Välkommen till Svenska klass!

Yes, it's true.  I am taking a course in Swedish.   And, contrary to what some of you may think, learning this language takes much more effort than simply watching a few episodes of the Muppets with the Swedish chef!

Bork, bork, bork!!

Because my class meets Monday through Friday from 9 until 11:30....and then of course I have homework...it has kept me quite busy.  I am nearly finished with the three and a half week course, so I guess it's about time I provide an update.

To begin....the answer is "yes", I could survive here without ever learning the language (since ALMOST everyone speaks English), but I think there are a few good reasons to at least attempt to learn Swedish.  First of all, we have some friends who will sometimes speak Swedish in front of me...it's not that I'm offended (or that I think they are talking about me), but it would be nice to contribute to the conversation!  Secondly, as our girls' Swedish continues to improve every day, I want to be sure THEY aren't saying things about me that I can't understand!   Learning the language may also make some  other things a bit easier...like shopping, reading the mail, and perhaps finding employment!

I am (almost) the only American in the class.  There is one other girl, but she has been dating a Swedish guy for five years, so I don't know if she counts as a typical American.  Her Swedish pronunciation on day one was WAY better than that of many others in the class.  I have to admit it was a bit intimidating on the first day since everyone else in the class knows at least two languages....that of their homeland plus English.   Several people speak at least a bit of three or more languages.  I firmly believe that learning a second language as a child would have made learning Swedish as an adult a bit easier (that's my story and I'm sticking to it!).   Yes, I took four years of Spanish in High School, but that really isn't helping me grasp these new sounds and letters.  However, I do find myself occasionally thinking of a Spanish phrase when I can't think of the right Swedish one....which I find mildly amusing.

Oops!  Wrong language!

I have to say that after a couple of weeks of class (and studying), I now recognize many more Swedish words when I see them on paper. This is beneficial when trying to read the mail, notes from school, etc.  I am still a LONG way from understanding people when they speak to me (unless, of course, they talk really slowly and speak in short, simple, one subject, one verb, present tense sentences).  Examples would include "Klara rides her bike", "David is sleeping", or "I am tired".

To make learning Swedish even more difficult (did I say "difficult"?  I meant to say "fun" and "interesting"), one must also be aware of different dialects.  People in Skåne (the southern part of Sweden where we live) speak differently than those coming from other parts of Sweden.

We are the bright pink blob at the bottom.

I could probably spend a whole post talking about this little piece of Sweden (Skåne even has its own flag!).  However, this blurb I found kind of sums up the dialect difference...."People from further north joke that speakers of the dialect in Skåne sound like they talk with a hot potato in their mouths. Residents of Skåne reply that speakers of Standard Swedish are 'spissflabbad', which translates roughly as sharp-tongued and snobbish."  Of course, there is a mix of folks down here, so I will do my best to understand everyone!

Now back to the challenges of my class!  Beyond trying to memorize millions (okay, thousands) of new words, I had forgotten all of the other fun things about learning a language.  These would include (but are not limited to) learning different verb tenses, memorizing which nouns are "en" words and which nouns are "ett" words (it's important...trust me!), and all the crazy rules about when you reverse the subject and the verb in a sentence.   Here are a few of my notes from "Noun Rule Day".

And this is just the tip of the iceberg!

I am wondering (hoping) if there might be some sort of Swedish School House Rock that can help me with some of this stuff!  Learning pronouns, adverbs ("Lolly Lolly Lolly get your adverbs here!") and, of course, conjunctions could all be made much simpler with catchy music and cartoons!

I SOOOOO need this in Swedish!

My class ends this week.   I will do my best to start throwing in Swedish words (when I know them) and will try to force my Swedish friends to speak with me (in Swedish).  I know it's hard for them to resist just talking to me in English when I struggle through a couple of poorly pronounced words or sentences.   I will keep trying...wish me luck!

