When we relocated to Stockholm from the UK my husband and I took the decision not to bring our car with us and to try life without four wheels. Well three years on we are still without a car and have been constantly surprised at how easy it is to live here without it. We are not located in central Stockholm where the hub of the public transport network is but out in the suburbs but even here it is still possible after a short walk or cycle to jump on a bus or a train to get to most places. We have been able to get to museums, city parks, country parks, to friends’ houses in other suburbs and even out to friends living in a small village south of Södertälje all by public transport. When you also connect up to the ferry boats that ply the waterways you also have access to Stockholm’s stunning archipelago and places out on Lake Mälaren like Drottningholm Palace and the Birka World Heritage site.

The Stockholm Public Transport network or SL operates a very efficient and well connected transport system which spans not just the city centre but extends out to the suburbs and commuter towns in and around the Stockholm region. The commuter trains and underground system run on renewable electricity and it is SL's mission to have 50% of their buses running on non fossil fuels such as ethanol or biogas by 2011 and 100% by 2025.

image by jimmyroq

As a family of four it is good to know our actions are contributing to a greener and cleaner environment but there have been other more personal benefits that have emerged from not owning a car. My husband has a more relaxing journey to work on the train with time to read and reflect and none of the hassle of having to find a parking place. As a family our days out are much more sociable as we have time to chat to one another whilst sitting on the train or bus and the arguments we used to have on car journeys about whether we should have turned left or right at the last junction are a thing of the past.

How to do the grocery shopping was something I was concerned about before we moved here but we find that a trip out on the bus to the supermarket to do a big monthly shop and then a trip home by taxi covers it and then we only have to buy the fresh stuff which can be picked up at the local shop on the way home from work. This approach not only saves money but also means we spend less time at the shops as we cannot just jump into a car to do it.

I walk or cycle with my children to and from school and we have wonderful little chats along the way often centred around what we see around us for instance a deer, a hare or a squirrel crossing our path or on a rainy day counting the hoards of slugs and snails that are crawling along.
The fact that we walk much more means that we are able to appreciate the seasonal changes,  kicking through the fallen leaves in Autumn, crunching through the crisp snow in Winter and enjoying the world coming back to life again in Spring.

The whole family now owns a bicycle and we are able to explore more and more of our surrounding area and get out to nature reserves and lakes and forests with relative ease. SL allows you to take your bicycle on the train during non-peak times and from this Summer even on a few of the buses making it possible to travel even further a field. Cycling is relatively easy and safe, out in the suburbs there is very little traffic especially compared to where we used to live on the outskirts of a big city in the UK. Most pavements are cycle ways as well as footpaths so children do not have to cycle out on the road and even in Stockholm city centre there are many designated cycle tracks which keep you off the roads.

All this walking and cycling means that the family is healthier and I am continually amazed by my children's stamina levels, they certainly know what their legs are for.
 

After being stuck at home with a sick child all week, and another who had to be home because of logistical issues (1+1= 2 bickering kids), I was oh so grateful to get out today, head into town and get some exercise.

Kieran has strep throat - a first for us although an apparently common childhood sickness. It also meant that we were in quarantine once we got the diagnosis - two days of antibiotics to kill off the bacteria that had infested this throat and ears - and that was after he had been at home on the couch for 3 days! Mum wondered what that was called in Aussieland and I'm still not sure - perhaps we just never got it as kids. Still, she was glad that the doc didn't give antibiotics for a virus - little does she know that docs NEVER give antibiotics here unless they have to, and NEVER for a virus - only for bacterial infections!! Many complain about how hard it is to get the GPs to write prescriptions, and even then they are pretty mild doses - not a bad thing if you ask me.

So, 5 days later, a little boy who is revived and full of energy - sick of lying around and ready to have fun. And a big sister who had also been home because of logistical issues who was absolutely bored. Add to that a man who is in the busy period of his year and who is even less keen than usual to leave the cave and go on adventures.

Just to spice things up a bit none of our friends wanted to come out and play this weekend, they were all busy with their lives - lives that didn't include us(!) - hear the indignation in my voice? ;-)

AND if that wasn't bad enough one of my closest friends broke the news to me of her inevitable departure......

Luckily we got out on the bikes today and saved the weekend. Feeling ridiculous I put on suncream this morning and packed our raincoats along with our picnic and off we went. With Kieran on the back of Ty's bike and Makaila in the chariot towed by me we headed through town and over to Gärdet to Barnvagnsrullet.

Barnvagnsrullet is a family day organised in Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmö and sponsored by Metro. The sponsoring was so good in fact that the little gocarts, the facepainting, and the novelty balloons were all free if you could endure the long queue. There were also a few sponsors giving out free stuff and a quiz walk (tipspromenad) with prizes being lotted out to those with correct answers. It was a fun, festive kind of atmosphere and the kids enjoyed watching the facepainting, paddling in the water and hanging out at the TomTits stand. Makaila had a turn at the gocarts and we ate our lunch listening to the music and watching all the activities.

The kids swapped spots for the journey home which meant Kieran could nap in the chariot while Makaila got a faster ride. And she wants to know why I get upset when her father rides his bike without any hands!! Sure its fun but not with my daughter on the back!

I do love riding the bikes into town - there is a lot happening, a lot to see as we rode along the waterfront the kids saw boats & ferries, ducks, dogs, people walking, kids playing, trains, trams, buses and all the other things that interest little kids. There is always a chance a crazy person will step out in front of you so being in the driver's seat you need to stay focused. Saying that we almost only rode on bike paths in and back and any pedestrian crossings are clearly marked so you can be ready to brake, just in case. You see so much more on a bike, you smell it, you feel a part of it. Bicycles and Stockholm are a fantastic combination.

We only did a 20km round trip but there are several hills and a big bridge to be encountered along the way, so my legs are feeling it tonight - that best kind of tiredness. And I am so glad I put on the sunscreen, Ty is looking very red here beside me....