Ready to have a sweaty walk up the steep hill to The Vanity Restaurant & Cafe…?
The Vanity Restaurant & Cafe
The Vanity’s arcade cut lime-trees are a very characteristic part of Stockholm’s silhouette. They gave a lovely shade from the sun too, since this was a hot day it was needed.
Especially after climbing that 40 meter (131 feet) steep hill – it felt much higher than that actually. Not only for the climbing, butt even when viewing the city.
The Vanity’s Swedish name is Fåfängan and it’s a vantage-point on the hill near Danviken – as far east you can come at Södermalm (southern part of the city) with a wonderful view out over Stockholm.
It has been there since 1774 and has had many owners since then. It was renovated last time in 2005. Fåfänga is also an old Swedish word for pavilion or a gazebo in a garden or park.
Around 1650 there were an military abatis, an agger built here up on the hill and you can still see reaminings of a cannon transport road – built by Russian war prisoners in 1720 – in the east hillside.
The food is lighter meals like salads, pasta dishes or sandwiches. We did choose the shrimp salad and the pasta with bacon, tomato and mozarella. Price level might be a bit higher than usual.
It was really very fresh, so it was worth the price – and the walk up there, just for that, butt we have another bonus factor coming up: the stunning view!
Stockholm views
You’ll see the center part of Stockholm, plus some well known landmarks of the city such as The Stockholm City hall, Gröna Lund amusement park and The Baltic Sea with a lots of boats.
Every day more than 600 000 people travel with public transportation in Stockholm. The first part of the metro was opened in 1950 and has about a hundred of stations split on three lines.
The oldest train sets is green, then it came blue ones and the most modern ones is silver colored, ordered from Germany I think.
Even the old linseed mill dating back to the 1780s at Waldemarsudde, Djurgården can bee seen cross the water.
Not to mention The Kaknästornet, remember my old post about the Swedish high tower?
You also can see the The Stockholm Globe Arena almost all over the city, since it’s so huge!!!
Stockholm Globe Arena
Stockholm Globe Arena, the sport & music arena, was built in record time – in less than 2 1/2 years – and inaugurated 1989. When writing this, it’s the largest spherical building in the world!
Interesting fact is that it would take 40 years to fill the Globe with water from a tap!!!! (Who did ever come up with this silly comparison…? *giggles*)
Facts about the Globe:
Max approx 16,000 persons
Inner height 85 meters (279 feet)
Diameter 110 meter (361 feet)
Volume 600,000 cubic meter (21,188,800 cubic feet)
Can you imagine that there even has been a wedding ceremony once held on top of the Globe….?!!!
Oh, this was such a wonderful day at the Vanity, we enjoyed so much being there, The winds were perfect too, giving us just the right mild summer breeze that we needed to feel comfy.
As a fact, Mr Lifecruiser got so comfy that he wanted to sleep there…. *giggles*
View the Vanity photos as a slideshow here.
Captain Vanity Lifecruiser
What a wonderful place and beautiful views of the city!!!
Very interesting post and so nice pictures. I start to know Stockholm thanks to you ! It is a positive side of blogging, you read other things then in a travel guide ! It seems to me that you are doing a lot of sightseeing of your own town, lol ! I wished I could come with you.
What a lovely guided tour around Stockholm and the city sure have some very historical backgrounds!
I’ve actually never been in the Globe but of course seen a lot of sport event from there – your Ice Hockey Team – Tre Kronor – rocks of course:-)
and then the treat – those lovely shrimps sandwiches – and beer – you have me starving again!
Thanks!!! Now Stockolm is in my mind! A lovely town! This point of view is super! And this resto!!!I want a fresh beer too!
I see there are other destination to visit! Tonight i will go there! I can’t stop to visit! I’m so curious!
The Globe is a fascinating structure, and like you wrote, who thinks of these weird facts?!
Wish I could have joined ya’ll for lunch–it looks delicious!
Do lime trees smell good? or smell like anything?
Captain, did you know that you didn’t have to walk all the way up that slope to get something to eat, you could have gone to Photo Hunters and had it there in stead.
Great shots of what is looks like an interesting place.
How is your belly now though after eating so much…
[...] Talking about a break, I suggere to have a great moment in Stockolm with our Captain! [...]
No, at least not these lime-trees. I couldn’t feel any smell of them at all
Fine thanks you, it hangs nicely there…. *giggles*
[...] “The Vanity in Stockholm” by Mrs. Lifecruiser! [...]
Stunning views, and lunch looked yummy too. I am guessing the walk to get there does good things for your appetite.
The steep hill wouldn’t stop me, it seems like our street!
Such a wonderful place to visit! Are we allowed to take
allsome of the limes on board for caipirinhas?Even though I think the Caipirinhas idea deserves to be rewarded, there is a common misunderstanding here.
The lime tree is not the fruit tree with lime. It’s another tree called Lind/Linden.
Cut from Wikipedia:
“Tilia is a genus of about 30 species of trees, native throughout most of the temperate Northern Hemisphere, in Asia, Europe and eastern North America; it is not native to western North America.
The trees are generally called linden in North America, and lime in Britain. Both names are derived from the Germanic root lind.
(In Sweden we call it Lind).
Neither the name nor the tree is related to the citrus fruit called “lime” Another widely-used common name used in North America is Basswood, derived from bast, the name for the inner bark (see Uses, below).”
My God what beautiful photos!!! WOW! Simply breathtaking!!
Wonderful memories of a seaside town generated from the image of this restaurant. Couldn’t help but laugh at the amusement park due to the absense of high-rise luxury appartments butt-spliced right next door the park as they are with Luna Park in Sydney. The absence of residents complaining about the noise generated by screaming people having fun! Thoughtful design in Sweden, indeed!
oh i would love to go inside that globe arena, i haven’t been to a building that has no real corners, that would be interesting.
you’re so lucky to live in such a beautiful city. i guess you are also discovering more and more of your very own stockholm through sharing it with others in your blog. Oh and by the way, that meal look really great.. you definitely deserve it after that long, tiring walk
Thanks for bringing us up to Vanity. I can see Mr Lifecruiser needed something to drink after the effort. That’s understandable. And well deserved.
Beautiful views and photos.
PS. You do have a famous boat in Stockholm named Wasa. To day I read that a couple of days before it was lifted ashore after 300 years on the bottom, som students from Finland dived down to the ship and placed a statue of the famous Finnish runner Paavo Nurmi.
Y’all are so lucky to have a hill restaurant to view everything; I would love to have such fresh food; I could only imagine. YUM!