Friday, August 23, 2013

Baltic Sea Festival and Free Ballet/Opera in the Park!

The Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Photo by Micke Wiberg
More culture comes to Stockholm this weekend and coming week. Firstly, we have the annual Baltic Sea Festival... an annual music festival featuring world class singers and musicians from the world of opera and symphony music. The main artists are the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Royal Opera Orchestra and Royal Opera Chorus. The festival kicks off tonight (Friday, August 23rd) with a performance of "Romeo & Juliet" by Berlioz and ends on Friday, August 30th with an evening of Stravinsky (The Rite of Spring, Petruschka and Firebird) performed by the Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra, conducted by Valery Gergiev. Plenty of great performances in the days inbetween as well... click here for the full program! The majority of the perfomances take place at Berwaldhallen, which is located on the outskirts of the Östermalm district (closest subway station is Karlaplan on the red line). There are two performances of Mozart's Magic Flute taking place at Drottningholm's Court Theatre (instead of Berwaldshallen)... these are sold out!
An earlier indoor performance of Giselle with Hampus Gauffin och Mayumi Yamaguchi
Photo by Carl Thorborg, Kungliga Operan
But... if you are thinking to yourself "I don't want to be inside on a beautiful summer evening", or perhaps you are on a budget, then we have some free perfomances taking place during the next two weekends under the stars. The Royal Opera will be performing in the Park Theatre (Parkteatern) in the park Vitabergsparken. On Friday & Saturday (Aug 23rd & 24th) the Royal Ballet will perform parts of the classic Giselle as well as the modern Time Themes. Performances start both evenings at 6pm and last 40 minutes. The following weekend (Aug 30th & 31st) it is time for opera... with pieces of classic opera performed by Royal Opera soloists accompanied by their Orchestra. Performances start both evenings at 6pm and last an hour and 10 minutes. Vitabergsparken is located on the island of Södermalm (home of the Rival Hotel) and the closest subway station is Skanstull on the green line.
AN culture, festival, music
Monday, August 5, 2013

Sweden Trivia



Did you know that Sweden is one of the world's largest exporter of... music? By some accounts, Sweden is third after the USA and UK. Of course, everyone has heard of ABBA whose name and music is synonymous with Sweden. This group is one of the world's most successful music acts and, though they've been disbanded since 1983, their music is still played/sold worldwide thanks to the recent success of the musical and film "Mamma Mia". But Swedish music is much more than ABBA... several groups had immense popularity on the international scene in the '80's and '90's like Roxette, Ace of Base, Europe and The Cardigans. These days there are many Swedish acts enjoying success in the pop, alternative music and indie-rock lists. Keep your eyes (and ears) open for Robyn, Kent, Agnes, The Hives, The Ark, Infinite Mass among others...
If it is not a Swedish artist singing, then chances are there is a Swede who has either written and/or produced the song. Two of the more famous "behind the scenes" Swedes are Max Martin and the late Denniz Pop, who have written some of the biggest hits for acts like The Backstreet Boys, Celine Dion, Kelly Clarkson, Pink, N'Sync and Britney Spears (Martin was responsible for her debut hit "Baby One More Time" among others). So there is a chance that you are listening to Swedish music as you read this!
AN music, trivia
Tuesday, May 21, 2013

ABBA the Museum!

