Finding my Swedish Roots

December 27, 2011

Currently standing on Platform 6 in Lund Central Station at 8:08 in the morning. It’s still dark outside as nearby trains make beeps warning passengers getting on and off. Pressure sounds of doors opening and closing. Breaks screeching as trains come to a halt.

These past few days I have felt more at home here in Sweden than I have in a long time. Cecilia’s mom, Maud, is like a segregate mom to me this week. She is such a warm and caring soul, it makes sense that both of her daughters are like that as well. This morning Maud not only set up some bread and meat for me to make breakfast, she also had packed a goody bag for the ride down with an apple and two clementines. I was so touched that she packed me fruit- she knows what I like. She also drove me to the station reassuring me that my distant relatives that I am visiting will like me. On our ride she quizzed me on my Swedish vocabulary which is quite modest but growing*. She made sure I found the right platform and even walked me to it! I will miss her dearly when I leave Sweden; she is such a lovely lady. 

Yesterday Cecilia and Carl came into my room singing Happy Birthday in Swedish (Grattis på födelsedagen) delivering me breakfast in bed which consisted of a saffron bun, cinnamon roll, and a cup of tea with a paracell. I had my breakfast also lit by candlelight. Cecilia gave me a gorgeous necklace which I wore that day. We soon left to Carl’s grandparents house where I met pretty much all of his family. The room was filled with laughter and I never saw a guy get so excited about a lego hippy VW van as Carl did! I guess keeping up with U.S. tradition, for my 21st birthday I had half a glass of fine imported French wine with lunch. Later in the evening Carl beat Cecilia and me again at trivial pursuit; though this time Carl had me read off some of the cards to him too. I didn’t know exactly what I was asking since it was in Swedish, I just knew he kept getting the answers right.

Now on the train to visit my distant relatives in Göteborg, I am a bit nervous for when I get there. I have heard about them numerous times by my mom and Joan Finnie since I was little. I am proud of my Swedish roots- having a Swedish flag hanging in my room since I was ten. Now finally being here and on my way to see these relatives I ask myself- how will it be when I meet them? Outside is a dusky morning with low clouds and a winter fog settling down on the fields that seem to stretch forever with no sign of a mountain; raindrops are racing down my window.

Was stuck in Āngelholm for 15 to 20 minutes where a guy did not have a ticket and refused to get off the train; with arguments in Swedish and eventually one of the ladies working on the train yelled at him, calling in the police.

Thomas greeted me with a hug and we soon met his daughters, Danielle and Caroline where they showed me around Göteborg. It is such a gorgeous city! We went to a church on top of a hill where there is a 180 degree view of the city. Seeing this as a picture opportunity, I suggested to get a photo of the three of them with the city as a back drop- then I showed them my gracefulness by stepping into a giant puddle- great! Inside the church, it smelled of wood like a ski cabin or a mountain lodge. The day moved on and we met the girls mom, Lotta, at the restaurant, Sjöbaren, where we ate dishes with fish. After lunch, Gabrielle left for riding her horse before it got dark out.  The rest of the family and I went to the universeum where there was an aquarium, a rainforest, deadly reptiles, and monkeys all in one location!!! For me it was absolutely magical. Back at the house Thomas and I went to walk their border colli and he showed me the forest behind their house and told me about how they get deer, moose, and sometimes wolves too. I also learned that moose get drunk off of apples!!! Back at the house again, Thomas showed me a thing about our genealogy and told me that his mother has the lineage line figured out all the way back to the 16th century- amazing!!! I need to contact her soon to hear all the stories. We still have family working on a farm that has been in the family for generations (at least since the 1800s), I must go there next visit. It was funny- I read Christmas cards from my Joan Finnie and Papa Donn at their house rather than at my own house.

In general, I feel at home in Sweden; between foods that are the most agreeable to my tastebuds, friendly people, cobblestone streets, and MOOSE moving here and grad school in Sweden has crossed my mind. Can’t wait to get back and tell Cecilia and Maud about my day! I wonder how Carl’s Lego VW hippy van is going...   

