I did not take a lot of luggage with me for just one night and a day in Oslo, but I still had a small cabin bag on wheels with me. The venue for the meeting was close to the train station so I planned to walk there. At first I also planned to take my bag with me, but then I thought that there might be some time after the meeting when I could go for a walk and some window shopping (there is really no need for a Swede to do some real shopping in Norway as they have the same stuff as we, but more expensive) so I decided to leave my bag in a locker at the station. Then of course I had a problem; That far I had paid everything with my credit card and I did not have any Norwegian kronas for the locker, for that I needed a 20 kroner coin. So what to do? Go to the exchange office and change 50 SEK?? Start begging for someone to give me 20 NOK?? Take some money from the ATM and have them changed in the automat?? I went for the latter alternative. I knew it was stupid as I will have to pay a fee for that to my Swedish bank and I really did not need more Norwegian money, but thought I could just take 100 NOK and maybe spend ther rest on some snack. Then it turned out the minimum amount you could take from the ATM was 200 NOK (yet another sign that the Norwegians are wealthier than the Swedes, in Sweden the minimum amount is 100 SEK). Ok, but then I was beyond point of no return, I had made my decision not to carry my bag around, so I took the 200 NOK, put the note into the exchange machine and got 200 back in coins, spent 20 NOK on the locker and walked away with 180 NOK in my wallet.
After the meeting I had a whole hour to walk around so I was happy not having my bag with me, but now I had another problem. A problem I very rarely have. I had money that I wanted to get rid of and did not know how to spend it. There is actually not that many nice things that you can get for only 180 NOK and I did not feel like just bying anything and I was not hungry so I did not want to buy snacks. Very strange feeling, not knowing how to spend money. I did not even see the beggers I saw earlier in the morning!! And walking around in the shops and down at the harbour time went and in the end I did not have that much time to look in the shops. In the end I was almost desperate to get rid of the money. Yeah, I know it is stupid. I could just give it away or keep it, I will most probably come back sometime, but as I just realised it was almost twenty years since I last was in Oslo, who knows when that will be....
In the end I just bought a tunic that I saw in a shop for 149 NOK and I took it without trying it on. At home I put it on and realised I will most certainly never use it. I don't even like it!! How stupid is that?!?
Viva the cash less society!!!
Thursday, September 20, 2007
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Visiting the neighbours
Right now I am in Oslo. For being a close neighbour I must say I have hardly been here. I was here just once, a long time ago. And I wont see much this time either. I am only here for a meeting tomorrow, but as it starts early I had to go this afternoon. Unfortunatly this came up quite sudden and I was late to reserve a room and then there were almost no available hotel rooms in the town, which resulted in that I am staying at an hotel at the airport. That might of course be very convienient sometimes, if you travel by air. But this time I arrived by train, right in the city centre, very close to the site of the meeting tomorrow, but still had to take the airport express train for 20 minutes. Very unconvinient! Very irritating and very bad planning!
Will leave right after the meeting tomorrow as well, so I will not see much of Oslo then either. What a pity. Will have to come back!
Will leave right after the meeting tomorrow as well, so I will not see much of Oslo then either. What a pity. Will have to come back!
From Skara to Pisco
It really is a small world!!
When I was in Pisco, walking back from having done the last amendments to the donation document and feeling relaxed about having finished our mission I walked past a lot of lorries transporting humanitarian material from the air base out to the surrounding towns and villages. There were of course organisations from all over the world, but the lorries were predominantly Peruvian of course. But then all of a sudden I discovered something!
This lorry once came from Skara!! Which is a small town very close to where I grew up!! From B. Knutsson Bil AB in Skara, Sweden. Funny isn't it?!
When I was in Pisco, walking back from having done the last amendments to the donation document and feeling relaxed about having finished our mission I walked past a lot of lorries transporting humanitarian material from the air base out to the surrounding towns and villages. There were of course organisations from all over the world, but the lorries were predominantly Peruvian of course. But then all of a sudden I discovered something!
This lorry once came from Skara!! Which is a small town very close to where I grew up!! From B. Knutsson Bil AB in Skara, Sweden. Funny isn't it?!
