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Av EvaLena Hallgren - 15 juni 2017 19:15

3 nights at the same place is quite unusual for Mom but it was because we had such great company and a gorgeous place to stay. The owners were fabulous people who really made us feel at home.

Our new found friends came from England so it was a lot easier to communicate.

 

I never have those issues, me and Poppy hit it off immediately. She’s a couple of years younger than I so she

had a lot more energy, but that wasn’t a big problem either, although she really wanted me to stop napping in my wagon and come out to play.  

   


Malcom offered Mom a beer but wanted her to drink from this horn as an initiation............haha, Judy told her he was joking. 

 

Malcolm, Judy, and Mom played games and in the evening went for a beer and schnitzel at a little restaurant that the owner's kids ran.

They let me sit at the table and yes I did get a taste. I really like Germany, people aren’t as uptight about letting us four legged furry ones into their places.

   

It was sad to say goodbye, but maybe sometimes in the future, we’ll meet again.

We didn’t go very far because Mom had seen a brochure on yet another castle she wanted to see. It’s Germanys oldest castle and this is where the Meissen porcelain started.


 

The dome next door is also quite impressive.

We parked by the river Elbe and since it’s pretty hot now I chose to stay and watch Lucy while Mom climbed the stairs. Apparently, it was quite a strenuous walk because when she came back she just collapsed for a while. (after my walk of course)  see Lucy parked down there. On the way back Mon noticed there is an elevator on the opposite side...hAHA  

This castle's name was Albrechtburg and have a very particular kind of vaulting that was invented specifically for this palace. Their distinctive folded vaults create a sophisticated light and shade

     


The diamond vault became a hit spreading across the whole of eastern Central Europa up until the middle od 16th century The invention of the diamond vault can be explained by two principal factors Late Gothic design methods and the construction process itself. However since no contemporary records survived, knowledge of these can only be acquired through practical experience, so here's an example of such practice.

 


there was a sundial on the wall, can you tell what time it is?

 


Meissen porcelain used to be made here so a lot of the castle was destroyed but are now restored to its old glory


         

in one room everybody had to put on slippers over the shoes not to destroy the wooden floor, Mom couldn't resist skating around 

 

 


she did refrain from trying out the thrones though............I'm really proud of her

 

 Meissen china is the first European hard-paste porcelain It was developed starting in 1708 by Mr. Tschirnaus After his death that October, Johann Fredrick Botter continued von Tschirnhaus's work and brought porcelain to the market. The production of porcelain at Meissen started in 1710 and attracted artists and artisans to establish one of the most famous porcelain manufacturers, still in business today. Its signature logo, the crossed swords, was introduced in 1720 to protect its production; the mark of the crossed swords is one of the oldest trademarks in existence. It dominated the style of European porcelain until 1756.

there was a lot of Meissen porcelain stuff in there and Mom had a plan to buy a new coffee mug here but so far I haven't seen one. Have a feeling the price is too high, and they may be too gaudy for her taste.

   

After the castle, she went into the cathedral next door.

13th-century Gothic Meissen Cathedral, whose chapel is one of the most famous burial places of the Wettin family. The hill on which the castle and the cathedral are built offers a view over the roofs of the old town.

           

walking back Mom ran into this girl who delivered mail on a bike, exactly the same as Mom did as a puppy.

Brought back memories I'm sure, and I bet she wishes she could have that athletic body back from that century..............not gonna happen I whispered softly (not risking a treat) so deal with it...

 


The entire town is covered in cobblestones, so I'm pretty sure no ladies dare to put on high heels..............It was an exhausting but interesting day Mom says, and that's all for today........    






Av EvaLena Hallgren - 14 juni 2017 09:40

Waking up to millions of birds singing, couldn’t get any better says, Mom. The sky is bright blue and it’ll be a gorgeous day for sure.

 

The forest surrounding us is magnificent with tall oak and some other trees that Mom doesn’t know the name of. Germans are very easy going about bringing dogs everywhere so Mom said I could come along to explore the castle.

