Stockholm museums

Unfortunately the government decided that museums should no longer be free, restricting culture and history to those who can afford it. To make life easier I’ve put together a list of museums with their new costs and any tips I can think of. Not taking any responsibility for mistakes so make sure you check the websites 🙂

🚫 means I’m pretty sure it used to be free! ⭐️⭐️⭐️ If I’ve been I’ll rate it out of 3.

Free

Accelerator

Art gallery

Website

Forum för levande historia

See history with new eyes

Website

Litografiska Museet

The Museum of Lithography is a combined museum and workshop specialized in stone printing

Website

Medeltidsmuseet

Medieval museum ⭐️⭐️⭐️

One of my favourites, it’s small but really well done

Website

Riksidrottsmuseum

Sports museum

Website

Sveriges Museum om förintelsen

Swedish holocaust museum

Free 2023
Doesn’t open until summer

Website

Stadsmuseet

Museum about Stockholm ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Really nice museum, quite new, the cafe has really good handmade traditional food.
If you take a child, there’s a map game where you can find animals, it should get them more interested.

Website

Free sometimes…

Judiska Museet

Jewish museum in the oldest synagogue in Sweden

Free on Saturday between 11-12
Otherwise 100kr

Website

Naturhistoriska riksmuseet

Natural history museum ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Free on 8 Sundays in 2023
Otherwise 140kr/100kr students 🚫
Amazing museum, everything from dinosaurs to animals to the human body. Awesome for kids, sensory garden in the summer. Really nice food in the cafe.

Website

Museum year card for 140kr includes

Östasiatiska Museet

East Asian museum ⭐️⭐️

150kr
On a cute island

Website

Medelhavsmuseet

Mediterranean museum ⭐️⭐️

150kr
A really beautiful museum with a nice cafe

Website

Etnografiska Museet

Ethnography museum ⭐️⭐️

150kr 🚫
Cool exhibition about climate if it’s still there

Website

Museum card 450kr includes

Historiska Museet

History Museum⭐️⭐️⭐️

150kr 🚫
Vikings, an awesome walk through of Swedish history and a lovely cafe with gorgeous food.

Website

Hallwylska museet

⭐️⭐️

120kr 🚫
Quite a cool place it’s kind of like a stately home in the middle of apartment blocks

Website

Ekonomiska museet

Economic history 🚫

Unbelievably this is shut for 2023 so I’ve paid for a museum I can’t even go to. Also it’s in the history museum so I’m not sure you’d even have to pay for that separately anyway.

Website

Livrustkammaren

Royal history

150kr. 🚫
Free admission on Thursdays (during the period September – April).

Website

Swedish Holocaust Museum

Free 2023
Doesn’t open until summer

Website

Another two museums are included, the Tumba Paper Mill Museum which is free for 2023 anyway and Skokloster Castle which is also free. Don’t even get me started on how annoyed I was to find out that they advertise admission to 7 museums, most of which are free anyway and some even closed!

Never free…

Avicii experience

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Price varies depending on time ~ 200kr
My favourite museum, it was so moving and incredible

Website

ABBA the museum

⭐️⭐️

Price varies depending on time ~ 200kr
Worth the money if you’re a huge ABBA fan

Website

Armémuseum

Army museum ⭐️⭐️

140kr/95kr student 🚫
Super interesting considering Swedens lack of conflict/participation in WW1&2

Website

Fjärilshuset Haga Ocean

Butterfly house and aquarium ⭐️⭐️

240kr
In a beautiful park

Website

Fotografiska

Photography museum ⭐️⭐️

170-190kr
Cafe/bar with gorgeous views
Check which exhibit is on

Website

Junibacken

Kids museum for lovers of Pippi, Moomin, Alfons and all the other Swedish faves

⭐️⭐️

195-225kr
Quirky resteraunt

Website

National museum

Art, design and sculpture

150kr 🚫

Website

Sjöhistoriska

Maritime museum ⭐️⭐️⭐️

100kr 🚫

Website

Nordiska Museet

Nordic History Museum⭐️⭐️

150kr
Incredible architecture
Check what exhibition is on

Website

Skansen

Open air museum and zoo ⭐️⭐️⭐️

245kr
The year pass is 395kr for 1 adults and child and it’s so worth it, we go so often and it means you don’t have to fit seeing it all into one day.

Website

There are many more, and I will eventually add them..

Favourite books 2022

I can’t even begin to rank these because they’re so different in many ways so I’m going to try and categorise them so you can read what you’re interested in!

