It feels like an age since I last wrote about Sweden. I am definitely many beers older and many Easter eggs wider, but the sun is shining, the birds are singing and everyone seems very happy.
I have found that the "in-between-y" months, March and April have been the hardest to get through. The snow has melted, the sky seems eternally grey, but we look forward to the four minute increase of extra daylight per day. The last few months have had their ups and downs, but we have survived and have been rewarded with a warm spring.
For all of you who are wondering if I'll ever come back to Australia, the decision still lies in the hands of Sweden's immigration office. Jochen and I have been sitting with our fingers and toes crossed waiting for a decision for quite a few months and you will have your answer when I'm either standing in front of you in Oz or you are reading another blog post. We will see........
Now to news of my recent adventures. It seems so easy to say that nothing has really happened, but I have had some mini adventures to do touristy things with my partners in crime. Please check out the pictures. Most recently of all Jochen and I have been on a week long camping trip around the Great Lakes area in south west Sweden (but north of Lund). I will try to give a brief description of the sets of photos and where we were.
1. Dalby Söderskog -This was back at the end of February, as you can see by the thick layer of snow. Sam and I decided to go for a walk in one of the nature reserves nearby. This was a warmer day (for the time of year) and we did a short walk through the reserve checking out woodpeckers and the squiggly, twisty trees while freezing in our boots.
2. Lund & Ystad - The first few photos are of around Lund. Sam and I decided to get some kultcha (with a K) into us by visiting The Museum of Sketches which was interesting and overwhelming. The main gallery is floor to ceiling full of sketches, paintings and sculptures, it's only downfall was that it was hard to see the forest for all the trees.
Two and a half weeks after Söderskog, Jochen and I went on a day trip to Ystad, about an hour from Lund along the south coast. As you can see, it was a lot warmer as I had changed from snow jacket back into leather. An important milestone after living in my snow jacket for 6 months. Ystad is a really pretty town, definitely worth the visit and probably worth another now that spring has hit. The buildings are even more quaint that in Lund and it has a brewery....need I say more?
3. Malmö - At the start of April, while Jochen was still in South Africa, I took myself on a day trip to Malmö. Most of you know about my fear of public transport which probably stems from the lack of efficient transport in Canberra. I'd like to point out I'm not the only one with this irrational fear (I won't name names, you know who you are), but one never knows where one will end up? I can see you shake your collective heads and tell me it's easy and to check the timetable and map, this I do, more than once. I double check the timetable, the ticket, the bus stop or train platform, the number on the bus or name on the train, then I spend the first half of the trip worrying if I actually took the wrong one. It doesn't help when the train announcements are in a mumbled southern Swedish accent and then half the people on the train run off said train and catch one on the adjoining platform. What did they bloody say on the announcement?
So I sit there wondering should I get off? What if this is one of those trains that stops somewhere random and leaves some carriages behind and gets coupled to another train going in a different direction. What if I got Helsingor (in Denmark) and Helsingborg (in Sweden) mixed up and I'm about to go in the opposite direction, end up in another country without a passport (and now they've just introduced border checks in Denmark), eeeek! The world of "what ifs" leads to an anxious little-legged person with the look of a worried potentially lost meerkat running off said train onto new train that she hasn't double checked where it's going. Process starts all over again. Hence why I love driving, it's probably a control issue but I like to think of it more as loving the open road. It's also why I like traveling with a sidekick, or rather I'm the sidekick to their super hero powers of understanding buses, trains, metro networks and airports. So the point of my Cara-Sidetrack-Story-Telling-Harrison-Story, is that I made it to Malmö (a whole 15 minutes by train away from Lund) and back all by my own self! The pictures are of a network of parks in the city, most of this album is dedicated to Mum and her love of geese.4. Great Lakes - Over the Easter weekend Jochen and I took a camping adventure up to Lake Vänern and Lake Vättern to check out a bit more of Sweden. Overall the trip was pretty fantastic. Jochen is probably the most patient man I know with the amazing skill of NOT being a back seat driver. I learned to drive on the wrong right side of the road with no crashes! We won't talk about the near misses, stalling, flustered windscreen wiper/indicator confusion or the Phenergan induced coma driving (apparently Phenergan is not only an antihistamine but a "sedative or sleep aid", who knew?). We took advantage of Allemansrätten (Right of public access), which allows one to camp anywhere in Sweden as long as you do not disturb or destroy the land. We went on a "Jochen hike" that means going off track, looking at a GPS and ending up at a restaurant that serves pork fillet with Bearnaise sauce, great views and fantastic forest. The Easter bunny came to visit so we had an Easter egg hunt. We saw some old castles, a viking boat, a wooden church, more Volvo's, VW's, windmills, tractors and horses than we've ever seen in our lives. Had a surprisingly challenging game of mini golf and enjoyed our stupidity of camping in Sweden before summer while everyone else enjoyed their caravans. At least we didn't have to fight for a tent spot. Unfortunately we missed out on seeing an Elk in the apparently most populated elk area but we did see a few cranes and my hyperactive imagination was a little scared of the lynx's, bears and wolves oh my!
5. Ales Stenar - Last of all are the photos of some rocks. Who doesn't like a good set of rocks? Sam and I went on a birthday adventure to Ales Stenar some ancient rocks placed in the shape of a viking ship overlooking the ocean further up the coast from Ystad. There are a couple of theories behind why the rocks are placed in this way. Firstly, many vikings made burial grounds in this particular shape, although not many remains have been found in this spot. Secondly, that where the stones are situated in relation to the sun makes a calender of the year, similar to a sun dial.
I hope you enjoy the photos of my adventures. I wanted to share more of what Sweden looks like especially as the seasons change. The next post will be imminent, with many flowers and animals to brighten your day.
Take care,
C.
