The Royal Palace. Just at the base of the lights along the palace base is a man standing in the icy flow, flyfishing.

These observations are totally subjective and I’m sure many will disagree, but I’ve travelled to a number of cities that were reputed to be fabulous but somehow disappointed. Sometimes the architecture didn’t quite measure up to the fanfare (Buenos Aires). Other times, the man-made elements were stellar but the terrain just not impressive (Prague). In still other cases, all the physical ingredients were there but the city somehow lacked soul (Vancouver). Of course, some places manage to measure up to all the hype -- Paris, San Francisco, Marrakesh. But the cities that really keep this country girl eager to tag a few days of urban pursuits onto the end of her horse adventures are the cities that aren’t subject to a lot of hype but then just capture your heart. Stockholm is one of those cities for me. It is a gem, an icy diamond.

Composed of 14 islands, water is in view pretty much everywhere in Stockholm. And the water here is a living thing. By the royal palace, it rushes with the vigor of a trout stream. Swans fly low to skidding landings joining mallards and other ducks in the eddies at the base of the bridges. Ferrys come and go, disgorging their passengers in front of the city’s finest hotels and apartment buildings.

The days here in wintertime Stockholm are short but the sun shines with such clarity, that I’d gladly swap six hours of Stockholm bright icy day for nine hours of Washington’s winter cloudy grey. And Swedes really know how to use those spare sunny hours. Old folks promenade through the parks in chunky hiking boots with trekking poles to help them navigate the packed snow and slick ice that persists on the sidewalks. Joggers clatter by like horses, their sneakers adorned with mini-crampons/micro-spikes. Teenagers manage to still look hip in their layers of sweaters and hats as they pop in out of stores that sell clothes that look like some hybrid offspring of an REI and PRADA mating. And everywhere you look are young couples walking dogs in little booties and coats or pushing pink-cheeked human burritos in expensive baby strollers.

Kurt and I join the throngs, feeling rather cocky given that the temps here are below freezing but well above zero F. Still, after a stop at a museum and some shopping in the city’s old town, it’s nice to pop into a café for ‘fika’ (coffee and a piece of cake) as the sun begins to sink and the lights on the bridges to twinkle.

Everyone insists we must come back in the summer, when Swedes truly come alive and Stockholm shines under endless daylight. But, I’m not sure I dare do that. Stockholm in winter has so charmed me, I’d hate to find the magic gone with the crackling cold and long, crystal clear winter night.

Sweden Ride -- Stockholm Reflections