Weekend again

Yesterday we once again went to Ikea. This time to buy boxes and stuff for our storage room in the apartment. Now it will probably take a long time before we have to go there again. Yes, I am getting tired of Ikea. :-)

Today I went for my second church visit here in Lund. Last week I went to Ad Fontes. This time I "tried" the pentecostal church, Pingstkyrkan. They are a bit different and I really don't know which one I like best, so I will attend more services in both before I make my decision. Ad Fontes is quite small, Pingstkyrkan is big. The services are a bit different, but God is the same. There is, however, no rush for me to decide. I will take the time I need.

August is coming to an end and we have soon been back in Sweden for two months. In this time we have furnished our apartment, we have met our families and some friends and we have gotten acquainted to Lund and how to get around here. Not bad I have to say. Hopefully the coming months will be full of adventures and new impressions, and this I will of course write about here. And yes, I will eventually post some pictures of our place. I only have a few small things to do first... :-)

Welcome guests!

We now have an air mattress. In other words, somewhere for two people to sleep. In addition, our couch offers one space for someone not too tall. Accommodation for three guests that is! Now we just have to get someone to come visiting.

Today we woke up to gray skies, but what a beautiful day it turned into. Sun from a clear blue sky (just like our mattress) and over 25 C. Too bad I didn't realize it until this afternoon, otherwise I might have taken a bike ride to the beach... Instead, I took a walk downtown to return a bunch of library books and borrow some new one as well as a pile of DVD movies. Not too bad that either. I also restrained myself and did NOT buy one of the delicious cones of home made ice cream they sell in Lund, instead I ate the apple I brought in my bag... But next time, I'll definitely have ice cream. :-)

Great expectations

On the way to Gerdahallen yesterday, I biked through parts of the university area as usual. This morning was different though. The air was filled with expectations and everywhere there were more or less confused students trying to find their way to a building next to the university library. It wasn't Swedish students though, but exchange students from all over the world. Some of them were dragging big suitcases with them, containing everything they brought from home and hopefully enough to make it through the first time here. What an adventure!

We are also newcomers here, but even if it has been exciting for us as well, it's nothing compared to what it is for these exchange students. We already know Sweden, we understand all the signs and instructions and we know where to find what. So even if Lund is totally new for us, it's very familiar. Therefore it is very interesting to see all these exchange students coming to Sweden for the very first time and to feel the expectations in the air.

Raclette dinner on the balcony

A couple of years ago we got a raclette grill for Christmas. At that time we had no idea of what raclette really is and since the recipes in the leaflet that came with the grill wasn't very excited, the grill lived a calm life in the far back of one of our kitchen cabinets. When we moved to Switzerland the grill was left in Sweden, still unused.

But in Switzerland raclette is quite big and within a couple of months both Matts and I had tried it for the first time. It's not fabulous, but quite good and very social since you have to wait for the food to cook. So, back in Sweden, we decided to have raclette for dinner on our own for the very first time.

We went downtown to the covered market in Lund where there is a cheese store and bought some French raclette cheese (Matts got himself a slice of Le Gruyère as well). To go with it we had small boiled potatoes, bacon, pickled onions, cornichons, bread and spices. Just like we ate it in Switzerland. Yummy - and perfect food for a sunny evening on the balcony!

Lund in the morning sun

The cathedral

The university building

Runic stone and metal art

The old surgeon building

Bike and pedestrian path

The university library

This morning the sun shone again. So I took my bike downtown and followed parts of Slí - Hälsans stig (the path of health) through Lund. It is quite easy to follow since there are nice small signs everywhere telling you when to turn or continue straight ahead. Matts and I walked on other parts of the path this weekend. However, the path took me past the beautiful buildings I wrote about yesterday and this time I brought the camera and the result you have already seen above.

The gym

Today was my first time in the gym in Gerdahallen, the biggest gym and group training facility here in Lund. I now have a program that I should do two to three times a week and hopefully it won't be a problem. :-) I bought a half year card and payed SEK 1500, about CHF 250, for it. For my one month card in Switzerland I payed CHF 100. Yes, Switzerland is much more expensive than Sweden in many aspects. However, SEK 1500 is expensive enough to force me to go to Gerdahallen at least 30 times the next six months...

On the way to Gerdahallen I biked through the main parts of Lund. It was very beautiful. The cathedral was shining in the sun and the university buildings looked splendid in the morning light. Therefore, I have to go back downtown tomorrow morning (if the sun shines) and bring my camera so that you all can see how beautiful Lund can be. If I still think so when the winter rains come, is another story.

Lazy Saturday

Yesterday I was a grass widow. Matts took the night train to Uppsala on Thursday night and came back early this morning so I had yesterday all for myself. And I did pretty much nothing. Late in the afternoon I finally was done with the cleaning (hey, the apartment isn't that big). But sometimes it's just nice to hang around.

Today we had a late, big breakfast and then took a walk downtown in the pouring rain. Matts got himself a pair of shoes since the ones he has aren't waterproof, something that was very clear today. Then we went to the library. I have never been big on libraries, but they're really a gold mine. In Sweden we pay for them with our taxes, so anyone can get a library card and then borrow books, movies and music for free (unless you return something too late). We have a smaller library pretty close to us and then there's the big one downtown. We can borrow books and everything else on any library belonging to Lund, and return them at any library as well. What a great system. In addition, we can reserve books or order them from another library for a fee of 5 SEK (less than 1 CHF) online, from any internet connected computer. Very convinient.

