Show Tomorrow

No Show & Tell tonight. The month's third wedding is tomorrow and this time I'm a bridesmaid and thus bestowed with some duties. Hope the bride doesn't read this (don't think she does) but I'm holding a speech too and I'm a bit nervous..!

Image from art.allayers.com

Trade Down

I was supposed to go to Pontus for dinner today but a friend of mine became ill so we cancelled. Instead I ended up working late and picking up some McDo on my way home. Hadn't been there for six months or a year even so I was quite looking forward to it. But as always, I had a feeling of anti-climax afterwards, or even half way through the meal. Still I'm sure I will have forgotten in six months time! :-/



Via Anna's iPhone

Show & Tell: Hidden in My Closet...

There must be something wrong with me because I have over 70 pairs of underwear; panties that is. I kid you not. I have counted. Is this normal?! How many do you guys have??




Via Anna's iPhone

Energy Kick

While I continue writing about Swedish nuclear energy...




Home-made juice from oranges, apples, carrots, lemon and banana. Yummy!

Via Anna's iPhone

Working From Home

Or, ehum, the balcony. I have a few deadlines and can't get anything done at work where people phone, e-mail and stop by the whole time. Hence a day of effective writing at home. Just had a break though and met my friend Jenny for lunch. And on my way back got some coffee ice cream from Glass- & pastahuset.




Via Anna's iPhone

Not Chance, Just Pure Talent

Show & Tell: When I Was Little...

I'm going to be a bit boring and just show a few photos as my interpretation of Bejla's second theme of the month. I started scanning old photos a few months ago but didn't get very far (so far I have only scanned random photos kept in boxes but I will tackle my albums soon), hence I don't have much to show you (in addition to those you've already seen). Here are a few you haven't seen yet.

Age 2½, not sure where it is taken exactly but I think it's in front of one of the houses we rented (in Dalarna?) in the summers when I was little

My fifth birthday but I have no idea who the other children are. I think this is taken at pre-school. Maybe my mum can enlighten us :)

Skip to age 15 or 16; I travelled to France by train together with the church youth group I became a member of following my confirmation. We spent a night at the Swedish church in Paris* before we headed to our destination, Taizé, an ecumenical Christian monastery, which has become perhaps the site of Christian pilgrimage**. Taizé is a place for prayer, Bible study, sharing, and communal work, but for a teenager it's very much (mainly?) a camp for young people from all over the world. One of my favourite moments in Taizé were the twice-daily prayer/song sessions in the church:





A blurry picture of my beloved cat Kitty Tigera who's no longer with us, Someone (me?) has put a napkin around her neck, poor thing!

Check out my outfit at the Christmas celebrations at the Norwegian church in New York in 1995 (together with Norwegian aupair friends)! What was I thinking??!!

Here I have recently returned to Sweden (a few pounds heavier...) after my aupair year in the US. I think this picture is funny as we're all wearing blue and my grandmother's curtains also happen to be blue :)

* The Priest who was our "tour guide" is a very kind but a bit naïve and a scatter-minded man, so there are quite many stories from these annual trips (I only went on one) ranging from kids (well, teenagers) left on the platform in Hamburg (this happened to my friend on the trip I was one and, I have to say, was really my friend's fault) as the train to Paris leaves in front of their eyes to the group getting lost in Paris's redlight district to a girl (another friend of mine, the year before I joined) tripping and breaking her arm.

** If you haven't heard of Taizé, you may have heard of its founder Brother Roger, who was tragically stabbed to death by a mentally ill visitor in 2005

Maldives in Pictures: Plants & Vegetation

(Avatar-looking) tree-swing


Palm trees and the like from the water


Coconut close-up


Peter's obligatory paparazzo shot :)


Peter having fun with the same Avatar tree as above


An obligatory for me; climbing a tree!


Classic view; sunset through palm trees


Beautiful flower of unknown kind; there was a constant smell of jasmine but this is not a jasmine as far as I know


And the same one but in another colour


Another beautiful flower


Several times a day these guys came and cleaned the beach from leaves that had blown into the water and algae from the sea. So, no guys, the beaches are not naturally that white and perfect that they appear.


When I posted this picture on Facebook one friend said it looked like Peter was dragging the tree. Hadn't thought of that! But no, he's strong but not that strong! :)


Palm tree close-up


Bananas!


Closer up

Dressed

At the first of three (weekends of) weddings.


Via Anna's iPhone

Sari Pictures for Edina

Maldives: First (and Last) Impressions

I remembered today that I still haven't posted any photos from our holiday in the Maldives! So that will take priority over Show & Tell tonight, sorry!

First sight of the Maldives

One of 280 or so inhabited islands (out of a thousand islands in total)

One of around 70 hotel resorts (out of the 280), not our though

Flying past the capital Male

Just landed

Even the airport island looks like paradise

40-minute speedboat ride from the airport to our island. Our island was relative close to Male. Others may be 2½ hours away by boat or 20 minutes by plane.

First sight of our island

Reception and buffet restaurants to the right and the "fine dining" restaurant to the left (lower building)

The beach by the reception, restaurants and the pool. Buffet restaurant to the left and the café/restaurant to the right.

Our hotel, Holiday Inn Resort Kandooma

Welcome drink - fresh lemonade - and cool towels in the reception

A bit pale and tired after many, many hours on a plane, but happy to have arrived in paradise finally!

Our Garden Villa (outdoor shower behind the wall to my left)

Back porch of the villa

Peter trying the hammock

Our room

The bed

The bathroom

The part-outdoor shower and bath, probably my favourite part of the villa!

Me taking a shower later :)

Lull-lull as it's called in Swedish real estate ads

Coffee, tea and orange juice station, another favourite!

Freshly squeezed oranges every day

"You life west is under your bed"... unfortunately tsunamis are a risk in the Maldives

And skip to our last day, time to go home! We didn't mind at all that it rained when we left! :)