After a miserable start to the week, it turned out to be a really enjoyable break. Our trip across Bråviken was awful - cloudy, drizzly, foggy with crap winds. Of course this did not altogether surprise us, though in this case I would have welcomed being proved wrong. God, I HATE that stretch of water and feel depressed at the thought of crossing it at least twice more this summer. The only highlight was that I saw a couple of seals, which always cheers me up. How can you not fall in love with those gorgeous eyes? Though I do admit that their fish breath leaves a little to be desired.




It was obviously not a good day for Nordströms in general. In the morning, Lars-Göran dropped the lever for the anchor windlass into the water. And we have no spare. Ironically, we have been discussing buying an electric windlass for both the health of our backs and the safety of the boat in tight situations where there is a strong wind shift. So perhaps this was a message to us. After a few minutes of multilingual cursing, he used the lever from the toilet pump, which was not ideal but at least it got us moving. It's a good thing that we'll be tied up to a pier for the next few days and will have access to mother's car to go into Söderköping or Norrköping to see if we can replace it.

Meanwhile, on land, Lars-Göran's poor brother had an even worse day than us as his bike rack bent while they were on the way down the main highway towards Mon. Christer was driving mother in her car and following his wife and son who were driving his car, when he saw the rack with their two very expensive bikes leaning. Both cars pulled to the side of the road and he leaped out of mother's car to help out. As he was working, his son looked up to see mother's car (with her sitting helplessly in the passenger seat) gliding backwards into the freeway and into the path of the oncoming traffic. It's like an episode of the Keystone Cops, isn't it?

Anyway, his younger and fitter son had to sprint after the car, jump in and apply the handbrake before granny became the latest summer road accident victim. It seems that Christer usually drives an automatic, so he forgot that on mother's manual car you need to apply the handbrake when you park on a slope. Oops!

So, not really an auspicious start to the week, but things did get better quickly. We had outstanding sailing from Arkösund down through the St Anna archipelago, leaving the main route and navigating carefully through the intricate maze of shoals which we enjoyed. It was quiet with no other boats around, though we did see an unusual, tiny steamboat that brought a smile to our faces.




You can tell that people are really in a vacation mood now that midsummer is here. I*ve observed this personality shift every year here in Sweden, with this vital event signalling the start of the big summer holiday season. I always am a little sad after midsummer as it represents the beginning of the days getting shorter in a long, slippery slope into darkness. However, Swedes choose to be in denial about this until around September and who can blame them really when July and August are often so light and sunny. Suddenly on the water, people are in a lighter mood and are simply out to enjoy the experience of being free to do what they like for these few short weeks. And it is reflected in a much more friendly and relaxed attitude - even a little horseplay.




Our goal was the archipelago island of Lagnö and the coastal settlement around Mon. The following map shows the main islands around that area but not the shoals which makes this area so difficult to access for a deep draught sailing boat such as Fiona. Still, we had a sunny day, good winds and best of all solitude once we turned off the main route and sought to weave our way between the rocks. Yes, it was tight, we had to be alert and sure of our navigating, although the GPS and the Fugawi moving map software we have was a great help.




It took us a full day to sail there and we loved every minute of it. The only sounds were the swish of the water as the hull ploughed along, the plaintive cries of the seabirds and the wind in the sails. Add a dose of sunshine, good food and great company and life seems quite perfect.

Mother has been spending a week at the cottages in Mon for the last ten or so years. Before that, the family had rented a series of summer houses both here in Sweden and in Åland. However, as mother is wheelchair bound, many of these places were less than ideal. One was advertised as "beachfront", though they neglected to mention that it was at the top of a steep cliff, so she was housebound for that week. Another had doors that were too narrow for the wheelchair, yet another had a bed that was not suited to her etc. Quite by accident my sister-in-law stumbled onto these cottages owned and run by RTP (an organisation for those injured in traffic accidents or by polio) and the cottages are perfect having been specifically built with the handicapped guest in mind. As an added benefit, they are right on the shore with a view over Hålfjärden. And it is ideal for us as well because there is a small and inexpensive guest harbour attached to the nearby camping grounds, so we can come and say hello if we are in the area while they are staying here. From the boat, we can see the cottage where they stay.




We enjoy our space and privacy, so we are able to sleep onboard and eat breakfast/start the day etc then go up to the house and arrange the day with the family. It's the best of both worlds for all of us, as after a time even the best family groups can tire of constantly being thrown together.

One morning while we were sitting in the cockpit reating breakfast, we saw a most unusual sight. This monstrosity was being towed along the shore and eventually attached to land a little way beyond the guest harbour. What an extraordinarily ugly structure! It reminded me of those ghastly hangar type of migrant hostels at Pennington. I wonder if they still use them? Anyway, I have no idea what they intend to do with this eyesore, but it kept us amused while we ate brekkie.




Weatherwise it was a disappointing week as it was overcast a lot with only one decent summer day of sunshine (where we madly photographed the surroundings) and the rest being half overcast or wet and miserable. We did enjoy getting together, going out on outings together, coming home for cocktails while we prepared dinner together and the joy of a shared meal with a lot of chatter and laughter. Lambi was also beside herself with joy at being petted by everyone. Spoiled dog!

