ScandinaviaThree Capitalsby Robert Painter My first visits to Stockholm, Oslo and Copenhagen were hectic one day excursions taken from a cruise ship on the way to Russia. They were days filled with wonderful sights, but they made me thirsty for an opportunity to really discover these three beautiful cities.
 This time I flew directly into Stockholm on SAS Scandinavian Airlines. What a beautiful city! It’s perfect for walkers like me. There is plenty to see and I’d recommend picking up a Stockholm Card for your visit. It comes with a nice little pocket guide that tells you all the things that are included in the price of the card and then tells you how to get there. That means you should start your Stockholm visit at the Stockholm Tourist Centre. With the card you’ll have directions to all the attractions and a means to get there – it includes an unlimited number of free tips on Stockholm Transport. You can even take the royal Canal Tour and the Historical Canal Tour with the card. Of course, you’ll want to cruise about town upstairs on an open top double decker bus tour (added discount fee.)
 There are many museums to visit and one of the most interesting is the Vasamuseet. Can you imagine one of the major tourist attractions in this major Scandinavian city is based on one of the most colossal failures in Stockholm’s history? This world famous museum houses the warship Vasa, which sank on its maiden voyage in August 1628 and never fired a single shot at the enemy. The cold, brakish waters preserved it in outstanding condition and it was raised in 1961. It is the only 17th century warship in the world and is certainly worth the visit.
 Gamla Stan ( the old town) will provide you with many wonderful opportunities on your walk. The Royal Palace and the Changing of the Guards shouldn’t be missed and you’ll definitely want to visit the Nobelmuseet with its most interesting collection of information and memorabilia surrounding the Nobel Prize.
 To gain a true picture of Sweden in earlier days you can’t do better than a visit to Skansen. The collection of old buildings demonstrates traditional building techniques and the living history exhibits, handicrafts and gardens will give you an idea of life in the 1800’s. And, the zoo at Skansen is remarkable in its range of inhabitants. Seals, otter, elk, brown bears, fox, polecats, lynx, wild boars, wolverine, wolves and others are well exhibited and easy to see. There also some rare breeds of Swedish animals, like the Skane cow the Gotland sheep, the Linderod pig, the Swedish yellow duck and the Skane goose. Skansen is deceiving. You may think you get through it in an hour, but I’d plan a half-day or more if you have the time.
Before you leave Stockholm you must indulge in one of their greatest treasures – the Smorgasbord. For this I would suggest the Veranda at the Grand Hotel. Be sure and have a small glass of Aquavit with your meal. You only live once! On To Oslo It’s only about an hour on SAS to Oslo so you might want to time it to arrive in the morning for a full day of sightseeing. You can get an Oslo pass that will provide you admission to museums and sights, travel on public transportation and discounts to lots of sightseeing ours, amusement parks, restaurants and souvenir shops.
 High on my list of things to do in Oslo include a visit to the Kon-Tiki Museet where you’ll find the actual rafts that Thor Heyerdahl built and used to sail across the open seas. Heyerdahl proved the early reed and balsa rafts were seaworthy enough for men to explore areas never before thought possible.
 The Vigeland Sculpture Park is like nothing else you have ever seen. Allow a couple of hours to walk through the park and view the hundreds of sculptures. Can you figure out what has the Angry Boy so upset? If you have a little extra time you may want to visit the Vigeland Museet.
 If you like cycling, you can pick up a free cycling map of Oslo at tourist info centers. You can also get a City Cycle Scheme Daycard there for bike access at the 75 bike stands around town.
 The most spectacular building in Oslo is the new Opera. It begins in the fjord and you can walk up the side of the building and stroll about the roof if you like. At a cost of about 500 million Euros it is now one of the crown jewels of Scandinavia. Go inside, too, and take a tour. If you’re lucky and visit Oslo at the right time, you may get to catch a performance.
