Visiting Sthlm

Its November 4th (where did October go?!?)
I realized that we have been here about 3 months, which still doesn't sound like that long. But it marks 1/8th of our planned time in Sweden...we will definitely be here until Summer 2011, and who knows from there? But 1/8th sounds like such a big amount of time has passed...only 7 more 3-month-chunks until we both have Swedish master's degrees and have to rejoin the real world and get jobs. I am still hoping to win the lottery--I am so getting used to not working. Of course, you have to *play* the lottery to *win* the lottery...

With K & J in Söder

In our short 3 months here, we have had some interesting, random visitors from back home! The first week we were in Stockholm, a friend from the DC art librarian scene (you didn't know there was an actual scene, did you?) happened to be traveling through with her husband while on a short sabbatical. They stayed at Mälardrottningen the boat hotel next to Gamla Stan, which maybe sounded cooler than it was. They said the rooms were tiny, swoony and with bunk beds! Anyway, their visit was the first actual dining-out-with-waiters experience we had in Stockholm. I am not even sure what or where we ate, but I remember the beer being pretty good, and my first taste of Swedish cider not so good. Its like juice. Plus, the exchange rate was better than what it is now...

Stu also had a random yoga friend from DC in Stockholm for a visit, such a small world! And we went to Oslo for a weekend to visit SAK, a good family friend who was working in Norway for a week. And maybe not-so-random, we have gotten to hang out with Stu's Swedish friend Seb, who hasn't lived in Sweden for years and years, but just moved back just south of Sthlm.

And now November. We are actually playing host to a few non-Stockholm friends as well. JP, from Mary Wash, is in Europe for 7 weeks for work, so she is intelligently planning a stop in Vasastan so we can show her a good time. And Stu's former professor when he was in school in Germany is coming from Frankfurt and spending Turkey Day with us! We are planning to have the Americans over for turkey and punkin pie, and maybe football, if we can swing it with the time difference. We don't have enough chairs in our apartment for everyone, so that might be a challenge. Maybe make it a BYOC (bring your own chair) thanksgiving?

AND, Stu's momma is coming for a week over Christmas! Well, I (and SAS) keep screwing up her flights, so we'll see if the trip actually happens. I am so excited to have her...it will feel more like a family holiday. It'll be a heck of a lot darker here than Grand Rapids, MI, but I'm hoping Stockholm will have less snow.

Its only been 3 months (though time is flying!) We made a lot of new friends here, but we are looking forward to more random, interesting friends & family from back home visiting Stockholm.

Uhh, but maybe when it gets lighter and warmer...the sun sets by 4:30 now and it snow-flurried today. It's already long-underwear weather.