Mother always enjoys her week here and no wonder, with a lovely view like this out of the living room window:




Out on that little land spit is a gazebo and bbq area with bathing ladders. We usually cook our bbq meals out there and if the weather is fine, even eat under the gazebo if mother feels well enough. From out at the gazebo, you can see the cottage clearly as well - it really is a lovely area and this early in the season it wasn't too crowded. In July the nearby camping and caravan park can be absolutely packed and we find a constant stream of people wandering past. This year it was quite peaceful and very pretty in the fleeting sunshine.




On the one sunny day we had, mother spent her time in the garden working on her tan. I kid you not - an eighty year old tanning herself! No matter how young or old you are in Sweden, you worship the sun and grab as many rays as you can. This is something I've never been able to embrace, having been brought up with the Australian cancer foundation warnings ringing in my ears. So I do very unSwedish things like wear a hat, sunglasses and t-shirt and (horror of horrors!) I sit in the shade! I'm sure people think I'm a complete weirdo, but it's a habit I can't break. Nor can I be out without wearing sunscreen, which makes my mother-in-law laugh. Still, we can be together with her exposed and baking herself to a crisp in the sun and me sitting like an old lady in the shade. Lambi is there also, on the chair next to me in her shady basket. See, I'm even influencing the dog.




On one of the days we went into nearby Söderköping to look around and see if we could find something suitable to use in the windlass. I love this pretty town and we enjoyed seeing it again. We were here in May last year for a few days when we sailed the Göta Kanal and had a fabulous time looking at the architecture. This time it was just a short trip it is still great with handsome old wooden buildings and a timeless atmosphere. This is the old town hall was which built in 1777. It is the third town hall on the same site (the town was reduced to ashes in various wars in the late 1500’s, meaning that the oldest wooden houses still standing today are from the 1700’s and 1800’s) and it housed the entire city administration until 1973.




There are 7,000 people living in this lovely old town. The atmosphere is charged with history, with three medieval churches, the eighteenth century town hall, the Söderköping Brunn spa and many other links to the past. The passage of time has not dulled the tangible presence of the past as you walk along the narrow streets and alleys of a bygone era. Many of the beautifully preserved buildings still look exactly as they did when they were built in the 18th or 19th century.




On yet another day we all trooped into Norrköping for a shopping trip. Not for us as we generally loathe shopping, but mother was keen to look around one of the big complexes. We browsed in various shops, had a very welcome coffee, snack and sit down (oh my aching feet!) and later helped Evy choose some clothes and a ring.




This is a large town, dating back to medieval times with over 80,000 inhabitants. It used to be an industrial city with the nearby rapidly flowing river (Motala Ström) powering the cotton and paper mills. At one stage there were over 50 factories here, but competition from low cost lands sounded the death knell for many of these industries in the 1970s. I guess the same is true of similar industrial areas around the world. But rather than just moulder away, Norrköping is now seeing something of a revival, as a center of culture and education. Many of the old factory buildings now house museums, galleries, theatres, a university and a high-tech industry park. It is an interesting mix of old and new.




Perhaps one of the coolest buildings in town is The Museum of Work, housed in a place very aptly called The Iron. It is in fact an old cotton mill and must be one of the most attractive industrial buildings I've ever seen. Its conversion into a museum is also an example of how new life is being breathed into the town.




All in all, it's quite a dynamic and growing region.

The other days we have been looking at the farmland around here, visiting a couple of the nearby islands and just enjoying being out in a new place. There is something about Sweden in the summer. It's a lot of things: family, friends, fresh air, memories and of course the food. It's been terrific to catch up with the family in a relaxed environment, but now it's time for them to head back to civilisation and for us to sail off into the sunset. Which we never do. We only sail during the day, being far too fond of our nice, cosy bed to sail overnight anywhere. Well, perhaps to Gotland, but that's the limit! Anyway, we will be off in the morning. The weather forecast is for more crap weather, though it appears it will be less crappy in the north rather than the south of the country. That being so, we are inclined to follow the sunshine and head northwards ourselves. Even if it's overcast, the beauty of the scenery always enthralls us, so we are looking forward to being slack and just being for the next few weeks.

Well, after a hectic time everything was packed up and ready for us to move out on June 16th. The extraordinary thing about packing up early is that in an effort to leave the objects one uses the most, you realise how much you really don't need.

For instance:

Why do I have two staple removers? Why do I even have one? Why can't I use my fingernail? In fact, I do use my fingernail! I didn't even know I owned a staple remover...

The apartment felt so empty and different with the books in boxes and the furniture in pieces awaiting the arrival of Joppe and Annelie who were helping us to move.




Everything went really smoothly, though we worked like slaves from early Saturday morning until late in the evening before it was all loaded into the new apartment and we were back in Nynäshamn for the last couple of days to finalise the handing over of our old apartment to the young woman who has bought it from us.

The next days were filled from dawn to dusk with provisioning the boat for summer, signing contracts at the bank, handing over the keys and saying goodbye to friends here - a much harder and more emotional experience than we expected. We've been in Nynäshamn for just over six years now and several friends will be sorely missed. Yes, we will still keep in touch, but without the daily contact things will never be quite the same again.

