Tagged: borkborkbork!

21
Jun
2025

SOLSTICE RUMINATIONS

Happy summer solstice! Glad midsommar! What a difference a couple of weeks, good medical care, a definite diagnosis, and wonder drugs makes. I’m still easily tired, which isn’t surprising considering I’ve been so housebound and sedentary. I hope to start walking again soon. We’ve had a full week of the most beautiful weather: sunny, blue skies, a little breeze, perfect temperatures, cool evenings. If the whole summer was like this, I’d be perfectly happy. Yesterday was midsummer in Sweden, a day off, and one of the biggest holidays of the year. I was up early as has been the case...

21
Jul
2023

TIP-TO-TIP: HALF-DAY ON ÅLAND, ANOTHER FERRY RIDE, STOCKHOLM, AND HOME

Our ferry didn’t leave Mariehamn until 2:30 pm so we had all morning to enjoy the town, after eating breakfast, checking out and packing the car. We walked back up the shopping street (where everything was open!) and over to the Maritime Quarter again, where we toured the little museum, visited some shops and the Beacon. It was sunny and hot and beautiful along the water. We came back down and did some shopping in town as well. I found a Moomin charm for my country charm bracelet (had already bought a little silver reindeer horn to symbolize being in...

20
Jul
2023

TIP-TO-TIP: FERRY RIDE AND 2 NIGHTS ON ÅLAND

We got up quite early and left Loimaa to drive to Åbo (Turku) on the coast of Finland, where we caught the Viking Line ferry to Åland. The ferry ride is 5+ hours, so we had breakfast on the boat. We sat inside for a bit, then went out on the Vista Sundeck on the back of the boat, which was lovely. Sitting in the sun and the wind watching the islands slide by. The boat was HUGE and the archipelago was extensive, lots and lots of rocky islands covered in, you guessed it: pines and birch trees. We got...

17
Jul
2023

TIP-TO-TIP: FINLAND, KILPISJÄRVI, AND TRERIKSRÖSET

I had to laugh after we started planning this trip, because I Googled Treriksröset and discovered it was a big clump of concrete out in the middle of a lake, 11 kilometers into a national nature preserve without any roads. Sounds exactly like my kind of vacation destination, doesn’t it? Heh. But it was on Anders’ bucket list, and to be honest, the trip itself sounded pretty epic, going from tip to tip in Sweden. I was a little unsure of being able to do it, since there are no bathrooms once you get on the boat, and then you...

16
Jul
2023

TIP-TO-TIP: JOKKMOKK, JUKKASJÄRVI, AND THE ICE HOTEL

We got up early at the Treehotel, walked over to the shower facilities in the early morning, giving the mosquitoes their breakfast, before getting ours at the main building, which was delicious. Then we drove to Jokkmokk. I’ve always wanted to visit Jokkmokk, which is right on the Arctic Circle, because it’s where my first Swedish friend, from SEVENTH grade (in The Netherlands) was from. I’m still FB friends with her, but I haven’t seen her since we were 14. Jokkmokk was lovely, and we saw all the sights: the old church (actually a replica, because the original burned down...

14
Jul
2023

TIP-TO-TIP: SUNDBORN, GÄVLE, HÖGA KUSTEN

After a delicious breakfast on the terrace in the sun, we said goodbye to Trollnäs and headed over to Sundborn for a tour of Carl and Karin Larsson’s home and gardens. It’s one of the most visited homes in Sweden and Carl Larsson one of the most beloved artists. His wife Karin was an artist as well, painting and textiles, but was very much overshadowed by her more famous husband during their lifetimes. The gardens and water were lovely, and the house super interesting, but we were not allowed to take photos inside, which was a pity because the house...

13
Jul
2023

TIP-TO-TIP: SMYGEHUK TO FALUN

We started our trip on Tuesday, June 27, by spending the night at Debbie and Ola’s AirBNB, which is a little 1-room apartment at the back of their garage extension. Debbie wasn’t home but we had a nice couple of hours chatting with Ola. This meant we were already down south for the start of our trip: at the southernmost tip of Sweden: Smygehuk. I’ve actually been there once before, but it was before we moved here, when we were on an apartment-hunting trip. This was the third attempt on Anders’ part to do this trip. He was stymied several...

23
Jun
2023

READY, SET, GO

Today’s my first day of vacation, though it’s actually a day off because it’s a holiday here in Sweden: Midsummer Eve. Tomorrow is Midsummer Day, which is a bit weird because the actual summer solstice was 2 days ago on Wednesday, June 21. Sweden celebrates midsummer eve on the Friday closest to the solstice, though, so it FEELS like today is the longest day of the year, even though we’re actually already on the downward slide to darkness. It’s Anders’ first day of vacation, too, though he said he has a couple of work things he has to deal with....

29
May
2023

ALONELIER

How much time do you spend alone? Are you lonely when you’re alone? I don’t know why I’m even asking YOU, the hypothetical reader, when I know it’s basically 3 people who sporadically read this blog, and while asking a direct question might elicit a comment, my question is mostly rhetorical. I’m alone a LOT. Martin has moved out, Anders is traveling all the time for work, Karin is home occasionally, but not every night, not by a long shot, even though she technically lives here, and while I am out some evenings and have plans and do things, I’m...

15
Jan
2023

MOOSE ON THE LOOSE

We left home just before 5 pm yesterday, dropping off Martin at the bus stop in Gårdstånga on our way to Klippan for Mats’ surprise birthday party. It was, of course, already dark, and, of course, raining. It’s been raining every day for at least a couple of weeks, and due to the cloud cover, it gets very dark early. No feeling of lightening at all, even though we passed the solstice several weeks ago. It takes about 45 minutes to drive to Mats and Annelott’s house outside of Ljungbyhed, but the party took place at Norrehus, on the north...

October 2025
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