Go Find It

Hi,

Martin here and after reading this blog for a while I was happy to be asked to send a postcard from Stockholm. First a short background: I spent a couple of years in the start-up environment in London where I got really fascinated by all the cool street-art around Brick Lane. I enjoyed strolling around taking pics of it and back in Stockholm, I’ve continued to explore the streets here. I am definitely not a member of the “scene” - just an aficionado with an iPhone-camera, but as far as I know, there is no iconic Banksy or SpaceInvader around here (most locals would probably be too busy noticing the street art). With that being said, there are lots of hidden gems out there if you keep an open eye. Here are some of my findings:

Stockholm is composed by a number of islands and around Mosebacke on “Söder“, you will always find some new stuff. Above is a beautiful mosaic.

This roe deer has been all over town for years now so it deserves a mentioning

Every day, I pass through the tunnel between Sveavägen and Birger Jarlsgatan and smile when I see this mosaic by the entrance. This is how I like street art – subtle and with some idea and craftsmanship behind it

We’ve all seen knitting graffiti, but who on earth is the person behind these letter crackers that can be seen sometimes – here the word “IN”, an early morning at the entrance of the tube. (I did not see “OUT” by the exit he he)

Yes, besides the streets with its walls, the tube is the place for the art. Someone in Stockholm must be really tired of boring public waste bins and hence has a personal mission to decorate them. This one of several was spotted by the tube stop “Gamla Stan”. Too bad they are removed just as quickly…

The Public Library is a beautiful building and a must see from tourists and architect students, but if you look close by the entrance, you’ll see how two dots on the right spot might spice things up.

Well, I could continue for much longer, but would rather get comments on things I’ve missed here in Stockholm. Do YOU have any favorite Stockholm street art – please comment with a Flickr link. If you want to read more from me on mostly Internet related topics, – check out my personal blog (in Swedish).

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jen8601 / CC BY 2.0

When a friend of mine studied Art history in Lund I became involved in “Lundakarnevalen” - one of the largest student festivals in Sweden, always highly anticipated since it only happens every fourth year. At the beginning I only joined because the whole city was talking about it but later that decision became one of the best I had ever made. Why? Because it was mind-blowing.

Lund is a small and cosy student town in south of Sweden, very rich on student life. Here students definitely are the most visible population occupying every street corner and always organizing countless of social activities to get to know each other better. The festival is all that, only funnier. Already a year ahead students start planning the many categories where everyone can take part like for example the circus, cabaret, theatre and “train” (a long parade with trucks decorated in crazy imaginative ways with students dancing on each dressed up in a matching costume). So this means that a year ahead already students start knitting, painting and fixing, all in order to make the funniest, coolest and most original festival ever!

As she was part of a student theatre working with lights, food and painting as well as the large party committee which organized parties for over 2000 people I got involved in that too. And I have to tell you, this is something incredible to be part of. Most of all because you get to meet so many different people, all working together to make the festival worth remembering. There is this sort of feeling of belonging to something bigger than you. And I learned to be creative while having a good time with all kinds of personalities around me.

When the lights went out, everyone continued the fiesta but this time in a more intimate setting away from the buzzing crowd, playing guitar, singing and talking about how the day had been. And no one ever wanted it to end. Fortunately there would be another festival in four years.

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Pixelthing / CC BY-SA 2.0

As you probably know I was in Sweden for my Holidays a couple of weeks ago. One of my favourite things to do when there is to “fika”. That basically means hanging out in a cafe with one or several friends for ages, having a coffee or tea and drinking it insanely slowly whilst nibbling on something sweet. I love that, I love “fika” and I’m a bit sad that this concept doesn’t seem to exist here in the UK the same way it does in Sweden. Naturally I spent my holidays doing “fika” in different cafes and at different friend’s houses.

In Stockholm I have a few favourite cafés that I got to regularly. There’s thousands of cafés in each and every corner of Stockholm and I’ve tried quite a few but for different reasons I have some regulars.

One of them is Café tubby which I already written a post about, then there’s Bönor och Bakat (’Beans and Baked’) which has the best tasting blueberry pie a girl (or a guy) can wish for. It’s also very cheap for being a café in Stockholm. The atmosphere is okay and on the walls you can find graffiti inspired art work for sale. You can see a lot of young people here and if you’re lucky you can catch the sofa to hang out on.

One of my oldest and favourite cafés is Choklad koppen (’Cup of chocolate’). It’s a gay friendly cafe in beautiful Old town which is the oldest part of Stockholm. It’s quite small so it’s best to go there when it’s warm enough to sit on their terrace. Luckily you can borrow a blanket from them so you can sit outside for quite a long time during the year. I love the historic view, the great chocolate cake and their yummy sandwiches. Also, the staff are usually really sweet.

My newest addition is Cafe Mineur which is hidden in a cellar in Old town (as the previous one). What I like the most about this place is the interior which is odd bits and bobs from different decades. They match huge sofas with 50’s armchairs and narrow sewing tables. Nothing is the same, but it matches just perfect. It looks like a vintage furniture store…

Do you know of any good coffee places around London, please let me know and I’ll teach all my English friends how to do “fika”

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