Pictures from Pisco
Finally I took some time to post some pictures from my trip to Peru. Not the most touristy ones I guess!!
This is the very beautiful AN12 I travelled with. To be sure, it looks much better from the outside...
This is one of my views I could enjoy for 30 hours. I glimpse of the cockpit.
Yes! I know, I do look tired. And I was! This is how I sat for the whole trip from Sweden to Peru.
We landed at the Pisco air base at 2.30 at night. In the morning we could see the rest of the humanitarian community gathering outside the gates.
We were taken for a car ride through what was once the town Pisco. A very depressing sight!
It was sometimes hard to remember this used to be the homes of people and a quite normal little town.
"Our" firs tent erected!
When our mission was completed, we could relax a bit and smile! Here together with Major Sanchez, who helped us a lot on the site.
This is the very beautiful AN12 I travelled with. To be sure, it looks much better from the outside...
This is one of my views I could enjoy for 30 hours. I glimpse of the cockpit.
Yes! I know, I do look tired. And I was! This is how I sat for the whole trip from Sweden to Peru.
We landed at the Pisco air base at 2.30 at night. In the morning we could see the rest of the humanitarian community gathering outside the gates.
We were taken for a car ride through what was once the town Pisco. A very depressing sight!
It was sometimes hard to remember this used to be the homes of people and a quite normal little town.
"Our" firs tent erected!
When our mission was completed, we could relax a bit and smile! Here together with Major Sanchez, who helped us a lot on the site.
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Strange...
It is unbelievable, but today I even felt quite relieved that I don’t have to travel very soon again. The first thing I did when coming back in the office on Monday was to attend a meeting for planning a trip to Angola in the end of September. That would of course have been very interesting, but a bit stressful as that would have been the kind of trip that would have needed a lot of preparation and the coming two weeks I will not be in the office, but at a course in Stockholm, that also requires some preparation and after-work, so it would have been very stressful. But today we decided not to move on with the Angola-project and I felt a little relieved. I would love to go there and I really hope that I will get to travel more, but not just yet. Strange!
Monday, August 27, 2007
Extreme Travelling
Well, here I have been complaining that I don’t get to travel much anymore, I guess someone must have heard me! Last week I did Iceland, Canada, Bermuda, Aruba and Peru!!
Unfortunately I did not get to see much of any of the places. The reason for my travel was to follow the delivery of tents, blankets, tarpaulins and heaters for the victims of the earthquake in Peru and the reason for all the other stops was that we (me and a colleague) were flying with the cargo in an old Antonov 12 and that plane can not fly too far without filling up on fuel. So the stops on Keflavik, Gander, Bermuda and Aruba were really short and we never left the air field.
The flight took some 27 hours and I can assure you that the comfort of an old Soviet-built air craft from the 60.s is not too great! It is cramped, extremely noisy, shaky and a bit dirty. Of course there is no air-con and the temperature varies greatly with the surrounding. They had a heater and when they turned that one on it got extremely hot. All the security facilities that they remind you of on a regular, commercial flight felt like a joke in this environment, and there were no other facilities either, so those quite frequent fill-up-stops were good for other urgent matters too…. At least we had seats, not very comfortable, but still. And our Ukrainian crew was all gentlemen and let me have two of the four seats. They even provided me with a blanket, a pillow and a box next to the second seat, for me to lay my feet on when I tried to get some sleep. My (male) colleague did not get that kind of extra attention… The worst thing on the trip however, was the fact that all the seven guys in the crew were chain-smokers and were constantly smoking in the plane. And as airports normally are non-smoking areas they stayed inside the plane and smoked even when we were not flying. Normally most planes are of course also non-smoking, but if you have your own plane of course you do as you like.
However, after 27 hours, one rather scary take-off (at Bermuda) and one harsh landing we arrived at the military air field in Pisco, Peru at ca: 02.00 at night. The plane got unloaded quickly and our Ukrainian friends took off again for Brazil and new adventures. We now had to work our way at the airfield that was opened only to receive humanitarian cargo. Fortunately we meet a major in the air force who took kindly to us and let us stay in the military quarters. I got a mattress on the floor, which was perfectly fine for the two-three hours we could lay down; we even had access to a (primitive) bath room!
