The February List

Semlor at Güntherska Konditori - Supermysigt!

Semlor - Today is Semla Day! Run - don’t walk - to your nearest Scandinavian bakery and try one of these Fat Tuesday buns. 

Modern Love, the Podcast - This New York Times/WBUR collab that will have you asking why no one thought of this sooner. You will cry. Maybe in public. Or not. But I did.

Halsey -  She’s everywhere these days, including in your city/state/country. Get tickets before…well, before you can’t.

Locobase Repair - Only the best thing for dry, winter skin. I use it on my hands and lips religiously. Aquaphor, you’ve been dethroned.

…and for when you want to say I love you with succulents. (Insert innuendo here.)

On Getting Lost

On the way to my Saturday morning yoga class a few weeks ago, the bus* came late, resulting in an awkward sprint-shuffle-mind-the-ice-mad-dash from the bus stop to the studio. When I arrived, the door was locked. The class had started a few minutes before and my limited knowledge of yoga etiquette prompted me to reconsider my original plan of forced entry. I turned around and retraced my steps to the stop, but I bitterly remembered the bus betrayal from earlier. I'll walk. I chose a playlist, popped in my earbuds and routed the way back to my apartment. It was chilly, yes, but not enough to enjoy a brisk walk and some Spotify jams. And then my phone’s screen turned black: the dreaded spinning wheel of death. 

The studio is only 3km from my new apartment, and yet I freaked. The cathedral is a pretty solid landmark, but it was blocked from view. Time for full-blown panic mode. Can I find my way home? Do I walk north? Or east? Where is east? Do I have a compass? My phone has a compass! The iPhone compass is a useless feature BECAUSE I NEED IT NOW. Can I make a needle compass? I should’ve paid attention in science. I think I have a needle at home. Should I call a cab? Hail a cab? 

I took a breath and assured myself I was not a total idiot. I could do this. I could Bear Grylls it.** I began to walk in what I hoped was the right direction. Left here, straight here, cross here. As I walked, I noticed. I saw a stunning, ivied school I had never seen before. I crossed a bridge I hadn’t known was there. I admired neighborhood graffiti and listened to the sounds of a city waking up.  And it was beautiful. A thin layer of snow covered the city and the weak winter sun peeked out from behind heavy clouds. 

And I eventually found my way. I found my neighborhood, then my street. And I found that getting lost wasn’t too bad after all.

*Does Punxsutawney Phil’s domain include Sweden? Because I need an early spring so I can bike again. 

**There was no drinking of bodily fluids in this adventure. Bear Grylls Lite.  

Note: This post has no pictures because my camera/compass/phone was dead, but you already knew that.

Höstlov (or, Holy sh*t, I have it good)

It’s Sunday evening here and the sun is setting on my first höstlov. (The sun actually set ages ago and it’s dang dark, but nevermind.) Skollov is my favorite Swedish word because it means school holiday. And I like those. Aside from the Christmas and summer holidays, Swedish school calendars observe höstlov (autumn break), sportlov (like ski week) and påsklov (Easter break). School holidays are awesome. And necessary. Time spent away from any job makes us all the more productive and passionate - or at least that’s what people who know more than me say. 

Still a perfect BBQ, even if someone forgot the hotdog buns!

So how exactly did I spend höstlov? Doing Swedish things of course! I was lucky enough to be invited to the ski resort town of Åre for a week of beautiful hikes, delicious meals and evening board games. The ski resorts hadn’t opened for the season yet, so we had the town largely to ourselves. From walks about town to all-day excursions up the mountain, each day was marked by stunning landscapes, good company and distinctly Swedish traditions. A few new favorites include blåbärssoppa, a bilberry soup that offers the best warm-up on a chilly day; fika at a fjällstuga or mountain cottage because fika is a way of life; and all-season grilling because Swedes won’t let frigid temps spoil a good barbecue. (Why do all of my favorite Swedish traditions involve food? BRB - going to the gym.)

Hey Norway, Sweden has mountains too!

Well, the recipe of mountain air and toes-up time worked its magic and I’m feeling rested and ready to get back to work tomorrow. It’s crazy that in less than two months, I’ll be toes-up in Tahoe! But as the saying goes, “Time flies when you love your job and have five weeks paid vacation!” That is how it goes, right??

Weekend Warriors

Full disclosure - As I write this, I'm stretched out on the couch with a cup of coffee and my only plans for the day include making another pot... But just go with it.

I like the weekend… a lot. It’s safe to say Saturday is the best day of the week followed closely by Sunday and then Friday. (That’s the truth and anyone who claims otherwise is wrong.) And I like lazy weekends: mornings when I don’t set an alarm, afternoons filled with a book or a hike, unhurried dinners and a second glass of wine. I like that. But in addition to liking restful weekends, I also like to—wait for it—do stuff. Crazy, right? And it just so happens that those two glorious days can also be spent doing stuff, and I like that too. 

Aun, Adil and Egil or maybe Thor, Odin and Freyr??

Last weekend, I did stuff. I biked out to the museum in Gamla Uppsala, or “Old Uppsala,” where viking kings were buried in these massive mounds. The museum is filled with all things archaeology and mythology and the mounds themselves, named Aun, Adil and Egil, were once thought to hold the Norse gods Thor, Odin and Freyr. Even though I’d visited the site before, I was still taken by the fascinating history (and mystery) of the spot and the incredible views of Uppsala’s cathedral in the distance. And as much as I like my leisurely Saturdays, days spent exploring a city’s culture are pretty awesome too.

Kungsholmen by kayak

Later that weekend, I tagged along with friends kayaking around Kungsholmen. Stockholm is a city of islands and Kungsholmen, Swedish for “King’s Islet”, is one of the city’s central neighborhoods. It was a perfect day to be outside and it seemed like everyone had the same idea, especially since the sun has made few appearances this summer. The island has these stretches of rock where loads of people were laid out. It was so cool to see people swimming and boating while still very much in the middle of a city. After paddling more than 10k (I’m slowly learning the metric system…), we had a well-earned beer at a waterfront restaurant. Few things compare to a cold beer after a long day. On the train back to Uppsala that night I was exhausted, but so very satisfied. Funny how that works. So to recap: weekend spent relaxing = good, weekend spent doing stuff  = heaps better. More to come soon!

- EM