Sweden 2.0, Uncovered

I just came back from visiting my dear friend Anna in Sweden; the last time I was there was in the winter of 2019 for a yoga retreat that Anna and I led. Being winter, Sweden was covered in snow, and I saw very little of the country as I spent the 5 days I was there giving yoga classes and massages :D. I had a beautiful time, but it was no sightseeing trip. Anna and I were both living in Dublin, Ireland – where we met– at the time; however, life has led us both away from Ireland and back to our respective birth countries in the last few years. We hadn't seen each other face to face since that yoga retreat, and I had been wanting to see her for a while now, so when the opportunity finally arose for me to go to Sweden, I took it.

There are people who, when they entered my life, made sense from the get-go; Anna is one of them. She is funny, smart, beautiful and adventurous, and our friendship always felt natural and comforting. She has seen me in my best of times and in the depths of sorrow, she is the first person who truly saw me and offered me understanding and compassion, no judgement or advice. It's hard to find the words to describe what she means to me; it is a bond between two souls that cannot be explained, I suppose, just experienced. I left Dub town before Anna, but we kept in touch despite the distance, writing to each other here and there. We both went through challenging times in the last 5 years, and I was looking forward to seeing her and hang out. I was also looking forward to seeing Sweden in the spring! And it did not disappoint.

Anna and her precious son Jonah now live in Karlstad, a picturesque town nestled between Oslo and Stockholm. I landed in Stockholm and took the bus to Karlstad from there, which allowed me to take in a lot of the magical landscape. Sweden is so lush, full of trees and lakes, and Karlstad is right on the edge of a beautiful lake. Anna took me to the lake on Sunday afternoon for a sauna and cold plunge session –something I was hoping we would do, so I was extremely grateful that I got to experience it. It was the coldest water I have been in so far (7 degrees Celsius!), even though some of the locals seem to think that the water wasn't that cold :D. We did a couple of plunges and left invigorated.

Anna also took me to a flea market, followed by a yummy lunch. The food was so good, I loved all the different breads, which are all sourdough; it was hard to choose.

Anna had told me that in May the weather should be OK and that big jackets would not be necessary; and even though it was nowhere near freezing temperatures, I still felt a little chilly –but I know that I am a baby when I have to deal with cold weather lol. The weather was nice and I had an amazing time. I love the architecture of the houses, very similar to the houses in Holland –I think it is my favourite style of house.

This long weekend was so therapeutic for me, reconnecting with Anna on a physical level brought me so much joy; she is one of those people who will always feel like home, no matter how much time or distance there is between us. Our long chats, laughs, and cries were healing to my soul.

And then I met Jonah, Anna's son, and my heart melted. What a gem, just like his mum. I was so moved by his presence, every time I look at him, he puts a smile on my face. Jonah made me a beautiful unicorn necklace :).

Jonah, Anna & I spent Saturday morning and afternoon together. She made a super tasty rhubarb crumble, changing my mind about rhubarb in the process; up until then, I was not a fan of rhubarb, but anything made with love is hard to resist.

After leaving them, I headed back to Stockholm, where I met another friend of mine who is currently living there to deal with family issues. It was lovely to see her and to see a little bit of Stockholm; I have no desire to live in big cities any more, nonetheless, Stockholm has a really nice vibe. Sweden is very clean and very well-organised, like most Scandinavian countries seem to be.

Thank you darling for this magical time. What a blessing to reconnect like that. I have said it many times before – and I will keep on saying it: travelling is such a gift. I'm so grateful that I can still make the time for it. And I'm so grateful for the beautiful, kind and inspiring people I have the pleasure to call friends.

#travellove #friendship