The smell of coffee | how to savor your daily cup of Joe

I think Sweden has given me a coffee addiction.  I was certainly no stranger to the hastily-bought mocha on the way to class during my undergraduate years (and I will always have the fondest memories of afternoon coffee dates with friends at our little campus cafe, The Grind), but it wasn't a regular habit until I moved to Uppsala.  The typical collegiate American's coffee intake is laughable in comparison to that of the average Swede.  Only Finland natives drink more per capita.  Maybe it's to stay awake during all those long nights, I'm not sure, but the Nordic countries have institutionalized the daily cup o' Joe.

The untranslatable Swedish word fika describes the daily tradition of taking time for a coffee-and-pastry break (or two or three...) with friends or coworkers.  I just love this Kinfolk article about fika, as well as the cheeky Gevalia advertisement at the end of this article.  The idea of fika gets at the pause-button effect of drinking coffee.  It's a practice that embodies the temptation to siesta at any time of day.

But I also love waking up with coffee.  Personally, the smell of coffee will always be my favorite part of the experience.  It reminds me of Sunday mornings at home as a child.  My father always puts a huge spoonful of cinnamon in with the grounds, and that will always be my favorite smell/flavor.  Whether you're a morning person who starts the day with an automated coffeepot, or an afternoon cafe-frequenter like myself, here are my humble suggestions for savoring your daily cuppa.

1. Invest in a French press.  I recently got myself the classic Bodum Chambord, and there is no more aesthetically pleasing or simple way to make your own coffee than tossing the grounds in the bottom of a French press, filling it with boiled water, and then taking it to your cozy corner of the apartment and kicking back.
2. Clear your desk.  Coffee drinking is best suited for reading the news, checking your social media, and curling up with that book you've been letting gather dust on the windowsill.
3. Find your favorites.  Your favorite cafe, your favorite barista... or perhaps your favorite brewer (mine is the Swedish brand Arvid Nordquist).  Whatever atmosphere or taste makes the experience yours.
4. Have it your way.  The personalization doesn't end with the package.  Add a bit of cinnamon or even some cocoa powder when brewing your own coffee.  And after pouring, don't forget to add milk, cream, sugar, Stevia - whatever makes it particularly delicious to you!
5. Pair with the perfect treat.  Whether it's a morning croissant and egg, a Swedish cinnamon bun, or a slice of chocolate cake after dinner, coffee is lonely without something scrumptious to complement the flavor.
6. Read something.  Morning news?  Tumblr?  Your favorite food blog?  The newest issue of Elle or The Economist?  Or maybe a couple chapters of Game of Thrones if you're feeling ambitious... find the perfect read to go with that lazy weekend coffee.
7. Drink outside.  Whether it's a warm summer afternoon at a busy street cafe, a rainy morning on the porch of your house, or a day with snow falling past your apartment balcony, take at least a few moments to stand or sit outside and sip your cuppa while breathing fresh air and taking in the world around you.
8. Fika with a friend.  Having a cup of coffee can be a great retreat to clear your head, but obviously it's also a fantastic social lubricant.  Make a pot and invite a friend over, or meet an acquaintance you want to get to know better out at your favorite coffeehouse. 
9. Savor.  Take your time with that first sip.  Make sure you breathe in before you sip, inhaling the aroma.  Sip, savor, smile.  Repeat.

24 hours in Stockholm

The Venice of the North.  Spanning fourteen islands, and situated within a wider archipelago made up of tens of thousands more, Stockholm is a city well-acquainted with the sea. So the best way to get acquainted with the city is by boat.  Start your day on a Stockholm Sightseeing tour, such as "Under the Bridges of Stockholm," which will take you for a couple hours out around the city.  The Baltic and giant Lake Mälaren meet among its many waterways, and you'll be able to see everything from the main skyline of Östermalm (above, top) to the Brooklyn-esque island district of Södermalm.

Of course you'll eventually want to explore these areas on foot.  Stockholm is a very livable city: it's clean, crime and homelessness are low; there's an unbelievable number of places to shop, eat, and sit down for a cozy fika; and there are cultural must-sees for everyone, from the Skansen to the ABBA Museum to Vasamuseet, a museum containing an entire salvaged 17th-century ship that sank off the coast of Sweden. Skansen is the Swedish version of Colonial Williamsburg, only it's way more epic because it covers practically half of the Stockholm island of Djurgården, and it includes a zoo of Nordic animals.  If you want to feel like you've walked through Swedish history and gotten a glimpse of all the regions - including the northern Sami villages - simply visit Skansen.  The park is a vast expanse of recreated farmsteads and timber sheds, mills and belfries, glass workshops and stables...  It's a beautiful, immersing experience.  My personal favorite was seeing the Sami village reindeer (photo below), and watching the wolf pack in the zoo.  There are also squirrels and peacocks that run all over the park, and be warned - they're not afraid of people!

Making your way through the main bustling district of Norrmalm around the Central Station, pop into the Stockholm Urban Outfitters at Biblioteksgatan 5.  It's housed inside what used to be the Röda Kvarn (Moulin Rouge) of Stockholm, a beautiful old building reminiscent of an opera house (see photo below).

Make sure you take also head to the south side of town and stroll through Södermalm.  You'll spot some hipsters and find more than a couple places to buy lunch, fika, or an Indie literary magazine.  Speaking of magazines, if you want a really neat bookstore that also has a fantastic collection of old and hard-to-find DVDs and periodicals, check out Papercut.  You can see their selection on their website here.

As the sun starts to set, make sure you take a stroll through Gamla Stan, the small island at the heart of Stockholm, and the oldest district of the city.  The dusk light will lend itself to all the old orange and pink pastels of the buildings here.  In Gamla, you can step down into hovel-like cafes that were stables and wine cellars as far back as the 1500s!  You can get lost in cobbled alleyways and winding streets, only to turn a corner and find yourself before a beautiful old cathedral, a bronze sculpture atop a fountain, or perhaps the Nobel Museum, which is small and definitely worth a quick walk-through.  Make sure you step into one of the many chocolate shops or cafes and grab something sweet.

If you're staying in Stockholm for a couple days and want an awesome hostel choice, stay at the af Champan, which is the white ship pictured above.  That's right, they converted that standing ship into a hostel.  You stay in cabins below-decks.  I haven't tried it yet, but looks pretty awesome.