The next day was full of work, trying to get in touch with the right people and organize a good hand over of the stuff, which worked well. We were also taken thru the disaster area, which was a very depressing sight, I don’t think we saw one single house that was entirely undamaged and most of them were completely destroyed. We were also taken to a tent camp, similar to the one where “our” tents will be put. There the situation was a little more hopeful. Of course it is depressing when you consider that these poor people have lost everything, but the camp was very well looked after and they had kitchens and “bathrooms” and they tried to create some activities for the children so it looked ok. In the afternoon we finished the administration and then we were basically done. We had planned to try to get on a flight and leave Pisco on Thursday morning, but all of a sudden an opportunity opened for us to catch a lift by car to Lima all ready on Wednesday night, and as we had nothing more in Pisco to do and staying on actually only meant a further strain to the already scarce resources we left for Lima, where we arrived at midnight. I don’t think I have to tell you that I appreciated an extra night in a hotel! I even skipped eating, although I had had nothing apart from a “self heating” military ration of ravioli, I just had a hot shower (It was very cold) and then went straight to bed.
We coming to Lima one day earlier also meant we actually could have a whole day in Lima! We had made contacts with a Swede living in Lima for a long time and he and his Peruvian wife kindly took us on to a market where we could see and buy some handicrafts and also drove us thru the centre of historical Lima, so at least we saw something of it. We even managed to drink a pisco sour and eat cevice before leaving for Europe again on Friday, so I feel I got something from Peru with me, accept for sleep deficit, a sore back and tragic pictures of devastated houses. It is a bit frustrating to have been to a country that has so much to see and have seen nothing, but I will just have to come back under other circumstances. The same goes for some of the places were we landed on the way, especially Bermuda or Aruba! I feel I need a real nice vacation on an exotic beach somewhere this winter. Anyone wants to join me??!!
The most memorable thing that I have with me from this trip is actually all the nice, kind, helpful and caring people that we met!
I will post some pictures later, but now I will have to sleep. Tomorrow will be a busy day in the office.
Unfortunately I did not get to see much of any of the places. The reason for my travel was to follow the delivery of tents, blankets, tarpaulins and heaters for the victims of the earthquake in Peru and the reason for all the other stops was that we (me and a colleague) were flying with the cargo in an old Antonov 12 and that plane can not fly too far without filling up on fuel. So the stops on Keflavik, Gander, Bermuda and Aruba were really short and we never left the air field.
The flight took some 27 hours and I can assure you that the comfort of an old Soviet-built air craft from the 60.s is not too great! It is cramped, extremely noisy, shaky and a bit dirty. Of course there is no air-con and the temperature varies greatly with the surrounding. They had a heater and when they turned that one on it got extremely hot. All the security facilities that they remind you of on a regular, commercial flight felt like a joke in this environment, and there were no other facilities either, so those quite frequent fill-up-stops were good for other urgent matters too…. At least we had seats, not very comfortable, but still. And our Ukrainian crew was all gentlemen and let me have two of the four seats. They even provided me with a blanket, a pillow and a box next to the second seat, for me to lay my feet on when I tried to get some sleep. My (male) colleague did not get that kind of extra attention… The worst thing on the trip however, was the fact that all the seven guys in the crew were chain-smokers and were constantly smoking in the plane. And as airports normally are non-smoking areas they stayed inside the plane and smoked even when we were not flying. Normally most planes are of course also non-smoking, but if you have your own plane of course you do as you like.
However, after 27 hours, one rather scary take-off (at Bermuda) and one harsh landing we arrived at the military air field in Pisco, Peru at ca: 02.00 at night. The plane got unloaded quickly and our Ukrainian friends took off again for Brazil and new adventures. We now had to work our way at the airfield that was opened only to receive humanitarian cargo. Fortunately we meet a major in the air force who took kindly to us and let us stay in the military quarters. I got a mattress on the floor, which was perfectly fine for the two-three hours we could lay down; we even had access to a (primitive) bath room!