By Tuesday we were more than ready to cast off and head southwards towards the Östgötaskärgård where we are going to spend a few days with Lars-Göran's mother, brother and sister-in-law. The weather was....well, Swedish summer weather. That is.... RAIN. Just before we left Nynäshamn, we got some junk mail from one of the big sport clothing chains with this picture on the front cover:




The text reads "Dressed for Swedish summer". Can you imagine that picture accompanying a text saying "Dressed for Australian summer"? No, I thought not. I remember when I took Swedish classes and one of the earlier lessons was about the seasons. In one of the exercises, we were given pictures of Sweden at different times of the year and we had to write what season was in each picture and some words to describe that season. Some were quite straightforward, but one had me stumped. It was a picture of four people dressed in rain gear, huddled under umbrellas while seated around a foldable picnic table with eskies under their feet. The rain was pelting down. It reminded me of several rained out Easter Oakbank picnics, so I guessed that it was probably autumn, though it could also have been spring. Imagine my surprise when the teacher said that it was SUMMER! I thought he must have been joking, but no, he was quite serious. At the time I had just lived through my first industrial strength northern winter, so the news that summer meant rain was not exactly welcome. Of course, it is sunny as well in summer, but rain is a feature, especially afternoon showers which can be quite heavy.

This all came to mind as we sought a bay in which to spend midsummer. The forecast was for rain (surprise, surprise) and strong easterly winds. No sunshine, even though it was meant to be midsummer! We found a likely mooring site on the charts and we were delighted with the view from the boat.




We had come here from the northern side of the island and had no clue that there would be a house here, only that the bay appeared to offer the protection we needed. The view of the farmhouse was a bonus. At one time there must have been people living here fulltime making a living from a mixture of fishing, hunting, piloting, tending a few animals as well as growing potatoes and other root vegetables. These days, the islands are mostly inhabited only in the summer months. What a beautiful outlook for them, surrounded as they are by the sea dotted with small islets, nesting seabirds and a steady parade of passing boats.

We were not alone here, though we were the only boat anchored out in the middle of the bay. The others chose to be tied up to land and just in case you thought I was joking about the Swedes eating outdoors under umbrellas in the rain, here is a picture of a group of people from two of the boats moored to land.




I can't say that it looked a particularly inviting way to spend midsummer. Brrrrr...... I guess I'm no viking.

We opted to be slightly more civilised (or wimpy, depending on your interpretation) and set up the tent in the cockpit, added cushions, pillows, books, wine and nibbles and enjoyed watching the passing clouds and the birds at play on the island.




Kalvholmen/Griskär is a really beautiful little group of islands and if the weather fines up we are keen to explore some of the islets around us. The low smooth rocks look very inviting and easy to walk around on - even for a lazy little dog like Lambi. Midsummer eve weather was much like last year - cold, wet and windy. But unlike the place where we stayed on the west coast, we were in shelter behind the rocks and trees while it blew on the other side of the islands. The sun peeped out briefly in the middle of the day - long enough to raise the midsummer pole and for people to gather around the table to eat.




We ate our meal onboard a little later - four kinds of marinaded herring, freshly boiled new potatoes, chopped onions, a butter/chive sauce, crispbread and beer. It's simple food, but delicious especially as it was a season first for us. And festive food is always a joy when you share it with friends and loved ones.




We have a long haul ahead of us tomorrow in order to cross over our least favourite stretch of water (Bråviken - 8NM of misery!) and then to weave our way through the stony St Anna archipelago into the southern area of Yxlö to where we are meeting up with the family for a few days. I hope the winds and rain ease.

Despite the less than stellar weather, the wildlife here is wonderful. Today I saw what I thought was a mini Canada goose, but consulting my trusty bird book, I saw that it was in fact called vitkindad gås in Swedish and Barnacle goose in English. You can see the similarity to the Canada goose, though these are much smaller and less intrusive.




I've never seen one of these birds before and from reading the entry in the bird book, it seems that they usually are much more at home in the higher arctic regions, with breeding grounds in cold, desolate places like Svalbard. This pair were obviously not into ice and snow and have chosen to nest in the milder climate of Sweden, all alone on this tiny islet. Their fluffy little chick was adorable and both parents guarded the islet fiercely, chasing off terns, gulls, ducks and feeding their little one around the clock. It was a touching sight.




The winds seem to be abating somewhat, which is promising for tomorrow. The trouble with agreeing to be in a certain place at a certain time, is that you feel obliged to keep moving forward. Normally we might choose to wait for better winds, but if we want to be in Mon on Sunday, we need to get cracking. This is not ideal as we are promised fog and showers to add to the winds - another pressure in these rocky waters where you need to stay vigilant at all times.

Still, it will be great to spend some time with everyone before we all disperse for the summer holidays and I know that a certain fluffy little dog will be beside herself with joy at the prospect of unlimited patting and copious treats from granny. So tomorrow, rain or shine, it's southward bound for us.

Only temporarily....




Yes, it's that time of the year again, when we set out on the beautiful blue waters of Sweden for our annual summer trip. We have been madly packing up and getting ready for our time away and will spend the next two or three months on the water, away from internet, though I still will be thinking of you all - well, sometimes....

Our plans are to sail to the St Anna Archipelago for Midsummer next week, then stay for a week or so as Lars-Göran's family will be there in the summer house. Afterwards we will sail in the Stockholm archipelago for July, heading into Stockholm itself for the sight of the Tall Ships Race in the last week of July.

August is still a bit open, depending on winds, weather and how we feel, but we want to see Beth and Anders' new baby in Södertälje, so maybe we will be in Mälaren, or maybe out at sea. Who knows.

When I return at the end of August, it will be from another location. That's right - we are moving, which is part of the reason I have not been online much. We have bought a new apartment and spent some time renovating and homestyling the Nynäshamn apartment to sell. Then we have been packing, throwing out stuff and generally run off our feet. We move our furniture tomorrow, our phone and broadband get turned off at midnight tonight, settlement is Monday morning and then we are off.

