Farewill Photos

Nina and Robert (and Lina) posed for a final set of wedding photos at the end of their stay in Sweden. Here is a link to the full resolutions slideshow and of course the built in slideshow should appear below.



See you all later. Hej sa lange. Bye bye.

Thanks to Everyone and One Last Question

I would like to thank everyone for making the wedding festivities such a success. Without the support and involvement of each and every one of you we would not have had such a wonderful wedding celebration. You all traveled long distances to be with Nina and Robert and I think it paid off for everyone involved. Nina and Robert confessed to me in the car on the way back to the Behrn after the wedding reception that they were so happy to have everyone there. They said that they were surprised and delighted that that many people cared about them and were willing to travel to Sweden to share in their wedding.

A special thank you also goes out to those of you who worked on details of the wedding.

It was wonderful to meet you all. Just one last question... When is the next party?

Wedding Photos Uploaded!

A selection of wedding photos has been uploaded to a shared web album. Please click here for a link to the full size album. Click on the slide show button or just browse the images at your leisure.
We are assembling a disc of all the images so you can print copies if you like. Stay tuned for that.
Below is a preview of the album.

Back on the air... Updates

Well a lot has happened since my last posting.  Nina and Robert are currently spending the first part of their honeymoon on an island off the east coast of Sweden called Gotland.

The happy couple is staying at the Medeltids Hotel in Visby.  Here is a video tour of the hotel... looks very romantic!  Last I heard from them they were both really enjoying being married and having a terrific time exploring.

Wedding!

Hello everyone... I am currently assembling the photos from the wedding to put into a web album and blog... Stay tuned for an update. I will email you to let you know things are ready... Cheers and have a safe trip home.

Jonas

Biking in the Rain... Lovebirds at the grocery...

This afternoon was beautiful... Until Nina and Robert decided to bike to the store in Lindesberg.  The skies opened up and a deluge came... while the sun was shining... I (Jonas) was going for a bike ride around the lake so I played "camera-man" for a few minutes to document the couple's journey. 

In many ways riding a bike trying to photo other people riding their bikes is a dumb idea.  While I did not wreck, I did of course swerve and weave around and get bad blurry shots of the lovebirds biking by... Below is a shot of Nina blasting past me on the Pelsarmen (the coatsleave).  Pelsarmen is a strip of land dividing Lindessjön (the main lake) from the small Lindesberg lake. 

Here you can see Robert... cautiously using the "old school" bicycle safety flag...

Above is the happy couple buying bread at the grocery store. 

ÖSK mot Djurgården Fotboll

Bam Bam... Bam Bam Bam... Bam Bam Bam Bam Bam... SVART VIT!

So led the chants as Örebro's newly dubbed "proleague" team ÖSK played Stockholm's largest soccerclub Djurgården.  The hooligan in the pic above was standing right behind us in the standing-only section of the stadium.  To his right was a fellow beating a tom-tom to the beat of whatever chant was being sung at the time.  While the cheers were a little foreign to me... the most impressive aspect by far was that they chanted for nearly the entire game.  It was a constant wave of songs, insults and yelling at the refs...

ÖSK stands for Örebro Sports (K)Club.  Their colors are Black and White hence the Svart and Vit in the cheer at the start.  This game was important for them because they were just admitted into the premier league in Sweden and were playing one of Sweden's largest teams, Djurgården.  Djurgården is named for a small island in Stockholm harbor.  The name means "animal garden."  We speculated today that the royals most likely used this island as a hunting preserve or for raising livestock in the past.  The Djurgården colors are dark blue and white.  One thing that was hard to miss was the number of fans that had made the 2 hour journey from Stockholm to Örebro to support their team. 

If you look closely in the photo above you will see that Robert and I were recipients of some free sports merchandise!  That is right... we got complimentary ÖSK vs. Djurgården scarves!  How appropriate for Sweden...

