22 Hours In Stockholm

We got up super early to catch the train to the airport. We were excited because we got to sit upstairs on the double-decker train.

Stockholm is spread over lots of islands, so we walked down three islands from the bus station to the venue where we’d be seeing Bright Eyes later to get our bearings.

We warmed up by learning about the Nobel Prize at the Nobel museum. It was a really pretty and interesting museum. Part of it was closed so we got to look around for half price.

All the winners have signed their autographs on the underside of the chairs in the cafe which is really cool.

It was worth it for the amazing vegetarian buffet (of which we enjoyed three heaped plates) and unlimited teas and coffee.

Bright Eyes were playing at Debaser Medis where tickets plus the plane fare was cheaper than going to see them in London. This was my first proper Bright Eyes gig so I didn’t know what to expect.

They also played a little bit of Commander Venus which was cool. I wish they’d have played some Desaparecidos too. Some of the fans were a little scary. One girl was in tears on the floor after Conor jumped in the crowd at the end of the gig. I can understand why Sean says he’s a little ashamed to admit he’s a Bright Eyes fan.

After the gig we had 4 hours to waste before the bus to the airport but we bumped in to Andy LeMaster and Clark (from The Faint) who gave us tips for places to eat and drink in Omaha, Nebraska. We also met Mike Mogis who was so nice, decided to give us a pep talk and kept asking for hugs to keep warm. Conor ran past leaving girls who’d been waiting in the cold crying, which wasn’t very nice of him at all.

Our Bright Eyes Christmas album is filling up with the names of everyone on it (Maria Taylor was the first to sign it years ago in Glasgow)… we’re trying to collect the set!