The next day was full of work, trying to get in touch with the right people and organize a good hand over of the stuff, which worked well. We were also taken thru the disaster area, which was a very depressing sight, I don’t think we saw one single house that was entirely undamaged and most of them were completely destroyed. We were also taken to a tent camp, similar to the one where “our” tents will be put. There the situation was a little more hopeful. Of course it is depressing when you consider that these poor people have lost everything, but the camp was very well looked after and they had kitchens and “bathrooms” and they tried to create some activities for the children so it looked ok. In the afternoon we finished the administration and then we were basically done. We had planned to try to get on a flight and leave Pisco on Thursday morning, but all of a sudden an opportunity opened for us to catch a lift by car to Lima all ready on Wednesday night, and as we had nothing more in Pisco to do and staying on actually only meant a further strain to the already scarce resources we left for Lima, where we arrived at midnight. I don’t think I have to tell you that I appreciated an extra night in a hotel! I even skipped eating, although I had had nothing apart from a “self heating” military ration of ravioli, I just had a hot shower (It was very cold) and then went straight to bed.
We coming to Lima one day earlier also meant we actually could have a whole day in Lima! We had made contacts with a Swede living in Lima for a long time and he and his Peruvian wife kindly took us on to a market where we could see and buy some handicrafts and also drove us thru the centre of historical Lima, so at least we saw something of it. We even managed to drink a pisco sour and eat cevice before leaving for Europe again on Friday, so I feel I got something from Peru with me, accept for sleep deficit, a sore back and tragic pictures of devastated houses. It is a bit frustrating to have been to a country that has so much to see and have seen nothing, but I will just have to come back under other circumstances. The same goes for some of the places were we landed on the way, especially Bermuda or Aruba! I feel I need a real nice vacation on an exotic beach somewhere this winter. Anyone wants to join me??!!
The most memorable thing that I have with me from this trip is actually all the nice, kind, helpful and caring people that we met!
I will post some pictures later, but now I will have to sleep. Tomorrow will be a busy day in the office.
Wednesday, August 08, 2007
Substitute travelling
I feel I have become a bit addicted to travelling. I really miss it now when I don’t travel as much as I want. And what I miss the most is to feel different smells. Just to breathe another air with a different scent, no matter whether it is clean, polluted, sweet, spicy or even smelly; I want to feel a different air. My next possible journey might be in September when I have some plans to go to Italy. No matter how much I love Italy, it does not really count. I have been there quite a few times and it almost feels like home, yet I still love it and really hope I will be able to go!
I haven’t really noticed until I wrote the last post, that my reading is a way to make up for the missed travelling, I have never really made an overview of what kind of books I read. I have just noticed that I don’t read the same books as other people around me seem to read. Right now it is very popular in Sweden to read criminal novels, and there are quite a few Swedish writers of criminal stories that everyone seems to know and have read, except for me. After having written about the book about the Yangtze I received a package of books that I have ordered and while unpacking them it struck me; all the books where about travelling or life in different exotic countries and cultures (as India, Nigeria and Albania). The one book that was not about travelling was an atlas!
Therefore I think I will continue here to give my reviews about books on travelling! As a substitute for the real thing!
I haven’t really noticed until I wrote the last post, that my reading is a way to make up for the missed travelling, I have never really made an overview of what kind of books I read. I have just noticed that I don’t read the same books as other people around me seem to read. Right now it is very popular in Sweden to read criminal novels, and there are quite a few Swedish writers of criminal stories that everyone seems to know and have read, except for me. After having written about the book about the Yangtze I received a package of books that I have ordered and while unpacking them it struck me; all the books where about travelling or life in different exotic countries and cultures (as India, Nigeria and Albania). The one book that was not about travelling was an atlas!
Therefore I think I will continue here to give my reviews about books on travelling! As a substitute for the real thing!
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
The River at the Centre of the World
As I can not travel as much as a would like to right now, I have to settle for imaginary travels, as through reading. Thought I could share some of my literary travel experiences too.