It started out real well, I friend I met from England and her Mom came with us for the walk but when we was about half way there I got tired and I laid down and refused to take another step. All Mom could do was to walk me back and leave me to watch Lucy and take a nap. Mom doesn’t understand that I have much shorter legs than her and get tired easily.

Just about at this bridge I decided to call it quits.


     

It was almost a 3 km hike to get to the castle so she went back by herself and went on a 2,5 hour long guided tour.


 

The lady who was telling the story was very passionated about the history of the castle and told so many interesting stories to keep her audience captivated.

 


The castle was first mentioned in the 11th century.

Imperial property in the 12th century.

Burned down twice in the middle ages.

15-18th century it was used by the Saxon family.

19-20th century it was a poorhouse and a mental hospital.

1939-1945German Army prisoner-of-war camps for captured enemy officers during World War II.

1946-1996 it was a general hospital

For nearly100 years, from 1829 to 1924, Colditz was a sanatorium, generally reserved for the wealthy and the nobility of Germany.

When the Nazis came to power in 1933, they turned the castle into a political prison for, communists homosexuals, Jews and other people they considered undesirable. Starting in 1939 allied prisoners were housed there

 

this is now used as a youth hostel and a music school

 

   


After the outbreak of World War II, the castle was converted into a high-security prisoner-of-war-camp for officers who had become security or escape risks or who were regarded as particularly dangerous. Since the castle is situated on a rocky outcrop above the River Mulde, the Germans believed it to be an ideal site for a high-security prison.


There were also prisoners called Prominent. The first one was Giles Romilly, a civilian journalist who was captured in Narvik, Norway who was also a nephew of Winston Churchill's wife. Hitler himself specified that Romilly was to be treated with the utmost care. 

Although it was considered a high-security prison, it had one of the highest records of successful escape attempts. This could be owing to the general nature of the prisoners that were sent there; most of them had attempted escape previously from other prisons and were transferred to Colditz because the Germans had thought the castle escape-proof.

   

It was a steep climb and Mom said she was happy I stayed home because this would have been very difficult for me

 

looking down from above there was a pig sty and gorgeous roses, a big contrast.

   


The prisoners was extremely inventive and here's a sewing machine they made

 

They made "dummies" of paper so when it came time to count prisoners all was there but in reality, they were busy digging tunnels to escape

 

   


One lavish scheme even included a glider, the "Colditz cock", that was kept in a remote portion of the castle's attic, completed in the winter of 1944–45, but following the great escape, in which 50 escapees were executed,(something the guide never mentioned?) all further escape attempts were officially discouraged and the glider was never used. When the camp was liberated by the Americans in late April 1945 the glider was brought down from the hidden workshop to the attic below and assembled for the prisoners to see. It was at this time that the only known photograph of the glider was taken. here's a replica built from the blueprints

 


The idea for the glider came from Lieutenant Tony Rolt. Rolt, who was not even an airman, had noticed the chapel roof line was completely obscured from German view. He realized that the roof would make a perfect launching point from which the glider could fly across the river Mulde, which was about 60 meters below.


The glider constructed was a lightweight, two-seater, high wing, monoplane design. It had a Mooney style rudder and square elevators. The wingspan, tip to tip, was 32 ft, and it was 19 ft 9 in from nose to tail. Prison sleeping bags of blue and white checked cotton were used to skin the glider, and German ration millet was boiled and used as a form of dope to seal the cloth pores The completed glider weighed 240 lb. 


For some time after the war, the glider was regarded as either a myth or tall story, as there was no solid proof that the glider had existed and Colditz was then in the Soviet Occupation Zone.


Bill Goldfinch, however, took home the drawings he had made when designing the glider and, when the single photograph finally surfaced, the story was taken seriously.

