{"id":2639,"date":"2015-06-25T15:39:22","date_gmt":"2015-06-25T22:39:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.rayivey.com.php5-21.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com\/wordpress\/?p=2639"},"modified":"2015-06-26T00:11:30","modified_gmt":"2015-06-26T07:11:30","slug":"scandirayvia-7-wednesday-was-my-good-news-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.rayivey.com\/wordpress\/scandirayvia-7-wednesday-was-my-good-news-day\/","title":{"rendered":""},"content":{"rendered":"\"Facebook\"<\/a>\"twitter\"<\/a>\"rss\"<\/a>\"instagram\"<\/a>

After spending most of the night working on technical issues, I went back to bed at 6 am just for a nap, and slept until almost 10! \u00a0While I was annoyed at missing my free breakfast at the hotel, I figured I needed the rest.<\/p>\n

Happily, my gastric drama has not returned, and apart from a minor amount of lingering jetlag wooziness, I felt just terrific yesterday as I made my initial explorations of Stockholm.<\/p>\n

\"Buildings_on_water\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Real Men Push Strollers<\/h2>\n

And in Stockholm, they seem to do it WAY more than women. \u00a0I see three or four men alone with children for every woman I see with the little darlings. I wonder why this is?<\/p>\n

Dude, Your Time at the Gym Has Been Well Spent\"Waving_Nude_1\"<\/a><\/h2>\n

I don’t know how to say that in Swedish, but this is what I wanted to say to several buff Vikings that I saw today. \u00a0Particularly the one on the Tunnelbana. \u00a0(No, that’s not Eric’s little brother, it’s what they call the subway here.) \u00a0He was wearing a long sleeve pullover shirt and you could still see the veins on his bulging arms. \u00a0You know, through the shirt. \u00a0<\/em>Which would have made an impression on me if I wasn’t only and exclusively interested on what’s on the\u00a0inside<\/em> of a person. \u00a0Everyone knows this about me.<\/p>\n

Courage?<\/h2>\n

I don’t usually think of myself as a courageous person. \u00a0True, I did see “Shoah” at an actual movie theater, by choice, and actually sat through the first four hours of it. But when it comes to real courage, I don’t think so. \u00a0I’d be the worst soldier ever. \u00a0I’d cry. \u00a0I’d desert. \u00a0On the first day.<\/p>\n

However, I would posit that it does take a certain brand<\/em> of something like courage to go to a foreign country, alone, where you don’t speak the language, and navigate the cities, hop on and off subways without getting lost, and just generally coping in an alien landscape without freaking out. \u00a0And whatever that oddball kind of courage is, I definitely have it. \u00a0It’s scary, but it’s a fun kind of scary.<\/p>\n

\"\u266b<\/a>
\u266b And people ride in a h\u00e5l in the jord \u266b<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I’ve been doing it since my twenties, so I guess I’m used to it and have a certain confidence. \u00a0This is my ninth trip abroad since 1987. \u00a0I wonder if some people would find it so daunting they wouldn’t go. \u00a0You know, like me facing the prospect of going to the movies at the Americana in Glendale.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

HEY I’m on a boat!<\/h2>\n

Stockholm is a magnificent city built on hundreds of islands. There are fourteen major ones. \u00a0It’s really like nothing I’ve ever seen. \u00a0It’s like Venice writ large. \u00a0You’re never more than a dwarf’s\u00a0toss\u00a0from the water here.<\/p>\n

I took two delightful boat rides today! \u00a0The first was to a tiny island where I had a lovely peaceful ramble for an hour.<\/p>\n

\"Theater\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Goose<\/a><\/p>\n

\"R\u00e5y<\/a>
R\u00e5y wik Birchentr\u00f8llen<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\"Tiny_harbor\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The second was a circumnavigation of Kungsholmen (King’s Island), \u00a0the island my hotel is on. \u00a0Boat tours are peaceful and relaxing. \u00a0I love them.<\/p>\n

\"Town<\/a>
Town Hall just LOVES my wide angle lens.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Just How Many Spherical Buildings Are There, Actually?<\/h2>\n

Next I took a fun jaunt up to the top of the world’s largest spherical building. (Didn’t know there was a contest, did you?) \u00a0It’s called the Ericsson Globe, and it’s a sports and entertainment venue. \u00a0Very nice photo op on top full stop.<\/p>\n

\"Dome_View_of_Gondolas<\/a> \"We_HATE_the_people_in_the_other_gondola\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"My_fellow_gondoliers<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Globenviewen_1\"<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Lens-o-Rama<\/h2>\n

I’m already VERY glad I purchased the Sigma wide angle lens for the camera. \u00a0It’s doubled my shooting potential very clearly, as the shots it can get are so utterly different from the ones I get with the Nikkor zoom. \u00a0Today was a good day of practicing switching out the lenses. \u00a0I’m getting better at it on the fly.<\/p>\n

Exhausting but wonderful day!<\/p>\n

\"Authentic<\/a>
Authentic Troll Door. My ancient Runic Swedish is pretty rudimentary, but I believe the first few words carved into the door are something like, “If the mountain’s a-rockin’…”<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\"Edited<\/a><\/p>\n

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