Visitors from L-town!

Last weekend, our dear ex-flatmates from London - Chiswick W4 to be exact - paid us a visit here in Stockholm. It was their first time to the Venice of the North, and lucky for them, one of probably the last few weekends of summer-ish weather (although as you can see from our attire below, not too summery). 

this was the only pic of the wknd of all 4 of us, taken just before they left on Sunday
 when we were quite exhausted from all the festivities

It was so great to host them, showing them our new city and re-living years of memories on South Parade. We walked all over the city on Saturday (so much so that my calves were killing me the next day), stopping at our favorite drinking holes along the way. Then drank a couple bottles of Duty Free wine* in our local park Rållis, before dinner at lakeside Malarpaviljongen, after which we continued on to cocktails overlooking the harbor at the elegant Gondolen and finishing off the night at the outdoor, hipster-central club Debaser.

We mustered all the energy we could for a hungover Sunday to the closest island of Stockholm's archipelago, Fjarderholmen. Beautiful, picturesque, and the meal we had - I was full for the entire day. All in all, a fabulous weekend! 

*thanks for that Cass and Andre

Quilty @ Sjöstugan

On Sunday afternoon, 3-Swedish man Irish-music band Quilty played at the cozy, beautiful lake side cafe Sjöstugan [lake cabin] in Bergshamra just north of Stockholm's city center. Unlike my mom, who seeks out Irish anythings around every corner, this concert found me - Nik's brother and his wife live close to the cafe and invited us to join. 

We sat at a picnic table beside tall reeds, surrounded by apple trees just turning ripe. The music was great, the kladdkaka delicious (despite slow lines to the counter), and the day - a perfect, nearly fall day. K and I did sneak in a swim before dinner - because summer isn't over just yet. 

And I couldn't resist 450g of Sjöstugan's homemade muesli, all organic except for the butter. Mmmmmmmmm

Cupcake Stockholm

For months I've been aching to try Cupcake Stockholm, and this evening as I biked home from work, I decided: today is the day. I can't say I was disappointed

The top is a classic Red Velvet and the one below is Fäbodjäntan, which is apparently a very strange old Swedish movie (really not sure where the name came from, but it was kind of a strange cupcake as the top was sprinkled with pepper). They also had one called the Michelle Obama (chocolate, raspberry, and licorice) and the Elvis (chocolate, banana, and ... wait for it ... bacon).

I fully indulged in these delicacies, as last night I ran the 5K i-form race in 23:26 minutes (not a far cry from my old days of running cross country) and placed 23rd out of 837! 

Nothing like a Thursday night of red wine, tacos and cupcakes!

Beautiful Fredhäll

I know it's been waaaaaaay to long - but that means it's been a good summer, right? It absolutely has, and as much as I want to catch you up on all the happenings, it's a bit too much for me on this Tuesday night as my eyelids are starting to droop and it's not even 10. So for now, I will leave you with a photo I took this evening as Nik and I traversed the rough terrain of Fredhäll's cliffs only a couple blocks from our apartment in search of a perfect swimming spot.

We passed this little boat, where a couple was having dinner on deck in the sunset. (No, I wasn't spying, I just casually took a shot of the view which happened to include their romantic  meal). 


We weaved our way along the cliffside to a little swimming dock where I did a quick 'Swedish change' as I call it (Swedes are ever so fond of changing into their bathing suits beneath their towels by the water's edge, which takes quite a bit of practice to accomplish and is even harder in reverse taking off a wet bathing suit) and we plunged in. After the initial shocking chill, the water was incredibly refreshing, more so after my 90-minute hot Bikram yoga class, which I managed to complete only by dreaming of my swim. 


Nik keeps saying it could be the last swim of the year, but another good day always seems to come along - hopefully there will be many more.

Midsommar in Steninge

Sweden's Midsommar is like America's 4th of July

minus the fireworks

plus lots of snaps (really strong liquor) and pickled herring

and a Midsommar pole which everyone dances around like a frog

And so, for the occasion, we drove 6 hours across the country to Nik's dad's family's stuga  (cabin) right on the North Sea.

Here's the view from the house

And this is what the traditional Midsommar lunch looks like - boiled potatoes, a wide variety of sill (pickled herring), and snaps... also knäckebröd with just a little bit of butter ; )

Feeling good after... how many shots was it? And it's only lunchtime!

After lunch, it's game time! And here is croquet's all-star blue team

The weekend was lots of fun with tons of food, drinks, and merriment by all. My only request: that Midsommar holiday weekend be extended to at least a week. But I really can't complain with my 3-week holiday right around the corner!

Goodbye Solna, Hello Fredhäll

We’ve moved! And are now official residents of Stockholm. We live in an area called Fredhäll on an island called Kungsholmen which makes up the western part of the inner city. 


Fredhäll is a beautiful area – we are literally surrounded by parks on 3 sides, and are just 2 blocks from the water where you can go swimming off gorgeous cliffs. We have downsized from 67 to 40 square meters – a bit of an adjustment – but everything fits! And our flat already feels at home.

about to start moving out last Saturday morning

Beautiful beautiful Nationaldagen!

For the last 28 years, Sweden's National Day has celebrated on June 6. The day may not go back very far, but it is very much a part of welcoming summer today as a 'Red day,' or nationwide day off. 


So why celebrate on the 6th of June? Well, for one thing, King Gustav Vasa was supposedly crowned king waaaaaaay back (as in 1523 way back) on June 6, marking the end of Danish domination over all of Scandinavia. Then, on June 6, 1809, a new constitution was approved in Sweden, limiting the monarchy's power. So it's a pretty important day.

We celebrated the occasion in gorgeous Hagaparken with a picnic of crayfish, champagne, strawberries, chocolate cake, brie, and sandwiches. Despite it's close proximity to our flat, we had never been to Hagaparken before. It is truly a beautiful place, and on such an incredible day - cloudless skies, about 80 degrees - it was heaven, with its winding paths through lush forests and cliffs along blue lakes.


Entertainment in Hagapark's natural amphitheatre included singing of the national anthem as well as performances by opera singers from Stockholm's Kungliga Operan and by Caroline af Ugglas, Sweden's very own Janis Joplin. A great day in Sweden for sure. Now looking forward to the next national celebration: Midsummer!