"My favourite place in the whole big... " a Sweden Travel Page by carolerica

I first discovered Sweden in 1996. I was then an Erasmust exchange Student, heading to the Theology Insitute of Uppsala. And from the very first day, a cold, grey, wet september afternoon, I feel in Love with the Country!!!

I stayed a full year in Uppsala, (1996-1997) leaving in a student home. Swedes can be difficult to meet, but I managed to crack the shell of my roomates and classmates, and discovered golden hearts.

Traditions are a very important part of Swedish way of life, and this was the little extra that made my heart sank for this country. My most fantastic Christmas, was actually spent in a small village, at the home one of my closest friend, amongst her family. and I was treated just like an other member of the family. Magical Christmas morming...

But the Fika rituals are also important social moments, and I've
always tried to export that concept!!!

At the end of the university year, all my firends had invited me to visit them at their homes. So I took a big map of Sweden and made crosses on the cities I had friends in. Then, as Nils' voyage, I traveled from south to North, From Ystad to Kiruna, by train, bus and boat, for two full months.
This was the "coup de grace", discovering the enchanted swedish land forever linked my heart to this country.

Gotland.... Visby and it's miedieaval festival, Foro and it's deserted shores.... I have the great chance of having a gotlander as a very good friend, Maria. Thanks to her and her family, I could visit this enchanted island at different time of the year, and this is truely my favorit spot in the whole big world...

Completely and truely hooked... Sweden is like a delicious poison to me...

After this unique experience, I returned to my home country with the firm intention of coming back! I returned a couple of time, for a week or two, to visit friends, but that was not enough!!! So I decided to choose Sweden for theme of my Doctorat thesis, and thus, returned to Sweden, for "field work", but also to re-experience the feelings I had had.
And there it was, all back... Old friends still there, and the Swedish forest, lakes, fields, this unique light... The magic of the midnight sun, and the terrible winter nights only enlightened by Sancta Lucia's celebration.

I stayed there an other full year (1999-2000), and cried all the tears of my eyes when I left...
I haven't been able to return yet, my job taking me around the world 11 months a year, but my dream, to settle there, perhaps in one of those typcal blood-red house, will one day come true!