Party Time at the Sauna

Or rather, I should say, on the nude sun-bathing deck perched on the cliffs overlooking the sauna and surrounding docks. This post is late by a couple weeks - the party was August 25 - but I will write it anyway as a tribute to one of Stockholm's few beautiful, warm(ish) evenings this summer.*

For a fee of 200sek (that's about $30US), guests received a fruity welcome drink (or two); a buffet meal of fresh salmon, potatoes, and salad; an incredible, homemade chocolate raspberry pie; and all the chili nuts we could get our hands on. The classic Swedish BYOB applied - and guests certainly took advantage, some toting liters of vodka and whiskey. 

Built over 50 years ago, this partially-covered, wooden sun deck of Fredhällbadet overlooks Lake Mälaren and the islands Störa and Lilla Essingen. Despite it's central location, this corner of the island is tucked away and feels like a semi-escape from the city. 

Our presence at this annual jubilation dropped the average age by about 35 years - but that didn't mean our fellow sauna-ers couldn't party. The nearly full moon lit up the deck as we danced to the gubbrock band - "old-man rock" band - late into the night... or perhaps not so very late for us considering most of the others were still going strong when we bid our goodbyes. 

And the quote of the night: "I didn't recognize her with clothes on," whispered on more than a few occasions. Oh the joys of our naked sauna club.

*I can officially report that the temperature rose above 25°C (77°F) on a total of 5 days over the entire summer in Stockholm.