It is worth mentioning how plesant the match was.  The stadium is very intimate.  Think smaller than the Cajun Field... and the weather was perfect.  With sun until 10PM the stadium was bright and sunny through the entire game. 

Robert and I also noticed that unlike many American stadiums, walking to and from the game was a pleasure because there was no parking lot.  Outside the stadium were bikes and busses and about a 5 min walk to the city center so people just walked.  Very pleasant evening.  I would recommend this to anyone interested in european soccer but not interested in large crowds, expensive tickets or a hassle. 

FINAL SCORE 0 - 0.  ÖSK dominated the game and proved their worthiness for the premier league.

Below are some action shots from the game...

 

Jeanne and Anthony Arrive!

Jeanne and Anthony arrived safely at the Behrn Hotel yesterday at about 11:30 AM.  They had taken the Arlanda train directly to Stockholm Central Station and then taken the train to Örebro with a quick cab ride to finish off the trip to the hotel.

I was waiting a call to meet them at the train station but because they didn't have a mobile I ended up meeting them at the hotel.  They had taken a quick nap... although they both had done some scoping of the town in the interim. 

Jeanne, Anthony and I walked around, got some coffee and snacks and just sat in the sun for most of the afternoon until Andree, Nina, Robert and Kurt arrived. 

We ended up sitting for quite some time at a great outdoor restaurant/bar named Strömpis located on a tiny island in Svartön (the black river) which forms the moat of the castle.  Jeanne of course immediately started helping us to get the loose ends together and talk quickly turned to "tasks."  Lists, schedules and maps were everywhere... people shouting things... and somehow as always we had a blast and got some good work done. 

It was during this afternoon power session that Robert and I decided to go see ÖSK (Örebro Sports Club - the local soccer team) play one of Sweden's largest club teams, Djurgården (animal garden - named after a famous island in Stockholm).  The rest of the crew decided that would not go so we went to the ticket counter and got the only tickets left... standing tickets in the hooligan section.  I think what really discouraged Nina and Liza (Mattias' girlfriend) from attending was the chanting from Djurgården fans at a bar across the river at Pitchers Pub and Grill (starting location for pubcrawl). 

The group then split so Robert and Jonas could go to the game and the rest of the posse could get a proper dinner and continue working on the wedding plans.

I will upload photos ASAP as they are on Anthony's camera. 

Blogging Delays

For those of you who have been checking the blog we have had a few delays today and yesterday as the computer was under repair.  We are up and running again so expect to see more blogs...

Wedding Tree

While we were hiking I found this tree that I thought symbolized, albeit cheesily, the union between Nina and Robert.  Plus it is pretty cool that two trees would grow together in this way... Individual yet one. 

(It is hard to tell from this image what is going on but basically these two trees share the same roots... and are identical as they grew up... beautiful.)

Hiking in Kindla

While the lovebirds took an easy afternoon cycling round Lindesberg and sunbathing... Andree, Kurt and Jonas drove to a nature-reserve called Kindla for some hiking.  Kindla is located about 45 min northwest of Lindesberg on mostly gravel roads.

The trail we decided is approximately 3.2 km each way and leads from a small access road / parking place to the top of Kindla or Kindlahöjden (Kindla Peak).  The trail is remarkable because of the variation in both vegetation and ecosystem.  It contains several bogs, peat bogs and other low swampy grassland areas.  This area of Kindla also supports deep forests, alpine crests, and large stone crevasses.  Many of the bogs are protected by the manmade paths you can see above.

Once we hit the trail Kurt and Jonas soon discovered Andree's knack for botany.  The trip quickly became more of a botanical adventure than it did a leisurely nature walk as Andree halted the guys every few hundred meters to review the species and family of strange looking plants.  Above you can see what Andree (and Kurt) claims is a Cloudberry plant or as it is called in Swedish "Hjortron."  Andree was especially proud to have found what she claims are wild orchids.  See below. This last vegegation shot is just a beautiful image of dew on grass that Andree spotted when we crossed an old logging road.