   


16 prisoners were building the plane behind a fake wall in the attic, and the plan was to use tables from the kitchen as a launch pad on the roof. and to fill a bathtub with concrete attached to the front to make the plane take off.


In March 2012, a radio-controlled, full-sized replica glider was built in the Chapel attic and was flown from Colditz for a documentary. The documentary aired in North America on PBS under the title "Escape from Nazi Alcatraz"  The glider built for this documentary now forms part of a new museum display in the Chapel Attic and a very interesting movie was made. Mom took pictures of the screen.

   

this is a picture of the men that engineered this escape that never took place

 

this is the church and the head of Martin Luther who was born in a town not far from here, and he brought the Protestant Christianity .

     




In April 1945, U.S troops entered Colditz town and, after a two-day fight, captured the castle on 16 April. In May 1945, the Soviet occupation of Colditz began. According to the agreement at the Yalta conference, it became a part of East Germany. The Soviets turned Colditz Castle into a prison camp for local burglars and non-communists. Later, the castle was a home for the aged and nursing home, as well as a hospital and psychiatric clinic. For many years after the war, forgotten hiding places and tunnels were found by repairmen, including a radio room set up by the French POWs, which was then "lost" again only to be re-discovered some twenty years later.


there are many documentaries on YouTube about this castle, and here’s one link if you're interested


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJC7ivpH6qc&t=81s


while listening to the guide in the courtyard Mom saw a lot of birds circling and one made a dive straight into a bush, so needless to say it had to be investigated.

 

There was a starling on her nest

 

and lots and lots of these birds on the roof, Mom thinks they are kestrels

It was a very interesting day for Mom and a great rest for me. We'll be staying another night at this wonderful place, and tomorrow ?? ?? who knows??? 

 

 


 

 



 

 


 

 

 

 


Av EvaLena Hallgren - 13 juni 2017 20:46

After a great night of sleep, we continue driving south. After a few miles, we met 10-20 or even more police cars driving north?Must be some kind of convention? soon we hear sirens behind us and here comes more police going south? really, what is going on? What was impressive was to see how fast all cars separated and gave way in the middle of 2 lanes.

We didn't see any accidents so what is happening? Mom pulled over at a rest stop, and there they all were checking all big trucks. Mom says she thinks she knows why.................I don't, but if it's bad I don't want to know anyway

 

Most rest stops in Germany is very nice, but this one was really awful.As a matter of fact, graffiti seems to be very popular here, which is a shame.Apparently, people don't bother reading this sign which says please keep free of schmutz

 


 

This is really really gross, I'm going to ask Mom to write to Angela Merkel about outlawing these awful habit people are having, but then Mom said I better make sure she isn't a smoker too.

 

This sign we agree with, but I'm wondering if the Germans don't have their own curse words?

 

So we made it to the RVpark in Leipzig that was included in a camper book. Alice (the lady that talks to Mom from that box in the window while she's driving) got us there without any difficulties. The attendant had a siesta? who knew that habit found its way this far North? We parked and went bike riding into the city. I guess the "rain curse" the bike had had last year finally has released because we had gorgeous weather the entire day. 

I was hoping to meet with the girls who hitchhiked with us last year, but they were both studying for their exams, and that's a very important thing for their entire future says, Mom.I know she was disappointed too but understood and was impressed by the girl's dedication to doing well.

Leipzig is Germanys 10th most populous city and has been a trade city since at least the time of the Holy Roman Empire.The city sits at the intersection of two important medieval trade routes. Leipzig was once one of the major European centers of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing and became a major urban center within the East Germany after the Second World War, but its cultural and economic importance declined.

 

Leipzig later played a significant role in instigating the fall of communism, through events which took place in and around St, Nicholas Church...................................


.
According to Mom, this is the scariest city ever she's been biking in. In the brochure from the RVplace, it said there was a bike path the entire way. If it was, Mom didn't find them. The pace is at top speed and worst of all they have cable car tracks everywhere and if your bike wheel get caught ................and well, that's a problem

Germans must really love graffiti because not even this beautiful fountain was left alone from the graffiti a$$holes.The message "Ich liebe dich'" (I love you)would have been much better received on a different forum.