How to get fat in Sweden

What??  With all the biking, daily farmer's market, etc. how could that possible happen....to ANYONE that lives here?  Before I provide you with a few simple steps on how to "bulk up" here in Scandinavia, I want to take you back to April when we first moved here.  After a couple of short weeks in Sweden, I thought (mistakenly) that it would be so easy to stay in shape!  After one week, my jeans were already a little bit loose.   Granted, I initially spent 8 to 10 hours a day unpacking, I rarely left the house, and we ate rice and beans, pasta or sandwiches for dinner every night.  Combine that with more walking and biking, less eating at restaurants and a sparkly new gym membership- I began to understand why most people here are in pretty good shape (and assumed- perhaps incorrectly- that I could easily be like "most people")

My friend....for now

All that being said, I now realize that staying in shape was not quite as easy as I initially thought...or hoped.  Here are a few simple steps that could help a person get "fluffy" in Sweden (if one were so inclined).   Step 1-  Make Friends.  Yes, the Swedes know how to entertain (and I'm not referring to fermented fish or meatballs!).   Since settling in, we have been invited to the homes of friends for fabulous dinners, drinks, or fika (or coffee break).   Sometimes afternoon fika would flow into dinner and drinks!

You might find these at fika!

Sometimes a week of sensible eating and regular workouts could be unravelled by a weekend evening with friends, eating yummy food and enjoying a few glasses of wine.  On a side note,  I must say that our Danish friends are also wonderful hosts (therefore equally responsible for my not-so-loose jeans!)

Step 2- Learn your way around the grocery store.   With some help of Google translate and a couple of Swedish friends, I am now able to navigate (reasonably well) through a couple of the main grocery stores.  I've also made friends with my small oven....for the most part....and don't burn things as frequently as I did the first month here.   Now I am able to make some familiar foods from home and we are not dependent on the aforementioned sandwiches, pasta, and rice and beans (although those meals are still in the rotation!).  I do try to cook reasonably healthy things, but we are no longer enjoying the "prison diet".

Pretty good stuff...but not every day!

Step 3- Invite out-of-country guests to stay with you.  Okay, I'm not sure that I should refer to my parents as "guests", but when I have people in the house (family or otherwise), I feel obligated to ensure they are well fed.  I also invited friends over on several occasions so that my parents could meet them.  It goes without saying that if I'm having guests over that I MUST feed them.  A few culinary highlights included taco night, enchiladas, banana bread and apple crisp.  I made meatballs as well...but not from scratch!

Homemade apple crisp- try it with ice cream and vanilla sauce!

Also, it's only natural that the parents wanted to try out some of the local establishments for fika, lunch, or dinner.   I went out for coffee more in two weeks time than I had in five months.  And, as you might imagine, it wasn't just coffee....I sampled some really yummy kannelbullar (cinnamon rolls), carrot cake and a pie made out of local berries (I have a feeling that those items do not qualify as the Breakfast of Champions!).  Before the parents visit,  I had rarely gone out to eat and I didn't know which local places are the best (there's no Panera or Jason's Deli).  So it was a little trial and error.   However, we did find a pizza place in town called V.E.S.P.A. that is quite good.  My family and close friends could tell you that I might DIE without pizza.   Needless to say, even all of the extra walking around town couldn't possibly offset the smorgasbord which was the last few weeks!

Now, please understand that I am exaggerating (a little) about bulking up....I'm sure you will recognize me the next time you see me and I haven't had to buy bigger jeans just yet, but it's certainly not as easy as I thought it would be to stay fit in Sweden.  However, I'm so grateful that we have friends to hang out with, that I can navigate through the grocery store and I'm certainly thrilled that we had our first visitors.   I wouldn't trade any of those things for smaller jeans!  I guess I will just have to work a bit harder during the week.

A little more of this....

And a little (I said a LITTLE) less of this!

Pimp my ride

Most of you that have been following along are aware of my renewed friendship with my old (but reliable) bicycle.   As well as things have been going well with my BFF, I realized that she needed a couple of "enhancements".   First of all, now that the weather has suddenly turned to fall (which I guess in Sweden means 60s with some rain), I notice that my awesome backpack, and sometimes my pants, get splattered from the puddles when I'm riding in the rain (I know you're probably thinking, "Then just don't ride your bike in the RAIN!").   Fortunately or unfortunately, in my quest to adapt to the more active Swedish lifestyle, some riding in the rain is mandatory.   So I took my bike to the shop to get some mudguards installed over the tires.  I would go to great lengths to protect my precious backpack!  In all seriousness, for as much as I ride with a backpack, I'm thinking of upgrading from the IKEA special to something a bit more stylish!

