Saturday

We planned to go up to the cabin today to escape the heat. The forecast called for afternoon temperatures in the 80’s

Karin woke up early, put on some coffee and powered up the Laptop. Princess Victoria and Daniel Westling were to be wed over in Stockholm and it was televised live over the Internet.

I stumbled out of bed a little after eight in the morning and went downstairs. In an excited voice she called me over to watch the commencement of the wedding vows. Cameras had been place all around inside “Storkyrkan”, a stone church built sometime in the 1200’s, so as to capture every angle and emotion of the young couple.

I glanced over to the kitchen table where the Salt Lake Tribune had been placed. The headlines were just another long-winded, eyewitness’s detailed account of the execution of convicted killer Rodney Gardner. I decided to bring the paper up to the cabin; maybe we could use it to start a fire in the stove.

“skynda på” she called out. All of Sweden had become glued to the television for this monumental event. Stockholm was basically shut down as the population poured out onto the streets around Gamla Stan, where the wedding ceremony was to take place. Estimates put the crowd at around half a million. The church was filled with royalty and dignitaries from Sweden and neighboring countries. It was the premier event to be at; especially for those fortunate enough to warrant an invitation.

Soon they were out the door and climbing onto a horse drawn carriage, ornately decorated in royal fashion for a promenade around the town. The route had carefully been planned out to offer the most exposure for the newlyweds to the general population. And the population was out to see them today! Security guards dressed in suits ran along side the carriage, as the rest of the police and military opened up a wide berth along the crowded streets for the procession. They finally made their way over to Djurgarden and the Wasa museum to board an elaborately, gold decorated boat for a trip back to the castle on Gamla Stan. The “Slottet”, as they would call it was where the evening banquet dinner was to be held. They pushed off without a motor; the driving force was a crew of fourteen rowers in full uniform.

We both thought, just what would we have to do to be invited for that dinner.

Richard Boyer