Where are we going? Well, you can wait and see. But we will still be in Sweden, still by the water and in a beautiful small, medieval town that we have visited and fell in love with on a previous trip. It's all very exciting if somewhat exhausting.

Vi ses senare!

Today I feel like a class heel. Because of my motor mouth, of course. I'm such a damn idiot. What was I thinking?

You see, I met an acquaintance while I was hurrying through centrum on my way to the library. We dog owners in Nynäshamn tend to chat when our dogs meet and while several of them don't recognise me without my little white fluffy accessory trotting next to me, this person is one of those who does know me and we always say hello when we meet.

So far, so good. Now this man has the most well behaved, gorgeous akita named Nina. As that is also my daughter's name, I sort of have a soft spot for this lovely animal. He and Nina are inseparable and I can't recall a time that I've ever seen him without his faithful companion. But today he was alone. I think this threw me a bit and like a complete unthinking moron I blurted out "What? No Nina today?" As I was saying this, I immediately thought something was wrong and tried to prevent the words coming out, but it was too late. The poor man broke down and sobbed his heart out. Nina had passed away a couple of days ago, aged 9 years.




As you can see, she was a beautiful dog and the most loyal, loving companion that anyone could wish for. She was very independent and quite stubborn as well when she wanted her own way and I think everyone in town knew this dog well as we saw her everyday, trotting several paces in front of her owner. She needed no leash (unlike a totally undisciplined little toy poodle I could mention!), she never barked or even cast her eyes sideways and she loped through town with a detached and slightly haughty air.

I met them for the first time nearly six years ago on the train coming home from Stockholm one frigid winter's night. The train was really late (no surprise there!) and when the conductor came around, he told this man that his time had expired and he needed to get a new ticket. He told the conductor that he had no money on him and instead of showing a touch of compassion or just letting it slide as after all it WAS the train company's fault a they were so late, the conductor said he'd have to leave the train. Bloody unbelievable! He was prepared to throw this man and his dog out into the -10C snow, many, many miles from home knowing he had no money.

My Swedish was not so hot back then, so I looked around to see if anyone was going to tell this jumped up little gestapo to leave the guy alone, but everyone pretended to be engrossed in reading their newspaper. Cowards. The conductor was standing by the open door of the train saying that we had to wait there until he got off and if he refused they would call the police.

That did it for me. I got up, fished out the damn $3.50 fare out of my purse and thrust kit at the conductor saying "Here, I'll pay for his ticket". The conductor was taken aback, but immediately rallied and refused the money saying that I shouldn't waste it on "people like them". People like who? I looked closer at the man and realised he was one of the people who regularly sat in the park getting drunk. Okay, so he was an alcoholic. Well, so what? It didn't change the fact that it was polar bear weather and if the train had not been late he would have a valid ticket. I so wished that my Swedish was better so I could have said all of that. Though maybe it was just as well, or I may have told the conductor what I really thought of him. And then I'm pretty sure he would have called the cops.

So I gave the 20kr note to the man with the dog and said, "Okay, you can pay yourself" and sat down. The conductor had to accept the money, glaring at me and we continued home.

A couple of days later as I was down near the harbour I heard someone calling out "Excuse me" and I turned to see the man and his dog coming across to me. He dug in his pocket and held out a 20kr note, thanking me for helping him. I tried to refuse the money, but he insisted and I could see that it was important to him that I accept it, so I did. He introduced me to Nina and from that day onwards we spoke several times a week when we met around town. He is quite an intelligent and interesting man and both Lars-Göran and I have had several long conversations with him, while Nina waited patiently next to him.

And now she is gone.




Nina you will be missed by all of us who knew you. Your paw prints have been left on our hearts.

After the wonderful afternoon at Beth's, we hurried home and hopped onboard the boat for a night out in the sheltered bay just a couple of nautical miles away. A quick half hour motoring brought us away from Nynäshamn and into a whole new world of islands, birds, water and peace.

Saturday nights have become a nightmare in Nynäshamn. We are kept awake at home by the noise from the pub up the road, the rowdy patrons staggering home along the street from various night spots and pubs in town, the hoons in their hotted up cars tearing around and the loud parties in our block of flats. There seems to be a generation shift in our complex with more and more young people moving into the units. Nearly every Saturday night there is a party in one of the 35 flats with thumping music, loud people and the gagging stench of cigarette smoke. We can't even stay on the boat at our own pier anymore as the new restaurant nearby has karaoke and troubadour evenings, so we are subjected to appalling cover versions of songs at maximum volume. More and more we are feeling less at home here and certainly on Friday and Saturday nights as well as on public holidays we are forced to leave and go somewhere else. It doesn't feel good.

Anyway, we were happy to lay anchor in Solmansviken in the Marskären/Lindskär archipelago just behind Bedarön (the large island facing Nynäshamn's harbour). I was feeling upbeat because of the excellent afternoon spent with friends, so we had a great evening and a good night's sleep, waking refreshed and alive.

In the morning it was time to launch the new dinghy for the first time. We've called it "the bright red scream".




