After the retreat in Italy, I decided to take my friend Cecilia up on her invitation to visit her home in Sweden and Norway, and return to the States via Oslo (which was actually cheaper than returning from Italy) and teach a class while I was there. We flew out of the Pisa airport from Italy - I love the jasmine covered facade of the airport!
We landed a couple hours later in Oslo - it's a beautiful airport with wood everywhere...
I had never traveled to this part of the world before... every sign was strange to me - there is nothing familiar about this language! :) What a mouthful!
Cecilia drives a Tesla and it was super cool to see it in James Bond 007 mode! :)
The view of the ocean from her home in Sweden was just beautiful. I loved being there!
The next day we went exploring and she took me to the darling village of Fjallbacka, Sweden. I guess many people have heard of this town from the books by Camilla Lackberg. I'm going to have to check them out!
We had lunch at the waterfront... this is the fish soup that we had. It was one of the most delicious dishes I have ever tasted! Say the name of it three times fast! :)
For dessert I had a typical chocolate treat but I can't remember the name of it - can anyone help in the comments?
Ingrid Bergman had a summer cottage here and spent many summers in the area...
We stopped at a grocery store on the way home. I love seeing the differences between our US grocery stores and those in other countries, like the cigarettes sold over the checkout counter...
and the potatoes fresh from the bin...
This sauce was funny to me - maybe like special sauce on a Big Mac?
That night we had raclette... kind of like fondue only with your own personal skillet...
You cook your meat on the top skillet and underneath in a little tray with the cheese that melts over it all. So, so good! It was great to meet Cecilia's husband and get to spend this special time in her home. Thanks guys!! You made me feel so welcome.
I love the lupines everywhere along the road...
It was time to head back to Oslo, but first we made a stop in her town of Stromstad...
and a stop at the candy shop... Hundreds of different kinds of gummi candy!!
With toothbrushes for sale right at the candy bags! Funny!
Then we were off for the two hour drive back to Oslo and the next part of the adventure!
I'll be back with those photos soon! Have a great weekend!
What a wonderful way to explore a new place....with your own personal guide! Terrific pictures!!
Posted by: Joey | July 09, 2016 at 07:03 AM
I think it is wonderful you were able to go to Sweden and Norway like this. Great pictures.
Posted by: Deb J | July 09, 2016 at 08:53 AM
I think the chocolatetreat you had is "kokosbolle". I just love reading how you experience the differences in language. But there are actually some English words that comes from norwegian. Although we've adopted more from English the latest years.
Posted by: Vibeke Burud | July 09, 2016 at 09:08 AM
Oh my gosh! Beautiful! My husband spent 10 days in Norway where his great grandparents came from. He was in Urdahl with his two sisters and met cousins. He loved it. Wants to go back again! Love your travels!
Posted by: Catherine Ruud | July 09, 2016 at 09:34 AM
Beautiful. Thank you for sharing all your adventures. Just love them!
Posted by: Renee Deaton | July 10, 2016 at 05:24 AM