Sweden: stuck in the 1670s architecturally, but what a treat

I was finally going to Europe, what a delight! Sweden to be specific. I did so many internet searches my algorithm started flooding my phone with all things Sweden. I was eager to learn more about it, albeit without spoiling it for myself by being my own “spoiler alert”.

It was a wonderful clear, warm Joburg Saturday evening when we finally set off after meeting up in the business lounge with travel colleagues at OR Tambo.

I've done a bit of international travel before but mainly via the Middle East. The airline we were on this time was somewhat underwhelming, compared to the Middle Eastern carriers I've experienced — it was less glamorous, less spacious and just lacked that bit of spark that says “social media content worthy”. Though we travelled in business class, there were very few differences from sitting in economy. It was all very functional and outdated — or as the youth currently put it, demure and mindful but not glamorous or “cutesie” in any way.

The airport in Frankfurt, Germany, though big, echoed the Gautrain station infrastructure. I know, I'm judging — and to be fair, airports are designed for function more than “prettiness”. One thing about the Germans though, they are highly efficient, so we can forgive them for not having a buzzing, sexy-looking airport like Cape Town International.

I digress. When we finally arrived in Stockholm, I was fascinated by the baroque and neoclassical architectural style that dominated the landscape, though there were a few modern buildings. You could tell from the style preference of design that there is history here and it was deeply woven into the very fabric of this society and they are proud to maintain it. It is awe-inspiring.

The local railway system seemed functional and efficient by South African standards — and I'm not just referring to the Gautrain (you Joburgers and Pretorians, rolling your eyes, I see you). This was next-world efficiency if we compare it to our entire rail infrastructure and operations.

As for road usage, there was hardly any traffic and people seemed to walk everywhere. This made me both intrigued and nervous because I knew what was coming next: we would have to walk about quite a bit here. There were so many people walking freely everywhere that it made me anxious. I am a South African, after all, and my freedom of movement has been curtailed by crime back home.

Not long after checking into the hotel, my travel companions and I were set to take a walk around the capital city.

We took pictures in the streets and even asked strangers to snap away at us. Almost immediately I started to relax, sensing the comfort and safety of my surroundings. I could not help but feel jealous — because people live like this, walk everywhere and just be. How freeing and enabling it must be to feel this safe every day in your country. I shed a small tear for my sunny, warm South Africa, where we live in fear of criminals daily and keep ourselves locked in to avoid getting hurt. I went back to immersing myself in this new environment of peace and freedom.

As for street fashion, the people we encountered were clad in comfortable shoes: sneakers. I hardly saw heels. Walking was the culture. We walked for almost an hour to find a restaurant in the city centre as most establishments were closed because it was a Sunday.

To my pleasant surprise, no one paid any negative attention to this enthusiastic group. This felt foreign but we very quickly let our guard down and enjoyed the local cuisine and banter

As a person who is conscious of racial tensions in public spaces that are dominated by white people back home (Yes, we have all read those dreadful stories and had those cringy experiences), I was expecting to feel some kind of discomfort in the restaurants, especially because our group was predominantly black and foreign — which hasn’t worked out too well for my people in some establishments in Cape Town, Mbombela and Kosi Bay (I could go on). I was justifiably nervous about what sort of reception and reactions we would receive.

To my pleasant surprise, no-one paid any negative attention to this enthusiastic group. This felt foreign but we very quickly let our guard down and enjoyed the local cuisine and banter. They made us feel welcome and comfortable to just be ourselves — no-one cared.

On Monday our tour guide Patrik Hildingsson met us at reception and said we would be taking a tour on foot. In my mind I was thinking, 'Drat! I knew I jinxed myself when I started thinking walking around would be cool.' But I'm a fighter like the Bokke, so my unfit self was convinced youth would carry me on this journey — and we went for it. He walked so fast that we often struggled to keep up.

We went through the train station, all the way to the national street of Sweden, Gamla Stan in the old town of Stockholm.

The phenomenal Parliament House was breathtaking. Across from it is the City Hall and some shopping outlets. When I asked our guide why people walked so much and whether they were not concerned about crime, he said crime was not an issue but that people enjoyed the autumn as winter was dark.

