Blue Danube

It is not blue.
But it is a different colour than the other two rivers which join it here in Passau.  It is the start of my bike and boat tour along this major European river for the next week. I caught the transfer from the Munich Airport area just before nine and arrived here by ten thirty despite a 'stau' or traffic jam.  My luggage was welcome on board right away it I needed to wait till about fiv pm.  So I explored the city and get a phone card. Thanks T-Mobile for a month package with some calls and unlimited internet. But typing on the phone is a pain.  Also went into the Dom and just as I was about to leave the organ started and played for thirty minutes. Fantastic.

My cabin is a compact little spot at the back of the boat on the deck closest to the water line.  I love it.

I am assigned to a table with two British couples and they seem fine dinner companions. I think this is going to be fun.

June 6

For the Western world, June 6 is known for being D Day -- the launch of the Allied Normandy invasion which brought about the end of World War II in Europe.  I don't know where exactly my Father was on that June 6, but he was part of that German retreat along the Rhine which followed, was captured and spent time in a US prison camp.  His memories of being a POW were not good and so there was no dwelling on it in the family.

In the Locher clan, June 6 is 'the day that Northern Dancer fed Jim B.'s chickens'.  Jim is my uncle who lived less than a km away from us as the crow flies, and who also, raised broiler chickens.  Northern Dancer was the Canadian three-year old horse who, in 1964 won first the Kentucky Derby and then the Preakness  making him eligible to win the Triple Crown.  We Locher kids had a bet with Uncle Jim on the outcome of the third race -- the Belmont.  I don't remember what our prize would have been if ND had won, but he lost, and so we had to feed the chickens in my Uncle's barn.  (Several thousand birds, so it wasn't a handful of chicken feed here and there, but pails filled at the bin and then poured into tall feeders).  June 6 lived on in infamy.

Scroll ahead to 1979.  By a complex calculation of normal gestation time and then factoring in how late my first baby was, June 6 was the predicted date for baby #2.  Joanna wasn't nearly as speedy as she is in her triathlons today, and didn't make her appearance till June 7, 5:10 am.

But here in Sweden,  June 6 is National Day (making for the second long weekend in a row!)  Gavle is celebrating with parade, concerts, kids' shows, and generally a big party in the park.  I am travelling today so only managed to catch a glimpse of the band on it's way from the town centre to the park area.  There were lots of yellow and blue flags, face painting, balloons, leis, and Swedish shirts.

Happy June 6 to you all!  (a sleepy TE with her 'loved' flag)

Getting to know you

This afternoon Jenn and Richard went out for a run and Oma and Tova Elise hung out together.  This is the reason I am here, to get to know this little miss.
I know she is a protein muncher -- everything from eggs to meat to fish to tofu.  I know she loves to snuggle.  I know she loves sleeping in her carriage with her face right up against the side.  I know she loves to climb and slide and wants to do stairs walking down instead of on her bum.  I know she loves stones and sand and soil.  I know she carries her stuffed animals by their tails and munches on them.  And much more -- the things you only get to know about a person by spending time with them.  I am a very blessed Oma to have that opportunity!

Swedish delivery

At the exit of the IKEA in Valbo (about 10 km from Gavle), there is a delightfully Swedish picture.  It shows a man riding a cargo bike ( one with a platform between the rider and the front wheel) through the snow, laden with IKEA boxes and on the top some wine and flowers.  He is obviously in Stockholm as there was a water channel behind him and a glass building on the other side.  Here is my version:

I am on Jennie's town bike -- three speeds, three baskets-- doing the toting of two lovely items for TE -- a shelf with little baskets for toys, books, etc. and a child's Poang chair.  Neither had been our intent when we cycled out there, but Tova Elise just loved the chair -- up, down, sprawled, and any other way -- so we thought that would be nice.  In the 'as is' section were two of the shelf units that Jennie had looked at from time to time (at about 1/4 of their regular price), so we took the one that was in the box (and picked up the other later this afternoon on our way to mountain biking).  Thanks Ikea for lots of string to tie everything down and together and with Jenn in front pulling TE in the Chariot, we made our way home with no problems.  Seemed like a very Swedish adventure!