I have just been reading The River at the Centre of the World, A Journey up the reiver Yangtze, and back in Chinese time, by Simon Winchester. It is a very beautiful book about a very fascinating country and as I now know an amazing river. I don't know whether all the "biggest, longest, highest and wildest" really are true, but I don't care. Reading the book made me want to go there at the same time it made me feel I had almost been there too. A good combination. I can recommend it!
I also like the very beautiful cover! I wanted to put a picture of it here on the blog, but all the pictures I first found on the net had a different cover from the one I have. Maybe because I bought my book a couple of years ago and in China... But finally I found a picture.
And... the book has maps! Several maps! I love maps and I like books that have maps! :-)
I have just been reading The River at the Centre of the World, A Journey up the reiver Yangtze, and back in Chinese time, by Simon Winchester. It is a very beautiful book about a very fascinating country and as I now know an amazing river. I don't know whether all the "biggest, longest, highest and wildest" really are true, but I don't care. Reading the book made me want to go there at the same time it made me feel I had almost been there too. A good combination. I can recommend it!
I also like the very beautiful cover! I wanted to put a picture of it here on the blog, but all the pictures I first found on the net had a different cover from the one I have. Maybe because I bought my book a couple of years ago and in China... But finally I found a picture.
And... the book has maps! Several maps! I love maps and I like books that have maps! :-)
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Domestic Travels II
As I don’t get to travel that much right now, maybe I should write more about Sweden, from a traveller’s perspective. After all it was on the news yesterday, that Sweden made it to the top-twenty-list of tourist destinations in the world. Quite unbelievable if you ask me! I don’t think I would go here if I didn’t live here!
But still, there are nice places. This weekend I will be off to the West coast again, my beloved Bohuslän!
But still, there are nice places. This weekend I will be off to the West coast again, my beloved Bohuslän!
Wednesday, July 04, 2007
Hello Africa!
I am a bit fascinated by the cluster map on my blog, that shows where you people, who are visiting my blog, come from. Some of you I know,:-) but there are definetly many who I don't know.
I have to admit that I really don't know many people in USA for example, so you must be still unknown friends. But the strange thing is the amazingly white spot over whole of Africa. I do know some people living in Africa, who I think might check my blog sometimes, but still not one single red dot!!!
So if you live in an African country and happen to read my blog, please leave a comment so I know you are there!
I have to admit that I really don't know many people in USA for example, so you must be still unknown friends. But the strange thing is the amazingly white spot over whole of Africa. I do know some people living in Africa, who I think might check my blog sometimes, but still not one single red dot!!!
So if you live in an African country and happen to read my blog, please leave a comment so I know you are there!
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Beautiful Slovenia
From what I saw of Slovenia this weekend it is very beautiful and I would love to go back for hiking, cykling, rafting or any other kind of rather activ holiday.
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Lake Bled
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Me and Saar at the pond at Brdo.
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Jezersko outside Kranj.
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Lake Bled.jpg)
Me and Saar at the pond at Brdo.
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Jezersko outside Kranj.
Travel stress!
Considering how much I travel it is strange that I sometimes wonder if I really like to travel. Sometimes I think I would just like to stay where I am, no matter where that is. This weekend I was in Slovenia for a wedding and that was really nice, but still, when I came to Stockholm I felt I didn’t want to get back here and before I went to Slovenia I didn’t want to go there. It is always like that. And the packing does not get any easier with the years either, I still hate it. This time though I would not have had to spend that much time to pick the right dress and accessories, if I had known.... My bag got stuck in Vienna and did not arrive until after the wedding sermon and just before dinner was served. Then it was a bit late!But thanks to my great friends I managed to get a appropriate outfit.
Anyway Slovenia and the wedding were great. I will post pictures later
Anyway Slovenia and the wedding were great. I will post pictures later
Monday, May 28, 2007
Too little travelling in the normal life!
Hmmm, it is a bit sad that I haven't had anything to write on this blog in a long while. It means I have not been travelling as much as I want. I was wondering what would have happened if I had accepted the work in Abuja or in Dhaka. Would that then still have been considered travelling or "normal life"? I mean if I really would have stayed there and worked??