British stuff 🇬🇧

Sunburn – James Felton a really interesting and funny read on how much damage the sun newspaper has done in its time! Shocking, unbelievable and mind boggling…

52 times Britain was a bellend – James Felton actually barely knew any of this history which clearly got lost in the curriculum at school, I wonder why? 😏

Appeasing Hitler – Tim Bouverie another history lesson I missed at school! Its all in the title, and I had no idea of Britains part in this!

Natives – Akala an incredibly important read about race and culture in the UK and the history of empire. I wish I’d read it sooner. Again, I learnt more about UK history in the first few pages than I ever did in school. This ‘Empire’ I was told to love, turns out its not so great huh?

Go big – Ed Miliband I love him and wish he was prime minister and that’s all I need to say. He literally understands what we need to do for the planet and society.

Mental & physical health 🫀🧠

Head first – Alistair Santhouse very interesting for anyone into psychology, anyone living with a chronic illness or mental illness (or who cares about someone who does).

The Dr will see you now – Dr Amir Khan a really brilliant, insightful, funny and informative book about being a GP in the NHS from a doctor who really cares. It will leave you wishing he was your doctor though.

A monks guide to happiness – Gelong Thubten this is a book I keep going back to, because it really does help me. Thubten uses personal experience to illustrate his own journey through meditation.

The Art of Happiness – Dalai Lama & Howard C Cutler I learnt a lot about conditioning, happiness, suffering, self-created suffering, guilt, pain, anger, anxiety and self esteem.

Unwell women – Eleanor Cleghorn a brilliant book about the history of womens medicine, from Ancient Greece to the present. Incredibly interesting.

Anger – Thich Nhat Hanh from consuming anger to compassion and mindfulness. A really insightful and introspective book.

Finding peace – Lama Yeshe Losal Rinpoche a wonderful book which I found healing in many ways. Through meditation, mindfulness, compassion and forgiveness, I think most importantly though for me impermanence.

Non-fiction

Human kind – Rutger Bergman I loved this book so much, it changed my view of people so much; all we see in the news is the bad things, but good, kind people outnumber the bad. We are inherently good.

The only plane in the sky – Garrett Graff what a read. An immersive glimpse into what 9/11 was like for people all over the US and in the sky.

I’m still here black dignity in a world made for whiteness – Austin Channing Brown a really important read.

Incredible journeys (non-fiction) 👣

From a mountain in Tibet – Lama Yeshe Losal Rinpoche honestly I’m finding it hard to describe this book because I’m lost for words; at some points it’s a hard read, because you know it’s a true, real story, and the difficulties faced are heart wrenching. But what an absolutely incredible story.

The Sheep Stell – Janet White I picked this for the cover and my love of sheep; when I started reading it I had my doubts; it really was a book about a shepherdess, I thought, how exciting could this be? Well actually, very. And knowing it was a true story too, and this incredible woman lived this life at such a time, was amazing. What an absolute inspiration. I really enjoyed living my life vicariously through her and sharing her adventures.

Incredible Journeys (fictional) 👣

All the light we cannot see – Anthony Doerr this is one of those books I wish I could read again from scratch. A story that runs parallel following two protagonists during the progression of the war: a German orphan and a blind French girl. It’s so well written and immersive, I couldn’t put it down.

The beekeeper of Aleppo – Christy Lefteri a heartbreaking, haunting read. Really well written and leaves a huge impact. Brings deeper understanding of what refugees go through and a book I wish some unsympathetic people would read.

The Long Song – Andrea Levy a really interestingly written book, the story follows a woman asked to write a memoir by her son, to describe her life on a sugarcane plantation in Jamaica during 19th century.

Feminist

Girls on the verge – Sharon Biggs Waller a heartbreaking story follows an American girl in need of an abortion and her difficult journey to find help. A difficult read following the recent end of Roe vs Wade.

Women don’t owe you pretty – Florence Given a really empowering read.

Fiction

Anne of Green Gables – L. M. Montgomery written in 1908, about an orphan with a quirky personality. I’m in love with Anne, and living in her world.

Northanger Abbey – Jane Austin as a lover of Bridgerton I did enjoy this, but I don’t think I’d read this kind of book all the time.

The yearbook – Holly Bourne I love all of her books, and this one was no different. Always relatable.

The bookshop on the corner – Jenny Colgan I’m not so into the romance books anymore, as a teen it was all I read. But I did really enjoy how this was written and ended up buying more of her books.

There is no dog – Jess Rosoff this has to be one of the weirdest books I’ve read, but originality is great. God is a teenage boy, I think that’s all I need to say.

Crooked heart – Lissa Evans it’s so weird that I like this book, because the protagonists are awful. Set during ww2, about an evacuee. But it’s just really good and so well written.

