Stockholm Teambuilding

Published: 28.09.07

The Norwegian summer was coming to an end, and Omega employees headed eastbound to catch the last glimpses of Nordic summer. Stockholm was the destination for 42 teambuilding participants, including partners.

Enjoying the elements in the Stockholm archipelago

Wallmans Salonger gave us a captivating show

Drottningsgatan – The essential shopping street

Our collective journey started in Oslo, with people arriving from Haugesund as well as Bergen and Stavanger. After gathering up our troops at Gardermoen, we could set course for the Swedish capital. Our schedule for the weekend was rich, including dinners, cabaret shows, sightseeings, shopping and museums. At Arlanda Airport, on the outskirts of the city, we were met by our designated bus driver, a husky Swede with an apparent comprehension of the rather intricate road network on the many isles of Stockholm.

Shortly after our delayed arrival we were heading out for dinner at Stadshuskjelleren, a noble restaurant located in the basement of Stockholm’s town hall. Even if we were slightly off schedule, there was time for checking in and grooming before dining out in the Stockholm night. Stadshuskjelleren is where all the Nobel Prize winners come every year for the gala banquet following the award ceremony. Even though no Omega employees have received Nobel Prizes for their work yet, we were waited on by a skilful and formal set of waiters and waitresses. Around a table that has to be among the longest and widest in all of Sweden, 42 hungry teambuilders were easily accommodated. After enjoying delicious courses in cultured surroundings, we were taken back to the Clarion in the Södermalm area of the city for a well-deserved night’s sleep.

Our Saturday started with a boat tour around the waters of Stockholm, where the Mälaren Lake meets the Baltic Sea in a beautiful archipelago. As every participant on the trip was constantly reminded – Stockholm is situated on 14 islands, and has gradually expanded from the Stadsholmen island (the home of the Old Town, Gamla Stan). The ones who didn’t go boating spent the day exploring the (shopping) streets of the city. In spite of a fairly sizable and scattered city centre, the shopping area is concentrated around a few streets with connected shopping malls. Fortunately, this left little room for disappearances into the deep of the city. In other words, everyone turned up at the next crossroad, when we were going sightseeing.

The bus picked us up by the hotel, and we headed out towards Djurgården (“The Game Park”), an area of town that used to be hunting grounds for the royal family and friends. It has now evolved into something of a museum haven and a leisure-time area for the man in the street. Today we were those men in the street, and we were heading to The Vasa museum. This museum is dedicated to The Vasa ship that sank on her maiden voyage in 1628, minutes after departing from the shipyard. She has now been lifted up from the bottom of the sea, and is sitting in good condition inside the museum.

Our bus driver took us onward through the narrow streets of Stockholm, with the great help of our tour guide for the day, a Norwegian-Swede from Trøndelag with lots of anecdotes up her sleeve. However, the day of sight-seeing was more of a build-up to the highlight of the night.

The Saturday night was to be spent at Wallmans Salonger; a restaurant/bar/theatre that not only gave us excellent dining, but a tremendous cabaret show to go with it. We were treated to a three-course meal and thirst quenchers, and singing and dancing waiters. Our own acrobatic and harmonic waitress and her colleagues gave us a performance reminiscent of Paris’ Moulin Rouge, and we got the complete package with the midget up under the roof authoritatively gazing down on us. For some of the Omega employees this taste of the Stockholm nightlife whetted the appetite, and an attempt to explore the city at night further commenced. This proved more difficult than expected with the limited local knowledge, but it ended well with a pleasant metro ride back to Södermalm.

The following day was spent doing some more sight-seeing, this time our bus took us to Steninge Slott in the outskirts of town. Some members of the group decided to spend the day in town, and Sweden (unlike Norway) provided us with open shops and shopping malls. With tired wallets and tired legs most people headed out to Arlanda by bus, and the city shoppers used the airport express train. Even with some waiting at the airports, there were all happy faces after a fantastic weekend in Stockholm. Surely all the participants can agree that the organisers did a great job, so thanks go to Aslaug and the Service Centre!