Sunnies, anyone? Yes, it DOES rather stand out, doesn't it? I have to say that it was not among our first, second, third or subsequent colour choices, but the price was simply too good to refuse. And looking on the bright side (no pun intended!), we'll always be able to find it quickly in a group of dinghies. Most Swedes have grey inflatable dinghies and the importer who sold us this one said that he hadn't realised how conservative Swedes were or he would never have tried to sell red ones here. Still it was lucky for us as we got an excellent buy and hopefully this one does not leak like a sieve. It will be nice to have dry feet for a change. Naturally we had to go out for a spin to try it out!




With a dinghy, these kinds of narrow, shallow rock filled channels and bays become accessible to us. We can pop through the sound and check out what is on the other side very easily, something that would be impossible to do with a sailing boat. The dinghy is easy to manoeuvre and feels great. The inflatable floor is quite different from the old solid plywood floor we had in the zodiac and (yay!) it does not leak.

The water was crystal clear all the way to the sandy bottom and I could see fish darting to and fro. There were fat eeels slithering along the bottom, scary looking gädda (pike) and even some young striped abborre (perch) in the shadows. There were hundreds of fish everywhere we looked.




As I looked towards the shore of the island we were passing I noticed an unusual animal swimming there. Lars-Göran and I had a spirited discussion about what kind of animal it could be. It was too big to be a mink or a ferret, so I thought that perhaps it was a beaver or even a furry pig. Lars-Göran scoffed at my theory and thought it was a sea otter, even though he admits to having never seen one before. It never climbed on land so that we could settle the argument once and for all, but I'm sure I'm right about the furry pig. Aren't I?




All around us were small rocky skerries with nesting birds or those taking care of their newly hatched youngsters. Mostly there were eider ducks but there was one island with a whole nursery of Canada geese.




These geese were imported by some short sighted Swede and have spread throughout the land, in many cases threatening the smaller native geese. Town planners loathe them as they make such a dreadful mess of every area they stay in, especially picnic areas near lakes. One friend told me that in her town one of the parks and gardens staff collect the geese, load them into a truck and drive them away to some other place, only to have the little buggers reappear in town a few hours later. Maybe they forgot they have wings...

But it is hard to hate them when they look as cute and fluffy as this lot and when you see them in a large, caring family group. We tried to row past quietly so as not to disturb them, but several of them swam away, with one enterprising little one hitching a ride on mum's back.




We made our way through the winding waterways looking at the nesting terns, majestic white swans and fluffy grey cygnets swimming by as well as listening to the twittering of the elusive forest birds. We saw an occasional swallow dive out of the trees, but the others stayed firmly hidden. In one bay we saw some summer houses complete with flowering bushes glowing in the sunshine and the owners outside enjoying the precious sunshine and peace on this lazy Sunday morning.




Heading back to the boat for a late lunch, we passed a gull nesting on a rocky outcrop of a tiny islet. It was sitting there guarding its treasured eggs, only this gull seems to have benn a little slack and one of the eggs has rolled free. I hope no minks or polecats are around to take advantage of the slip-up.




We declared the maiden voyage in the new dinghy a resounding success. It was easy to manoeuvre, easy to row and much lighter to handle than the older dinghy. The old zodiac is currently home in the cellar drying out so we can try and repair the leak. Despite the glaring red colour, we think it's an excellent buy and we hope to get many years of service from it. Hopefully the colour will grow on us over time. What it will bring is greater possibilities for us to explore little island groups - and that experience is priceless.

While we ate lunch out in the sunshine, the Canada geese swam by in formation to check us all out.




It was with regret that we packed up in the afternoon and headed back to the pier to prepare for the week ahead. We've been fortunate with the weekend weather lately, so I hope that augers well for the summer. Of course all of the newspapers are predicting a sunny July like they do every year. I hope this year they are right as we will need some sunshine to help us recover from the busy time we've had lately. Those long summer nights anchored in a bay listening to the gentle lapping of water on the side of the boat are so intoxicating. It's what makes life worth living.

I don't know about the rest of you but I personally loathe traditional baby showers. Come to think of it, I hate anything like that - kitchen teas, bridal showers, freaking Tupperware type parties etc and I firmly refused to ever be part of it and threatened my friends with instant death if they dared do something like that for me. Fortunately I must be very fierce because no-one was quite game enough to test if I would carry out my threat and that suited me fine. The idea of spending an afternoon/evening with a group of people either discussing plastic storage containers or playing juvenile games like forming words with letters in baby names or baby bingo fills me with dread.

Thus I was really surprised when about a month ago, one of my "Aussie Posse" friends proposed having a surprise baby shower for another of our Aussie friends who is expecting her first baby. My immediate thought was "Kill me now!" followed by "Beth will murder us if we do this". But I needn't have worried as Kim declared that this was to be an Anti-Baby Shower.

The idea was that one of us (poor Jodi from australienresor was press ganged into service) would invite herself over for the day and ask Beth to collect her from the train station. Meanwhile, the rest of us would sneak in and set up a surprise lunch. There were to be no games or garbage like that - just a group of Beth's closest friends here in Sweden having a casual lunch, with each of us contributing to a gift voucher at the trendy Södermalm kids' clothing shop Matador Kids.

The result was fantastic and we all had a marvellous time - after poor Beth got over the shock. It was another scorching hot summer's day and I was again grateful for the comfort of air conditioning as we made our way to Beth's home in Södertälje. There was a close-shave moment as we passed her street to see her trying to turn on her way to the station, so I made Lars-Göran drive on, hoping she hadn't seen us. Even though there was a white, fluffy poodle hanging out of the car window! While Jodi was giving Beth the run-around (she was waiting at Södertälje station, while she had sent Beth to Östertälje station), the other seven of us descended on her home and with the help of her lovely guy who was in on the plot as well, we set the outside table up on the deck and arranged the lunch we had brought with us. There was even some time for catching up and chatting while we waited.




