World Traveller...

So, next year, sometime around the Swedish Midsommar (I hope), Alex and I will be taking off to spend some time in Sweden. I can't wait. I love traveling. I watch travel shows with a passion and shows where people up and move to a new country. It's my dream and one day I hope it will come true. Until then, there are several places on my bucket list. So, there they are in no particular order.

Sweden. What's that, you say? I've already been there? Well, yes, that's true. I have been to Stockholm, Karlstad, and Gotland but there are so many other beautiful areas of Sweden that I have to keep it on my list. Who am I kidding! Sweden is my dream home but I do want to see it all. Goteberg, Uppsala, the great northern Laplands, spend a couple of night in the ice hotel and see the Northern Lights as they are meant to be seen. Beautiful!

Ireland. This is the land of my grandparents and I have friends who have been there and they've reported that it's the greenest, most friendly place in the world. I long to have a pint at the local pub and sing songs with the locals.

Poland. Also the land of my grandparents. I want to walk the historic streets and see where the world took over and tried to kill the Polish spirit. I want to revel in the tenacity of a people so strong in their country and conviction that they survived it all and still have a national pride and quiet soul that cannot be matched.

Russia. As a kid I used to look at travel books and marvel at the surreal beauty of Russian architect from the days of Czar Nicholas. It's all still there and I want to see it for myself. There is a mystery and romance to old Russia, not to mention the political history that once challenged the world.

Japan. As a teen ager I had a pen pal in Tokyo who, for a short time, would send me the most amazing photos of temples and Japanese gardens. So serene. Later, I would see images of modern day Tokyo with it's bustle and lights and all I could think of was I want to see that for myself! My brother was stationed in Japan for a while and I had always hoped to go over to visit him while he was there but I never got the chance. Now, Japan is on my list so one day...

Thailand. My brother was also stationed in Thailand for a time. The photos he would send back showed a land of great beauty, people of deep dignity and views of panoramic proportions that took my breath away. I watched in horror ask the tsunami ravaged Phucket and the coastal areas and tales of death and destruction came daily on the news. Now, it's all coming back. Returning to it's natural beauty and previous stunning glory. I want to see it.

China. My friend Arsh just came back from China and his photos of him standing on the Great Wall are amazing. I have to see it. I just have to!

New Zealand. I've seen views of green tree covered cliffs falling off into waterfalls of crystal blue. Seriously. Who wouldn't want to go there?

Africa. I know, that's an enormous continent and there are so many parts I would love to see. I would love to see the Zinder bush in Niger. I've befriended a fellow blogger who works for an organization there called the Eden Foundation which teaches local indigenous people what can grow and be harvested for good, nutritious meals thereby erasing famine. Want to see that! Also want to see Victoria Falls! Want to go on safari to see wild beasts close up and sleep under the African stars while hearing lions panting just yards away. I want to wash an elephant in a river and see hippos in their natural habitat.

Not to be outdone, the US has some places I have yet to see and they are also on my list.
Hawaii. Again, a nephew was living there and I missed the chance to go visit him. Ah well, Hawaii is still on the list and I have to see it.

Alaska. I want to take one of those Alaskan cruises to see whales beaching and sea lions playing. Alaska is one of our last wild lands in the US and I hope I can see it before it's gone.

Yosemite! I have never been there! I want to see it and camp there and take it all in!

Oh there are so many places I want to see. I wish I was independently wealthy and could just plan these trips and go. Until then I will be reading about them, and watching the Travel Channel and wishing and hoping and dreaming.

Longing for my beloved Sweden...

So here I am married to a full blooded recently displaced Swede who I would have thought by now would be somewhat homesick for the mother land. Maybe he is but Swede's don't always talk about how they feel. I, on the other hand, am absolutely DYING to book a flight and get the heck outta Dodge! I want to go to Sweden so badly right now that I find myself spending time scouring the Internet for Swedish news, Swedish information, Swedish pictures, Swedish real estate, etc. I've been looking over the photos I have from past trips and remember each moment fondly.

Dammit, I want to be there.

I can't really explain why I love Sweden so much. From the first time I was there, for a short two week trip in the winter when it was mostly dark, I loved it. My love was amplified when I returned in the summer months when it was warm and the bright days lasted well past bedtime. There is such a blend of old and new there. Such an appreciation for culture and art and literature and creativity and self expression yet there is a sensibility there too that keeps things practical, clean and useful.

You'd be hard pressed to find anything you could describe as excessive in Sweden. Except for perhaps the excessive natural beauty of the landscape - even in the big cities. There is a melding of the green and growth and civilization that is important to everyone. I did not see any blight when I was there. I saw urban areas surrounding by parks, trees and water. I saw trains running past open sky and over water. I rode buses into the wooded areas which existed right next to the residential areas. The Swedes just get it, you know? They don't tear things down and make things sterile. They celebrate their heritage and make the new stuff work alongside the old. All while looking to the future.