The haunting season – some really good stories, some pretty creepy ones! I was sad that I got to the end of the book.

Anxious people – Fredrik Backman I LOVE this book, so much so I refuse to watch the new tv series, just in case they spoil it.

Tuck Everlasting – Natalie Babbitt what a wonderful tale, I read it in one sitting, it was brilliant.

The last letter from your lover – Jojo Moyes wow, what an incredibly cleverly written book, it follows two women and their tales of love and loss, a journalist exploring letters found from 40 years ago written between lovers. Was pretty much impossible not to cry.

The Bear and the Nightingale triology – Katherine Arden my favourite books. Full of Russian mythology. Absolutely in love with them.

This might seem like a lot of books but I’ve actually read 60 so I only picked out the best haha!

Merry Christmas! Louise x

Resolutions? Bucket list? Not this time

New Years resolutions have always been something I would look forward to. A new year, a new start, a new me. I loved the excitement that I could possibly be a better person. But, it never lasted however great my intentions were. So the past few years I chose a bucket list instead (like this one in 2019). Even ended up in a magazine talking about it (🤣). Turns out this didn’t work so well either. For 2022 I tried a mix of the two…

Boundaries

No social media

Read

Go outdoors

Welsh

Swedish

Mindfulness

Write letters

Finish quilt

Make a dress

I’ve managed to keep some boundaries in place, but still find it really hard to stick up for myself

Ha, I went a few months without social media and it was so good for me, but now I’m stuck on instagram again

I’ve read 60 books so far this year, pretty happy with that.

Well….. I’ve been on like 4 walks so I’d say this one’s a big no.

I’ve started speaking Welsh a lot more at home and on social media

Still haven’t done a proper course but my vocabulary is definitely growing and I can actually attempt to converse now!

My mindfulness practice is disappointingly irregular, I’ve definitely let my thoughts run wild… I did do an 8 week course but life quickly took over again

I don’t even remember writing any… I had such good intentions and time just disappeared.

I think I added 2 rows, and then completely abandoned it again… I’ll finish it one day!

Well, I bought the material, does that count?

I’m not even sure what to do this year, is there even a point? I guess it’s good to have goals, ambitions, dreams, but what about the feelings of failure that come when you don’t manage them?

I’m thinking perhaps some general intentions, with no specific ‘requirements’ or measurements of completion might work? For example…

I intend to be kind to myself and develop my self compassion.

I intend to spend time in nature.

I intend to look after my health and seek help when needed.

I intend to enjoy time with friends.

I intend to be there for others and carry on my work to erase stigma surrounding mental illness and disability.

I intend to balance my moral consciousness and need to fight injustice with the need to look after my mental health.

I intend to feel able and safe to be my authentic self.

Let’s see how it goes. I wish you a great 2023.

Love Louise.

Changes

My old medication zombified me, I was on it for ~ 10 years and although it helped the extreme anxiety and depression by dampening feelings, it also meant that happiness and joy were dampened too.

There comes a huge pressure along with not being able to laugh so easily. Sometimes it would come naturally, other times I would think “this is funny, I should be laughing” but nothing would come out; I would attempt an awkward ‘ha’ and I would spend the rest of the day and night worrying that I had probably offended that person by not laughing enough.

I didn’t really cry so much, unless I was really unwell. Sadness just felt like emptiness, grief, heartbreak. And I would dissociate.

I changed to another medication this year, because I finally have a doctor who really listens and genuinely cares about trying to improve my life. I didn’t really want to change. I thought, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it; but I really trust him and the thought of it helping my nerve pain was worth a try.

Well, I hated this new stuff. I actually feel things. I cry ALL the time. I feel deep pain, sadness and grief, but I also feel happiness. In the beginning, the happiness wasn’t worth it. And it’s still hard, I feel it so strongly that I often cry when people show kindness.

But I’m finally realising that this pain is a blessing and it is a way for me to finally learn to sit with my feelings, and to stop being afraid of them.

So, I’m sorry for all the tears, but they’re not all so bad.

The law of attraction can be toxic

For some, the law of attraction is a very motivating and exciting factor in getting to where they want to be, in their career, personal or social life. When I was trying to conceive, after years of trying I was given ‘the secret’ on dvd and told to hang up a small item of baby clothing in my room to ‘put my wishes out into the universe’. What you ask for, you will get, I was told.

But for someone with OCD this can be a dangerous affirmation that our intrusive thoughts will indeed come true. The more you try and stop intrusive thoughts and images the more likely you are to get them, and the more often. And the more you have them, the more likely it will be, following the logic of the law of attraction that they will come true. Compulsions become even more important in trying to counteract this.

