At Home in Eskilstuna

Kristina with Mormor and Morbror Stig

Having a fabulous vacation to Sweden when you have family there is a bit different than if you just stayed in a hotel.

Vacationing with our families usually means not just visiting museums and tourist sites, but also having a few rousing games of UNO, or, Memory as pictured above.

It also means a lot of cooking for a large crew!

Kristina helping Aunt Kirsti make dinner

Sometimes trying to cook - and bake - is hampered by a lack of knowledge of technical terms, even if one is fluent in the language when it comes to making everyday conversation.

What, for example is the word for baking powder or baking soda in Swedish?

Yeah, they couldn't figure that out, either.

Apartment Buildings in Eskilstuna

Actually, staying with relatives is a fun way to go, because you actually see how real people live in the country you are visiting.

Picturesque homes on the waterway - Gamla Stan, or "old town"

Eskilstuna is a beautiful little town, as you can see from these small glimpses.

Anders and Christian in the town square

Eating ice cream!  The universal favorite.

It's easy to forget how young America is as a country.  In Sweden there are lots of reminders that the country is centuries old!

Inside Strangnas Domkyrka

For example, the above church was decorated in medieval times.  And evidences of the Vikings of a thousand  years ago are still found all over the countryside.

Morfar Merwyn with a Viking Rune Stone

I think the Viking runes are cool!

Family History in progess, Morfar Merwyn, Mormor Britt, Morbror Stig and little Kristina

And sometimes it's just fun to gather around and tell stories about the family!

Someone wise once said something to the effect of, the world is like a book and if you've only seen your own country, you have only read the first page...