 

St.Thomas Church is  Lutheran and it's most famous as the place where Johann Sebastian Basch worked as a music director from 1723 until his death in 1750 and this is the location of his remains,

   

This building was very impressive, but standing there looking in a different direction, this is what we saw.................What's wrong with people?Where is their pride? I and my four legged buddies would never do that......but Mom reminded me of what WE do if human lets us. Well, I don't, I was told not to pee on buildings as a puppy.................so there.

 


The Town Hall (Rathouse in German) guess they too think there are a few rats in their government.It was a very nice town square, and there was men building a stage most likely preparing for the yearly Bach consert.

 

 

Very talented young musicians performed in the street, we took a break and listen to them for a long time. 

 


Mom tried to upload a video so you could hear for yourself, but it took too long so she gave up. We'll see if WIFIn is any faster tomorrow.

Biking back to Lucy I think we were lost again? Mom denied it and said she was just checking out a few more streets...........Oh so why have we passed this house twice already? May there's two look-alikes she said..........HA , she's not fooling me for a second.

 

 

We finally arrived back to Lucy and discovered that none of the services offered existed on this spot, To top it off, so was the owner really rude so Mom just packed up our stuff and left. We headed to next town called Delft but stopped at a beautiful campsite that Alice found for us. It happened to be located next to the Castle Colditz, and I was allowed to come along but chose not to, which is a good thing It was too far. Mom loved the stories about this castle and she gets to tell you all about it tomorrow.

Good Night all

 

 

 

 







Av EvaLena Hallgren - 12 juni 2017 06:46

We are now somewhere in Germany, not sure Mom knows where either?  We spent the last night in Sweden on a parking space for RVs, and Lucy was by far the smallest and without a TV antenna. Who needs TV Mom says and I tend to agree with her. We went for a walk and then cozied up with a book, Mom reading me napping listening to the rainstorm that came rolling in. Seems to be a repeat occurrence every night.

   

My favorite statue in this town called Trelleborg.


 


Here we are waiting in line to get on the ferry at 11 am 

 

The ferry will arrive in Rostock Germany at 5.30 and as usual, Mom was worried about getting seasick so she had bought some silly wristbands at the drugstore that supposedly do some kind of hocus pocus to prevent seasickness.

The sea was calm so we could sit outside in the sun. This ship had a small sandbox for me if I needed it. I sniffed around a little and decided I didn't need it.

 


arriving at the port there was a lot of cruise ships 

     

and a little tourist sightseeing boat that didn't have many passengers

 



I'm ready to get off the ship now


 


big cranes and dry docks to fix big ships and maybe also build new ones.


 


We got on the road and headed south until we found a suitable place for the night.

Germans are awesome drivers (fast)but total pigs at the rest stops. Mom doesn't want to walk around the bushes with me with me because of all the interesting scents I find underneath the bunched up toilet papers.

There's no need for this Mom says, every rest stop has beautiful bathrooms with an attendant that keeps it clean after each person. As a matter of fact, we spent the night at an AutoHOf, which is a stop where mostly truck drivers sleep. I can guarantee we were the smallest vehicle on this lot ;-)

Included was a great breakfast (for people) where Mom is sitting and writing this on their free wifi.............

We'll soon continue to Leipzig, hoping the girls we met last year will be home.

 

Oh, by the way, it rained last night too so I'm getting used to being lulled to sleep by the rattling  on the roof.





Av EvaLena Hallgren - 10 juni 2017 09:46

Mom is getting quite antsy and ready to get on the road and while we were waiting for the mailman to deliver the plastic card, we went for a walk. I said hello to the meatball factories and they were very nice. Unfortunately, Mom didn’t let go of my leash so I couldn’t get in and find some to eat.


