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Midsummer is one of the biggest Swedish celebrations of the year, as well as the longest and most colourful day. It's crazy to think this was our first restriction free Midsummer since arriving in Sweden over two years ago! We bought strawberries and took an early train to
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Hot weather arrived and we wanted to make the most of it, but we also didn't have the energy for a hike on this particlar day. A beach day was the perfect solution! We packed some books, snacks and the Trangia stove, and headed to Erstviksbadet. The beach
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May was an explosion of colour and sunshine; a sensory overload compared to the previous month. Cyclists were zipping around the city again, people downgraded to light (or no) jackets and parks were filled with swathes of bright tulips. Rows of bikes with tyres hanging from the handlebars are common
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Stockholm looked pretty lifeless after the snow melted. On the other hand, it was more alive than it had been in a long time. Warmer weather and no pandemic restrictions meant people fully emerged from hibernation! As you can see, we had a cold start to the month. It was
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Valborg (short for Valborgsmässoafton) has been celebrated in Sweden since the Middle Ages. When the last day of April arrives, it's time to say goodbye to Winter darkness and welcome the light of Spring. In the Middle Ages, Valborg marked the day when farm animals were released back
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I spent most of my Visby trip walking along the coast. Wind and hot sun meant I ended both days with a red face. I was "tomato faced Marilyn" again — a nickname given to me by a restaurant owner in Switzerland a few years ago. It seems funny
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Visby is always calling me back. I love the Baltic air and Gotland's wild coastline; this island really has a hold over me. There's no real story behind this post, other than the fact I recently visited and saw lots of beautiful things! I'm
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March was a month of continued cold, creamy buns, colourful påskris (twigs with feathers on), grit dust, noticeably more light, daffodil bulbs on doorsteps, melting ice and a cocktail of ALL THE WEATHER. Fettisdagen (Fat Tuesday) is one of the best days of the Swedish year! A time to stuff
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I sat down to write my monthly recap of city life but couldn't remember anything I wanted to say. My mind has been too preoccupied with world events lately. However, it's easy to remember that February gave us longer days and blue skies. Ice and snow
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Stenstrand means pebble beach in Swedish. We planned to visit this beach for my birthday but postponed the trip until we had the energy to go further afield. The journey time was about two and a half hours from central Stockholm; one train, one bus and a short walk to
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January was full of eyes peeking through gaps between scarves and hats, piles of bare Christmas trees, prolific gritting by the municipality, Julstjärna clinging onto their remaining time in windows, large areas of frozen water, the "clack clack" of Nordic skaters weaving along the ice and best of
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I'm another year older and we celebrated with a trip to the beach. We planned to visit one further South, but ended up staying closer to home because neither of us had our pre-illness energy levels back. It was so good to get out after staying at home
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