That is me with my baby, chatting to Kylie (with her little one) and Manuela. Everyone had to bring something and we were kept busy setting it all out and keeping an eye on the clock wondering just how much time we had and feeling a twinge of guilt that poor Beth was out in this heat while in her last month of pregnancy. Still, it was in a good cause. So, did she suspect that something was up? Nope.




As she rounded the corner with Jodi in tow, we shouted out "Surprise!" and she stopped in her tracks and cracked up laughing, crying out "I can't believe this!" and asking her guy "Did you know about this?" The fact that we had all known about it for a month and had continued to email, phone and meet with her without breathing a word was something she couldn't quite believe. We are usually such a bunch of blabbermouths that we can't keep secrets for more than a millisecond. But this had been a real shock for her.




But she recovered soon enough for hugs all around - and yes she had seen us pass in the car as Lambi was a bit obvious, though even then she hadn't a clue that we were coming to her house. She just wondered what we were doing here in Södertälje. As you can see in the next photo, she is VERY pregnant, though looking in glowing health despite being uncomfortable in the hot weather.




At this point, the men made a tactical retreat to the pub, while the ladies got down to the serious business of eating and the all important gas bagging. It is always so relaxed and a lot of laughs when we get together and everyone was full of news and talk about our summer plans, chatting easily in a mixture of Swedish and English while enjoying our lunch.




Beth lives in a beautiful typical old Swedish wooden villa on three levels with a Dutch or Flemish style gable. What really makes the home is the leafy, sprawling garden which was green and lush and almost tropical in the early summer. It was an outstanding setting for a relaxed lunch out on the deck, under a huge umbrella. As we are Aussies, we also had our sunscreen on :)




We later had a nosey around the new nursery and retired to the cool of the living room for dessert and coffee and even more talking. After a time the men returned and we all posed for a group shot - from left to right: Little Kim, Beth, Kylie (and baby Mason), Jodi, me (and Lambi), Manuela, with Big Kim and Åsa seated in front of me. Ann wasn't there when the picture was taken.




All in all, it was a most enjoyable afternoon and Beth did seem to genuinely appreciate it. After all, she is thousands of miles away from her family and friends "back home", so this little group make up her family group here in Sweden. We know that at this time, she is missing the support of her immediate family, so we try and provide some kind of network. Even in your homeland, if you don’t have a group like this around you, be it school, work, family and friends it can make life very hard. I think when you live in another country other than your homeland, you have to work extra-hard to get those networks going. But it is really worth it as these contacts help you to feel much more "at home" and not so far away and lost.

I know I can call on any of these women in good times and bad and that they will be there for me. We laugh and cry together and consider each other as very special people. They are available for listening, supporting each other, cheering each other up, and basically, just being there. Where would we be in this world if we didn't have a friend?

I have received a couple of emails asking what musical instrument was used in the video on my last post. I have to say that one of the reasons that I particularly liked that version of the national anthem was that it was played on a traditional Swedish instrument - the nyckelharpa.




This is not an instrument that I was familiar with at all before I came to Sweden, but it is instantly recognisable when you hear it - very haunting. For those of you who may be interested, you can read a little about Swedish national emblems here, including a link to a very good recording of the national anthem, along with a translation in English of the words.

Today, we drove to the town of Västerås to pick up our new inflatable rubber dinghy. The zodiac we had has all but died, so we have been looking around for a suitable one and found the one we wanted - a 2.85m Brig Dingo. How could we go past a boat called Dingo, I ask you? They were supposed to be delivered to the Swedish agent in Västerås about three weeks ago, but there has been a delay. We are leaving at the end of next week for summer sailing, so this was not good news for us. The agent offered us the demo model he had used at the Stockholm Boat Show earlier this year and also offered a substantial discount on it - too good to pass up, even if the boat is RED. So we jumped in our trusty little Atos and headed north west.

It was a glorious summer day and what stunned me as we drove along were the beautiful fields of towering, stately lupins in shades of purple, pink and cream as far as the eye could see. Along the lakes and even in heaps by the road, there were lupins everywhere. This beauty in an unexpected place is wonderful.




I had forgotten about this flower until I saw them today, then I cracked up as I remembered the Monty Python sketch where the idiotic highwayman Dennis Moore held up stagecoaches and robbed lupins from the rich and gave them to the poor, who for some reason were quite underwhelmed and positively ungrateful while they grumbled about wanting bread or gold instead.

So of course I had to start singing:

Dennis Moore, Dennis Moore,
galloping through the sward,
Dennis Moore, Dennis Moore,
and his horse Concorde.
He steals from the rich,
he gives to the poor,
Mr Moore, Mr Moore, Mr Moore.

Enough silliness. Though I am still laughing at the line "Your life or your lupins, my lord."

It is one of the hottest days we have had so far this year, with temperatures nudging 30C, which is very hot by Swedish standards. Even though we left early in the morning, the lakes had a fine haze over the water in the shimmering heat. I am SO glad that we have air conditioning in the car. Who would have thought you'd ever use it in Sweden? And I am also glad that Lars-Göran is so softhearted that he bought Lambi a Cool Bed. We have noticed that with increasing age, she feels the heat terribly, so the people at our local pet shop suggested we try this product and it is wonderful. It is a water/gel filled cushion that stays cool and helps keep her cool in the car and on the boat.