 Hej då!

 

Merry Christmas!!!!

December 25, 2011

Breakfast today was composed of yesterday’s leftovers- Yum!! After our meal we went to return a camera lens that Cecilia had gotten Carl that wasn’t quite the right type. Surprisingly at the store we first went to it was practically a desert, but the second store that we went to for the correct camera lens the store was a zoo.

We spent the majority of the afternoon with Cecilia and Carl showing me their University and downtown Lund. It was so gorgeous! Walking down the streets where every building was of an old charm we came across the cathedral that their wedding ceremony will take place. It was amazing! So big and so beautiful, their wedding will be so gorgeous!

The architecture of their school buildings made me want to study abroad in Sweden for next year- if only! There were so many stories and tidbits Carl was able to tell me about the campus, near the end we passed by Cecilia’s building and then Carl’s. It sounds like the partying scene at their school is in between the intensity at UW and Southampton, in other words it sounds just right.

The cold got to us eventually so we went on the quest for an open coffee shop. On Christmas day, this turned out to be quite a task but eventually we found one, and I emphasize on one, ‘espresso house’ that was open. Inside we got hot chocolate and warmed up.

Afterwards we met up with Carl’s friend and the friend’s daughter at a park where we headed off to the friend’s parent’s house. It was lovely. We had bread (with cheese and other toppings) and coffee, soda, or juice. The friend’s daughter was almost two and was so cute; she kept grabbing my hand and leading me throughout the house.

Eventually we headed back to Cecilia’s mother’s house where we had dinner and played a rousing game of scrabble.

I even was able to get ahold of my relatives in Sweden on the phone. I have never met them, and the relative I talked to after a while eventually asked “and who is your parent?” or something along those lines which meant like ‘and how are you related to me?’ Luckily once I mentioned my mom’s name, it turned out that they figured out they knew my grandparents and even sent a Christmas card to them this year… then he went to say, “oh I have heard all about you”. I hope that’s in the good sense. I am so excited I booked train tickets to see them in Göteborg on the 27^th.

Merry Christmas!

Sötsaker och Svensk Fika!

December 23, 2011

Weird dreams last night.

Started the day waking up ten minutes before my alarm this morning which was set for 9am, perfect! Now I have an hour to get ready before breakfast. Shortly afterwards, Cecilia knocked on my door to see if my clock was set properly because it was really 10am. Well at least I got to catch up on sleep!

Breakfast was bread with butter, ham, and beetroot salad on top. I also tried ‘hard bread’ (like a thin cracker stick) with a liver pate spread. We also had some pickles with it too! Might seem strange but I definitely think I inherited taste buds from my Swedish ancestors- just the right amount of salty and savory.

Cecilia, Carl, and I then went off to the mall to get two gifts for Carl’s cousins. On the cobblestone streets I was shocked to see a 7/11 amongst the nice shops.

Off on the road again we went to Cecilia’s sister’s house. There we made a bunch of really scrumptious sweets for tomorrow!

Took a walk through Cecilia’s old neighborhood, was able to see Carl and her old school as well as both of her houses from her childhood.

God Jul!

December 24, 2011

A late start to our God Jul morning, we had breakfast at 11am. Then we made Janssons Frestelse which is a potato, onion, and anchovy dish that is simply scrumptious.

When Camilla and Moa came over, I taught Moa how to fold napkins in a fancy. Then I played scrabble, where I used only English words and Camilla, Cecilia, and Carl used only Swedish words. That was interesting ^^

After that we got ready for the Christmas meal and it was amazing. A lot of my favorite foods were present, deviled eggs, salmon with lingonberries, beets we also had pickled herring, bread, meatballs, different kinds of sausage- yes I tried the reindeer and moose sausage!! I prefer reindeer over moose sausage.

Then we watched at 3pm the Donald Duck Christmas Special which was many old time Disney cartoon clips. At this moment in time I thought how else could this day get any better, I mean in one day I get to have deviled eggs, salmon, and Disney cartoons – although most of the songs were in Swedish.