ABBA the Mueum has been in the works for years (rumours, change in venue, touring exhibition, etc;) so the opening on May 7th was greatly anticipated. You might wonder why I waited a couple of weeks to visit and report on such a popular new addition to Stockholm. Well, I wanted to let the opening hysteria die down a bit... plus, I was given a "special" tour by museum curator Ingmarie Halling (a perk of being the concierge at the Rival Hotel) which made the wait worthwhile.
"Walk in, dance out" is the tag line for the new museum, dedicated to the Swedish pop super-group ABBA, and it doesn't disappoint! To be honest, I had some concerns beforehand that the museum would only be of interest to hardcore ABBA fans. But it really is a lot of fun and everyone will be able to enjoy it... whether you are 7 or 77, a fan or just have fond memories of their music. 
Waterloo success at Eurovision
Entrance to the museum is through the gift shop, which is reason enough to visit. ABBA memorbilia like t-shirts, tote bags, posters, pins, magnets, postcards and jewellery fill the shop and it was fun to browse. Be aware that the museum does not accept any cash... just credit or debit cards! The museum itself is located underground, two floors down to be exact. Visitors are first shuttled through a room where they are introduced to the band in the form of an IMAX type theatre and bombarded with images, music and sound bytes. I imagine that this type of entrance is designed to space visitors out... dividing them up into smaller groups. 
If this telephone rings... answer it for a surprise!
Exiting the theatre, visitors move on into a room dedicated to the pre-ABBA careers of the four members. It is a nice window on Swedish music culture of the 1960's when folk and rock bands would tour the country and perform in folkparks. Moving on in the museum are rooms dedicated to the band's formation and early success in Eurovision. Visitors then get to see bits and pieces of the lives of the group members during ABBA's heyday. The museum accomplishes this by recreating rooms which were important to the group... like the recording studio, Björn's summer cottage, Agneta's kitchen, their dressing room when they were on tour and more.
Replica of Björn's summer cottage, where they wrote many of the songs.
Finally... the crown jewel of the museum (for many): the stage clothes! In a circular room, the clothes have been placed in curved cases in concentric circles with the outer walls covered with thousands of album covers from all over the world. The cases are quite narrow which means that you get very close to the clothes and can enjoy the amazing detail work. Even the most blasé visitors will recognize the outfits from their music videos and concert performances... very iconic!
Stage clothes on display.
The museum is very high-tech and interactive. Visitors get the opportunity to record a song, dance in a 70' discotheque, scroll through Björn's father's scrapbook (a treasure trove), be part of an ABBA video, perform on stage with the group (present in the form of holograms) and much more! Very hands-on and fun for the children as well. 
Perform on stage with the hologram ABBAs.
After the band's heyday? The break-up of the band and their marriages follows of course, after which visitors exit through a corridor that gives a nod to the Mamma Mia musical. But that isn't the end of the experience! After leaving the museum, visitors enter the Swedish Music Hall of Fame. Swedish popular music is much, much more than ABBA and visitors get to take an interactive tour through the music catalogue of the past 80+ years... truly remarkable how such a small country (population wise) has left such a large imprint on world music.
Album covers from around the world.
The museum is located on the island of Djurgården and is very easy to get to from the Rival Hotel. There are regular ferries (Djurgårdsfärjan) which travel between Slussen, a 10 minute walk from the hotel, and Djurgården... and the trip takes just 9 minutes. Tickets for the museum cost 195 SEK (90 SEK for children 8 and younger) and can & should be purchased in advance on their website. While this may sound like a lot of money, remember that the museum is a very interactive, high-tech experience and you definitely get your money's worth. As I mentioned before, the museum accepts no cash. If you don't have a credit or debit card, the best option is to purchase the tickets at the central train station ticket counter... which accepts cash.

AN abba, Djurgården, museum, music
Thursday, April 18, 2013

Stockholm Culture Night (Kulturnatt)

kulturnattstockholm.se 
This Saturday, April 20th, is Culture Night (Kulturnatt) in Stockholm. This is the fourth annual Culture Night in Stockholm and it has become quite popular! So, what is a Culture Night? Well, it basically is an evening devoted to all things cultural... and FREE! Different cultural institutions in Stockholm are open during the evening (6pm to midnight), including museums, art galleries, libraries, churches, palaces, clubs, theatres, cinemas and more. To break it down in numbers, this festival will have around 350 events taking place at over 90 different locations throughout the city! And, as I mentioned earlier, admission is free... so this is a great opportunity to get cultural without damaging your wallet.
Photo by Robert Höglund, Kulturnatt Stockholm
So there is a lot to choose from... art & museum exhibitions, concerts, guided tours, performances, viewings and parties. Something for every taste! You can find a program to download in English on their website (click here) in which they have hand picked events where knowledge of the Swedish language isn't necessary. More detailed information in Swedish along with the full program can be found by clicking here.
Photo by Robert Höglund, Kulturnatt Stockholm
The official After Party, with free admission of course, will take place at the iconic Stockholm City Hall (Stadshuset)... where the Nobel dinner/party takes place every year. It starts at 10:30pm and goes on to 3am. The City Hall is located on Kungsholmen. If you are staying at the Rival Hotel, stop by and talk to me and I can explain in more detail about the different events.

