Sunday 28 January 2007

A dull grey day with light sleet/snow.

But we took a walk down to the frozen lake.

Walked onto it



Took some photos and felt better for it.

Saturday 27 January 2007

Are we in the Med?


Well it may be minus 12 outside but we have just come back from a moonlit walk and it's magical. The snow is all sparkly in the moonlight.

We walked up the track to the top of the hill some 500 metres. Once at the top we were able to look out over the frozen lake below. It's surprising how big the village is. In the dark with the street and house lights on it's easy to see how big an area it covers. Looking down across the lake and the twinkling lights of the village, I could have been forgiven for thinking I was in the Med somewhere. Only the temperature told me otherwise. Sweden is full of surprises!

We felt a walk was needed. At sometime or other this afternoon/evening all three stoves have been lit and the house is now like an oven. The insulation in Swedish houses is far superior to any other houses I've been in, and no draughts! In the UK when the children were young I would always be saying'shut the door!'

Today the sun has shone which has thrown long shadows across the sparkly snow. The lawn at the front of the house, which is free from human footsteps, looks like a sea of snow. I tried to take some artistic photos of it all. But I'm not very good at getting the photos that I see in my minds eye, and instead of producing something artistic it turns out pretty ordinary. I'll have to practice more!
The photo I've decided to post doesn't show the lawn at all. It is the view from the side of the house looking towards and into the forest.

Friday 26 January 2007

Winter Wonderland


Well the snow has been with us properly since 12th January. As Mike says 'it's what we signed up for!' It looks lovely especially when the sun shines on it.

So we bought the skis, cross country variety. The only ones worth having according to our long standing Swedish friend. However Mike's not so keen, not fast enough or exciting enough for him. Me, I made a track to ski down on the road outside our house, (it's really a track, a gravel road). I managed to get a bit of speed going as it was down hill and it felt good. But then the snow plough came, so that was the end of that! Just as well I had gone in by then, I haven't learned how to stop yet! I think we will be trying out our skis at the cross country skiing track a couple of miles down the road. I think I will ask our long standing Swedish friend's wife for some tips. She cross country skis regularly.

Well if I don't post now I won't know how it looks and if I'm doing it right.

Here goes..........