#RoyalVisitSweden: a winter's walk

It was picture postcard perfect. A future king and queen, along with their consorts, took a stroll through Stockholm in the snow. As #RoyalVisitSweden got well and truly under way, Kate and William were treated to a proper winter wonderland in Stockholm.


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The wintry walk came hot on the heels of a morning playing bandy hockey which resulted in a win for the always competitive William before the Cambridges headed off to the Royal Palace for an official welcoe. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were treated to lunch by their hosts, King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia. Also there were Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel who would be looking after William and Kate for most of the afternoon. Cue those very royal visit photos of everyone lining up and trying not to look like they're waiting for a bus.

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William and Kate had a whole afternoon of events lined up but there were no carriages for these royals. Along with Victoria and Daniel they strolled through the cobbled streets of the Swedish capital to Stortorget in Stockholm Old Town and very pretty it looked, too.

Hertigparet av Cambridge i Sverige – dag 1. På morgondagens program står bland annat besök på Karolinska institutet och Matteusskolan. Kronprinsessparet tar emot Hertigparet på Haga slott och en mottagning hålls på Fotografiska. 🎥:Kaffegruppen/Kungahuset.se #kungahuset

A post shared by Kungahuset (@kungahuset) on Jan 30, 2018 at 8:56am PST

Victoria and Daniel were very attentive hosts, chatting happily all the way along the stroll. The four royals stopped for a quick walkabout as they reached their destination, the Nobel Museum. Then it was time for the science part.  The royals were given a tour of the museum (most likely Victoria and Daniel could have done that part themselves given the Swedish Royal Family's long association with the famous prizes) and were given an overview of the science on show.



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William and Kate then headed off to ArkDes, Sweden's national centre of architecture and design. Kate made everyone very happy by sitting in an armchair for about a nanosecond (cue endless remarks about putting her feet up) and then confirming that she's got some IKEA furniture for George and Charlotte. It wipes clean, what's not to like with a 4 and a 2 year old in the house?  



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William did trying out chairs in a slightly more awkward manner although to be fair, perching on a dining chair is harder work than the comfy cosy seat.  On a serious note, there was also the chance to hear about some of the work that has put Sweden at the front of interior design as the country remembers Ingvar Kampard, the founder of IKEA, who died at the weekend at the age of 91.



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The couple seemed particularly happy to be at ArkDes with lots of animated chat and questions. It brought the main part of day one of this tour to an end but don't worry, you get a gala. Kate and William were heading off for a black tie dinner at the British Embassy in Stockholm to end their first day in Sweden.....get ready for the glitz.

Photo credit: kungahuset Instagram