Jaunted - Stockholm

SAS Airlines to Hold a Contest for the World's First In-Flight Gay Marriage

EricRosen — 2010-08-30T15:46:38-05:00

It's a world's first! Just wait to hear what exactly "it" is...

(Same-sex) Love is in the air this winter aboard SAS. The Scandinavian airline is hoping to host the world’s first same-sex wedding in the air aboard one of their A340s between Stockholm and New York on December 6. To find the lucky couple for the mid-air nuptials, the longtime gay-friendly airline is launching a major social media contest campaign titled “Love is in the air.” Cute. Not fierce. But cute.

The airline has partnered with VisitSweden and Stockholm Gay & Lesbian Network to offer one European couple and one American couple the chance to get married aboard SAS flights and honeymoon packages—the European couple be married aboard the outbound flight to the U.S. and will get to vacation there, and the American couple will be feted on the way back to Sweden.

Stockholm Kicks Starbucks To The Curb With The Retro 'Konditori Valand'

JetSetCD — 2009-10-20T09:13:40-05:00

Starbucks might be attempting to create more of a cafe with their concept "15th Street Coffee & Tea" restaurant, but it will simply never equal the awesomeness of truly great, very authentic cafes that still exist and serve up homemade goods around the world. One such spot, which might not last too much longer as the owners grow old, is Stockholm's Konditori Valand.

The cafe, in the Surbrunnsgatan section of town, is run by Magdalena �str�m, who has maintained the original interior of the cafe since it was begun and designed by her husband in 1954. The result is a mid-century modern stunner, with well-worn teak furniture and an imported black stone floor from Italy. The cafe is a fixture in German guidebooks and on the lists of retro furniture enthusiasts, but that doesn't mean that a regular old, design-appreciating tourist can't enjoy a coffee and slice of cake here.

Nobel Prize Winner In Literature Afraid To Go Home To Romania

egw — 2009-10-08T13:28:29-05:00

This must be the best day ever for all you Herta M�ller fans! In case you're not caught up on modern literature, M�ller is the 2009 recipient of the Nobel Prize in Literature, announced this morning in Stockholm.

M�ller lives and works in Germany now, but grew up in Communist Romania under dictator Nicolae Ceausescu, and many of her books describe the plight of young people in a controlling regime. She revealed in an essay penned earlier this summer for the online magazine Sign and Sight that she is afraid to travel in Romania even now because she believes members of the government are still following her.

Nothing's Sweder Than Plane Spotting Straight From A Cockpit

JetSetCD — 2009-09-10T13:18:50-05:00

We love airplanes, you love airplanes, so let's go look at airplanes! In our Prime Plane Spotting series, we'll let you in on all the best spots to whip out your cameras and binoculars for a piece of the aviation action.

Where is better for plane spotting than actually being on the airport's tarmac...or better yet, in a honeymoon suite on the tarmac? This actually became possible less than a year ago, when the Jumbo Hostel opened at Stockholm's Arlanda Airport.

This decommissioned 747 has had its seats ripped out in favor of installing 25 bedroom suites, complete with free wireless internet access and flatscreen TVs, and, for most rooms, full en-suite bathrooms. Even Singapore Airlines' A380 first class suites can't compare with these, but then the Jumbo Hostel no longer flies, so there's that.

IKEA Furniture Not For Sale in Stockholm Art Gallery

amandak — 2009-06-30T13:33:28-05:00

While the name of the Swedish gallery Liljevalchs Konsthall may seem like a bit of a mouthful, its English subtitle "The Stockholmers' own public art venue" explains it pretty well. We can't pronounce it, but we want to go there, because starting this month they have a special IKEA exhibition happening.

We should admit, to be fair, that half our furniture has its origins at the local IKEA, so we're natural candidates for this kind of exhibition. The retrospective looks at the history of IKEA over its 50 years: starting back at the first flat-pack table it sold back in the 1950s and showing how furniture designs changed and developed over the decades.

There are also interesting anecdotes about IKEA life. For example, back in the 70s there was a big spate of denim-covered furniture, but it wasn't really about style – that was because the founder bought up a huge supply of denim at a bargain price from a Chinese factory that was going broke.

The IKEA exhibition runs until August 30 in Stockholm, and getting in will cost you 69 SEK (less than $9). In summer the Liljevalchs Konsthall is open every day except Monday (but on Mondays, of course, you can go shopping at the real IKEA instead).

Related Stories:
· Liljevalchs Konsthall [Official Site]
· Ikea Exhibition Showcases 50 Years of Functional Furnishing [Guardian]
· Stockholm Travel Guide [Jaunted]

[Photo: ktpupp]

Pirate Bay's Server Now On Display in Swedish Museum

egw — 2009-04-22T11:32:28-05:00

At least their handiwork will live on: As the creators of file-sharing website the Pirate Bay head off to prison, a Swedish museum will put its trusty server on display for the world to learn the wages of modern piracy.

The Tekniska Museet or National Museum of Science and Technology in Stockholm has added the server to an exhibit on intellectual property called "Inspiration Imitation," and since it's co-sponsored by the Swedish Association for the Protection of Industrial Property, we're guessing it's going to come out pro-IP.

John Lithgow Refuses To Act His Age

egw — 2009-03-04T16:34:15-05:00

Sometimes we wonder what convinces stars to get on a boat with their biggest fans and go somewhere. But in this week's Cruising with Celebs, we can see it perfectly: He gets the offer sitting at a sidewalk cafe with one foot in the air. He tilts his remarkably large head to one side and then, with a pucker of the eyebrow, he thinks, Why not? Could be a right pleasant jaunt. At least we assume that's how it went down when Silversea Cruises approached John Lithgow about climbing aboard its Scandinavian-Russian adventure this July.