Today was our final day:( We went on an e-bike excursion to Drottningholm Palace. It was a long ride across many windy bridges but we made it eventually. The e-bikes worked the same way as our bikes in Copenhagen except there are much fewer places to drop them and they have to be charged. 

The palace was really beautiful and we also walked to the Chinese Pavilion (a gift the king gave to his daughter for her birthday). We e-biked back towards Stockholm. We tried to drop them at a closer location but ended up on a nature trail #fail 

Next, we went to an area of Stockholm called Sofo (south of Folkungagatan). SoFo is known for its fun shops. We walked around for a little while and tried to catch some stores before they closed.

We went back to the hotel for a pre-dinner drink at the hotel’s famous lounge. For dinner we went to a place called Portal and ate pork schnitzel and fried chicken with a lot of delicious sides. 

Now we are at the airport ready to head home. Thanks for following along on the trip! See you in the garden state

Today was a rainy day in Stockholm but miraculously the rain held off long enough for us to go see the changing of the guard. It was very crowded but fun to watch and a bigger event than what we saw in Copenhagen. 

Since it started to rain, we went to the ABBA museum. It was a big hit! The museum was very colorful and interactive. See below for some pictures of me and Charlotte joining the band. 

After the ABBA museum we went to another famous museum here called the Vasa Museum. The Vasa is a museum showcasing a huge ship that drowned in 1628. 95% of it is still original. 

For our final museum of the day, we went to the Nobel Prize museum. Alfred Nobel lived in Stockholm and he founded the Nobel Prize. The Nobel prizes are awarded in Stockholm every year. 

This morning we took a bike tour of Stockholm. We biked 9 miles and got to see a lot of different areas and had a good tour guide. Our tour stopped for a snack at a really nice market/garden. 

After the bike tour we took a taxi to Vaxholm, one of the 30,000 islands off the coast of Sweden in the archipelago. We took a walk and ended up at a very busy lunch spot. It was a huge cafe on the water with food and desserts galore. 

We took a ferry back to Stockholm through the archipelago. We did a little shopping in an area close to where the ferry dropped us. 

For dinner we had the most delicious Italian. It was insane. For our appetizers we got salami and burrata and then we had the most amazing pasta. 1000/10

We got up early today to get on our ferry towards Stockholm. The ferry was just like the way there except we were all much more exhausted. We docked and took a bus and the metro to the center of Stockholm. We checked into our hotel and got delicious salads at a place called Holy Greens. 

Next we took a boat tour through Stockholm. The boat was a little rough because of bigger boats in the water:(

After our boat tour we walked around the old town and then mommy and I went to the opera house for a summer concert. It was a violin and piano concert which was nice but unfortunately it was extremely hot. 

After the opera we had a lowkey dinner near our hotel. Comment your favorite part of the trip so far. 

For our second day on the island of Gotland we rented a car so we could venture out a bit. Via a 5 minute car ferry, we drove to another island right off of Gotland called Faro. Our first stop at Faro were these natural rock formations called rauks.

Next we went to a super yummy bakery and got some lunch. Then we explored some of the beaches on the island. The water was a bit chilly but now I can say I’ve swam in the Baltic Sea!

Back on the island of Gotland we went to a swimming area called the blue lagoon. It was a natural pool formed by large rocks. 

For dinner we went to a farm called Lilla Bjers. It was a very special meal. We had a tasting menu and each course was made with ingredients from their farm. Highlights included these tiny potato tacos, tomato salad, and a delicious bowl of raspberries with strawberry crisps. The restaurant itself was beautiful and overall it was an amazing experience. You can read more about the farm/restaurant: https://www.lillabjers.se

Greetings! Today (Aug 1) we left our hotel in Oskarshamn and got on our three hour ferry to Visby, Gotland (a Swedish Island). Our hotel was not the best last night but we did like the name. 

We checked into our hotel in Visby and started exploring the city. We went on a walking tour with an extremely nice woman who lives here. She calls Visby the city of ruins and roses. We saw a lot of both! Visby is enclosed by a medieval wall and much of the city is old buildings. 

Today we took a four hour train to Kalmar Sweden. We spent the afternoon exploring the town. We took out kayaks and paddled in the canals and around a castle.

After breakfast today we headed to the Danish Opera house to go on a tour. Unfortunately we bought the wrong tickets and had to wait an hour there for the tour to begin but once it started it was worth it. The builders of the opera house spared no expense! We went into the main theater as well as some of the rehearsal rooms and backstage. 