Not fancy....but hopefully functional!

As a quick tangent to the mudguard upgrade, I finally broke down and purchased some rain pants today.  Yes, I'm serious.  I bought waterproof pants to wear over my regular pants to protect them....when I'm riding my bike IN THE RAIN.  As I write this I'm guessing most of you think that Michelle has been kidnapped and replaced with a Swedish alien!   Suffice it to say that I am now well prepared to accompany the kids back and forth to school in inclement weather without getting soaked.  It is duly noted that DRIVING would also accomplish that!

Ok...back to the bike.  I realized that in addition to the mudguards, the old Rockhopper also needed a kickstand.  Since it's a mountain bike, I guess they are not standard issue (and are considered both lame, and possibly dangerous, to the serious trail riders).  And up until now....I never really missed it.  The main reason being, of course, that I really didn't ride my bike that much.  And when I did ride it, I could just lean it up against a tree.  Now, however, I take my bike all over the place and sometimes the bike racks are full.  Can you imagine such a thing?  And you can't just lean your bike anywhere that seems convenient.

Breakin' the law!

As pathetic as it might sound, I was quite happy to pick up my new "ride" from my friends at Ekman's Cykel, with it's shiny new kickstand and mudguards  (for now, I'm holding off on the new paint job and fancy rims).

Maybe the TV will be my next upgrade!

Not surprisingly, it was windy and threatening rain when I went to pick up the girls from school with my (new and improved) BFF, so I even threw on the new rain pants as a precautionary measure.   I was quite a sight (but I wouldn't  hold your breath waiting for the photo!).  Hopefully now I'm prepared for at least the next month or so of crazy Swedish weather....I have no idea what the winter will bring!

Will this be me in December??

Our first visitors!

Okay friends...another quick entry...with relatively more photos than text (perfect for some of you, I'm sure!).  After having the whole family together here for about five months now, we had our first visitors arrive last week.   My mom and dad (Nana and Papa to the girls) made the 8 hour flight across the Atlantic!

When I picked them up at the airport in Copenhagen, I was able to stand and watch for them as they left the customs area.  My only regret was not having a little American (or perhaps Swedish) flag to wave at them.

This little guy came prepared to greet his Danish family!

After an overnight flight (with a few cat naps) they were a bit tired.  But they were soooooo excited to see the girls!  So I tried to capitalize on that energy and plotted to keep them awake all afternoon (I thought this would help them battle through the jet lag).  We arrived at our house, where the girls were waiting, and spent some time just relaxing.   Then I dragged them out for a walk to the park and to see the girls' schools.

Push me really high!

The next day the P's accompanied me as I rode the girls to school (thanks to our friend who loaned us a bike!).   Yes,  I forced them to quickly acclimate to some Swedish-ness!

Trying to keep up!

While the girls were in school, the folks and I rode (yes, on bikes) into downtown Lund.   As expected, they were charmed by the old architecture and cobblestone streets.   We had coffee (yes, I'm starting to drink coffee!) then stopped at the outdoor market for some fresh berries. Yum!  I also found out this market continues all year round, with the exception of maybe a few weeks where the weather is really awful.   

A beautiful day in Lund!

I have a feeling that I will learn a few new things about Sweden while acting as my parents' tour guide, especially because my father is very inquisitive.  "How old is Lund?",  "What is this building used for?", "What do the locals eat?" were just a few of his many questions during our brief trip into town!  Luckily I have the Internet to help address his inquiries!

On Saturday, I squished the kids and my parents into the Audi wagon and headed to Malmo (the hubby opted out of this trip as he isn't keen on riding on the roof rack!).   It was a beautiful day, with clouds rolling through only briefly, and the parents were able to see the Turning Torso and one of the girls favorite parks.

