Sweden

So I am back in Sweden now. It is early summer here and some days are rather sunny and warm. But for me who had accommodated myself to the humid and hot days of the Amazons, it felt a bit cold. It took me a week to get adjusted to the climate, food as well as time. It was much easier to get used of an earlier day than a later day...

Here are smoked salmon and stewed potato with dill, some multi grained bread, radish, beans and apple cider (and a piece of my camera brace...:) ).

 

The second photo is on a shrimp sandwich, lots of lettuce, cucumber,
tomatoes, orange, lemon, dill, mayonnese, beans and a raspberry drink. 

One of the first days back I went out with a little steam-boat on a lake close by. It was an early morning and the sun was shining on the light green leaves. I loved this little island....

...or the temple here....perfect for yoga exercises
when mornings have become warmer. 

 

A great way to begin the day.

Pisac

Yesterday I went to Pisac and Sacred Valley with some Swedish dudes I met on the Spanish School it was a lovely day and amazing to see. Here are some selective pics.

Calle Suecia

So I wake up and am ready to hit (/eager to get to) the school. Outside it has been raining and thundering the whole night (and not someone showering, as I once thought half-awake…). My shoes are still drying on the windowsill since the day before. Clouds are grey and in the horizon is fog and rain hovering over the mountains. I begin my day with slowly resting an hour before breakfast and yoga. Finally my body and mind seems to adapt to the time difference. It’s said to take as many days as hours of change (so in Sweden/Peru case it is 6 hours/days). 

My Spanish school in Cusco is situated on a very long, steep road (or so it feels when walking on this altitude). After finally getting there, even more steps are awaiting. But then, what a beautiful panoramic view to see!

The road is called “calle de suecia” and so named by either Swedish people once occupying this street, or by the (less likeable version for me) by the Spanish word “la suciedad”, which means dirt…apparently the road used to be very narrow, dark and people throwing waste all around there and so shouted "suicedad"... 

Anyways, if you think it is the first option, its pretty cool… Although I still wonder why the Swedes once came all this way… I mean North America I know, but Peru? Why and who came here? Was it because of gold? Archaeology? Would be interesting to know…

2011-02-21
So today I have heard a third version of the naming... Its said to have lived a Swedish queen on this street during the second world war. She was just 28 years old and to honour her, the people in Cusco named the street "calle suecia".

Cusco

Hey people,

I have now arrived in Cusco. People are very nice here and I have settled in with a great "peruvian mother" and her two daughters in my age. There is also an american girl that will stay in the house for a week and is also studying Spanish here. Yesterday the school offered a guided tour in the city and here are some photos that I took. Enjoy.

"Ohw thye mighty white hart...."

Yesterday I updated my poetry blog. I had watched a man passing outside my window. He was walking so close to the harts, standing grazing next to the sideway. I was pretty amazed how unconcerned the harts where by him, as well as it seemed that he did not notice them. And I was wondering how such a thing was possible.

Today I saw the herd again. Less than 100 metres away from my window. I went out to get a better view.

Since it was a Sunday, many more people had time to just slowly stroll ahead, so they did.

Many noticed the harts. A women with her child (perhaps 6 years old or so) was calmly watching the beautiful animals.They told me that they used to come and see them here. Before the flock was grazing around the railroad, but now they had changed their spot.

It was silence for a minute and then they throwed out some bread to the harts, which at first backed a bit away, then came forward and ate it. The closest hart was just a couple of metres away from us.

More people passed, stopped, took some pictures.

Most amazed was I by the magnificent white hart, since I have never seen anything like it before.

Apparently, people in the area are used of having a white hart in the neighbourhood, since they had seen it before. The particular thing of today was the fact that no less than 11 harts where grazing so close by, without really being disturbed by us humans.

I'll show you...

First sense of spring....

January pictures.

Last one is supposed to be the first pipe smoker David Drummond (1593-1638) in Sweden. He is scuplted by Sven Lunqvist (1918-2010) in 1969. Sven used to imagine that in every stone there is a hidden figure, waiting for someone to unveil it. (is that not how every sculptors generally work? atleast that is how I imagine it to be.)

Brazil flood pic...

Today you could watch lots of photos in the news from
the flooding in Brazil...I love this picture... :)

Sigtuna Winter Fayre

Yesterday I took the train and bus down to Sigtuna for strolling around the little alleys and look at all the handicraft that was sold there. It was a nice atmosphere with a beautiful weather.

 Garden Fairies

Sigtuna Flowers

 Culture House in Sigtuna 

Enjoyed a silent and lovely fika here, in the shade of an icy winter afternoon.

Beautiful winter

Pics of today

Winter 2010/2011 first shots

It started last Tuesday. The wind blow so cold that I said to one of my friends, that "Mr. Winter had breathed upon us and kissed us". :) An hour or two later it all began. Thin and tiny, one by one, the snow flakes fell....

 

Within some hours they had covered the ground. The snow was pretty good so I could make a snow ball and throw the first one on my friend.... She is from the north of Sweden (and I am from the south) so I think she was a bit annoyed that I did it before her...and it started a little snow ball war...that was fun. :)

It was amazing how much it snowed the first time of this winter season. The day after, the world (or more, Uppsala :) ) was covered in more than 10 centimetres layer of snow. And it stayed around.

Even if it started to melt, I could still enjoy a beautiful lunch in the sunshine by the pond. The water was frozen. But it was nothing compared to what faced me this morning when I looked out of my window.

It has become cold and winter is here to stick around for a while.

Soon it is November! :)

If I would still be living in the very south of Sweden it would mean a lot of foggy and grey days.....bare leaves....but this year autumn has been great in Uppsala. The leaves have been burning in all this various colours, slowly falling down...like golden coins...to the ground. Now it lays there, waiting for someone to just throw them up and around.... swirling like a dance of the season of the red, orange, yellow, brown.... burning our senses and making us dress in wool and drink lots of tea....so had a little autumn feast the other night and we all brought something to the table. 

 Then the only Canadian person got to make a pumpkin,
which we named crazy Jack. :) He is now laughing
away all bad spirits in the dark.