She'll be a cool dog in more ways than one this summer.

Today, June 6th, is holiday to celebrate Sweden's National Day. This day became the Swedish national day in 1983. It was previously known as Swedish flag day. The day marks the coronation of King Gustav Vasa in 1523. This king defeated the Danes and established a more centralised government as well as Lutheranism in Sweden. He is widely considered the father of modern Sweden. This day also marks the adoption of a new constitution in 1809.

The Swedish Riksdag (parliament) only designated this day a public holiday in 2005, so it's very new and many Swedes still don't quite know what to do with the day. Overt patriotism is somewhat frowned upon in Sweden as it is historically more associated with nationalism and racism and therefore to be avoided at all costs. Can you imagine being embarrassed to celebrate Australia Day? No way. But that is reality in Sweden - they are uncomfortable about the whole idea of a national day. That confuses me as how can it be considered wrong to love your own country? Perhaps the legacy of rabid nationalism across Europe over the years have left a mark on the sensetive, introspective Swedes. I hope that this changes over time and that Sweden learns to love what is good about this country.

Anyway, it also means that traditions associated with the day are still being developed. One of these is the creation of a National Day Pastry - Strawberry and Almond Tart (yum!)




It's a very easy dish to prepare.

PASTRY LAYER:
300 g almond paste, grated
150 g butter
3 eggs, slightly beaten

TOPPING:
100 g almond paste, grated
about 2 tablespoons orange liqueur (eg Grand Marnier) or fresh orange juice
1 litre punnet of strawberries
fresh lemon balm sprigs to garnish

METHOD:
* Preheat oven to 175° C [350°F].
* Line a smaller baking dish (ca. 18x24 cm) with baking paper.
* Grate the almond paste.
* Crumble the butter and almond paste in a mixing bowl.
* Add slightly beaten eggs and combine to form an even batter.
* Spread the batter over the base of the baking dish.
* Bake in the centre of the oven for 12-15 minutes.
* Allow to cool.

Topping:
* Mix grated almond paste and liqueur (or orange juice).
* Spread the mixture on top of the almond paste layer.
* Cut into squares or ovals.
* Slice the strawberries lengthwise.
* Place slices in the almond paste mixture.
* Garnish with a sprig of lemon balm and a Swedish flag.

Apart from eating delicious tarts, many immigrants associate the day with receiving recognition of their Swedish citizenship. And today, I attended a ceremony in the grounds of the local folk museum to welcome those of us in Nynäshamn who were granted citizenship in 2006. I got mine in February 2006.




So yes, I am a dual citizen and very proud of it. I really love my adopted home of Sweden, but in quite different way from the way I love my homeland Australia. Partly, I believe that some of the distinction has to do with the way I obtained citizenship in each country.

I was born in Australia, so unlike those who emigrated there, I didn't have to work at all for my Australian citizenship, nor take any tests; it was simply given to me at birth. But I actually chose to come to Sweden and in order to become a Swede, I had to put in a lot of thought and work as well as invest several years of my life. In a way, it feels like my Swedish citizenship is the one that I earned. So I was looking forward to being welcomed to Sweden officially.




We made our way to the leafy museum grounds on this warm, sunny perfect Swedish day. A small section was set aside for the 17 of us who would be welcomed that day. Being good Swedes, we were there early and nabbed the best seats in the house, close to the food proceedings and under the shade of a beautiful apple tree.



As well as the welcoming speech from Tommy Söderblom (the chairman of the local government authority), we were to receive a small gift and to have afternoon tea. The afternoon tea featured the national day pastry, Swedish princess cake and icecream for the children.




There were people from many nationalities present and it was interesting to see the mixture of people who had chosen Sweden as their new home. This blending and diversity of peoples can only enrich the country. I waited patiently and when my name was called, I went up to shake hands and be welcomed to Sweden as a citizen.




And clutching my Swedish flag, I made my way back to the smiling arms of my Swedish husband, who was sitting proudly at the table. It feels like one more small step towards making this my home. I leave you with the haunting tune to my new national anthem accompanied by some stunning images of Sweden:




Fyfan va man älskar Sverige!

I know I'm beginning to sound like a broken record, but it has again been an ultra hectic week, so we are looking forward to sailing away for a rest this weekend. As the weather has again blessed us with sunny warm conditions, it's perfect to be out at sea. The winds this time are sweeping across from the east, so a sail to and wander around the pretty town of Trosa seemed like a pleasant way to pass the weekend. We all enjoy being on the boat and some of us are so relaxed that they treat the humans on board like some kind of dog shelf to be walked all over.




Even though the outside route along Järflotta is quite wavy in strong easterly winds, we decided to sail that way in preference to the inner route along Draget's Kanal as we wanted to sail rather than simply motor along - it was the wind and the silence that we craved.

As expected, it was a somewhat bouncy ride for the first few nautical miles and Lambi was overjoyed when we finally rounded the peninsula and turned eastwards, so we could sail downwind along Krabbfjärden. Our favourite little island community of Krokskär passed by in a flash as we coasted through the rocky gap at Galthålet at a brisk 6 knots - always a bit hairy, even though we are quite familiar with these waters.