Well, that is not an issue right now anyway. I will stay in Sweden for the nearest future and I dont think my moving to Kristinehamn will count as travelling!
Well, that is not an issue right now anyway. I will stay in Sweden for the nearest future and I dont think my moving to Kristinehamn will count as travelling!
Friday, April 27, 2007
Places to see before you die!
Saw this list over places one ought to have seen before one dies. Of course I am a little upset that I have just seen 10 out of 50 on the list. But on the other hand, I am not planning to die just yet.
There are no real surprises on the list, it is rather predictable, but I am sure there are a lot of other places that ought to be on it, or we could make alternative lists. For example I don’t understand why Bangkok is on it but not Beijing! And not one single place in Eastern Europe! I think this is a result of the list being compiled by British BBC-viewers and governed by their preferences.
Hey, can’t we try to find other places one really ought to see!?!!? Looking forward to your comments and suggestions!!
1. Grand Canyon
2. Great Barrier Reef, Australia
3. Disney World, Florida
4. South Island, New Zealand
5. Cape Town, South Africa
6. Golden Temple, Armritsar, India
7. Las Vegas, US
8. Sydney, Australia
9. New York, US
10. Taj Mahal, India
11. Lake Louise, The Rockies, Canada
12. Uluru (Ayres Rock), Australia
13. Chichén Itz·, Mexico
14. Machu Picchu, Peru
15. Niagara Falls, US/Canada
16. Petra, Jordan
17. Pyramids, Egypt
18. Venice, Italy
19. Maldives
20. Great Wall, China
21. Victoria Falls, Zambia/Zimbabwe border
22. Hong Kong
23. Yosemite National Park, US
24. Hawaii
25. North Island, New Zealand
26. The Iguaçu Falls, Argentina/Brazil border
27. Paris, France
28. Alaska, US
29. Angkor Wat, Cambodia
30. Mount Everest, Himalayas
31. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
32. Masai Mara, Kenya
33. Galapagos Islands, Ecuador
34. Luxor, Egypt
35. Rome, Italy
36. San Francisco, US
37. Barcelona
38. Dubai
39. Singapore
40. La Digue, Seychelles
41. Sri Lanka
42. Bangkok, Thailand
43. Barbados, West Indies
44. Iceland
45. The Terracotta Army, China
46. Matterhorn, Switzerland
47. Angel Falls, Venezuela
48. Abu Simbel, Egypt
49. Bali, Indonesia
50. Bora Bora, French Polynesia
There are no real surprises on the list, it is rather predictable, but I am sure there are a lot of other places that ought to be on it, or we could make alternative lists. For example I don’t understand why Bangkok is on it but not Beijing! And not one single place in Eastern Europe! I think this is a result of the list being compiled by British BBC-viewers and governed by their preferences.
Hey, can’t we try to find other places one really ought to see!?!!? Looking forward to your comments and suggestions!!
1. Grand Canyon
2. Great Barrier Reef, Australia
3. Disney World, Florida
4. South Island, New Zealand
5. Cape Town, South Africa
6. Golden Temple, Armritsar, India
7. Las Vegas, US
8. Sydney, Australia
9. New York, US
10. Taj Mahal, India
11. Lake Louise, The Rockies, Canada
12. Uluru (Ayres Rock), Australia
13. Chichén Itz·, Mexico
14. Machu Picchu, Peru
15. Niagara Falls, US/Canada
16. Petra, Jordan
17. Pyramids, Egypt
18. Venice, Italy
19. Maldives
20. Great Wall, China
21. Victoria Falls, Zambia/Zimbabwe border
22. Hong Kong
23. Yosemite National Park, US
24. Hawaii
25. North Island, New Zealand
26. The Iguaçu Falls, Argentina/Brazil border
27. Paris, France
28. Alaska, US
29. Angkor Wat, Cambodia
30. Mount Everest, Himalayas
31. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
32. Masai Mara, Kenya
33. Galapagos Islands, Ecuador
34. Luxor, Egypt
35. Rome, Italy
36. San Francisco, US
37. Barcelona
38. Dubai
39. Singapore
40. La Digue, Seychelles
41. Sri Lanka
42. Bangkok, Thailand
43. Barbados, West Indies
44. Iceland
45. The Terracotta Army, China
46. Matterhorn, Switzerland
47. Angel Falls, Venezuela
48. Abu Simbel, Egypt
49. Bali, Indonesia
50. Bora Bora, French Polynesia
Thursday, April 19, 2007
The mad traveller
I think I now have had the confirmation I needed to realise I am really seriously crazy. During this time I have been working and travelling professionally abroad I have found myself to be very open about the destinations. I have felt I could really go anywhere. I am not so governed about what might be the safest, most profitable, most prestigious or most pleasant place to go, I am just curious about new places to see. There has really only been one place where I always said I would not go (among the countries where Sweden has embassies) and that was Abuja, Nigeria. I know people who have worked there and from their stories I always said; no way, I am not going there!
