Home alone

It’s a vacation week in school, it’s called “Sport break” because it’s the perfect time for winter sports. But me and my husband is working, so our son have spent the days at the “after school program”. But tonight grandmother picked him (and the dog) up for the rest of the week. Since my husband is working in another city, 4 hours away, he is there Monday – Thursday/Friday. So right now it’s only me and the cat at home.

But the “Sport break” also means visitors since it gives people time to travel. So yesterday afternoon we did meet some friends from Stockholm, who happened to be in Dalarna for a visit, at the indoors swimming pools. And tonight the same friend came over for dinner. And during the weekend there is a couple of other friends coming by. So I don’t need to be alone for any longer period. And I do have my cat….

A Sunday in the sun



Me and our dog Tilja is having coffee in the sun

Today was one of the first days with real feelings that the spring is on its way. A few degrees over zero Celcius, sun and no wind. I just had to be outside most of the day! Going for a long morning walk with the dog. Listening to some happy birds. Do some clean up among the pelargoniums I’ve been keeping over the winter. Throwing the once that haven’t survived on the compost. Cleaning out a birds nest. Drinking coffee in the sun. Mowing away some snow. Going for a short run and experienced running on asphalt, not ice/snow. The best Sunday of 2013 so far!  

Vasaloppet

It started Friday last week. 10 000 skiers doing a 30 km race. Yesterday another 10 000 skiers did the same. Today 10 000 skiers did a longer distance, 90 km. And it continues like that for 10 days. The largest number is next Sunday when 15 800 is doing the 90 km distance. Totally 66 800 skiers participate in the races during this 10 days. And what is it all about? It’s Vasaloppet, the largest sports events in Sweden, and I guess one of the largest ones in the world.

The 90 km distance runs from Sälen to Mora, in the northwest part of my region, Dalarna. The winner (top names of the world) at the longest distance use a little bit over 4 hours to do 90 km, but most people need at least 6 hours, some up to 12 hours… So it is a challenge and experience over the average.

Waiting for start at the 30 km "Ladies race" in Vasaloppet

It got its name from the first uniting king of Sweden, Gustav Vasa. Hi did the distance during year 1520 when he fled from the Danish army. Denmark and Sweden was in a union at that time, and Gustav didn’t like the regime. He travelled through Sweden, walking, taking rides with locals and skiing and tried to get support for an upraise against the Danish king. And he actually went skiing from Mora towards Sälen, near the Norwegian border. He got support from the people in Dalarna and started his uprising against the Danish army. He succeed and he got elected as the first King of Sweden year 1523.  

The first ski race was arranged 1922 with 199 skiers doing the 90 km and ever since there has been ski races at the distance every year. 25 years ago they added shorter distances and now it’s a 10 days of ski festival. And yesterday I did my 5th race at the 30 km distance. So far I've managed to be faster every year so far… This year it took me a little bit under 2 hours 30 minutes, witch I’m very pleased with (the winner used approximately an hour less).

The most Welcome sight - the goal in Mora.
The text says: In your Fathers tracks towards Future Victories

The race has become a part of the Swedish culture and winter experience.

Check the race page for more pictures and information.    

Moominland Midwinter

It’s irresistible to read this book during the long winter nights. To sit in front of the fireplace with my son and read this story loud. And see the winter in new bright light.

The Moomins usually sleeps through the winter, but one winter suddenly one of them, Moomin, wakes up in a strange world. It’s all dead and covered with deep snow. He feels totally alone in the house where everyone else still is asleep. But there is someone living under the sink… Some strange, shy creature.

He manages to get out although the door is blocked by snow. And out there in the snow he actually find some figures that still is awake. And his friend Little My also wakes up and she show him a lot of ways to enjoy the winter. In the bathing cabin at the shore someone else is living and uses Moomin family’s things. And there is another secret strange creature living in the wardrobe.  The Ice Wife passes by one night and kills everyone who dear to look at her, among them the most confused squirrel that always forget what he is looking for and what he should watch up for.

When Moomin wakes up its midwinter and the sun doesn’t rise at all during the days. This of course worries him a lot. But after a huge bonfire set up by all the winter creatures the sun manages to get up a little bit over the horizon. And a little more the next day. This makes Moomin feel a little better and he might start to enjoy the winter.

