When I moved to Stockholm as a new student, one of the first things I did was explore the area around me. Living in Teknikringen student accommodation, I didn’t have to wander far to stumble upon historic parts of the city…
Stockholms stadion (or as most of us call it, just Stadion), is a stadium built for the 1912 Summer Olympics. It’s one of the oldest active Olympic stadiums in the world, serving as a venue for sports events, concerts, conferences, and public recreation.
Even cooler, it’s practically in KTH’s backyard. It’s located east of main campus, just one metro stop down the red line — though if you’re seeking it out from campus, the five-minute walk through forest trails, or straight shot down the tree-lined boulevard Vallhallavägen are more scenic routes to get there.
The other weekend, I joined some friends at the last minute for a rugby match between the Swedish men’s national team and their opponents from the Czech Republic. Sweden ended up winning, I got to experience my first live rugby match, and my friends and I scored seats in the historic royal grandstand. It was a good choice to tag along.
But Stadion plays host to plenty of other functions and events worth checking out as a student. For recreation, you can run there to get a workout on the track during open hours or check out its transformation into a public nordic ski track in the winter. Although I’ve only heard concerts from a distance (through the decades, the stadium has hosted names like Avicii, U2, Michael Jackson, Coldplay, and Elton John), keeping an eye on the official calendar could be worth it too. And of course, you can attend and/or participate in sports competitions, like the Stockholm Marathon next weekend, if you’re into that.
If you have time before classes start this September, or in your free time as a history buff, it’s worth checking out how different historic areas of Stockholm are doing today…
// Claire