Dancing Queen

 The tour has given us the final afternoon to roam as we please. There is one sight in Stockholm that every visitor should see. It is definitely a must-see sight.

The Vasa is a 64-gun warship, built in the early 17^th century and was considered the mightiest of its time. There was much pomp and circumstance at it's launch in 1628. She left the dock and within 1,000 feet, she sank. The ship's design, which was top-heavy because of an extra gun deck and the heavy bronze cannons is believed to be the cause of the disaster. There was a light gust of wind and over she went. She sank about 400 feet and for the next three centuries, she was left at the bottom, covered in mud. In 1961, the Vasa was raised. 98% of the structure was still intact. A museum was built around her and I'm here to tell you it certainly qualifies as a must-see sight. I might even use the word glorious.

Here she is!  She is about 226 feet long and 172 feet high.

The stern

This model show the paint job that was on the stern

The official tour has ended, most of my fellow tourists have left town, but there are a few of us that are sticking around for another day.  Besides Vasa, what else is Stockholm know for?  Well ABBA of course and wouldn't you know there is a museum dedicated to ABBA.  One of the woman on my tour grew up on ABBA.  ABBA to her was like Elvis, or the Beatles - basically the second coming.  What fun to go with somebody like that.  I think she had a perma-grin on her face the whole time. The museum was fun, there were lots of interactive exhibits. You could get on stage, sing in a studio and dance in a music video.   I was particularly fond of the Silent Disco where everybody puts on headphones and starts dancing.  Did I mention that every headphone was playing a different ABBA song.  There is a picture of me dancing but I was moving so fast, it is nothing but a blur.  

After a couple of hours, I had to tell Lisa that I absolutely could not hear Dancing Queen one more time. I left her there, in her happy place, immersed in all things ABBA.  

The Fotografiska Stockholm had an amazing exhibit by Dutch photographer Anton Corbijn.  Corbijn is "a film director, and music video director.  He is the creative director behind the visual output of Depeche Mode and U2" Wiki  

David Bowie

Pavarotti

Johnny Cash

and my most favorite:

Nick Cave