“People walk a lot. The public transport also works very well. The weather also allows it. We stay inside for six months and don’t come out much. When the sun is up, we are all out — it’s a happy season,” Hildingsson said.

When I asked why the country seemed to be content with the Neo-Renaissance architectural style, he said it formed an integral part of their history. “We were a very strong nation and won wars and that pride lives on. The Swedes are very humble and down to earth. If you have a sports car, you don’t drive it to work because you don’t want people to know you have money.”

We then walked past the refurbished Royal Palace, nestled on the island of Stadsholmen. Historically, when ships came to this harbour they could not go past the island, so they offloaded their goods and physically took them to the other side. This created a market. It was an economic hub, people traded here, and they then started to inhabit this area. They started building the royal castle in the 11th century. The first one was a traditional medieval castle, but a kitchen fire broke out and unfortunately everything was destroyed. They rebuilt it and drew inspiration from the French.

This made me think of the series Vikings, where one of the main characters Rollo, a Viking, ends up as a king in France by marriage. I suppose these cultures continue to borrow from each other today, through fictional depictions in such a series of what the past could've been like.

“Some ships were barred from coming into the harbour for fear of invasion, and so to protect the place from being infiltrated they built timber logs in the water to create a fence. If you met someone who came here around the 1630s-1670s, they would recognise everything [today]. The old town kind of stopped developing around 1670. Architecturally it froze in the 1670s,” our well-informed guide continued.

The idea was that if the enemy made it to the harbour, it would be too late to protect the city. Stockholm was built with a protectionist perspective. The name Stockholm comes from the Swedish word for log (stock) and a small island (holm). King Gustav Vasa, considered the founder of modern Sweden, through this strategy sank a thousand ships that were prohibited from reaching the shores of Stockholm.

“All the streets have been the same since 1240, all the flats have been there all along. Some were refurbished. They were wood houses, then bricks were used after their invention. This is the second most expensive area in Stockholm, but you get nothing for the money. The floors might not be very [flat] or modern, they need a lot of maintenance. But people are fond of historical and cultural areas.

“Until the 1950s this was a rundown area and no-one wanted to live in the old town. It became overcrowded, and living here was a disaster.

“Between 1819 and 1930 we had 10 proposed city plans, and everyone had one plan: bulldoze it. One plan was approved by the politicians. People started to react and they were upset when they started to tear down one of the buildings, where mostly poor people lived.

On estimate, for every square metre one would pay €11,000 (R216,450), he said. A two-room apartment would cost around €450,000 (R8.9m).

This is in the same street where in the late 60s and early 70s, two couples created a band and started creating music the world still loves. The pop group Abba's hits include Mamma Mia, Dancing Queen and Lay All Your Love On Me.

Interestingly, across the street is the renowned Golden Peace restaurant owned by the Swedish Academy, the organisation responsible for selecting Nobel prize winners for literature. The restaurant has been around for almost 300 years.

After dinner we were rather keen to rush back to the hotel and rest, but our guide had one more historical item to dish out: we stood in the street where 92 Swedish nobles were beheaded by a Danish King Christian II over two days in 1520 — the Stockholm Bloodbath.

“He wanted to celebrate all things Swedish and he invited the 100 noblest people to the castle for a three-day party. After they were extremely drunk after 24 hours, he closed the doors and brought them one by one and beheaded them. He wanted to get rid of the powers to gain control. Ninety-two people were killed in two days,” Hildingsson said.

“On the second day there was heavy rain and the blood was swept through the passage. It stopped and became a pool of blood — hence the Stockholm Bloodbath.”

The charming city of Stockholm is rooted in history and culture, something I appreciated a great deal.

Our final destination was the city of Gothenburg. Unlike Stockholm, however, this is a modern city and nothing about it seemed too far from the Sandton and Rosebank streets I hail from, so in a way it was somewhat underwhelming as I didn't get to experience anything very different compared to home — or many other modern, cosmopolitan cities in the world.