I have many different intrusive thoughts, but I will give a few examples.

When my heart beats fast my health anxiety insists that it is a heart attack. My compulsions are to body check, feel my heartbeat and pulse, check my temperature with my hand on my forehead and cheeks, try to cool myself down, sip water and seek reassurance. According to the law of attraction, I am attracting the event of a heart attack.
When I travel by car I am convinced we will crash and compulsions include praying, begging for a safe journey repeatedly and opening and closing my jaw in line with the road markings. According to the law of attraction, I am attracting a car accident.
When I am apart from my husband or daughter I have intrusive thoughts and images about them getting hurt or never returning. Compulsions include reassurance by text, self reassurance, rumination, avoidance. This is the worst one, because if my worry about this happening attracts it happening, like the secret suggests, it will all be my fault if something happens.

If the law of attraction works for you with no adverse effects, that’s great. But it’s important to realise it’s not going to help everyone.

Louise x

Autumn

I find autumn the easiest time of the year to get back into mindfulness. It’s easy to leave autopilot when there is so much obvious change around you, leaves are turning their beautiful colours, crunching underfoot. The cold seeps in through the wind and your nose begins to freeze. The frost makes the most incredible patterns and the sky is a different colour every day. Soon it will be dark for most of the day so it’s important to take in as much light as we can now.

As the animals get ready for the big sleep, I’m getting ready for winter; cosy blankets, apple and cinnamon tea & candles everywhere…

Fabalulu’s

This week as part of my #supportsmallbusinesses project I’m interviewing the wonderful Lucy from Fabalulu’s.

Let’s get to know you, tell us a bit about yourself?

Hi I’m Lucy I’m a nurse, and Fabalulu’s is something that I do with my fiancé James. We 24 and 25 and we started this as a hobby.

It’s so nice that you do something that you love. What do you sell?

Resin gifts; we make pendants that can be key rings or necklaces. We also make artisan keycaps and some other products. We decorate our stuff with glitter, beads, real flowers, seashells, gold leaf and anything fun really.

They really are beautiful. Are you looking forward to Christmas?

Yes, James and I are in the process of buying a house and we should be moving in and having our first Christmas together in our own home by then.

That’s so exciting! What is your favourite time of year?

I love spring, but all my important events are in winter. So spring for the flowers and winter for the memories💜

I love spring too. That’s such a nice way to think of winter though. Do you have any tips on how to relax?

That’s one of the reasons I got into resin craft because I find crafting very relaxing. Although the mess is no fun! I also love baths 🙂 James enjoys gaming to relax.

I’m so glad you’ve found things to help you feel good. If you could go back and meet your teenage self what advice would you give?

I don’t think I would I’m trying to live in the moment these days and I honestly can’t remember anything specific 😂 so I guess keep doing what you’re doing?

I think that’s great advice. Thanks Lucy!

For a chance to win a gorgeous keyring go to my Instagram page or Facebook page

Things I need to know

My new book arrived this week and I’m so happy with it. I got inspiration to write this book to try and encourage teens to read, but I just know that my adult friends will love it too.

I was in a huge dilemma because after carefully choosing the illustrations and formatting when publishing I found out it would be really expensive to print. I went back and forth trying to decide what to do. In the end i decided to just go with it after I had spent so many hours getting it perfect. I’m so happy I did, it’s come out beautifully.

So many wonderful people helped me to create this book and you can tell that so much love and care has gone into it. Here are some pictures, I basically want to show you every page but I don’t want to spoil it for you.

I’ll share some others another day 😊

New book release

I was going to release this book around August in time for the new school year, but honestly I feel like we need it right now, more than ever.

Not only has coronavirus brought restrictions, devastation and anxiety to us adults, but it has turned our children’s worlds upside down too.

No one knows what is going to happen with schools re-opening but judging by how anxious the teachers I know are about it, the children are going to find it difficult too.

So here is my attempt to hopefully help ease a little anxiety and open up the conversation. To get children talking about their feelings and anxieties.

My new book:

Available here:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1913396045

Contact me for a signed addition (£10 including postage)

Love Louise x

Real People

I’m working hard on my next books – Real People.

I had this idea that children and young people should all realize how much potential they have, and that it doesn’t take winning a Nobel prize or becoming famous to mean you’re successful.

I’ve interviewed quite a few people about their lives and asked for honest answers about their childhood dreams, their life now, their strengths, fears and what they have overcome in life.

I really hope that these books will help young people to understand that they are not alone and that they can achieve incredible things in life just by being themselves.

The plan is to release a picture book for children with a kind of fact file and a chapter book for young adults/teens.

So excited to show you them.

Louise x