Sweden -- My Patriam

My mom was a first generation American. Both of her parents were born in Sweden. My dad's maternal grandparents were also born in Sweden. So that makes me 3/4 Svenska flicka (Swedish girl). Sadly, my grandparents chose not to speak Swedish so neither of my parents learned it. But we definitely learned some of the traditions (especially the food), and I've always felt that I'm Swedish.

My first visit to Sweden was in the fall of 1998 when I was invited to speak at a conference in Sundsvall, about 225 miles north of Stockholm. I don't remember the routing I used to fly there. I do remember arriving foggily jetlagged and being hustled into a bus for a "quick field trip" to visit an amazing new bridge. I don't know where the bridge was, but I do remember gazing out the bus window as I struggled to stay awake and feeling like I was home. The landscape -- the rocks, the trees -- looked just like northern Wisconsin and Minnesota. And when I looked around the bus, the people looked a lot like me too. 

The conference organizers presented me with a lovely speaker's gift -- a hand-blown vase with highlights in Sweden's signature blue and yellow. I was a pretty novice business traveler at the time. I was headed to several destinations and hadn't learned essential packing skills. I had way too much stuff and no capacity to carry my lovely vase. I asked one of the local IBM people to mail it to me. Several months later, I was contacted by a customs agent in Chicago who wanted my credit card to pay for charges associated with importing my vase. They took pity on my ignorance and found a way to get my vase to a warehouse in Minneapolis with minimal charges -- still more than the value of the vase -- but to me that Swedish vase was priceless. And I learned valuable lessons about packing and never shipping things home.

My second trip to Sweden was in December of 2003. Despite the short days (dusk at 2:30 pm) and brisk temperatures, I fell instantly in love with Stockholm. I wandered Gamla Stan (the old town), completely entranced with the narrow streets, the wonderful shops, the warm, friendly people (who looked a lot like me), the Christmas decorations, and the scrumptious baked goods. I came home with a delightful pair of figurines sitting on a bench. On a later trip to Stockholm, I scored another coquettish little girl. Alas, in searching out the maker of these lovely pieces, I discovered they are made in Norway. But for me, when they smile at me from their shelf, they remind me of my Swedish heritage and of Stockholm, one of my favorite cities on the planet.

When Jim and I started planning our somewhat unusual 35th anniversary trip in 2006 (3 European cities in about 2 weeks), Stockholm was at the top of my list of places that I had visited and wanted to share. Jim fell in love with it, too, and it remains one of our favorite cities and rare "repeats." We never tire of walking through the charming, bustling old town, Gamla stan. We relish getting out on the water in the vast archipelago on a harbor cruise or a ferry. And we enjoy the museums. One of the fond memories from that trip was a lunch and tour with my mom's cousin David Holmes (who has since passed) -- a friendly and delightful "old Swede" who proudly took us to visit the large Lutheran church where he served as pastor for many years.

We've had the good fortune to return to Stockholm several times. In 2008, we made a whirlwind one-day tour as part of a Baltic cruise with Jeff and Jessi.  In 2014, shortly before Jim retired, he had the chance to visit Stockholm on business -- one of my rare opportunities to join him on a trip instead of the other way around. While he worked, I wandered, enjoyed, and got lost. (That was a 30,000+ step day!)  And in 2018, we spent several days sharing Stockholm with our dear travel buddies Acey, Jackie, and Suzanne at the end of trip to Norway and Finland. Although shopping opportunities abound in Stockholm, we were selective. We added to our Scandinavian Christmas collection with a charming "Father Christmas" piece, and we purchased a small, modern sculpture.