However, yesterday I was asked if I could take an embassy posting over the whole summer; guess where! Of course in Abuja! Then I noticed my immediate reaction was not; “No way, I am not going there”. But rather; “Hmmm, maybe that would be interesting, maybe I should go there.” And then I realised I would not have been me if I had thought otherwise. That is simply me!
Fortunately I will most probably not be able to accept the offer because I think I will have other things to do, and sometimes I can be sensible, but it would be interesting…
However, yesterday I was asked if I could take an embassy posting over the whole summer; guess where! Of course in Abuja! Then I noticed my immediate reaction was not; “No way, I am not going there”. But rather; “Hmmm, maybe that would be interesting, maybe I should go there.” And then I realised I would not have been me if I had thought otherwise. That is simply me!
Fortunately I will most probably not be able to accept the offer because I think I will have other things to do, and sometimes I can be sensible, but it would be interesting…
Friday, April 06, 2007
Riksgränsen
Back from a very nice trip to the north! I must admit this trip has somewhat changed my perception of the northern part of Sweden, I had to re-evaluate some of the prejudices I had about that part of the country and of the people living there, all for the better. I still have the same perception about winter though; I don’t mind snow and winter as long as I can go to it and it does not come to me! And this far north the snow is so very white and clean and the slopes have only natural snow. This part is really so exotic. For me it feels much more exotic to go here than to the Alps, although still in my native country. It is so far away, so open, so empty!
And still we had really bad luck with the weather. When we arrived it was raining. That night and next day it was snowing heavy and there was a very strong wind, which meant the whole mountain was closed off. Therefore I and Victoria went for some snow shoe walking, which was also very nice. In the afternoon we caught the train to Narvik mostly because the train ride is supposed to be very beautiful along one of the fjords, and it was! Of course the visibility could have been better, but it was still very nice.
All wrapped up for snow shoe walking in the hard wind.
The border between Sweden and Norway. We crossed the border several times that day.
It is really so far away from everything! Narvik.
We could actually only ski one day, because of the wind and the poor visibility, there was storm and even hurricane warning, so all slopes were closed. That day it was still rather cold and windy and the skiing was difficult because of all the snow that had fallen and the slopes were not well prepared, but it was still nice to ski again. The storm and snowing continued and for a while we were really snowed in as the road was closed and you could only leave in a convoy. As this is a small place with basically only one hotel, one restaurant and one bar being snowed in means you can not avoid getting to know some of the other guests and the staff; it makes a very friendly and familiar atmosphere. Very nice!
In the end it cleared up and they could open the road again (until 1984 train was the only way to get here at all, and if it hadn’t been for the transport of iron ore from the mines in Kiruna and Gällivare to the ice free port of Narvik, there would not have been a railroad either) and we could leave. By then the weather was sooo nice we did not really want to leave, but we had to. But who knows, maybe we will come back soon, they stay open till midsummer!
It is a paradise for off pist skiing!
Enjoying the sun when it finally showed. Someone called Riksgränsen "Heaven or Hell" and I can understand that, when the weather is nice up there it is unbelievable, but when not, it can get really nasty!
