Another Day in Sweden

We were so excited when Grace said she'd come visit us for Thanksgiving.  She had to navigate some crazy travel itineraries to get here, but she made it! Scott and I took Grace to Gamla Uppsala, so she could get in touch with her Viking relatives.  Somehow the kitty just knew Grace was there to pet him/her (we didn't confirm their sex). We took her around Uppsala, including the cathedral (can you see her at the door?) The obligatory selfie by the Fryis River. Sam was so happy to have someone besides her parents to talk to over the weekend. This picture is mostly for her mama. We then went to Stockholm and took more selfies. We checked out the beautiful food hall. We rode the ferry to see Stockholm from the water. We went by the Royal Palace, so Grace can feel, well, royal. Grace has decided she will take it upon herself to make furry green clogs trendy throughout Minnesota Grace with Scott's favorite building - City Hall - in the background. Of course, Sam and Grace hit up ...

  Sweden celebrates Father's Day in November, so we decided to celebrate Scott with a hike.  We opted to follow one of the Linnaeus trails, more specifically the Gottsunda trail .  The Linneaus trails are a system of "excursions" Carl Von Linnés took with his students in the spring.  He called them, "Herbationes Upsalienses" which means botanical walks.  Perfect for Scott! Today the trails are marked with blue signposts.  We picked up the trail in the woods right behind our apartment. It was a fun trail because it took us through all kinds of terrain: woods, marshes, fields, near the river, and eventually down to the lake.  It seemed everyone was out getting in the last of the warm weather.   Happy Swedish Father Day, Scott!  Come June he'll get the American Father's Day; maybe we'll have to do this trail again to see what it's like in early summer!

In mid-November Scott had to go to Gothenburg to interview a deserter.  I decided to tag along, and Sam was more than happy to have two parent-free days to herself. I immediately became obsessed with the trams.  Seriously, how cute are they? We ate a fancy dinner at Bord 27 , where the waiter misheard me and I wound up drinking two glasses of wine, which in the end, was beautiful thing.  The only way I can describe this dinner is: " it tasted like Sweden." We went to the Palm House and botanical gardens where there were flowers still in bloom!  If I lived in Gothenburg I would bring my lunch to the Palm House to eat in the green and warmth. We hiked up to Skansen Kronan, the old fortress, or as I'd like to say, "the Enger Tower of Gothenburg" where we got a great view. We walked around the Haga neighborhood.  The buildings were built in wood to accommodate the influx of workers for the growing city.  Scott loved getting into the Instagram Christmas spirit. ...

  Our final destination, Krakow, where the Old Town is spectacular both day and night. So too is the castle.  It was pretty dang amazing! We went to the Old Jewish Quarter  where we saw the Jewish Ghetto Memorial and the old Ghetto walls. We went to the Museum of Pharmacy or Eagle Pharmacy where we learned more about the pharmacist and his workers and how they served as gateway of information for those inside the ghetto. We also went to the museum at Oskar Schendler's Enamel Factory  which was impressive in so many ways, including this display showing how the city was taken over by Nazi Germany.  I had to take a picture because it was so jarring.  You turn a corner and this is in your face.   We watched  Schindler's List before we went to Poland, so Sam would have more context.  It was powerful to see in person, and to learn more to the story than what I remembered from the movie (I know, you don't have to tell me). After doing our "de...