Day 12 July 23rd Our Day in Stockholm.

Day 12 July 23rd Our Day in Stockholm.
I awoke at 5:50am. The sun had already risen at 4:16am; I peeped through the curtains to see land quite close; we had arrived at the 58 mile passage through tree clad islands which our ship meandered for five hours before reaching Stockholm at 10am. Fay and I went to the viewing deck 16 and watched for a short while as we glided slowly past. Some were only a few meters across while others disappeared into the horizon. There was habitation on most of the islands. The cottages and houses looked cute. On some islands there breakwaters for the small boats. These houses have no roads so the people depend on their boats to get around. As we neared Stockholm the hoses were getting bigger and bigger; they were attractive to look at.
I quote from the Princess Patter.
“Stockholm is a smorgasbord of majestic architecture, lush parks and graceful waterways. Its quays and harbours are lined with distinguished buildings crowned with green copper roofs. They rise in a swirl of spires, turrets pinnacles and cupolas over Gamla Stan, Stockholm’s oldest quarter. From humble beginnings as a Viking fortress, Stockholm spread out through the centuries across wide bays, broad channels and narrow inlets until today, when it’s population of 900,000 straddles four separate islands. Today it is Sweden’s Capital and the home of the Nobel Prize. Spared the ravages of war, this “Belle of the Baltic” is one of the world’s most orderly, clean and beautiful cities.”
Fay and I took a bus tour; we saw the Royal Palace, the Houses of Parliament, the picturesque Grand Hotel and many other interesting buildings.
We also to a boat ride on the City end of the Baltic Sea and saw most of those buildings again from a different perspective. We entered a lock with elevated us to a freshwater lake. People were swimming, sailing and living on houseboats on this lake; the lake is also used for the city’s fresh water supply. The boat guide said the water was very pure.
We reboarded and the ship sailed at 5pm. The sun set at 9:32pm apparently around June 21st the sun is only below the horizon about 4½ hours. Our tour guide said that at the moment the days are shortening by 4 minutes per day.