Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Legal Public Drinking in Stockholm

The weather in Stockholm has been sunny and warm. Some might even describe it as spring-like. Which would be an accurate description. It is spring.

During the spring and summer months, people throughout Stockholm can be found outside. Many of them drinking in the various restaurants and cafés that offer outdoor seating. But also in parks.

For some reason, a few people have asked me lately where you can and cannot drink in public. As if I am some sort of wealth of knowledge. Or an alcoholic. I’d like to think the former.

My standard answer, because I don’t know the different parks off the top of my head is this: Once the weather starts warming up, the newspapers, like Metro, tend to print a list of where you can and cannot drink.

True to form, proving, beyond a shadow of a doubt that I am in fact a wealth of knowledge, Metro did print it. (Take a second to re-read that sentence. The clichés are amazing.) Anyway, this was printed quite a few days ago. But while fountain-y and knowledgeable, I am sometimes lazy. And I also couldn’t find the newspaper that I had specifically saved for this very purpose. But I found it.

Apparently, there are a few different options. Drinking legal all the time. Drinking legal some of the time. Drinking not legal. Since the aforementioned latter option might be possible, I have chosen to list only the parks where drinking is legal all of the time:

Hagaparken
Gärdet
Djurgården (except Galärparken-Lejonparken)
Observatorielunden (except Dammen)
Långholmen
Tantolunden

Keep in mind, that when I say drinking is legal all of the time in these areas, it is under the impression that you are not an idiot. Trashing the park is not ok. Drinking yourself beyond recognition is not ok. Legal means legal within reason.

I write this not because I actually am concerned about your drinking. But because I am selfish. I play under the "don’t ruin it for others" rules. And I figure if too many people are idiots then no parks will be legal. And that ruins it for me.

For a more complete link, check out the Metro from Friday the 24th of April (link broken Im afraid).

Welcome to Sweden. And drinking in parks.

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9 comments:

  1. This is too funny! I think not having any public drinking at parks here in Canada has caused a proliferation of beer tents during holidays (ie. Canada Day), outdoor festivals, and even more so, there are licenced patios pretty much everywhere. Too bad it doesn't feel like summer yet. On Monday it was 25 degrees and this weekend it is dropping to -2 degrees!

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  2. Stumbled upon your blog, interesting read!

    /Heather
    An American-Swede in Sweden since 1997 but moving back to Buffalo, NY this summer :)

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  3. so who's wine merchant!?hairy!!
    no he is n't ! Is he?

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  4. Come on, some more posts? Enjoying the sunshine just a little too much, are we? Get in front of your computer and write some more funny posts! Right now, Mister!

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  5. @Néstor - thats quite the change in temperature from 25 to -2. Gotta love living up in those northern latitudes.

    @Heather - glad you found it. Good luck with the move!

    @Mike - Definitely not in Sweden.

    @Robban - sorry... I've been worthless. I'll see what I can do. Stay with me.

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  6. Don't worry, you're forgiven. Don't let it happen again, though.

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  7. Ill keep that in mind. I've managed to pop out two posts in a row now though. thats gotta count for something.

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  8. Darn! Metro took down the newspaper article, or they changed the URL. Stupid.

    Anyone have an updated list on drinking in the parks?

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  9. so lame. I cant find an updated one Im afraid. anyone else?

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