After the opera house we took the metro and the bus (first we got on in the wrong direction) to a town outside Copenhagen called Dragor. Dragor is a charming town on the water. We got some food and walked around. It was very vibrant, full of cobblestone streets and boats in the harbor. 

We took the bus and metro ride back to our neighborhood of Copenhagen. Then we revisited some of the beautiful colorful streets and we climbed up the Round Tower and got a good view of the whole city.

We returned to our hotel and set out for dinner at a restaurant by the water. Charlotte and I ate a delicious fried pork chop for two. We are headed off to Sweden tomorrow! 

The weather today was 10/10. We woke up and had another amazing hotel breakfast and headed out for a bike tour. Our tour guide’s name was Mike and he was quite the character. The bike rules of the roads are taken very seriously here so it’s hard to keep up with the locals on bikes, but we are getting better! We stopped at a lot of beautiful places and landmarks including the famous Little Mermaid statue and we also got to watch the changing of the guard in front of the queen’s palace. 

After the tour, we returned back to a coffee shop we had liked to get some iced coffee. After some regrouping back at the hotel and failing to buy metro tickets, we took a ferry bus to a food market on the water called Reffen. It was full of people relaxing by the water and there was any food you could imagine there. We got some Thai street food:) After we ate we walked around the area and got on the ferry bus back to the neighborhood where our hotel is. There was also a lot of walking involved as well as waiting for the ferry bus. 

For dinner, we had Pakistanian at a restaurant close to our hotel. It was delicious! Tomorrow we have plans to visit the Opera house. 

Our day started with a complimentary breakfast at our hotel. It was insanely good and we are looking forward to our next three breakfasts here. They have an iPad where you can pick your coffee drink and it comes out of a facet like magic. 

Our first activity was a morning walking tour. We walked around many neighborhoods and stopped for Danish pastries and coffee. On our way back from the tour we stopped at some cute Danish shops.

For a light lunch we went to a food market and tried Denmark’s famous Smorrebrod (open-faced sandwiches). 

Our next stop was Tivoli, an old amusement park and garden. It was extremely crowded and the ride lines were long but it’s a must see in Copenhagen. We got a great thrill from standing under the giant rollercoaster and seeing people turned upside down. 

To get to Tivoli we rode bikes. We used bikes from a company called Donkey Republic. To use them you use an app and it tells you where the closest bikes are (they are everywhere). Each bike has its own name and you unlock the bike with Bluetooth from your phone. Then, you can return the bike anywhere and end the rental on the app. Like Citi Bikes, but smarter because you can dump them anywhere. 

After Tivoli, we biked to the autonomous zone in Copenhagen. It came highly recommended, but ended up being kind of a bust and full of drug dealers😃. Elyse says that’s how they keep the rest of the city so safe! There were no photos allowed in case you were working for the government…

Then, we walked back to our hotel and got ready for dinner. We had a delicious meal at a restaurant called Krebsegaarden. We got to create our own tasting menu. Our waiter told us that Nancy Pelosi and other senators had eaten there but more importantly that Bill Nye had. See you tomorrow!

Greetings from Copenhagen! When we walked onto our plane seeing a 6-year-old in first class enjoying an orange juice in a champagne glass, we soon learned we would not have the same fate. Minus our extremely uncomfortable seats, our 7.5 hr flight was mostly smooth and we arrived in Copenhagen at 11am. The Copenhagen airport was extremely efficient and we were soon on the metro on the way to our hotel, Skt Petri. We checked in and napped for a few hours. 

We then set out for a boat tour on the canals. Unfortunately, it was pretty cold and overcast:( Our guide was very nice. She’s a medical student at the University of Copenhagen! We were on the boat with a family who drove here from Germany. 

After the boat tour we went for an early dinner. We ate at a traditional Danish restaurant and ordered Wienerschnitzel, pork, and fish cakes. We walked back to our hotel and went to bed early. 

So far, we are loving the Copenhagen culture. The city is beautiful and lowkey. Very walkable and bike-friendly. Also lots of tall Danes. Get excited for day 2 (sunnier photos coming)! 

We are off on a red eye to Copenhagen with four carry-ons that might not be carried on… Wish us luck and we will see you tomorrow in Copenhagen!