Once that was finished, we had Fika (coffee break with sweets)!!! With Saffron buns and cinnamon buns, coconut macaroons, biscotti, cookies, almond shells with cream and clementines. I was in food heaven!

Did I mention as Swedish Christmas is revolved mainly around food?

During our Fika, mysteriously Carl disappeared and Santa Claus was outside peering into the window!!!! Then the doorbell rang and as we answered it, Moa was frightened in Camilla’s arms. I have never really met a kid who was afraid of Santa Claus. Once Santa was sited with his bag of goodies ready to be distributed Santa asked for a glass of whiskey which Cecilia’s stepfather gladly got it for him. I never had seen Santa drinking whiskey before, so it was a bit of a bizarre scene for me. I guess it is quite common here in Sweden to give whisky to Santa.

Presents were distributed and Santa said goodbye shortly after the unwrapping gifts took place. It was a long process (as any Christmas), but really fun as everyone was just enjoying each other’s company.

Once all the gifts were open Moa played a bit with her new toys and we had rice porridge with either milk and cinnamon, or a sweet fruit sauce. Supposedly there was an almond in the porridge and if someone found it they would either get married the next year, be able to make a wish, or something of that nature. No one found the almond strange enough, but it was all good.

Cecilia, Carl, and I ended the night playing a rousing game of Trivial Pursuit. Somehow I managed to answer two questions out of the blue. Like “what was the Russian author of The House of the Dead?” (answer: Dostoevsky) and “What former soviet republic is the world’s largest landlocked country?” (answer: Kazakhstan).  

Yep it was an amazing day!!!

God Jul! 

* Note: Sorry for being bad about keeping you up with my adventures this past month, will update with them when I get a chance even though it is a bit late.

Sand, Waves, and Studland Beach

November 29^th

Began my day with a 7am wake-up call to get ready for a 9am geochemistry class; no way was I going to be late for class! Preparing for gale force winds and rain on a Coastal and Estuarine fieldtrip to Studland Beach, I made sure to pack many layers and had the wellies that I borrowed by the door. Getting to geochem on time is kind of a big deal for me since I always end up missing my bus on Tuesday mornings, but this time I even was able to walk to the bus stop without my daily sprint for the U6C. Once I was on the bus I felt a big wave of relief; that is until I realized by the time the bus was at the second stop that I forgot one of the most important items to pack when going to the beach- the wellies!!! So with a quick dash off the bus and a run to my room I was able to catch the next bus, but it was a longer bus route that doomed me to tardiness. Oh well there is always next week.

By noon, my friends and I were geared up in rain gear ready to board two fancy buses (the buses had curtains) to Pool Bay. On our way to the beach I experienced my first ferry ride in the U.K. it was around a 5 minute ride and no one left the bus to walk around which kind of made since I guess since there wasn’t really anywhere to wander aboard.

Finally off the bus we took a trail on a wooden foot bridge to the sandy shores of Studland Beach. Reaching for my camera in my pocket I received a jolt of horror as my room key fell and landed in between two of the wooden boards. Luck would have it though that my key was situated on top of the support beam underneath the boards with half of it dangling over the marshy abyss.

Once on the beach we broke up into groups and observed types of sand ripples, current flow, grainsize, and the velocity of ripple migration. The wind was so strong, and with the assistance of the rain, I eventually gave up writing notes on my loose pieces of paper that were becoming deformed with the additional threat of being carried off to sea. As my group tried to find space along a stream to take our measurements and measure the currents by means of using Pooh sticks and a timer; two guys that were helping on the field trip kept interfering with our measurements by reforming the stream and forcing water through the track with shovels. Eventually we wrote down the information that was needed and we were able to wander about the sand and surf. Acting like seven year olds, Rachel and I were running towards and away from the waves as they came in, and then we tried jumping over the wave. Thanks to our wellies, despite all the fun play we still were able to maintain dry feet. 

Waiting for our adventure to begin!

First UK ferry ride

Rachel and I

The foot bridge where my room key almost had a watery demise

Studland Beach!

Rachel, Michael, and Emmeline