Anyone that has ever had the pleasure to travel with Kurt will know exactly what this picture represents.  For he, Kurt, is one of the fastest walkers ever to grace this earth.  As you can see below while Andree and I gawked at this beautiful trailside stream, Kurt was racing ahead up to the top of the mountain even while loaded to the hilt with meatballs, sausage, water, and other essential picknicking equipment.  Notice Andree at the bottom right of the picture and Kurt as a tiny spec at the top left.  Soon after this shot I decided to impose a rule that I always lead, followed by Andree and Kurt brings up the rear.  This strategy worked and the band of hikers kept good pace the rest of the day.

My favorite thing on the trail was of course the giant ant piles (Myr stacks) we have here in Sweden.  One thing you have to know is that ants... except for rare small red and small yellow ants... are harmless here in Sweden.  Forget all about what you have learned in a lifetime of living in South Louisana and Texas.  These ants bite, but with no venom and a really small set of mandibles, they really have no hurt to bring.  I stod almost in the pile you see below and none of them bit me or even got close.  Jeanne Weido... these photos are for you.  In the picture to the right there are thousands of ants... each about a cm long... but they are amazingly camouflaged...

We arrived at Kindlahöjden immedately started the fire and began cooking.

Above is a picture taken from the top of the firetower at Kindlahöjden.  You can see the primitive campers below.  The vista from the top of the tower is spectacular as you can see.

Sunbathing Lovebirds

Today the weather turned... SUN!  Nina and Robert made short work of it by hopping on cycles and heading to the grocery store and coffee shop for a relaxing afternoon.  They ended their adventure in lawnchairs in the back yard soaking up the mild Swedish sun. 

Lina and Nina

Yesterday afternoon we were invited for barbque at Nina's friend Lina's house.  Their history goes back many years.  I reckon they originally met during the year Nina lived in Lindesberg and went for a year to the Lindesberg middle school.  They have kept a close relationship ever since.

Lina, her mother, Jane, and the rest of her family are from a small town east of here named Spannarböda.  They live on a farm just on the edge of an old forest.  It takes about 30 min to drive there from Kurt's house in Lindesberg.  Here is a photo of the group dining.

Dinner was especially wonderful because of the great food Mrs. Fürsth made.  We had marinated moose (elj) meat plus seasoned potatoes, a cole-slaw, fresh baked bread, marinated eggplant, two flavored butters, a herb sauce, potato salad, and ice cream with strawberries for dessert.  The moose meat comes from a local hunting club that offers meat to select people with relations to the club.  Very good.  Not very gamey or wild tasting.  One of my favorite shots of the night is of Lina, a vegetarian, grilling moosemeat on the barbque pit and giving us lessons on the cooking of meat.  Ironic? Because Lina and her family grew up on a farm there are naturally a lot of animals.  Because of the rain we met no barnyard critters but we did meet Agge the dog, 3 full grown cats, 2 guinea pigs, and a litter of newborn baby kittens.  Nina said at one point that it was like a petting zoo... and of course we all had a blast with the animals.  Here are a few shots of the animal action.

What a fun afternoon.  Thank you to Jane and Lina for being great hosts.   

Midsommer i Fallet - Part 3

After a full evening of games and dancing we moved upstairs to the dining room for a feast!  Karin, Birgitta and others all helped to cook a wonderful meal complete with meatballs, potatoes au gratin, salmon, hams, cheese, salad, Jansson's frestelse (Jansson's Temptation), and more...  Dinner was wonderful... and soon after... as is tradition... Kalle pulled out his guitar and we all got our song sheets and began a lengthy rally of singing and toasting.  I should not fail to mention that Snapps was shared plentifully among the guests.  Here are some photos of the main event.

Here is a sample of one song we sang called Helan Går:

"Helan går, sjung hopp faderallan lallan lej...

Helan går, sjung hopp faderallan lej...

Och den som inte helan tar han heller inte halvan får...