It is so great to see life returning to the area, with birds nesting, trees and flowers wildly shooting forth and people out on the water in their boats or enjoying time in their summerhouses. As we passed one of the islands on our way up to the Trosa channel, a large birthday party was in progress and people were gathered around a table set out in the garden overlooking the water. They all waved happily at us as we sailed by and we smiled and returned their friendly greetings while thinking that it feels like summer is already here. If only we could just continue sailing for weeks on end and not face a return to the fray on Monday morning. Impatient, aren't I?




The 21NM trip took us just four hours, so we were delighted with that and we had time to relax and sun ourselves enjoying a glass of Aussie wine and good conversation. We have been able to tie up to a Swedish Cruising Club buoy just outside of the town, so we could sleep in peace without being disturbed by noise from the town itself. Increasingly we are noticing that towns are encouraging harbourside restaurants to set up in former fishing warehouses. While this is all well and good, it doesn't help those of us moored to the pier to get any sleep as disco music blares into the early hours and drunk revellers yell and shout just a couple of feet away from where we are sleeping. And for this, they charge us! As a rule, we avoid town piers on a weekend for just that reason.

After a lovely, restful and much needed night's sleep, we awoke to a glorious sunny morning and discovered that we were right in the middle of a sailing school.




Young children were being taught the basics of sailing and I was once again impressed by the skill they displayed in handling their boats. We had a leisurely breakfast in the cockpit watching the kids and also looking at the nesting herons on a nearby island. It must be the year of the heron as I can't recall ever seeing so many of these birds. We usually count ourselves lucky if we spot one or tow of them in a season, but already this year we have seen literally dozens of these beautiful birds.




The colony on the island near where we were moored contained a large number of birds and we enjoyed watching them raise up and gracefully fly around. One thing that surprised me was that they nest in trees. Yes, I know that birds often nest in trees - I'm not THAT stupid. But I associate water birds with nesting in rocks or among the reeds, so I never thought that such a large waterbird would nest in a tree.

Trosa looked very inviting, so we took out the dinghy and headed up to the small canal/river which runs alongside the town.




I really love the atmosphere of this small town. It is a pleasant mix of a fully functioning community as well as a tourist town. You can see genuine archipelago working boats and fishermen (easily distinguished by the telltale trail of scavenging seabirds following the boats). In a day and age where there is a move to tizzy up the towns and sanitise everything, it is a welcome change to find a place that appears to be getting the balance right.

We have often wanted to take a dinghy along this little canal. Last year we walked along the banks and admired the autumn trees, so it was fun to revisit it and see it in summer and from the water. Those gorgeous flowering horse chestnut trees framing the main bridge look just as impressive in their summer finery as they did in their vibrant autumn colours.




A little further upstream the commercial area of the town makes way for the living areas. It is quiet, green and very pretty with red wooden homes lining the shore and small boats gently bobbing in the stream.




We moored the dinghy back in town near the fish smokery and spent the afternoon walking around, eating icecream and enjoying the sight of the pretty wooden houses, the calm timeless ambience, the narrow winding streets, the happy people siting outside and enjoying an early summer fika at at one of the many tiny cafés and one very happy little boy playing pirates on a statue in the main town square - kids are kids absolutely everywhere!




Mum was none too pleased as she swooped in and ordered him off, but I thought it was quite charming and I'm sure that the sculptor would have been pleased to see it used in such a way. We then wandered down towards the harbour area where we could see Fiona out in the bay tugging at her buoy in the sunshine.




We noticed on returning to the boat that the dinghy is leaking rather badly. We'll have to haul her onto land and take a closer look when we get home. It is generally looking rather worn too, so we may have to think about buying a replacement as it is so invaluable to have along with us. Hopefully iy is something that can be fixed with a bit of detective work and some waterproof sealer.

We had another peaceful evening and in the morning made our way homewards to face the challenge of a new working week. There is so much to organise this week that it feels somewhat overwhelming at times. I feel very fortunate to have the boat and to be able to take the time to get away, even if it is only for a day or two. Sights like the sea, the bare rocks, nesting seabirds and silence really helps to keep me on an even keel at this busy time of the year.




What can I say but "Roll on summer!" I can't wait until June 19th when we can sail away for over two whole months without coming to land unless we really want to. I'm counting the hours until then.

It's been ages since I posted and I know that I have been bad at responding to comments and emails via the blog, which is a bad thing and I am sorry for it.

I wanted to say thank you for all your comments and mail, and to say that I do read them all and that I really appreciate them. They make me laugh as well as both inspire me and encourage me to take up the keyboard again.

The reason for not writing is too long and boring to go into, but involves the changeover from Blogger to the supposed new and improved New Blogger, which absolutely sucks. I found myself unable to even access my blog for over TWO MONTHS and then when I could, it would not upload pictures nor publish to FTP. Nor could one get a reply to email requests about the problem. All I could glean from the Blogger help groups was that I was not alone, that FTP and group blogs were all being affected and that despite doing all the things we were told (clearing cache, cookies, trying new browsers etc) nothing helped. And Blogger couldn't really give a damn basically.

So I lost the will to bother about it and just switched off the screen and enjoyed real life, which is still fabulous by the way :)

But many comments and emails later, I decided to have a go again. I will probably slowly fill in the last six months just for my own records if nothing else, but I hope to keep on from now recording my life here in Sweden and showing you pictures of my new home. There is a lot going on here at the moment that I'll fill you in about in the next couple of weeks before we take off for our two months away sailing.

Just wanted to say that it is nice to be back.