Mom, Dad and the girls in Malmö

CeCe showing Papa her climbing ability

After a couple of hours walking around, we headed to a friend's house for a barbecue.   It was a very relaxing first few days with the folks.  Now Mom and Dad are off to Paris and London...returning at the end of the week (Lund may not seem quite as exciting to them after their adventures this week!).

Eiffel tower vs.

Charming city of Lund?

My money is on Lund....but only because two of their grand kids live here!

What's in a name?

If you don't have much time for reading, this entry should be right up your alley!  It was brought to my attention (politely) that all of my posts do not have to be long, involved stories and can, at times, be just a short little blurb (ok...indulge me for at least a few paragraphs) discussing my day, perhaps a yummy restaurant I visited, or some interesting "Swedish" thing I encountered.

I find myself intrigued at how informal it is here when it comes to children speaking with adults.   Back in the states, the girls would typically refer to our friends and other adults as "Miss", "Mrs." or "Mr." So and So.   A few special people (you know who you are) are called "Auntie" or "Uncle".

When we moved to Sweden, of course the girls started meeting new people (many of them grown-ups).  We did our typical  "Miss" and "Mr." thing and people looked at us like we were out of our minds (ok, maybe that's an exaggeration, but certainly it seemed a bit unusual to them).  We were informed that kids typically just use the adults' first name.   OK...I guess I can understand that...if I heard someone calling for "Mrs. B..." then I would be looking around the room for my mother-in-law.

However, I didn't think that this informality would hold true at school....OF COURSE we would address the teachers with Mr., Miss, etc.  Nope.  First day of school....we met Emy and Stefan....the girls' teachers.  Really?  Shouldn't the kids show a little more respect?  But after watching the children (not just my own) interact with their teachers, it really didn't seem have any effect on their behavior...for better or worse.

Interesting.....

Something happened this week, though, that really made me think about this whole hierarchy again.  Malena had a dentist appointment and I, as you might expect, went into the exam room with her.  The hygienist did some preliminary checking then told us that the dentist, Jacob, would be in to check her teeth.  Jacob (who looked all of 23) came in and introduced himself to Malena (as Jacob, not Dr. N.) and completed her check-up.  Teachers, dentists, doctors....all on a first name basis....how interesting!

Before writing this, I did a little (and I do mean a little) research on this topic and I guess I really shouldn't be surprised.  Sweden has an environment of equality (at least when compared to the U.S.) and professional titles are not frequently utilized.  It is very much a culture where people don't think they are better than anybody else (or perhaps they do, but they just don't say it out loud!).  However, I still don't have a good answer for why the kids are on a first name basis with their teachers.   Oh well....I will go with it....as long as my girls still refer to me as "Mom".

Reuniting with an Old Friend

OK....this is probably not where you thought I was going when I mentioned an old friend.  I'm actually talking about my new found love (or at least appreciation) for my bicycle.  A little strange, I know, but a story worth telling.  Thinking back, my bike must be at least fifteen years old (and yes, if you're wondering, it was a gift for my 16th birthday).  I had such big plans for this bike and all of the riding I would do.   It even had a sporty, yet cute name...the Rock Hopper!  Truth be told, it got only sporadic use over the past decade and spent a few summers lonely and unused in the garage.  For shame!  Some years were more eventful than others, but biking certainly did not become as much of a regular activity as I had originally planned.  When I did dust off the old Rock Hopper, the purpose was simply to get some exercise.

She's in decent shape for her age....kinda like me!

Then along comes Sweden.  When the hubby and I visited Lund last fall, the bike situation was like nothing I had seen before.  Bikes were EVERYWHERE!  The train station and bus stops all had bike racks that were full (imagine that!) and the bike paths were plentiful and well maintained.

Bikes as far as the eye can see!

I noticed that you could pretty much get anywhere around town on your bike as easily as you could by car (and there were some streets where only bikes and pedestrians were allowed).   So before the big move, getting our bikes a proper check up was on my to-do list.