Deeper in the valley all the animals and creatures is starving and one day they all comes to live in Moomins house. Among them a very noisy Hemul who loves winter sports and talks far too much. And all by a sudden Moomin longs for loneness again…..

The stories about the Moomins are written by a Finnish-Swedish writer and artist, Tove Jansson (1914-2001). She wrote 9 chapter books and 6 picture books about the Moomins. Some of them are light, bright and happy, some of them is dark and dramatic. But none of them avoid the different feelings of anger, hope, dissolutions, happiness or jealousy. And the different characters have their very own personalities. And they are allowed to be the way they are. They catch the Nordic environment and culture in a certain way and I guess everyone knows about the Moomins. You can read the stories as both an adult and a child.  

Juice - Recipe

In my family we have always been making our own juice of berries, which I wrote about here. It’s quite simple, but it can get a bit messy…  And it takes an hour or so.

You can use any kind of berries, but you have to adjust the amount of water and sugar, see the table below. I usually mix redcurrant and blackcurrant. Another favorite is rhubarb and redcurrant, very refreshing with ice in the summer!

Start with weight the berries. Calculate how much water you need. Take the largest saucepan you have and boil the water. Pour in the berries and let it boil 10 minutes. Filter the berries so you separate the berries from the juice. Use a sparsely fabric.

Measure the juice and calculate how much sugar you need. Pour the sugar into the juice (now back in the clean saucepan). Heat it up and when it’s boiling you gently take the foam on the surface away. Add some preservatives (follow the instructions on the package).

Take clean glass bottles and preheat them in the oven (a little under 100 degrees Celsius).

Pour the hot juice in the bottles and seal them while they are hot.

Berries	Water: amount per kilo berries	Sugar: amount per liter juice
Raspberries	3 dl	6 dl
Raspberries and blueberries	3 dl	6 dl
Raspberries and currant	4 dl	6 dl
Strawberries	3 dl	6 dl
Redcurrant	5 dl	6 dl
Blackcurrant	7 dl	6 dl

A day of skiing



At the top, above the clouds

Three of my colleges arranged a day trip to Trysil in Norway today. 3½ hour in the bus and you are in a totally different landscape. High mountains –“ fjäll” we call them in Sweden and Norway. Not as dramatic as the Alps, but you get over the tree limit. It has been a very nice day with 6 hours on skis, up and down the slopes. Some sun, some wind, a bit of chill. Excellent conditions!

 

Björn, properly dressed against the windchill

Fat Tuesday

Today, the first Tuesday in the Lent, is “Fat Tuesday” (fettisdagen). It’s one of the important traditions in Sweden, although it’s not a holiday. And what do we do? As in many other traditions, what we eat is the thing. We eat a special kind of filled buns, “semla”. It’s basically a plain sweet bun spiced with cardamom. After you have baked it you dig a little hole in it and fill it with almond crème, top it with whipped cream and powder with icing sugar. You can eat it as it is or put it in a bowl of hot milk.

I guess almost everyone in Sweden eats at least one of these today. I got mine at my job. So no carnevals. No sing and dance at the streets. No extravagance eating and drinking. Just eat a “semla” and then you are ready for a month of lent. Or not. I don’t know anyone who do the lent, at least not of religious reasons. But I like the tradition of eating “semlor”. You can by them from Christmas to Easter, but no other time for the year. So it’s one of the things you look forward to after Christmas, since it’s some kind of sign that the year is turning.

Making juice

My son loves warm juice of blackcurrant after a day in the snow. So now in the winter we need alot of it. So today I made some, and hope it will last a while..... This is 7 bottles of concentrated juice. So I think it's enough. And if it last to the summer it's great with ice as well.

The berries are from my own garden, and my mothers garden. All local and ecological. I pic during summer, freeze the berries and than I make some juice when we need it. The best!

Winter and snow

The snowflakes are whirling around in the air.... It has been snowing on and off for some days now. It's true beauty! During breakfast this morning three deers passed bye outside the window, jumping over the road and in to the forest. Gone in a few seconds.