The first candle lit today, is called the Candle of the Prophet. It reminds us of the prophecies foretelling the coming of Christ.

It’s gorgeous here at the moment. Swedish decorations are simply lovely. I have the traditional Swedish lights in the windows, brass stars (also lit), fragrant gelcandles, advent candles, tea-light candles in little Christmas houses, pine wreaths, my Julstjärnor (otherwise known as poinsetta) and even a Julbok (a straw Christmas goat – don’t ask!). I turned on the Advent stars in the windows and lit the first candle on our Advent candle holder.

Today is the first day of Advent. The streets in town are decked out with twinkling lights, the shop windows and homes are beautifully decorated with Christmas trees and flowers for Christmas viewing (Skyltsöndag, which translates as “Shop Window Sunday�). Very subtle, simple but effective Christmas displays. Nothing tacky here! All of the town lights came on when it was dark (3pm!!!)– very tasteful white lights, with uniform half circle sprays of lights on each shop, trees with twinkling fairy lights and most people with their lights in the windows. And to complete the picture, it snowed at around 10am. Just a gentle, powdery snowfall that blanketed the town and made it perfect! It looked like a picture post-card. It made me misty-eyed. We went out in the snow and checked out the first Christmas displays and admired the pretty fairy land sight. I’ll put off the tree until closer to Christmas, but I am still looking which makes Lars-Göran roll his eyes even more.

For the Swedes, Christmas provides a welcome period of warmth and festivity in the middle of winter. It is also the beginning of the ‘glögg’ party season, where guests are served traditional Swedish ‘glögg’, a hot spicy wine with raisins and almonds. But I’ll deal with food and drink another day.

Okay, now the decorations every Swedish home must have:

Hanging Stars

These are made of wood or brass and have a small lightbulb inside. They hang inside from the top of the windowframe.

Advent Candles

Ours is a terracotta holder. But they can also be made of wood or metal. They are decorated with moss and lingon berries. The only common feature they have is that there are four candles – one for each week of Advent. So week 1 we have the one candle alight. Week 2, two candles and so on.


Adventsljusstake
Every home, office, shop window has at least one (and possibly more) of these lights. In Sweden it became popular to decorate a small Christmas tree in a pot with seven candles. The candles represented not only the four Sundays of Advent, but also the three Sundays leading up to Knut's Mass Day, January 13th. Today these Advent candlesticks are electric and all candles remain lit from the first Sunday of Advent We have one in each window.



Julskomme
A julskomme is basically a small, braided, plaited or bent straw figure formed into a variety of shapes. The most common shapes are simple human and animal forms.


Julbok
The straw julbock is a popular julskomme figure that Swedes like to place under their Christmas trees. It's believed that these small figures were once made from the last shafts of the harvest crop and symbolised the power of rejuvenation and fertility. The julbock, or Christmas ram, preceded St. Nicholas as a Christmas figure in Sweden.


Julkärve
These sheaves of oats tied with a cheery red ribbon appear in shops and at Christmas markets in December. The sheaves are placed outdoors in a place that is accessible for birds (usually in tall branches difficult for cats to access).

Tying kärve is another tradition that precedes Christianity. Way back then, Swedish farmers presented the kärve to birds as a symbolic gift: sort of a plea to the birds to eat the kärve, and not the crops!


Julkrans
The doorway is decorated with a wreath made from fresh fir sprigs. The fragrance is beautiful! These can be home-made or purchased from the Christmas markets. I’ll cheat and buy mine next week at the markets. Some people also have straw ones.


And.... CANDLES!


We have red poinsettias and hyacinths as Advent and Christmas flowers. And what about a tree? Well, “We in Sweden� don’t put up the tree until the last week of Advent. So you need to keep watching this space.

To close, I leave you with my Zen thought for the day:

I read this article that said the typical symptoms of stress are: eating too much, impulse buying, and driving too fast. Are they kidding? That is my idea of a perfect day.

Till next time!

We've had a bit of snow on the ground this week, about 2 inches or so.

Fortunately, it got warm enough today to take most of it off the footpaths. Yesterday, very early, they ploughed our bike paths and walkways, taking off the lovely coarse snow that you can actually get a grip on and instead leaving behind a layer of black ice. It took me about 20 minutes to walk down to the supermarket, normally a five minute trip. I was waddling along like a pregnant woman, just hoping to avoid making butt-pavement contact.

I came back and told Lars-Göran, "That's it, I'm in for the winter", but we had a bit of rain during the night and it is already about 3C here today, so that's improved walking conditions.

So, I hear you all say, why not take the car? Well, it’s not that simple. I sometimes dream of being back in Rose Park where I could jump in my car and drive quickly to the deli at Dulwich or even down The Parade or to Burnside Village. All quite painlessly, without forward planning. Here, a simple trip to the shop a mere 2 minute drive away is akin to attempting an assault in Everest.