AN art, culture, festival, history, Museums, music
Thursday, April 4, 2013

Festivals & Events in Stockholm- Spring Summer 2013

(EDIT: Be aware that this is the 2013 calendar. 2014 will be coming sometime in April) Not a cloud in sight for the past couple of weeks and just about all of the snow has melted away. This means it is time to look forward and see what the warmer months of the year have in store for us. This is a calendar of big events and festivals in Stockholm- things that tend to draw a lot of visitors to the city. Lots of big concerts this year thanks, in part, to the new Friends Arena. Hopefully this calendar will help you plan your trip! I will be constantly adding events as I find them, so check back from time to time. I will also be writing more in depth about many of these events as the dates approach. Of course, if you are staying at the Rival Hotel and need more detailed information of what is going on in Stockholm during your visit... contact me directly!

April

May
June
July (generally a slower month, event-wise, because many Swedes have vacation and leave the city.
August
  • July 30th to August 3rd- Stockholm Gay Pride Festival. Parade through the city on Saturday!
  • 2nd to 4th- Music & Arts Festival. Several artists, including... Prince!
  • 13th to 18th- The Stockholm Culture Festival. Free, free, free! Everything "cultural".
  • 13th to 17th- Ung08 (youth festival- also free!).
  • 15th- Leonard Cohen at Globe Arenas.
  • 17th- Midnattsloppet. Late evening 10K run around the island of Södermalm. Festival atmosphere!
  • 18th- DN outdoor concert with the Royal Philharmonic in Gärdet.
  • 22nd- DN Galan. International track & field meet at Stadion.
  • 23rd- The amusement park Gröna Lund turns 130 years old!
  • 23rd to 30th- Baltic Sea Music Festival.
  • 24th- Opening part for the new Tele2 Arena with Robyn, Kent and Lars Winnerbäck.
  • 24th & 25th- Stockholm Triathlon.
September
AN events, festivals, music, sport, tourist information
Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Stockholm News!


These days the news is filled with stories of nuclear tests in North Korea, an abdicating Pope, war, crime and famine. It can get quite depressing, so I thought I would report on some fun news... things to look forward to in Stockholm in the near future!
www.abbathemuseum.com 
New Museums: The big news in Stockholm is the upcoming opening (May 7th) of ABBA The Museum! There has been a lot of buzz about this both in Sweden and through international media. According to reports, the museum will be very interactive with state of the art technology... like a 360 degree movie screen, holograms and more surprises. The museum will be part of a larger museum called the Swedish Music Hall of Fame, dedicated to Swedish contributions to popular music. Tickets for May can already be purchased on their website (linked above) and summer tickets will be released soon. Keep checking on this blog for more updates.
There are plenty of great exhibitions planned at various museums this year, but one that caught my eye (I am a fashion/photography nerd) is the Jean-Paul Gaultier exhibition "From the Sidewalk to the Catwalk" coming to the Architecture Museum this summer (June 15th to September 22nd). Should be fantastic!
Ad for upcoming Gaultier exhibit..
New Restaurants: The Stockholm restaurant scene continues to evolve and grow... two new restaurants have recently opened which have garnered a lot of attention: Taverna Brillo and Nosh & Chow. I will visit them in the coming weeks and report back here! One event that I am really looking forward to is the "reopening" of the restaurant Oaxen Krog. For many years, Oaxen Krog was located in the southern Stockholm archipelago and consistently made the lists of best restaurants in the world. In September, 2011 they closed the restaurant and announced that they would be moving closer to Stockholm. Well, it is now official... in May of this year they will open the doors of their new restaurant on the island of Djurgården (not too far from the new ABBA Museum) in Stockholm. Besides Oaxen Krog, which will be fine-dining, they will also have a more casual sister restaurant called Oaxen Slip (same entrance). Can't wait!
Photo by Yanan Li, Stockholm Visitors Board

AN abba, Djurgården, fashion, museum, music, restaurants
Thursday, October 4, 2012

ABBA The Museum... Coming Soon!