Loading chickens

For those of you who know my childhood, you will know that the phrase 'loading chickens' was not a pleasant prospect.  It meant an evening -- very late in the summer-- of going through the chicken barns and catching 7 chickens by one leg and then handing them through a hatch to someone on a truck who stuffed them and 7 more of their friends into a crate.  Next stop was the processing plant!  This was not a happy experience for the birds either, so I often ended up with serious scratches for my efforts.  This adventure was repeated  usually 2 nights in a row and about 4 or 5 times a year.

Enter today's experience.  The chickens are hens and chickens, the little succulent plants which propagate by sending out runners and then a group of small 'chickens' is established around the 'hen'.  We are fixing a path in Jennie's garden and the plants had spilled over their small retaining wall and rooted in the stones between the path's patio stones.  The choice came to moving the plants or making a big bow around them and changing the path drastically.  Jennie chose the former solution, hence the loading of the chickens into my hands and moving them aside.  The path is looking great and this evening the plants got a new home in the reclaimed strip of garden going in beside the garage.

The play on words reminded me of how often, as we get older, associated memories flood into the current experience, in the strangest ways -- like me loading chickens into my hands.  And, if someone had told me of this activity those 50 years ago, what would I have thought -- impossible?!  There are so many things that happen that we never dreamed of or imagined possible.  I think the only way to not be overwhelmed is to keep an open mind -- said sitting here in this kitchen in Sweden.  Wow!

Sorry, the pictures don't want to upload, so use your imagination.

Observations

This picture of Tova Elise shows her in the new bicycle seat which, now that she has a helmet, she can use.  She took to it right away and absolutely loved her vantage point and freedom (though strapped in by chest and feet).  One might think that perched behind Mom was a problem, but she was looking around at the scenery and other people.  A perfect spot for a little one to observe her world.

Observing is active looking and I am certain TE is analysing and filing away everything she sees.  It may not all make sense right now, but it will shape her view as time goes on.

I have been observing too, especially comparing things to Canada and to how I perceived Sweden initially:

There seems to be a trend here, as in Canada, that there are more overweight people of all ages.  Jenn and Richard feel that this is, sadly, the case here also.  Seems candy is the major culprit and there are discussions to see how the emphasis on candy -- particularly after school and for Easter -- can be decreased.

I have also noticed more people smoking outside while walking, or standing in groups.  Again, there do not appear to be age differences.  Sad.

Jennie has been working hard in her gardens.  She has a fabulous little intensive vegetable patch and a nice flower garden.  We have been de-grassing this bed and transplanting and containing some of the more expansive plants.  I think the gardens love the moderate climate -- yes, I know we are supposedly in a temperate zone at home, but the ocean just a few kms away works wonders.  Also, the soil here is TOTALLY different from my back yard -- read 'crumbly loam instead of rock hard clay'.

The local weekly paper focused this week, on the river which flows through Gavle.  There are some very ambitious plans to add a swimming area for kids and adults to the park.  Unfortunately, bureaucracy is not confined to Canada, and the project is on hold until at least August.

Major difference is the attitude toward pedestrians and cyclists by the motorists.  One can count on the cars to observe and be careful around cyclists, especially where there are no bike lanes or bike crossing signals. Wouldn't that be nice at home!

And then, of course, there is the daylight.  Right now the sun sets at 22:10 and rises at 03:33, so it is really only dark between 11:30 and 2:30.  My perception is way off and I will be thinking that I should still be out in the garden or doing something when it is almost 10 pm.

When life gives you lemons...

Yes, you make lemonade.  But what do you do when life gives you rhubarb?  Well, we made rhubarb cake, rhubarb compote, rhubarb orange squares, and rhubarb lentil soup, so far.  And the rhubarb chocolate brownie cheesecake squares are in the oven at the moment.  And, the rhubarb 'saft', or flavoured drink, is still to happen.  You may have seen the remarkable plant on Jennie's facebook a few weeks ago, but the stalks are amazing -- about 4 cups of chopped per stalk!

For the past few days, I have been mentioning all the things that I like here in Sweden, but of course, the reason I am here is to get to know little darling miss and for her to get to know me.  We had a long walk today for her nap.  Delight!