My Take on Living in Sweden After 13 Months' Experience

Latest post...Random thoughts and impressions after "doing time" in Sweden...

http://blogs.sweden.se/expat/2013/01/05/25-impressions-and-thoughts-after-13-months-in-sweden/

I love things written in English in non-English speaking countries...

A Chat with "Re-pat" Kate

My latest post...Interesting to hear from all other expats...even those who are now, er, "re-pats."
http://blogs.sweden.se/expat/2012/12/19/a-christmas-treat-interview-with-repat-kate/

Kate works in Washington D.C. at the Swedish Embassy… a chance to continue her relationship with Sweden. Photo: Kate Reuterswärd

Getting Ready for Christmas in Sweden

Latest post...Christmas decorations in Sweden...

http://blogs.sweden.se/expat/2012/12/05/its-beginning-to-look-a-lot-like-christmas/

Swedish Holiday TV Tradition Returns

Time for the latest "Christmas Calendar"- a holiday tradition on Swedish TV

http://blogs.sweden.se/expat/2012/12/02/time-for-the-christmas-calendar-on-tv/

Last year's "Julkalendern" on DVD

Come Along On My Walk to Work in Stockholm

Walk to Work With Me in Stockholm...lots of pics!

http://blogs.sweden.se/expat/?p=2611

One is for cyclists and one is for pedestrians...but which is which?

Lagom--a Distinctly Swedish Word

Latest post...the meaning of "Lagom"...

http://blogs.sweden.se/expat/2012/11/15/lagom-means-everything-in-moderation/

This moose probably knows what “lagom” means. Photo by: Maria Emitslöf/imagebank.sweden.se

Shopping for Food in Sweden and The Great Wall of Candy

My latest post concerns food shopping.

...Doesn't sound that sexy but "The Wall of Candy" is not to be missed...

...I mean, unless you typically avoid carbs/want to live a long time/want to skip the onset of diabetes...
http://blogs.sweden.se/expat/?p=2549

The Great Wall of Candy can be found all over Sweden.

Tires! Tires! Tires!

The Stockholm streets are alive with the sound of....snow tires...

http://blogs.sweden.se/expat/2012/11/06/the-sound-of-winter-tires-that-is/

Photo by Kantor.JH at de.wikipedia (CC BY 3.0)

Don't Curse the Darkness...

Blogged today about the Festival of Lights in Uppsala. 

"Light a candle rather than curse the darkness!"

http://blogs.sweden.se/expat/2012/11/04/let-there-be-light-in-uppsala/

Cultural Trainer or Relocation Consultant?

Latest post...My gig as a "relocation consultant"...
http://blogs.sweden.se/expat/2012/10/31/cultural-training-on-both-sides-of-the-pond/

Dalahäst. Photo by: Cecilia Larsson/imagebank.sweden.se

Swedish Sexuality

My take on Swedes and Bodies...

http://blogs.sweden.se/expat/2012/10/28/swedes-and-bodies/

Adventures in Swedish Banking: The Card Reader

New post...

"My Two Cents About Personal Banking in Sweden"

http://blogs.sweden.se/expat/2012/10/17/my-two-cents-about-personal-banking-in-sweden/

My bank issued me this card reader. I found it quite complicated in the beginning to use!

Busting Yoga Moves...in Sweden

Find out what it's like to take a yoga class...in Swedish!

Check out my blog over at the Swedish Institute's blog site.

http://blogs.sweden.se/expat/2012/10/05/yoga-swedish-style/

Yoga Swedish-style. Photo by K.Lund

Rabbit the Dog Rides the Swedish Rails

Check out my adventure taking the train to Göteborg with my dog, Rabbit. It's posted over on the Expat blog at Sweden.se

http://blogs.sweden.se/expat/?p=2281

Rabbit gets tired of sleeping on the carpeted train floor. Yup, that's my Kindle in the shot...