Photo by Bengt H. Malmqvist @ Premium Rockshot
Well, finally the news all ABBA fans have been waiting for. In a news conference today, Björn Ulvaeus (one of the B's in ABBA) announced that ABBA The Museum will be opening in April/May of 2013. It will be part of the larger Swedish Music Hall of Fame, dedicated to Swedish pop-music history. Should be a real draw for visitors to Stockholm. Half of the exhibition will contain objects that have been part of ABBA World, the traveling exhibition that toured cities in 2009-2011. The other half will be never before seen/displayed items! All of it looking at the band's history, from conception to their solo ventures after breaking-up. Many parts of the museum will be interactive. The museum is currently under construction and will be located on the island of Djurgården, near the Gröna Lund amusement park. It will be easy to get there from the Rival Hotel (owned by the other B in ABBA)... just a 10 minute ferry ride from nearby Slussen! Sweden has a great history in pop-music. Besides ABBA, you have Roxette, Ace of Base, Robyn, Kent and many more international stars... so the Hall of Fame should be quite interesting as well. Can't wait! Another great reason to visit Stockholm next summer! In the meantime, the Stockholm City Museum organizes ABBA walking tours (though just for prebooked groups at this time).
AN Djurgården, museum, music
Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Stockholm Jazz Festival 2012

Photo by Yanan Li, Stockholm Visitors Board
For many years, the Stockholm Jazz Festival has been a popular outdoor event during the summertime... bringing thousands of jazz fans to the city. Many moons ago, I actually had the privilege of seeing Ella Fitzgerald perform! This year the powers-that-be have decided to move the festival to the Autumn as well as indoors (October 1st through 7th). Not sure if they just got tired of fighting the weather gods in June. Instead of having all of the performances in one venue (as before), they are split up between several venues... mainly Konserthuset (the Concert House), Kulturhuset (the Culture House) and the jazz club Fasching, though smaller performances will be happening at around 10 other venues throughout the city (map). All in all, there will be 60 concerts in 7 days. I truly hope this new set-up will be successful, though I have to admit I do find it a bit confusing and I miss being able to buy one festival pass for all of the concerts (now one has to buy individual tickets for each show). We'll see! At any rate, if you happen to love jazz and are visiting Stockholm this week... you are in luck. Tickets can be purchased online through their website (linked above) or, when available, at the different venues. Unfortunately, the English webpage isn't too informative. If you need further information and tickets, stop by Kulturhuset or the Tourist Information Center. If you are staying at the Rival Hotel, you can contact me for more information!
AN festival, music
Monday, September 3, 2012

Events & Festivals in Stockholm- Fall/Winter 2012

Photo by Jeppe Wikström, Stockholm Visitors Board
We've had an amazing summer here at the Rival Hotel (thanks to all of our guests!), but now it is time to look forward to the coming season. While there aren't as many events and festivals as there were in the summer months, there are still lots of fun things to see and do in Stockholm. Besides all of the events, there are plenty of art exhibitions going on in the museums and art galleries... check my blog post for the shows and dates. Here are some calendar highlights to keep in mind when planning your trip to Stockholm this Fall and early Winter:

September:
October
November
December
  • 5th- Placido Domingo concert at Globen.
  • 10th- Nobel Prize Ceremony and Banquet.
  • 13th- St Lucia celebrations at Skansen (and throughout the city).
  • 17th & 18th- Winter Solstice celebration (Fire and Ice) at Skansen.
There are also a myriad of fairs, conventions and exhibitions going on at the Stockholm International Fairgrounds (Stockholmsmässan) all season long. Check out their program schedule to see if they have something going on that you might find interesting... interior design, dog show, photography, health & fitness, boat show, winter sports, etc;
Photo by Jeppe Wikström, Stockholm Visitors Board


AN events, festivals, music, sport
Friday, August 10, 2012

Culture, Youth and Summer Cinema Festivals 2012

Gustav Adolf Torg stage, photo by Thomas Karlsson
Stockholm is just recovering from the Pride festival and already next week we have three festivals simultaneously! The largest of the three is The Culture Festival (Kulturfestivalen). This is one of my absolute favorite festivals in Stockholm... there is lots to see & do, good people-watching opportunities and (most importantly) it is 99% free-of-charge! The festival runs from the 14th to 19th of August and its location is concentrated in the downtown area. Most events are to be found in three squares: Gustav Adolfs Torg (in front of the Royal Opera), Brunkebergstorg and Sergels Torg. All three squares are very close to each other and easy to walk between. There are lots of fun events to choose from... Brazilian Samba Party, circus artists, African dance show, opera gala, concerts and other live performances. One highlight should be the concert on Thursday evening with Ola Salo and the Radio Symphony at Gustav Adolfs Torg. Click here for a full program of events. If you are traveling with children then make sure to visit Brunkebergstorg during the day for their Maxat för Mini... lots of activities for children!
Ola Salo, photo by Emma Svensson
There are two other smaller festivals going on at the same time in Stockholm. Next door to the Culture Festival you have Ung08, a youth festival, taking place in Kungsträdgården. It is basically a free music festival geared for youths age 15 to 19. The second festival (and another personal favorite) is the outdoor Summer Cinema Festival (Sommarbio). Every evening at 8:30pm, between the 15th and 19th of August, they will be showing a classic movie in the great outdoors at the park Rålambshovsparken. The theme this year is monster movies and they have some great ones lined up... from Jaws to Fellowship of the Ring. Click here for the schedule, but be aware that Pan's Labyrinth is in Spanish with Swedish subtitles and Let the Right One In is in Swedish with no subtitles. Otherwise the others are in English with Swedish subtitles. Bring a picnic basket, bottle of wine and a blanket and enjoy some great cinema (free admission).
If you are staying at the Rival Hotel, stop by and talk to me to get more information about these festivals!