While you were on the roof, you probably noticed the famous Holmenkollen Ski Jump. One of the most visited sites in Scandinavia; it is possible to participate in a virtual jump in a facility at the base of Holmenkollen.  If you are a Viking fan the Viking Ships Museum will get you up close to a couple of well preserved Viking ships that were discovered in what appeared to be burial mounds. And, if you want to eat like a Norwegian, be sure and take an Oslo fjord boat trip and enjoy a shrimp buffet. The views are terrific and you can be dropped off at the Kon-Tiki and Viking Museets at the end of the cruise.
If you enjoyed the Nobel museum in Stockholm you’ll have a great time at the Nobel Peace Center here in Oslo. The world’s only digital wallpaper and RFID technology will grab your attention. Wonderful, Wonderful Copenhagen Another quick one hour flight and I’m on the last leg of this delightful journey. One of the first sights you’ll want to take in will be the statue of The Little Mermaid, modeled after the Danish author Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tale of that name. As with many fairy tales, The Little Mermaid is a sad tale indeed. You may want to read it again before you visit.
 When I practically jogged through Tivoli Gardens a few years ago at mid day I was very disappointed. My mistake – the best time to go is in the late afternoon-early evening as all the lights come on in the park. With everything up and running, the bright lights shining and the entertainment in high gear it’s a wonderful place to stroll through, enjoy the musical talent and even take a few of the rides. There are 3 stages, a concert hall, 2 theatres, thousands of flowers, 900 trees, lots of rides and 40 restaurants from which to choose.
 The people of Copenhagen seem to love the water and they love their bicycles. There are special bike lanes which appear to make it a much safer city ride than can be found in most large cities in the U.S. If you want to stand on a street corner and watch pretty girls pass by on bikes, you can’t do much better than Copenhagen. A few good looking guys, too, but I’ll leave that up to you gals to discover on your own.
 Copenhagen is criss-crossed with beautiful canals and taking a canal boat cruise is one of the best ways to get an interesting view of the city. You’ll cruise past bustling shopping and dining areas, past unbelievably beautiful wooden boats and past some of the cities finest landmarks, in particular, the Black Diamond, which houses the Royal Library. The medieval canals will help you spot a number of places you’ll want to come back to and visit on foot.
As for the bikes, they’re free! At least in the city center. You find one of the 125 bike racks around town, put in a coin, take the bike and when you return it to any one of those racks and lock it up your coin is returned to you. The only problem is that this is a very popular program and you many not always find a bike. In that case, your hotel (I stayed at the Radisson SAS and they had bikes available) may be a good bet, and, if not, try the Central Station for rentals. You can do a lot of sightseeing for free. In addition to the free bikes, you’ll find that many of the museums are free – including the National Museum – on select weekdays or to select collections.  A great bargain is the CPH Card. You can purchase these cards for varying lengths of time, like 24 hours or 72 hours, and they will provide free or discounted admission to more than 60 sites in and around Copenhagen. And, it will give you unlimited travel on public transportation.
Visit Copenhagen and discover why the Danes are considered some of the happiest people on earth. I’d tell you more, but I’m out of space. Keep on Traveling! When You Go:Stockholm Visitors Board: For lots more info and the Stockholm card. www.stockholmtown.com. Vasa Museum: http://www.vasamuseet.se/InEnglish/about.aspx. Skansen: http://www.skansen.se/pages/?ID=221. Official Travel’s Guide to Oslo and Oslo Pass: www.visitoslo.com. KonTiki: http://www.kon-tiki.no/Ny/Dok_eng/e_start.html?FUIComponentClass=%5Btype+Function%5D&FPushButtonClass=%5Btype+Function%5D Vigeland Sculpture Park: http://www.fortunecity.com/westwood/arch/769/Vigeland/. Check this out before you visit the park – and then use it as a reference afterwards – you may want to print it out and carry it with you. Copenhagen: Find the Copenhagen card and much more info here: http://www.visitcopenhagen.com/tourist/plan_and_book Lonely Planet – Scandinavia Europe: www.lonelyplanet.com SAS Scandinavian Airlines: www.FlySAS.com. Story and by Robert Painter: rpainter2006@comcast.net. | 