Yeah, I love the place. I love the people. I wish I was leaving tomorrow!

Wanderlust...

Heading into the work week my mind is still full of the thoughts I was having over the weekend. I'm longing to go somewhere. I know this is because it's summer and summer is the time when I would get to go on some kind of vacation. This year it's not possible and, I gotta tell you, it's getting hard to concentrate on anything because I am really wanting to go away.

It doesn't help that I have so many great Internet friends from all over the world you have been posting photos of summer in their homelands. I pour over their blogs and emails and wish that I was there.

There's Esther, who is now in Sweden on her own vacation, but who lives in Niger and each day she posts absolutely beautiful photos of what's going on at the Eden Foundation. Those bright blue skies and brilliant sunsets are stunning!

Then there's Lilly, who now lives in Sweden, and she posts her latest attempts at cooking and baking and tells her readers of the things she's learning as she assimilates to living in a foreign country.

There's the rest of the "Fikaganget" - that great group of people who share their days with me, some abroad, some right here in the US, all of them interesting, lovely people.

I am longing to travel. I want to pack up, get on a plane and go. I know exactly where I would go too. It should be no surprise that I would go to Sweden, given the chance. And one of these days I will...and I won't be coming back.

The arrival...

Wow, yesterday was stressful. We got hit with a huge winter storm that dumped piles of snow on us. All around me airports were closing. There was no way to get to work. Everything came to a stop. And Alex was on his way. I worried all day that his plane would not be able to land at O'Hare but, amazingly, O'Hare was the one airport that didn't close down entirely. His connecting flight in Zurich was late which also helped in the long run because it meant he missed the worst part of the storm. All in all, he traveled over 14 hours but he got here, safe and sound, and I couldn't be happier! (there will be a slight pause in this blog right now as I am dancing around the room, flailing my arms and legs and singing "w00t! w00t!...)

ok...I'm back.

Today we're off to do the shopping, get some goodies, and just run around in general. And just be together. Because I swear there is no better feeling in the world than that. Everything is right with the world.

Today...

Alex is about one hour away from landing at O'Hare. Can't wait...can't wait...can't wait...can't wait...can't wait...can't wait!!!

Homesick?

Is it possible to be homesick for a place that you have never really lived?

I've been to Stockholm only twice but, I can tell you, the very first time I visited there I felt a pull to that city that I have never felt before. I'm sure that, in part, it has something to do with the fact that Alex lives there and I have friends there but I think it is something more. Right from the start, I felt completely comfortable there. There is something about the urban coolness of the city itself that gets to me. More than that though, the people there are so inviting, warm and kind. They really made me feel at home. They have a certain quiet pride in where they live and, boy, do they have reason to be proud.

Stockholm is clean, bright, welcoming and exciting. It's a forward thinking city but has a deep respect for it's history. And even though it is a bustling, busy crowded place - it has all the charm of a close knit neighborhood.

Today I woke up late and wandered around in my pj's finally settling down to a cup of coffee in front of the television. What came on? Scandinavian Cooking on PBS - and it was all taking place in Stockholm and it was focusing on those places I had seen and loved and my heart just blew up! I want to be there. I want to live there. I love that city! I love it so much I should work for the Swedish tourism board because I would be the BEST ad they could ever have! Haha!

If you travel and haven't been to Sweden for heaven's sake - GO! And take me with you, okay?

Why Is Getting There So Difficult?

For the past year or so I've been looking into the possibility of living and working in Sweden. After writing numerous letters of introduction and inquiries to various and sundry bureaus and potential employers, I am no closer to that dream than before. I refuse to give up this mission...flat out refuse. Certainly other people have packed up and moved there and made a life for themselves so, I've come to believe, that either I am missing something very obvious or I am making this harder than it needs to be! I've even learned a little Swedish in preparation though I know that virtually all Swedes speak English. I am proud to say that now I can ask directions, say excuse me, politely accept the invitation to have something to eat and ask someone back to my place for a drink! There were only ten lessons in the Pimsleur Swedish Language Program I purchased so that's all the further I got! Handy stuff to know if I want to go there and pick up random men for a night cap! haha!

There are so many reasons I want to live in Sweden. First, the history and the culture there is unlike any I have ever seen. It's well preserved, almost revered, in a quiet unassuming way. Stockholm is one of the most exciting and beautiful cities I've ever seen. I feel completely at home there.

I spent about a month in Stockholm last July. It was my second visit. I ate in it's restaurants, traveled it's roads, drank in it's pubs and took a boat tour of the Archipelago. I also spent one week in Gotland, an island off the coast of Sweden. I trekked the island, walking the historic streets of Visby and climbing the amazing rock formations at Faro. But most of all, I spent that month with dear friends feeling very, very loved. Why wouldn't I want that for the rest of my life? Damn it! I will get there. I know I will.

I'll send you all a postcard when I make it!