Today we picked up my brother from the airport. We went a bit early so that we could see the plane he came in with landing.
It’s a big bird the Airbus A380, here just before touchdown at Copenhagen airport. It isn’t the first time I’ve seen it, both in Frankfurt and Dubai they are everything other than rare, but here it’s the only one coming in. And this time I knew someone on it.
Enough with the plane nerding now.
This autumn has been crazy. We all have been under a lot of stress here at home and I’ve been working much and traveling with work too.
Anyhow…
sometime this summer we decided we need a break this autumn. We want to see our friends and family in Stockholm some time again. So we planned to take a week off in November to go there and visit everybody. We had no clue of how hard times were ahead of us.
Then time flew. Like it always does. We hadn’t planned anything real and one weekend when we just realised it was all too much. We need some time as a family, just the four of us. So just before we had planned to book the tickets to Stockholm we decided not to. We started looking for an alternative. Staying home was not an option as there are so many things to do here so I wouldn’t have been a vacation that way.
Last week we did it. We left our little house in Skåne for a smaller house on Lolland, that’s a Danish island not too far away. Five nights away doesn’t seem like much, but it did great! I think the best part of it was that there was no internet there and as we are cheap we didn’t pay for roaming on our phones either. We had all the time together. Except for a few short trips to the village to get groceries, trips that would have been so much longer and trickier taking the kids along.
We played games. Sat in front of the fireplace. Enjoyed each other’s company. Relaxed in the bubblepool and sauna, no really it was relaxing, even the time my three year old was in it with me. Made some simple food, it tasted great. Got fresh bread from the baker a few mornings. Had a walk on the beach. Made a trip to the zoo and to Germany.
Not everything was perfect. I wish we hadn’t gotten colds, except Susanna, she was spared. I wish we had started cleaning out the place an hour earlier this morning. We made it out before the owner came though. I wish I had understood how the fire stove worked, now it was a bit of an ordeal to get it burning. (Maybe the wood was a bit too wet).
In total it was great! I always have said that the best time for vacation is in November. Even staying in this area of ever grey weather is better with a break than just chugging along. Just have a break. I warmly recommend it and my family does it too.
Sorry all of you friends in Stockholm that would have loved to see us. Most of you didn’t know what you missed as we hadn’t made appointments yet. There will be another time. We just don’t know when.
The last couple of days we have been to Åland. For you who don’t know, Åland is an archipelago and region of Finland that is situated between mainland Finland and Sweden.
We felt like we needed to get some break from our moving business. And as a cruise and visit to Åland is a bit trickier from Skåne we decided it was time to go there.
We enjoyed two 5½ hour cruises, on the way there with a huge breakfast and on the way back with the buffet. Our daughter enjoyed the playroom and the ocean of balls.
We spent two nights and one day on the island, seeing some sights and enjoying the beach in Mariehamn. We also pampered ourselves with good food and massages.
Here are a few pictures from the trip:
Our daughter’s first time on a big ship. And the staple of Roslagskulla church, just across the road where I went to kindergarten.
We went to the open air museum of Jan Karlsgården. The swallows were not shy at all.
The flag (Åland has its own) and a few of the other things we did and saw.
On the way back. Our car parked on the car deck. One of the places we went to, to watch the big boat as kids, just a few kilometres from where I grew up. The modern skyline of Kista. Our daughter getting to sleep after a long day. On such a day it mus t be wonderful to be on a boat like the little sailboat we met.
Two weeks ago we went to Germany to celebrate dad’s birthday. We stayed at my uncle’s and we met with most relatives. It was like coming back to the summer we didn’t have here. It was so nice having a few days off. Okay, I can’t have days off like when I was working, but still it was a good break from everyday life.
Travelling with the family is always a great thing. Our daughter is easy to travel with, we always see it when we fly and she behaves in a good way.
Here a few pictures from the trip.
Our daughter at the playground in Arlanda.
Susanna and our daughter in the bus waiting to get to the terminal in Hamburg.
As the trip was short it was intense. First night there was the celebration.
Our daughter was playing with the stones lining the floor.
The second day we spent mostly outside in the sun.
Some trees are just nicer than others.
Our daughter behaving like the star she is.
Temperatures were well above 20° C, barely any wind, just the way you like summer to be. Needless to say, we really enjoyed it. In the evening we had dinner with the relatives again. It was so nice to have two evenings altogether. Even my brother came, as he lives a lot closer now.
The last day we were early with packing up before going home so we had a walk in the neighbourhood. The view with the trees in autumn colours is just so nice. A cat followed us around. Our daughter really likes cats, but hasn’t really understood the fact that screaming with joy running after them isn’t the best way of getting to pet them. She’ll learn that someday. (Maybe when we get ourselves a cat too).
Wednesday night we got home from our trip to Germany. This was the first time abroad for Ellinor. We flew to Frankfurt, took the train to Stuttgart where my uncle met with us to take us to his place.
One thing I realised travelling with her is that I can relax more than when I’m travelling alone or just with Susanna. I don’t know why that is, probably it’s because I have a different focus now.
Flying with Ellinor is easy. She does not cry much and enjoys playing with simple toys. After a while she wanted to sit on the floor, but that was not possible on the short (2 hour) flights. We found some really good seats (for us) on the plane that goes between Stockholm and Frankfurt, the row in front of the emergency exit has only two seats, so we didn’t bother anybody else there and there is an open space between the seat and window where we could put things that were in the way otherwise.
