A Winter Beauty

I am still among the few who are quite all right with the lack of snow and ice that this winter has produced.  We got a decent dusting earlier this week and the flakes were huge and fluffy.  Admittedly, it was lovely, but I hate the slippery sidewalks so I really could not care less if more snow ever came.  But even without the snow, today was a "real winter" day with a bright shining sun, an ice blue sky and cold temperatures.  Our walk through town was a stunner.  The light from the setting sun combined with a gigantic moon hovering above the horizon was quite breathtaking.  These photos were taken at about 2.00 p.m.The way the light dances off the water in a palette of pink and gold is simply dazzling.  We wandered all around Skeppsholmen and Kastelholmen.  Kastelholmen or Castle Islet, where, you guessed it, a castle sits, and Skeppsholmen, Ships Islet, are two islands that sit near downtown.  Skeppsholmen is where many old boats are moored year round.  There is also a ship building school there.  I love to see how the folks that live on these boats year round decorate the ships for Christmas!
We found this sign for the Tre Kroner conference center, memorable only to Chicagoans who know of a beloved Swedish restaurant of the same name.  Doug and I happened to get engaged there almost 18 years ago!  (The one in Chicago that is!)
It was quite fun walking around the city today with Tanner.  We hadn't taken this route in a long time and I had forgotten just how lovely the views are from this direction.  In the summer, Tanner can swim in this area and I think he was extra excited today thinking that he might get to take a dip.  No such luck.  It was about -8C.  We were glad that we had bundled up
It was a refreshing, beautiful afternoon.  Even after all these years of living here, the city still thrills me when it puts its lovely self on display.