Anyway, after getting Matts his own library card (I got mine last week) and borrowing some books and a movie we went to one of the cafes in Lund (there are so many to choose from!) for a lunch sandwich and then back home. The rain stopped, so the last bit of the walk was really nice.

Still going strong as a housewife

I need to find myself a job. But until the day I start working I can keep up the housewife style. And so I do, by baking bread (I just love these loaves of spelt flour) and making my own pickles (we'll know in September if they are eatable).

But as I said, this life cannot go on forever. Why not? someone in Switzerland might ask. Because Sweden is very different to Switzerland when it comes to being a housewife. It's not socially acceptable unless you are on maternity leave and there are no one you can spend your days with since everybody (except people on parental leave) work. Before moving to Switzerland I don't know how many people (well, pretty much everyone) that asked me what kind of work I wanted to do in Switzerland. Staying at home, working things out and maybe take a German class was not an option. Everyone just assumed that I would do anything to get a job in Switzerland as soon as possible. When I said that I didn't want to be all stressed up about finding some kind of work at once, they looked at me as if I was crazy.

So here I am. No longer a housewife but an "unemployed" that needs to find a job as soon as possible. Welcome to Sweden!

Skanör

Yesterday was our last day with the car. The weather was very nice - warm and sunny - so we decided to go to Skanör, a peninsula in the south-west of Skåne. We came there just in time for lunch and after a delicious fish burger we went down to the beach. It was so beautiful. The water was green-turquoise-blue and the sand was white. Unfortunately I forgot to bring the camera so I have no pictures from the beach. But google on Skanör and you will find lots of pictures! Of course we went into the water - how could we resist?

On the way back we took lots of small winding roads through the countryside. Skåne has lots and lots of farmland and since it's quite flat here you can see all the way to the horizon at some places. I do miss the mountains in Switzerland, but this is very beautiful as well, only very different.

Visitors from Uppsala/Knivsta

Tuesday night our dear friends Kicki and Alex and their two sons came visiting. They were already in Skåne on vacation and borrowed a car to come to Lund. It was so great to see them again and we had a nice evening together. For dinner we had chicken stew and for dessert blueberry scrumble pie with blueberries from Oskarshamn. Of course. :-)

Everyday

This week has been a "regular week". Matts started his new job on Monday and I have been at home and around doing this and that. On Wednesday I went to the local library to get myself a library card. I started by borrowing two books and the movie "No Country for Old Men" that we will watch this weekend. Yesterday I biked downtown to explore Lund a bit on my own and then I took the car to pick Matts up at work so that we could go and buy some furniture for our balcony (not in Ikea though). Since we will only be carholders until Saturday I think that I might go to Ikea one last time today to get some small stuff that we still "need"... :-)

Hiking on Skåneleden

Today we went to Skryllegården to go on a four hour hike on parts or Skåneleden, the hiking trail in Skåne. The weather was beautiful with sun from a blue sky. The hike was rather flat (compared to what we did in Switzerland) but very varied. We walked over fields, through beech forests and on small ridges and met cows as well as sheep. This was our first hike in Skåne and we liked it!

Surprise

Frida and Lars brought our last things from Switzerland with them when they came yesterday (tack så jättemycket). After they left we unpacked the bags and both found surprises in our backpacks! We are quite sure where these goodies came from - vielen Dank! :-)

Blueberry cake

Today Frida and Lars came by on their way from Switzerland to their parents. Very nice to have good friends over for a late lunch and a fika. For the fika I made blueberry cakes. Yummy! Since the berries have to be fresh and not frozen, I couldn't use the ones I picked last week. But the cakes were good anyway. :-)

Here is what you need to make your own blueberry cakes:

20-25 g fresh yeast
70 g butter
2,5 deciliter milk
a pinch of salt
½ deciliter sugar
1 beaten egg
425 g white flour (7-8 deciliter)

1 liter fresh blueberries
1 deciliter sugar
2 tbsp potato starch

Crumble the yeast into pieces in a big bowl. Melt the butter and add the milk. Let the liquid reach 37 C. Dissolve the yeast in some of the liquid and then add the rest of it. Add half of the beaten egg, salt, sugar and almost all the flour. Work it all together to a dough. Let it rise for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 225 C.

Work the dough on a bench and make four flat cakes, about ½ cm thick, with a rolling-pin. Place them on two oven sheets with baking paper. Mix the berries with the sugar and potato starch and divide them onto the cakes. Leave about 3 cm around the edge free. Fold the edges around the berries and brush the rest of the beaten egg on the edge. Bake each sheet in the middle of the oven for 12-15 minutes. Enjoy with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. En guete!

Österlen and Åhus

Yesterday we took the car to Österlen (the east coast of Skåne) and then to Åhus in the northeast of Skåne. We traveled right through Skåne and then reached the ocean on "the other side" close to Simrishamn. From there we went north until we reached Åhus where we went straight to the beach for a walk in the afternoon sun. It was so beautiful!

After the walk on the beach we went to my aunt and her husband "downtown" Åhus. There we also met another aunt, two of my cousins, one with spouse, and three of their kids. Later on my mother, father and brother also showed up and we had delicious salmon under the fig tree in my aunt and uncle's beautiful garden. As dessert we ate the best ice cream in Sweden and then we filled up even more with fresh strawberries and raspberries. Yummy!