In Germany we met with all our relatives there. First we stayed in Lorch, a small town about 40 km east of Stuttgart were one of my uncles lives. There we met with the relatives on my father’s side.
A picture of the group in Lorch.
Ellinor had everyone’s attention from the start. She charmed all of us with her best mood and fun sounds. She has started to make more sounds again, some of them sound like mama and papa and lampa (lamp in Swedish).
Ellinor had everyone’s attention.
We had one day with better weather so Susanna, Ellinor and me went on a walk. (I had done this walk already on Sunday). It was really nice to get out into the fresh air, Ellinor really enjoyed it too, but that’s normal if you don’t have to walk by your own.
Klotzenhof, the furthest point of our walk.
Most days we had a busy schedule. We wanted to see as many people as possible. We tried dinner at a restaurant too. Not entirely a success. Ellinor does get tired in the evenings so Susanna, Ellinor and I had to leave before everyone else so that we could get her to bed.
Ellinor is a Schwab. (A person from Schwaben, the region in Germany where my dad comes from. In this region Pretzels are staple food).
After a week in Lorch it was time to get to the next place, this time my aunt with family in Hagenhill, a small village near Ingolstadt. I hadn’t been there for a long time and Susanna hadn’t met them before since they didn’t make it to our wedding.
The drive there was not as relaxing as one could wish for. Ellinor didn’t feel well so we had to make plenty of stops. I think it could be the fact that we took some smaller roads there and that it was lunchtime for her that made her upset. If driving with her is this bad every time it just isn’t fun. (But it wasn’t).
We had a great time there, catching up and getting to know each other. Here the days were a lot less crammed with activities so we got some well needed rest.
Ellinor playing in Hagenhill.
Here our car really did fit in, since this family only has BMWs (when it comes to cars, they have a bus and a tractor too), could be because the husband of my aunt worked there before.
The last day we went to my other aunt that just had returned from India. We had a nice day with her too. We had a walk through the nice old (more than 1000 years) town she lives in. In the evening we looked at pictures from her trip. We didn’t stay up that late this night since the next day would be a long one.
A few houses in Hersbruck.
Ellinor enjoying my aunt’s company.
The journey home started at eight in the morning. We first had to drive back to the airport in Stuttgart where we had rented the car and had the air tickets from. This is under ideal conditions a trip just under three hours. We had ideal conditions and some. Only one shorter traffic jam and a restroom stop (for me) left us time to do some last minute shopping, filling up the car and returning it in good time before twelve. Ellinor slept for most of the trip and when she didn’t she was happy with sitting in the car.
Our flight home went fine, even if the transfer time at Frankfurt was a bit short for my convenience, but hey, we didn’t have to wait at all.
Ellinor and Susanna in the plane.
My parent picked us up and drove us home, I’m so thankful for them.
I’m looking forward the next trip I make with my lovely family, they just make travelling much more fun.
This week we are in Germany, visiting my relatives and showing Ellinor off. We arrived in Lorch (a small town about 40 km east of Stuttgart) already on Saturday but since it’s easier to rent a car on a weekday we waited till today to do so.
I had booked a car in the VW Passat size. One never knows what kind of car that will be. Last time I booked a car with proximally this size, a Chrysler Sebring we got a Dodge Journey with the smallest motor possible.
This time I hoped it would be a bit more the same size and comfort.
When I got the key I liked what I saw. It had the BMW logo on it. Not too bad for a VW. In the car-park an X1 waited for me. This is the smallest SUV from BMW but still roomy enough for us.
First I tried the backseat making sure that there would be enough space for Susanna and Ellinor. It felt okay. Getting in and adjusting everything was easy.
Driving away was nice too. Just out of the airport on to the Autobahn overtaking a few trucks, looking down on the speedometer, ups, 170 km/h. No feeling of speed in the car, I have to be careful not to drive too fast on the smaller roads.
Susanna was happy about it too, trying the backseat on the way to the store and to the dinner. Most of all she enjoyed the fact that it had Darmstadt plates, as she had stayed there when she first came to Germany.
On the way back from the dinner Ellinor fell asleep, I think she likes the car too.
Second of advent I went to Gothenburg with work. As usual I went by train. But I didn’t take a train from SJ on the way down, “Blå Tåget” (the Blue Train) a new train-company was my choice this time.
Blå Tåget has been in service for a couple of months now. It is run by Skandinaviska Jernbanor. Their homepage talks about a new experience in travelling with train in Sweden. (Here is the link to their page).
The ride takes a little bit longer, but that is compensated by higher comfort and good food. And the food is served on real plates not in plastic containers, at the table. The carriages are old Swedish first class carriages and an old German diner. All restored to high standards, equipped with wifi and power outlets at every seat.
One thing that is on most peoples mind today is if the train is on time, so many aren’t. This one was, but it is a bit easier to be on time when one doesn’t go as fast as most passenger trains. We’ll see how it develops, they have spare engines and carriages if things break and for a company that only has one train a day from Gothenburg to Uppsala and back that is something.
Here is a picture of the interior:
Here one of my dinner:
A few things are maybe not as good as they could be.
The power outlets are above the windows, leaving ones cable dangling around. Not the ideal position really.
I didn’t have an assigned seat. Not a problem when the train is half empty like this time, but when there are more people on board it would be nice to have a choice of seat, preferably pre-bookable, like many airlines do.
My total review of this new concept is good with only few ways of improvement.
Good luck, hope they survive.