As we did not sleep too much during these days I was rather tired on my way back home. So tired fell asleep on the train from Stockholm! I slept so heavy I did not wake up when I should have got off. I did not wake up until my mother, waiting at the station, called me asking where I was. I was so gone! I hade to go with the train all the way to Göteborg, wait another hour for the last train back and did not get home until two o clock last night. Strange ending to a nice trip! Would be nice to calculate how many kilometres I travelled yesterday.
And still we had really bad luck with the weather. When we arrived it was raining. That night and next day it was snowing heavy and there was a very strong wind, which meant the whole mountain was closed off. Therefore I and Victoria went for some snow shoe walking, which was also very nice. In the afternoon we caught the train to Narvik mostly because the train ride is supposed to be very beautiful along one of the fjords, and it was! Of course the visibility could have been better, but it was still very nice.
All wrapped up for snow shoe walking in the hard wind.
The border between Sweden and Norway. We crossed the border several times that day.
It is really so far away from everything! Narvik.
We could actually only ski one day, because of the wind and the poor visibility, there was storm and even hurricane warning, so all slopes were closed. That day it was still rather cold and windy and the skiing was difficult because of all the snow that had fallen and the slopes were not well prepared, but it was still nice to ski again. The storm and snowing continued and for a while we were really snowed in as the road was closed and you could only leave in a convoy. As this is a small place with basically only one hotel, one restaurant and one bar being snowed in means you can not avoid getting to know some of the other guests and the staff; it makes a very friendly and familiar atmosphere. Very nice!
In the end it cleared up and they could open the road again (until 1984 train was the only way to get here at all, and if it hadn’t been for the transport of iron ore from the mines in Kiruna and Gällivare to the ice free port of Narvik, there would not have been a railroad either) and we could leave. By then the weather was sooo nice we did not really want to leave, but we had to. But who knows, maybe we will come back soon, they stay open till midsummer!
It is a paradise for off pist skiing!
Enjoying the sun when it finally showed. Someone called Riksgränsen "Heaven or Hell" and I can understand that, when the weather is nice up there it is unbelievable, but when not, it can get really nasty!
As we did not sleep too much during these days I was rather tired on my way back home. So tired fell asleep on the train from Stockholm! I slept so heavy I did not wake up when I should have got off. I did not wake up until my mother, waiting at the station, called me asking where I was. I was so gone! I hade to go with the train all the way to Göteborg, wait another hour for the last train back and did not get home until two o clock last night. Strange ending to a nice trip! Would be nice to calculate how many kilometres I travelled yesterday.
Sunday, April 01, 2007
Going north!
This afternoon I will travel north voluntarily for the first time in 17 years! And really far north! I will go to Riksgränsen (www.riksgransen.se) in the very far north of Sweden for skiing. That means approx two hours flying from Stockholm to Kiruna and then another two hours bus transfer. It’s a big country! And it is really exotic! Unfortunately the weather forecast does not look too great, but last time I was there (17 years ago!!) the forecast was never correct so I hope they are still as wrong!!
Thursday, March 22, 2007
Fake or real?
I guess many of you have heard the internet clip with a voice calling out from some British airport, names -fake or real? - that sounds like i.e. "My colleague Just farted and Left the room The bastard". Today I heard someting similar, in real life! I wonder what the poor person who made that call thought. Sitting at Schiphol Airport waiting for my flight I suddenly heard; "Attention please. Passengers Strange and Motherless, travelling to London Heathrow on flight no YY, please immediatly go to gate XX".
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Holland Holidays
This weekend I am off to Holland! Looking forward to see good friends and have a good time. Hopefully there will also be a little more spring there then here in Sweden. Nice!!!!!!
Wednesday, March 07, 2007
Domestic travels
This weekend I enjoyed some travelling in Sweden. I visited some friends in southern Sweden, in Helsinborg and Lund and besides the nice socializing and partying we also saw some wellknown sights I hadn't seen before, as Ale Stenar; kind of a Swedish Stonehenge. Felt like holiday. Nice!
Some small houses in the picturesque village of Kåseberga.
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