The Zita theater on Birger Jarlsgatan.

And the Sture theater, too.

It’s gorgeous out. Astoundingly quiet, too. Almost eerily so, given that we live in the middle of the city. It’s all thanks to the snow. Last night’s heavy snowfall has muffled out all the usual workday morning sounds, except for an occasional bird chirping.

It started snowing heavily in the early evening yesterday and quickly accumulated. By the time we went out for a walk around the center of town about 9.30, the streets were covered over. And they were virtually empty of both cars and people. It was very unusual for a Tuesday night, especially on Valentine’s day when so many people head out for dinner. Except for an occasional dog walker, we practically had the city to ourselves.

Robert in the center of Stockholm at Stureplan.

Another view of Stureplan.

David Nicholls reading at Stockholm's version of Book Slam London.

On Thursday night, I went to Book Slam London at Kulturhuset. This was not your typical author event. Instead, it was a literary nightclub. There were book readings sure, but there were also poetry readings as well as hip-hop and jazz music. But even that doesn’t begin to explain the night very well. Because poetry readings can be just plain weird, book readings dull. This event was cool. And it felt good to call myself a writer.

The book slam band.

Lemn Sissay served as the emcee of the event and read his own very good poetry, then he was followed by a reading from Swedish author Amanda Svensson. Kate Tempest was next and she exceeded all my expectations. She is an amazingly talented and wacky combination of rapper and poet. And as I expected, David Nicholls’ two readings and a q&a session with Lemn were all fantastic. I read his book One Day some time ago and loved it, so I will now have to read his other two books.

In between all the different readings, either a DJ or a band played. And there was also a performance from Swedish hip hop performer Alexis Weak, who was not as good as I hoped he would be. Oh well. Overall, the evening was a whole lot of fun. To see if the literary nightclub is coming to your city, check out Book slam London.

Kate Tempest performing.

Saddling up to the saloon. Photos by Robert Corkery.

It was a classic moment of stopping to figure out what it is you’re seeing. As we walked down the street to get some milk last Tuesday, we saw a gold miner pull up to the local saloon on a horse. Yes, you read that right. I had not been drinking, but I definitely saw some guy who looked like he had sauntered out of the gold rush of 1849 ride up to the Saddle & Sabre Saloon. On a horse. In the center of Stockholm. Directly next to all the parked Volvos.

So of course we stopped for a closer look to see what was going on. And then the scene became very pungently real as the horse began leaving his “load” on the sidewalk, much to the horror of the people who were seated at the table directly next to him and were thus trapped.

And maybe I heard this wrong, but I swear that the cowboy said “howdy ma’am” when I waved to him.

The download.

Looking at the cafe from underneath the mushroom.

Last night, I met my friend Zanne for an impromptu happy hour at Stureplan. We wanted to go to Sturehof – the ultimate people watching spot –but the outside area was closed off for a crayfish party so we ended up at Cafe Stureplan instead. The people watching was just about as good, especially since the cafe is directly next to svampen or the mushroom, which is a hugely popular meeting spot. There was an endless parade of fashion and style, some good and some bad. Given that it was a cooler evening, there were a lot of boots. Already. Given that I still want it to be summer, I was not ready for that.

Zanne and some of our stylish table mates.

As it’s Fashion Week, there were a lot of fashionista types out. We even shared our table with Blondinbella, the fashion blogger.

These women were seated next to us. As I was in Converse, I did feel a bit underdressed.

Gröna Lund as seen last week. Photo by Robert Corkery.

OK, so it’s not Paris. And it’s not the city per se, but rather Gröna Lund amusement park. Maybe I pushed the “artistic license” a bit to use the city of light title. But I do love this view of Stockholm’s lights at night. It’s pretty, no?

The floating portion of Mälarpaviljongen. The nonfloating portion of the cafe dates from 1943.

Tuesday night, I met up with a friend who I hadn’t seen for a while. We went for drinks on the water at Mälarpaviljongen to get caught up on everything. The night was beautiful and it seemed like the perfect place to be, having a bottle of rosé and enjoying the sunshine.

I've been on a bit of a rosé kick this summer.

Located on Lake Mälaren on Kungsholmen along Norr Mälarstrand, Mälarpaviljongen somehow manages to make you feel like you are out in nature, not in the city. So of course, the place was packed. A glass of wine here ranges from 82-125 SEK or $13-20 US dollars. As always, not cheap. But to add to the fun, Carmen and I even had a celebrity spotting: designers Tomas Cederlund and Simon Davies were there, too.

ABBA. In person. Not.

As I was heading into the Hilton Slussen last night with a friend, we couldn’t help but notice these characters by the door. I’m not sure who they were or why they were there, but we did hear a medley of ABBA songs being performed just after that. But perhaps even stranger was the fact that everywhere, people were wearing name tags that said Björn. And there was a lot of really bad fashion and wigs. Maybe it was a Björn convention?

On the terrace overlooking Mälaren.

One  gorgeous evening last week, I meet up with some friends for drinks at Orangeriet. This water-side bar opened last year (see my post on it at Orangeriet) and quickly became one of the places to go in Stockholm. That still holds true today. With its location on Kungsholmen directly on the shores of Lake Mälaren, it’s a terrific spot to spend a summer evening. There’s a big outside terrace and there are sliding glass doors that open up the inside to the air as well. Chairs and couches both inside and out are comfy. And while the place was packed, service was still friendly, although a bit slow at times. A glass of wine costs between 90 and 160 Swedish crowns or 14.30 to 25.40 US dollars. As always, it’s not cheap to drink in this town!

Inside Orangeriet, thet furnishings are a stylish hodge podge.

I had the charkuteribräda or meat board – a combination of prosciutto, cheeses, melon, assparagus and pates – as an appetizer.

Friday night at Mosebacke.

The terrace at Mosebacke Etablissement is a classic. The view overlooking Stockholm – including the Baltic and Gröna Lund – is unbeatable. But unlike so many places with a view, there’s nothing pretentious or overdone about this place. In fact, with its picnic tables, Mosebacke is more like an easy-going German beer garden. As you might expect, this place is packed on a sunny day.

By the way, this is a good place to see an outdoor concert in the summer. A few years ago, we saw Timbuktu and it was a perfect night.

Rooftop views from Mosebacke.

The view from Sjuan, one of the many terraces you can choose from at Södra Terrasen, which is connected to Mosebacke.

Mosebacke tends to be packed on sunny days, but even with a little rain, people still hang out.

Katherine, Dita, Juliana and Viveka enjoying the sun.

Saturday was a postcard perfect day. And I have to say, we picked a picture postcard spot to relax in the sun at: Josefina.  Located on Djurgården and with a view of the water, Josefina has loungey couches and chairs that are so comfy that you want to hang out for hours. Plus, there are special VIP lounge areas that you can reserve.

On a sunny day, this place is almost always packed with trendy Stockholmers and it’s definitely a place where locals and tourists alike can be found. A DJ plays a variety of music, even in the afternoon, and the setting becomes more club like later in the evening. At Josefina, a glass of wine ranges from 94 to 150 SEK – that’s  $14.78-23.58 US dollars. (Don’t I keep telling you that this town is pricey?) There’s a full lunch and dinner menu with everything from steak and lamb to salmon. It’s tasty, but also not cheap. See Josefina for more details.

Fake palm trees seem to be a popular decorating option for Stockholm's outdoor spots.

Heat lamps are often necessary in the Baltic summer. Unfortunately.