AN culture, festival, movies, music
Friday, July 20, 2012

Upcoming Festivals & Events

Photo by Yanan Li, Stockholm Visitors Board
I have posted about all of the festivals and events this summer, but I thought I would give a little reminder for the big events in the upcoming weeks.

  • Stockholm Gay Pride (July 30th to August 4th)- very popular annual festival. Pride Park is located in the park Tantolunden. Here there will be performances from both Swedish and international artists, as well as restaurants and bars. Lots of parties at different venues all week long! The Pride parade is on Saturday afternoon and is a big event in Stockholm with thousands coming out to watch.
  • Stockholm Music & Arts Festival (August 3rd to 5th)- new festival on the island of Skeppsholmen. A great line-up of artists to perform: Marianne Faithful, Laleh, Patti Smith, Emmylou Harris, Björk among others. Should be interesting!
  • Royal Philharmonic (August 12th)- free outdoor concert in Gärdet, starts at 2pm. Come early to get a good seat (see picture below).
  • Culture Festival (August 14th to 19th)- culture, art, music, live performances throughout the city. Best of all? Free entrance to 99% of the events! Always popular...
So... lots of fun events coming up in the calendar! I will write about some of these, with more information, as we get closer to the actual dates.
(Royal Philharmonic) Photo by Jeppe Wikström, Stockholm Visitors Board

AN culture, festivals, gay, music
Friday, June 8, 2012

Stockholm Early Music Festival

Photo: Manuel Fischer
Looking for something cultural to do this weekend? The Stockholm Early Music Festival is in full swing! This festival is dedicated to music from the past... medieval, baroque and renaissance music to be more precise. It features both Swedish and international artists, performing in some of Stockholm's most beautiful churches like the Stockholm Cathedral (Storkyrkan), Finnish Church (Finska Kyrkan) and German Church (Tyska Krykan). They have a cute motto which is "it's never too late for early music" and it is nice that they are keeping this cultural legacy alive every year. The festival will go on all weekend (June 6th through 10th) and you can view the program as well as purchase tickets by clicking here.
AN festival, Gamla Stan, music
Monday, April 30, 2012

SkyView at Globen

SkyView
I did it! I'm not the best person when it comes to heights and enclosed spaces, so I've been a little leery about trying one of Stockholm's newest attractions... SkyView. Fortunately, I was given the opportunity during an educational seminar led by the Stockholm Visitors Board last week. SkyView is a specially designed glass gondola that takes you 130 meters up to the top of the Ericsson Globe Arena.
Going up...
Called Globen for short (the globe), it is the largest indoor arena in Stockholm with a capacity of up to 16,000 people and is the venue for most large concerts (Lady Gaga, Paul Simon, Tom Petty this summer) and indoor sporting events (ice hockey world championships this May) in Stockholm. The building itself is quite unusual & spectacular. Shaped like a large white ball (some say it looks like a golf ball), it is the largest spherical building in the world and a famous part of the Stockholm skyline.
and up...
SkyView is a funicular railway on the outside of the building with two gondolas that take up to 16 passengers at a time to the top of the arena. At the top of Globen, visitors have an unobstructed 360 degree view of the southern part of Stockholm. Each ride takes 20 minutes and the gondolas depart 6 times an hour. Tickets cost 130 SEK (100 for children and seniors) and includes a 10 minute information video about Globen and SkyView). Tickets can be purchased there or on their website. At the base you have a nice café and gift shop (great Swedish ice hockey souvenirs). To be honest, while it is an amazing view... it is not an amazing view of Stockholm city. Globen is located south of the central part of the city, so the view is mainly of the southern suburbs. I definitely recommend SkyView for the experience itself. It's not every day you ride in a glass ball on the outside of a giant white globe! But if it is views of downtown Stockholm that you are interested in, then I recommend Kaknästornet, Monteliusvägen, Fjällgatan, Gondolen or Skrapan. Click here for my tips regarding this. To get to Globen/SkyView from the Rival Hotel, take the subway (green line) from Slussen south, in the direction Hagsätra, for four stations.
Photo by Sören Andersson, SVB (the other 3 by me!)