I offer you my pictorial essay, entitled �Going for a Litre of Milk – Swedish Style�. It is in five easy to follow steps:

Step One: Get to the car. Which of course is never parked at your apartment. We have 35 apartments in our block and 12 parking spaces. How does that work? Well, like everything in Sweden, you must queue up for a space, wait patiently for many years and hope enough people sell their apartments so you get to the front of the queue. The rest of us, who are Johhny-come-latelys, get to park in the car park owned by the kommun.



Step Two: Heat up the car keys. I kid you not! The lock will invariably be frozen over, so you will not be able to insert the key in the door to unlock it. I've tried. Just take my word for it. You need to carry either a lighter or carry the key in a plastic bag of warm water. Yeah, right!



Step Three: Try and open the car door. Try being the operative word. Often if it has been damp, then the temperature falls again, the dampness between door and frame freezes over. Brute force is sometimes necessary.



Step Four: Brush loose snow from car. We all keep little brooms of various kinds in the car glove box to help us out with this chore. I have seen people driving along brushing the snow off at the same time but this is not recommended.



Step Five: Scrape off ice. Yes, remember those weird little plastic scraper we used for defrosting those freezers back home? They are an everyday auto item in this country. If you don’t scrape the ice off, visibility, which is already poor because of fog, will be zero.



Now you are set for the trip. I don’t know about you, but I’m exhausted. Bugger the milk, I’ll learn to drink black coffee!

To close, I leave you with my Zen thought for the day:

The older you get, the tougher it is to lose weight because by then, your body and your fat are really good friends.

Till next time!

I do believe that �the silly season� is soon upon us. I know this because the Christmas paraphernalia is breeding at an alarming rate in all of the shops in town, much to the annoyance of the locals who are tut-tutting and pointing out that it is still November!

You just have to love the Swedes and their stubborn adherence to tradition despite the best efforts of commercial interests. Christmas belongs in December as far as the population of Nynäshamn is concerned and that is where it will stay. So the shops are bulging with goodies, the junk mail is piling up in the letterbox, while the Swedes wait for December 1st before getting into the spirit. Mind you, once December 1st is upon us, it will be a free-for-all!

I was reminded of this today. I spotted some really nice and inexpensive julstjärna (or the humble poinsetta).



These are typical Christmas decorations here in Sweden and I thought I’d pick up a couple today and pot them up in my Christmas pots for the coffee table. But my Swedish friend, Hjördis, stopped me. �No� she said �you MUST wait until next week. It’s very un-Swedish to buy in November!� I had to smile. But I intend to go back tomorrow and secret a couple of them home. Of course, in a town as small as this, I guess I'll get sprung.

I’m rather impatient to break out with the decorations already, but my Viking will not hear of it until next Monday. *rolls eyes* But I have been plotting and secretly checking out all of the lights and assorted things and I’ll make him decorate with me on Sunday.

The lights make a huge difference to people’s demeanour. November can be a bit grey and depressing. The summer is really over, no more lovely crisp autumn days with blue skies. It’s getting darker and darker and is often grey and foggy. Suddenly, come December 1st, everything is lit up with twinkling lights, it looks so friendly and people feel better.

Christmas lights make a lot of sense in Europe. More so than in Australia. And Christmas shopping is lovely. Yes, it’s busy, but very joyful. Not like the frantic, bad tempered stuff you get in Oz. And there is much less commercial emphasis, too. More of a time to be with those you love. God, I sound like a Mills & Boon novel. Believe me, you’ll be hearing a lot more about Sweden and Christmas in the coming weeks as it really is a six week event!

But I did want to show you just how lovely it can be now. And yes, we do live “out in the sticks�



To close, I leave you with my Zen thought for the day:

Some days you are the bug; some days you are the windshield.

Till next time!

I believe that Edmund Blackadder said it best:
The path of my life is strewn with cowpats from the devil's own satanic herd.

Yes, this is my �dealing with the bank� frustration. My husband has had an account with the Swedish bank, SEB, for I don't know how long, but maybe 30 years or more. When I arrived in Sweden, I started my own separate account with them as well. That was almost three years ago. The problem I am having is that I really need a debit card, just like I've had in Australia for about 20 years. I currently have an account with them that has money in it, and there are regular deposits each month. So, of course I can have a debit card. Can’t I?

Nooooooo, if I want a debit card - NOT a credit card, but a lousy debit card letting me access MY own money that is THERE IN THE ACCOUNT and the ability to actually use it to make purchases without having to queue up at the ATM before going shopping, then I HAVE to be employed with a Swedish company AND have a minimum income per year.

What is the reasoning behind this? The money is THERE, damn it, and I'm not asking for any extra! A debit card debits your account. That’s all. If the money's not there, it doesn't let you use it for purchases or withdrawals.

I try and patiently explain this to the customer service department at SEB. The only way I can buy with a card at a Swedish shop is to have a VISA account.
�But I don’t want a credit card�, I protest.
�Oh, no, you can’t use it for credit� they tell me with that famous �pursed lips� look. �Only for debiting from your bank account.�

So then why a VISA card, if it’s not a credit card? Well that’s just how it is. There is no way to link that debit ability I want to my ATM card.