I'm ready for my close-up, Mr. Bergman

Latest expat blog post:
Lights! Camera! Action! I'm ready for my close-up, Mr. Bergman.
http://blogs.sweden.se/expat/?p=2261

A Bolex movie camera Bolex movie camera. Photo by Glen Edelson (CC BY 2.0)

Different Tastes in Different Countries

New post to my Expat in Sweden Blog "Eating Foreign Food in Sweden" 
http://blogs.sweden.se/expat/?p=2228

How to Keep a Californian Dog Warm in Stockholm

I just published on Sweden.se..."Shopping for a Winter Jacket" or  "how to keep a Californian dog warm in Stockholm")  http://blogs.sweden.se/expat/2012/09/23/shopping-for-a-winter-jacket/

You should see the one I returned! (Check out the photo at the link above.)

“Winter is Coming” to Sweden

Stockholm City Hall. Photo by: Anna Andersson/imagebank.sweden.se

Please read my recent post "Autumn in Stockholm...“Winter is Coming”" over at Sweden.se

http://blogs.sweden.se/expat/?p=2177

Swedish Women's Soccer Gets a Boost

A little over a month ago, I wrote on this blog about my undying passion for Women’s Soccer. More specifically, I was discouraged by the challenges of watching the Olympic women’s soccer matches on TV in Sweden—especially when it wasn’t necessarily the Swedish team playing. I love watching the US women play and they did, in case you missed it, win 2012 Olympic gold.

Pia Sundhage

I also mentioned how wonderful the US Women’s National Team (USWNT) coach, Pia Sundhage is. I admire her enthusiasm, her soccer knowledge, her fun and calm attitude and of course, her winning record with the US team. To quote Sports Illustrated, "In just under five years with the U.S., Sundhage compiled an 89-6-10 record, winning two Olympic gold medals and finishing second at the 2011 World Cup."

Pia Sundhage, as I mentioned in my last post, is Swedish.

And now…

She’s just announced that she is stepping down as coach of the USWNT and moving back to Sweden to become the head of the Swedish National team.

Whahooo! This is great news. I am not the hugest fan of how the Swedish national team currently plays and I think Pia will bring great energy and new ways for the team to come together and play great soccer. (Note: Nice slide show of Pia on the Swedish page linked above. It's written in Swedish but just click the small blue box nearly half way down that says "Visa bildspel.")

Marta

Marta Vieira da Silva (known simply by her first name like all the Brazilian greats), who many say is the best female player in the world, comes from Brazil. She played in the professional league in the US and I saw her play many times for my home team, FC Gold Pride in the Bay Area. (now defunct league…don’t ask…painful subject). Marta previously played professionally for Umeå in northern Sweden. Why am I writing about Marta? Well because Marta also decided to move back to Sweden a few months ago and she signed with Tyresö FF here in Stockholm.

Awesome, Ted! (What? You never watched “Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure”?)

Two last points...

* Please don’t fail to notice that I am a trailblazer…both these women made their decisions after I moved from the US to Sweden.  (lol)

* Birthdays (I'm just saying...)

• Pia Sundhage: February 13
• Marta: February 19
• Kristin Lund: February 21

The Viking Gift That Keeps On Giving

These are Swedish scientists at Chalmers in Göteborg. You'll have to imagine British ones. Photo by: Jan-Olof Yxell/imagebank.sweden.se

Have you heard about the Viking artifact they found in Britain many years ago?

It is, in fact, a Viking turd.
 

Here's what went down. (Yes, these jokes just write themselves...)

During excavation prior to construction of bank vaults at Lloyd's Bank in York, England in 1972, archaeologists found a mineralized Viking Age human stool or “coprolite.”

Analysis of the find produced knowledge about what they euphemistically refer to as “the producer of the stool” on the Archaeology of York website. Scientists discovered that the Viking had eaten “cereal bran and other unidentified organic matter. ..[that]confirms other forms of evidence which suggest that diet at this time included meat, fish, shellfish, cereals, fruit and nuts.” 

On a more “ooh, gross!” note, they could also see that the individual had a good amount of intestinal parasites. You can find out more using the links below.

Here’s a list (in pictures) of significant finds in York.

Here's more information about the coprolite.

But wait, the story gets even better! 

The coprolite (don’t say I never taught you a new word) was accidentally dropped and broken into pieces during a school visit to York's Archaeological Resource Centre. Read about this titillating event on The Guardian Newspaper’s website.

Still with me? All humor aside, check out the tiny writing tablets they also found in York. Very cool!