I'll admit that it took some time for me to get back into biking once we arrived here (I was told by a friend that I should refer to it as "cycling", but that seems a bit too "Tour de France" for me and the Rock Hopper).  Anyway, I was at first more comfortable exploring our new city on foot or, or course, by car.  However, my girls soon discovered that riding their scooters or bikes was much more fun (and faster) than walking.  This meant that I had to hop on my bike in order to keep up with them....or start running.  Needless to say, I opted for the bike.   We started riding together back and forth to their school (it's only about 1km each way....or a little over a half a mile).

There is no way I'm catching her on foot!

The next adventure was riding into downtown Lund which is about 2.5 to 3 miles away...again not any great distance, but I'm making progress.  Often times the distance was greater simply because I got lost!  After a few trips, it was brought to my attention that the ride from our house into town is actually all downhill (no, I did not figure that out on my own, but it did make sense why the ride back always seemed a bit more difficult).  Clearly I'm not very observant.

Over the next few weeks, I realized that a transformation was occurring.   I was using my bike as a means of TRANSPORTATION....the horror!   Riding to school, a trip to the grocery store for a few items... slowly but surely I was adopting the Swedish way.  I know many families (including ours) that have only one car and I've even met some people who grew up in a household with no car (can you imagine??), but it's strange to actual view my bike as a vehicle and not just a means to exercise.  To put some of this in perspective, my old Target store (sigh!) was a mere 1.9 miles from our home.  Did it ever EVER occur to me to ride my bike there when I only needed to pick up a few things?  Of course not.  What a ridiculous idea!

I do have to mention that gas is ridiculously expensive here...like around $8 per gallon expensive (so my friends back home, you can all stop complaining about your fuel prices!)  So I have to wonder....are the Swedes just super health conscious and environmentally friendly, or is it just too damn expensive to drive???  Perhaps it's a bit of both.  For the record, I still use my bike for exercise...it's just not its sole purpose anymore.

A favorite photo taken on one of my rides

I admit it still feels strange to hop on the bike wearing jeans or "non-workout wear", but at least I don't look out of place doing that here.  Many people ride their bikes to work....wearing sport jackets, ties, skirts, and even high heels (not all at the same time, of course)!   Even if it's raining, they just don the proper gear and get going.

Riding in the rain...previously unthinkable!

I did find myself with a bit of a problem once I began running small errands on my bike...I was pretty limited as to what I could buy and carry home.  I looked around at my fellow "bikers" and noticed that many had a nice sturdy basket attached to the front.

I want a cute basket like this!

Thinking that this would work for me, I headed to a local bike shop and explained to them that I needed a basket.  "For THAT bike?" was the response I received.  Well...yes.  The bike shop guy took a closer look and said that it could be done, but that it wouldn't be "quite right".  I'm not sure exactly what that meant, but his concern elicited visions of my fancy basket spilling its contents all over the street. No thank you.

On to Plan B.   I could get those basket things installed on the BACK of my bike (I guess they are called "panniers"....whatever).  These really don't have the same "cute factor" as the front basket, so I decided against them.  Sadly, my next and possibly final, option was to purchase a good sized backpack.  I'm giggling as I write this...thinking that most of you are laughing at the thought of me cruising around on my bike....wearing jeans and sensible shoes...sporting a backpack.   Luckily around here it appears pretty normal.   However, since I thought I would only use the backpack occasionally, I opted for the large, relatively inexpensive, not extremely attractive one from IKEA (no, I'm not kidding).

Yep....this beauty is all mine!

It's ok that it's not so pretty.  I won't be using it that often (I try to convince myself)....it will be my "special occasion" backpack.  Wrong.  I use it nearly every day.  I schlep my gym stuff, take the girls' things to and from school, and yes, make minor trips to the grocery store all with the help of my stylish IKEA backpack.  In fact, when my younger daughter saw that I was including a picture of it in this blog, she said to me, "You LOVE that backpack, don't you mama?"  Yes honey, I do.

