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Stockholm

By Alexander Schlosser

Ten days in Stockholm: enough to get a first idea of a city. Never enough to fully understand it.

I decided to stay in a small cottage in the suburbs north-west of Stockholm. Thirty minutes on the subway do not sound like much, but apparently that is enough to completely change settings in Sweden. I did not expect to wander through a thick Scandinavian forest moments later when getting on the train at the city's busy hub T-Centralen. Yet, there it was, together with a handful of wooden houses: red and yellow, huge verandas, rocking chairs, all cliche boxes ticked. It is amazing to see just how elegantly Stockholm blends city and countryside. Not only in its outskirts, but also with beautiful and extensive parks right in the center.

The city itself though? Definitely nice. Did it excite me? Difficult to tell. It felt a little bit like coming home to Zurich or Frankfurt. It feels familiar, welcoming and good, but it doesn’t surprise one that often anymore. Sure, there are some great restaurants and bars, diverse shops, wonderful people and a beautiful city overall. However, you cannot really rid yourself of the feeling that you have seen everything before: the interiors, the architecture, the people. Instagram might play a role here, Pinterest, magazines like Rum or the latest IKEA catalogue. And it is not really Stockholm that is to blame as places all around the world are adopting a Nordic lifestyle and mix it with some brooklynesque flavours. That is why we crave puristic furniture and fashion, why we go shopping at COS, Bolia and Bang&Olufsen. I am not saying that there is anything wrong with this, that any other city is doing it differently or even better. It was just never as obvious to me as it was in Stockholm.

I know that it is not really fair to criticize a place on that basis. To criticize a place where everything seems to work, where neighborhoods like Söder, Östermalm or Vasastaden lure you with their open and welcoming culture. Yet, the city did not really catch me as a tourist. And to be honest: it does not have to. Stockholm might be the perfect place to live – I still have to find out why though.

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Breathe In, Breathe Out

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