Today was a slow and relaxing day, Julia was feeling sick and really tired and decided to stay in the room for the day. I took a nap for a few hours as well, then took a shower to feel fresher and by the time I was done, Julia woke up feeling better and decided to go out as well. So, after everyone was ready to go, it was 5 pm already. Well, at least we took it easy for half a day, rested our legs and napped.
 
It was rather warm when we went out, but not too hot . When the sun came out it was rather pleasant, but when it was hiding behind clouds, it was rather chilly. Weird weather they have here, hard to predict and dress for.

So, first we walked around the area of the hotel, which is a normal residential neighbourhood (called Vasastan), observed the life of regular swedes going around, minding their own business, splashing in park ponds... Then we crossed a bridge to Kungsholmen, one of Stockholm's islands. We walked along a pleasant riverside pedestrian footpath among hikers, joggers and bikers. So many swedes seem to be rather sporty, jogging, biking, boating and kayaking. After a while we made it to the city hall, an imposing red brick building with 3 golden crowns and where the Nobel prize banquet is held. At the city hall we discovered the cenotaph of Birger Jarl, the founder of Stockholm, after whom our hotel was named. 

Then we headed across another bridge (there are TONS of bridges in Stockholm) to a small island called Riddarholmen, which is dominated by the delicate-looking cast iron spire of Riddarholmen Church. And crossing yet another bridge we stepped onto yet another island, Södermalm, which is a more youthful and hip area of the city. We found a really cool outlook which offered and amazing view of the city, with all of its most important areas: downtown, old town, city hall and a bunch of floating hot-air balloons (apparently ballooning is allowed in the city). Feeling pretty tired and hungry we found a nearby bar, had some dinner and then headed through the island to subway station. In the subway I remembered another station that had some interesting art, so we made a little detour to see it (here's a picture).

Finally, we arrived back to the hotel, had some tea and went to our beds :)