Okay, I give up. I'll just accept that I need two different cards. Sheesh! How do I get such a card. Well, just bring proof of having a regular income with an employer here in Sweden. I see...

So, I am unable to access my own money except via an ATM. "But I have money in the account", I want to scream, but decide not to as they are already glancing at one another with that �damn foreigner� look. *sigh*

Perhaps they are taking a leaf out of Melchett's book:

If nothing else works, a total pig-headed unwillingness to look facts in the face will see us through.

And it started snowing today!



To close, I leave you with my Zen thought for the day:

The nice part about living in a small town is that when you don't know what you're doing, someone else does.

Till next time!

I've just looked out my window and concluded that the weather has just come back from the taxidermist! It is a misty day, the kind where the hero in a novel walks across a desolate moor on some specific private business, while birds cry to each other in a forlorn way. A bleak sun is trying to bring some brightness from behind the clouds, but only manages to paint the sky the colour of tobacco smoke.

I think the month I hate the most in Sweden is November. We've lost most of the beautifully coloured leaves, which are now a sodden brown mess underfoot, not even recognizable as leaves anymore. The crisp, cold October days of low temperatures but clear brilliant blue skies are a distant memory. Now we're back to temperatures hovering just above 0C, it's November and it is GREY! Most days, there has been a light mist falling or a drizzling rain and grey, grey, grey. I find myself longing for the snow again.

Compare October and November in these pictures! First we have a shot of the bay near our boat club (Fagerviken)



And the pathway along Svandamen in October


And the view of the church


And the contrast with November!


It’s a quiet week for me as my husband and his friends have left for Germany. They are collecting a yacht at Kiel and sailing it back to Sweden. He called me earlier today to report rain, fog and high winds in Kiel. But they have set off for home and expect to be here on Sunday night, sailing round the clock in shifts.

It’s funny that when he’s here, I always have interesting meals. I mean I LOVE to cook and he enjoys all of the food I make. But without him, I don’t really bother too much and I've been slumming it on toasted cheese sandwiches and eggs. Talk about slack!

It’s getting darker every day and I hate getting out of bed when it’s still dark. It’s barely light by 9.00am! And it is quite dispiriting to out of school at 3.30pm and finding it dark again. It always seems to be night at this time of year. I fight the strong urge to put on the pj’s and fluffy slippers at 4.00pm! What has helped to brighten up my day (literally) is our recent purchase of a Philips Bright Light. Seasonl Affective Disorder, also known as SAD or winter depression is quite common in these northern regions. It seems to be directly linked to the amount of sunlight the body gets (or doesn’t get). So we decided that we could all do with a bit of a sunbath each day during winter.

Anyway, I’m off to do the exciting laundry and check out the web for Christmas concerts in town. I’m particularly looking for a recital of Handel’s Messiah or Bach’s Mass in B Minor. This music was written for beautiful old churches like we have in Sweden, not modern concert halls. You have to have the soaring vaulting to really get the feel for it. More about that another time.

To close, I leave you with my Zen thought for the day:
Everyone seems normal until you get to know them.

Till next time!

Hi fellow Aussies.

This is intended as a bit of a tongue-in-cheek guide to living and acclimatising to life in Sweden as well as seeing just how the Swedes adapt to an invader from Down Under. It is meant to be light-hearted and while I'll probably crap on incessantly about my life here, don't expect any weekly laundry list of embarrassing facts about me. Oh, and I tend to put a lot of hyperlinks in posts as people may be interested in seeing an example of what I'm chatting about, as I realise Sweden is pretty much an unknown place outside of Scandinavia.

So, who am I? I'm an Australian woman, born and bred (some would say inbred, but we'll leave that for the time being) in sunny Adelaide. Now, in my fabulous forties, I find myself residing in the east of Sweden, in the small fishing town of Nynäshamn. How did I end up here? Well, it's the typical story of boy joins website, girl visits website, girl ends up at the North Pole (or near enough to it).

At the moment it's dark and cold and a long way from "home", and it doesn't have cool things like Vegemite and Violet Crumbles, but really there's no place I'd rather be living. I live here with my Swedish husband (Lars-Göran), my extremely indulged white toy poodle, Lambi, and my two cockateils (a brilliant reminder of home!) Bruce and Sheila. You can see Lars-Göran and I in this photo.



I spend my time learning Swedish, working on websites and indulging in a passion for sailing. We have a beautiful yacht, and we are fortunate to live in the wonderful environment of the Stockholm Archipelago, so expect to hear a bit about life aboard and as well as the many places we visit. And don't think that you'll be spared until next summer. Our boat stays in the water all year and we do go winter sailing. Our next trip together will be to visit the christmas markets at the outer island of Utö in mid-December.

I'm new to blogging, so bear with me as I'll have to learn as I go. A big thankyou to Kate for making this facility available to members of Australians Abroad (and for answering my annoying blonde questions about editing, settings, etc). Thanks, Mammy!

To close, I leave you with my Zen thought for the day:

Do not walk behind me, for I may not lead.
Do not walk ahead of me, for I may not follow.
Do not walk beside me either.
Just pretty much leave me the hell alone.

Till next time!