November 2009
5 posts
Djuret
I had dinner at Djuret in Gamla Stan with my friend Candice on Tuesday night. Djuret means “The Animal” in Swedish and the restaurant’s concept is to serve meat from only one type of animal each week. It’s a more sustainable and humane way to serve meat, but certainly not a place for vegetarians. We had a traditional Swedish Goose Dinner for the first time, including...
I survived Stambyte!
One aspect of Swedish culture that I have become all too familiar with is Stambyte. Stambyte is a grueling process to modernize old building in which all of the plumbing is completely ripped out and replaced. Which means that bathrooms and kitchens are completely non-functioning… because they are demolished. It also means that your home is unlivable during the entire process and that...
August 2009
1 post
A (sentimental?) conversation with a 5 year-old...
Kayla: Auntie Sarah, I don't want you to go back to Sweden.
Me: I know, honey. But I'll be home for Christmas and I'll see you then.
Kayla: Hmm... will you bring me a present?
Me: If you are good...
Kayla: Well, Barbies or Polly Pockets - okay?
July 2009
7 posts
Out sick
Sorry for another long silence. I’ve had a string of weird health problems over the past couple of months - nothing too serious, but enough to distract me from everyday life.
First, my right eye swelled up like a tennis ball. For no reason. There was no pain or bruising - I just woke up one day looking like a cyclops. Henrik and I spent all of midsummer’s eve at the eye hospital...
May 2009
7 posts
And we're back...
Sorry for the radio silence. Henrik and I left for LA just days after my arrival in Stockholm and we have been there for the past month. So I have been in California longer than I have been in Sweden! While the LA sunshine was certainly nice, I am actually relieved to be back in Stockholm so I can start getting my life in order. And bonus: we returned just in time to find that Spring had...
“If everyone lived life in their comfort zone… well, we’d stay in bed...”
– Henrik
April 2009
3 posts
Stockholm Sweet Home
I wrote this earlier this week, but it failed to post. Here is take two:
It’s raining in Stockholm, I’m slowly but surely recovering from my jet-lag, and there is a strange Polish woman cleaning the apartment… so I figure now would be a good time to share some long overdue updates.
After my departure from Minneapolis was delayed a few days due to glitches in moving logistics...
March 2009
15 posts
I heart swedish bands (and you probably do too)
Did you know Sweden is the third largest exporter of music in the world, after the US and the UK? And rightly so, the musical talent coming from Sweden is impressive. While ABBA is arguably the most widely known internationally (they were actually more popular abroad than they were at home), Sweden’s contributions to the music world have evolved quite a bit since the days of Mamma Mia.
...
“You will travel somewhere far away.” and “Someone is thinking of...”
– my fortune cookies, in sequential order
Swedish tax agency rejects 'Dark Knight' name... →
A Stockholm woman’s application to legally change her first name to Sofia ‘Dark Knight’ was rejected by the Swedish Tax Agency today.
I guess that means Sarah ‘Kung Fu Panda’ is completely out of the question. Sigh.
1 tag
It's Sweden, not Switzerland...
Okay, America (that includes you, Jessica Alba). While I honestly do appreciate the sentiment behind many of your well wishes regarding my “Swiss” adventure, I can no longer turn a blind eye to this oversight. And as much as I hate to ruin any visions of me enjoying fine chocolates and timepieces, I simply must break the news: Stockholm is the capital city of Sweden, which is an...
“Be ready at any moment to give up what you are for what you might become.”
– W.E.B Du Bois
Stockholm or Bust!
After six long months of “processing time” my Visa and residence permit have finally been approved by the Swedish Migration Board! And now I can start physically preparing for the move I have been mentally planning for over half a year. In the past week I have managed to quit the job I’ve had for 7 years (a very good one at that), give up my apartment and half of my belongings,...