So, in a few short months I have become a bike riding, backpack wearing, wanna-be Swede.  I guess there could be worse things.  I admit that I do stop and think about how ridiculously expensive gas prices are when I only have a short distance to travel (and I'm considering driving).  I have even been known to ride in the rain (average rain only....no downpours).  And for those of you who know me well, I am always game for a little extra exercise!  Only time will tell if my eco-friendly habit will continue once I'm back in the states....perhaps if I find a cuter backpack!

Me and my bike- BFFs!

Me? A Tour Guide?

Ok...I admit that "tour guide" is a bit of a stretch, but it is true that I was recently given the responsibility of entertaining four women from the States while their husbands were here on business (they are colleagues of the hubby).   A while back, he asked if I could show the ladies around Lund. As it turns out, the hubby would actually be back in the U.S. and unable to assist with the "tour" which seemed quite unfair (not the fact that I was giving the tour, but that he was in the states without me!).   Nonetheless, I agreed to help out.   It would be nice to have some company from women who appreciate all the things I miss from back in the U.S.  Besides the obvious friends and family, there are a few other American things that I miss a great deal....really good "bad for you" foods and convenient shopping!

The employees at my old Target probably think I died!

I was a little nervous as the day approached.  I have to admit that I have not spent a lot of time in downtown Lund, and I did NOT want to get lost and embarrass myself....the town is quite small, so it really would be embarrassing to lose my bearings.  To try to reduce that risk, I took a few trips into town before the day of their visit.  My girls and I spent part of a Saturday looking around and doing some sight seeing for ourselves.

Basement of Domkyrka (Lund Cathedral)

The quaint streets that lured me to Sweden in the first place!

The hubby's co-worker (and I will go out on a limb and say my friend) Li helped schedule the day.   She set up a "ghost tour" of downtown Lund with a gentleman named Jacques Schultze (he seems more "guy" than "gentleman" but I don't want to sound impolite).  And, for the record, he IS Swedish although his name sounds French.  He made sure to clarify that for us...not that there's anything wrong with being French, of course.

The "real" tour guide!

Anyway, the tour was great for the ladies and for me as well since I know pretty much nothing about the history of Lund.  One of the ladies thought that perhaps I was in "training" to become a tour guide like Jacques.  I had to giggle because even my knowledge of U.S. history leaves a bit to be desired!   Jacques mixed in historical info (I don't know how he remembers all the pertinent dates!) with interesting ghost stories and some pretty good jokes!  Here's one of the more impressive buildings that we encountered.

One of the University buildings....soooooo beautiful!

After our tour was over, we headed to lunch at Kulturen which is an open-air museum nearby (I admit I've only dined at Kulturen....and checked out the gift shop....I should probably add a real museum visit to my "to do" list).   Lunch was very tasty and the ladies had many questions for me about life in Sweden.  I have to admit this is when my shameless plugs for my blog began.   (I couldn't help myself...some of their questions were answered perfectly by previous posts...i.e. how do you find a hair dresser? Are you looking for a job?)

Can I have one of each???

If had been a rainy day, we may have lingered at Kulturen for some Swedish culture.  However, the weather was beautiful, much different from most of the summer, so we just walked around town to browse in some of the shops.  The ladies wanted to make a trip back to Ahlgren's Konfektyr - a chocolate shop that we passed on the tour (I admit that we first stopped into the Tourist Bureau so I could grab a map and make sure we started walking in the right direction.....sad, but true!).  The shop was full of all sorts of chocolates (some from Sweden and some from other countries), gift boxes, and other goodies.  It also has really good ice cream cones.   Even though I was still full from lunch, I was tempted!

The ladies picking out some treats to take home

We managed to check out several other stores in town, mostly just to browse (although I found a few new places which may need a second look).   We also investigated an indoor marketplace...also new to me... that had meats, cheeses, fish, etc.

He's the one!

After a final stop for coffee, our bus picked us up and dropped us back at the office where the husbands were waiting (theirs, not mine).   The day was a lot of fun....for me, at least!  I didn't get lost (whew!) and I was also able to spend time with four great ladies from the U.S. (who made me feel like moving to Sweden was a pretty cool and interesting thing!)

Thanks for a great day!