Helan går, sjung hopp faderallan lej!"

(ended with SKÅL of course)

And this is a song called:

"När gäddorna leka

När gäddorna leka i vikar och vass

och solar går ner bakom Sjöbloms dass.

Ja, då är det vår.

Ja, då är det vår."

(Skål)

This was a fantastic evening to celebrate two wonderful happenings in the Risén family.  First, our cousin Karolina is going to have a baby and second Nina and Robert will be married.  The family is getting bigger so that we have another generation to carry on the family traditions.

Thank you so much to Ulf and Karin for their generosity... SKÅL!

Midsommar i Fallet - Part 2

Dancing.  Dancing round the Midsommar Stång (Maypole) is a huge part of the tradition of midsummer.  Despite the cold and rain we danced!

In the above photo we are singing one of the most famous Midsommar songs.  It is called "Små Grodorna (small frogs)":

"Små grodorna... små grodorna... så lustiga att ser...

Små grodorna... små grodorna... så lustiga att ser...

Ej öron... ej öron... ej svansar har var de...

Ej öron... ej öron... ej svansar har var de..."

In the middle of dancing we collectively looked over at the adjacent feild and were surprised to find all the bulls standing and quietly looking on as we danced.  They seemed enchanted by our singing and dancing.  Wide eyed and ears up they were soaking up the strange behavior of their neighbors.  Here is a picture of our friends the cows.

Midsommar i Fallet - Part 1

Last night we went to Ulf and Karin Milgård's house at Stora Mellosa for midsommar festivities.  It is a big tradition to go there for midsummer... in fact Andree, Nina, Kurt and Jonas were all there for a midsummer party 23 years ago.  Many of the same guests came to the party last night.  One special guest, Torvald, is world famous for his antics on that night 23 years ago, when he ran round and round the house totally naked with a garden hose and a pot on his head in brilliant impersonation of a fireman.  The party last night was a little more tame but very fun allt he same. 

Guests last night included: Ulf and Karin, Richard and Karolina, Birgitta and Kalle, Torvald, Hans and Birgitta, Gunnar and Britt, Nina and Robert, Andree and Kurt, and Jonas.

The party can be divided into three parts: Arrival and Games (Part 1), Dancing (Part 2), and Dining (Part 3).

THE ARRIVAL

Above are Jonas, Andree, Ulf, Nina, Robert and Karolina. This last image is of a traditional swedish wedding psalm sung to the bride and groom on their wedding day.  Ulf said he found it at an antique sale and of course Nina and Robert were serenaded by the group.

THE GAMES

After about an hour we all moved outside for some games.  The weather was pretty bad (cold and lightly raining) so we donned coats, and wellies and headed out.  Karolina was the organizer of the gaming that afternoon and had set up a quiz game, a gummy frog spitting contest, and a ball toss. 

First was the quiz game.  We walked around in groups and had multiple choice questions numbered 1 thru 10 to answer.  Questions included: what year was the coca-cola bottle introduced (1916 for those of you who are ignorant) and what exotic fruit was introduced as a aphrodesiac when first introduced widely into Sweden (the tomato... I was totally wrong having Figs as my answer).  Tough questions if you ask me...

Second came the gummy frog spitting contest.  The challenge was to spit a gummy frog the farthest distance.

Andree handled the challenge with grace and beauty.

And just look at the power behind Kurt's gummy frog spitting.  A tour de force.  He did not win the competition but got the prize for most energetic competitor. 

Below/on the right you can see gummy frogs.

Above you can see the margin of win between second and third place in the spitting competition.  Robert leads by a hair.

The third game was a ball tossing contest!

Above is Torvald dominating the compeition.  Below is Andree playing with her mits on...  

The winners of the compeition were:

First Place - Andree

Second Place - Gunnar and Britt (Tied for Second Place)

Third Place - Robert and Nina

Fourth Place - Hans

Fifth Place - Torvald

Sixth Place - Kurt