AN music, sport, view
Saturday, October 8, 2011

Those Creative Swedes!

Photo: Nicho Södling, Stockholm Visitors' Board
The Martin Prosperity Institute recently released its annual Global Creativity Index, a ranking of 82 countries based on creativity (as a way of showing economic competitiveness). And... Sweden ranks as #1. Several factors are used in compiling the GPI: number of patents per capita, openess and tolerance as well as the number of people employed in creative fields.
Even though the population of Sweden is only about 9.5 million, the country is an international powerhouse in the fields of design, fashion, music, literature and the performing arts. Swedes' creativity is quite apparent if you keep your eyes and ears open while wandering the streets of Stockholm.
And you don't have to travel to Sweden to enjoy Swedish creativity. I can guarantee that in the past few days you've either worn Swedish fashion (Acne, H&M, Whyred, Fillipa K), used/admired Swedish design (Ikea, Asplund, Kosta Boda), listened to a Swedish singer/act (ABBA, Swedish House Mafia, Robyn) or Swedish produced music (Lady Gaga, Britney Spears, Pink), read something by a Swedish author (Stieg Larsson, Henning Mankell, Tomas Tranströmer), seen a movie or TV show with a Swedish actor (Malin Åkerman, Stellan & Alexander Skarsgård) or used technology invented by a Swede (Spotify, Skype)!
It's all part of our plan for world domination...
AN design, music, shopping, trivia
Thursday, August 11, 2011

Culture Festival




kulturfestivalen.stockholm.se/
We are gearing up for the next big festival in the city... this coming week, August 16th-21st)  we have the Culture Festival (Kulturfestivalen) taking place in Stockholm. Culture of all sorts take to the streets and squares of central Stockholm and 99% is free of charge! There will be 500 shows performed by 250 artists during this week and there will be something for everyone: music, theater, film, literature, dance, performance art, etc; When it comes to music you can enjoy everything from jazz to rock to opera with a little Motown thrown in for good measure. While many cultures, like Turkish, African and Latin, will be represented... this year's theme is Norway, which has taken on special significance since the terrible terror attacks in Norway a couple of weeks ago. Besides culture, there will also be food and drink tents in the festival area.



Photo: Thomas Karlsson
The festival will be held in three centrally located squares and their side streets: Gustav Adolfs Torg, Sergels Torg and Brunkebergs Torg as well as Kulturhuset. You can access the program (with times) for each venue on their website by clicking here. If you are traveling with small children, then Brunkeberg Torg during the daytime is the place to take them... called Maxed Out for the Small Ones, this mini children's festival will be filled with activities where children can play, dance, sing and listen to stories.



Photo: Karin Nilsson
To get to the festival area from the Rival Hotel... it's just a 20-25 minute walk through the Old Town or else three subway stops (red line north to T-Centralen, exit Sergels Torg).
AN culture, festival, music
Friday, June 17, 2011

Stockholm Jazz Festival

I'm back from my vacation... just in time for the Stockholm Jazz Festival, which starts today (Friday June 17th) and runs through the whole weekend. The big news this year is the change of venue... it will be at the Solliden and Galejan stages in the Skansen park. The festival has changed a bit through the years from a pure jazz festival to a mix of jazz, R&B, soul and blues with both Swedish and international artists. The main headliners this year are LaGaylia Frasier, David Sanborn Trio, Bobby Womack and Angie Stone. Click here for a complete list of artists and scheduled times. You can either buy a one day pass (595 SEK) or a three day pass (840 SEK). Tickets can be purchased at the door or on the Tickster website. Now let's just hope for some good weather!
Skansen is located on the island of Djurgården and is easy to get to from the Rival Hotel. Just take the Djurgård Ferry from Slussen... the trip just takes 8 minutes and then it is a short 5 minute walk to Skansen.
Click here for more festivals and events this summer!
AN festival, music, Skansen
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