   

She picked wildflowers and made arrangments like she used to do as a puppy.


   

The mailman delivered the card, but the code will arrive in a different mail later. That’s no problem Lotta can give us that later so we made Lucy ready to continue our trip.

After leaving Lotta's house we have been driving south hoping to find the sun and warmer weather, and yes we saw it for a few hours while on the road. We stayed one night by a lake because Mom said she was getting sleepy, but I think she really wanted to dive into those pancakes Lotta made for our trip.She ate them cold with a little sugar? Best pancakes in the world according to her, I’m not too crazy about them so no point in begging.

Second night we’re at the ocean not far from the ferry terminal and parked by a Viking museum, and now it was sunny and warm………..woohoo finally.

We met a really strange guy that made me very suspicious he said he was from Texas? He spoke a heavy southern Swedish so Mom thinks he was fibbing a tad………..a Viking from Texas without a cowboy hat huh? but he turned out to be an OK guy.


   

Mom never bothered to go inside and look at the Viking village, she says it's old news seen it before, and this place didn't appear to be kept very well.

 

pretty sure these artifacts are made in recent years to look like the real thing, but who cares, it's stuff that's made for tourists anyway



   

Mom got a call from Lotta with the new code, so now we’re ready for the adventure Mom says and she immediately looked up a ticket for the ferry. Prices varied a lot and she found a ticket for half price on Sunday at 11 am. Which means we’ll spend another day in Sweden

It’s sunny so we’ll walk around and explore the city tomorrow Mom said,

but later in the evening, all hell broke loose and Mom was very happy we weren’t on the ferry.

   

The neighbor had rolled out their canopy and now everybody ran to hold it down so it didn’t blow off.




 

Lucy was rocking from the wind but we were warm and cozy inside.

Lotta is not cooking for Mom anymore but she sent some of her delicious nettle pesto so in a way she’s still with us. Too bad she only thought of Mom, I know she loves me too but she can be forgetful at times.


 

As usual, Mom is up before the rooster and looking out at the water it looks like the wind died down, but the sun is still hiding behind the clouds.

   

We’ll be moving Lucy closer to the ferry today and Mom HAS to find a dog shop to make sure I have enough of the good food for me ( and extra treats) She also needs to get som seasick pills for herself, just in case.  ;-) ;-) :-)

All is well, next update will be from Germany I hope.




Av EvaLena Hallgren - 7 juni 2017 07:41

Finally, a gorgeous warm lazy day in the sun and Mom managed to stay still and read a book for awhile. 
Doing nothing is not something Mom is very good at so as she’s getting more and more restless she decided to clean out and organize Lotta’s tool shed. Lotta got a little nervous about Mom tossing too much stuff in the garbage, so she quickly came out to help. I was left to do whatever I felt like, so after exploring the garden I went inside for a long refreshing nap.
 
   looks pretty good now................  
When they were done they loaded Lotta’s little car with a lot of rubbish and drove to the dump. At the dump was several containers where everything had to be separated for recycling. Mom is quite impressed at the efficiency.
When this was done we went to a friends house where I scared a cat to climb up a tree and he refused to come down as long as I was there I don’t understand? All I wanted was to say hello……….
 
 
Driving home a large brown hare hopped around on the field chasing birds. He must have been playing because Hares don’t eat meat. Hares are herbivorous and feed mainly on grasses and herbs.
 
 

Yesterday was June 6th Swedens national day, and Mom and Lotta went into the city to join in the celebrations.I stayed home and napped with Selma and Morre.

The Swedes are pretty humble and do not celebrate like Americans do on 4th which I’m very happy about since fireworks scare me horribly. I do miss the BBQ tough


 

The tradition of celebrating this date began 1916 at the Stockholm Olympic Stadium, in honor of the election of King Gustav Wasa in 1523, as this was considered the foundation of modern Sweden

Some question the validity of this as a national holiday, as it was not observed as a holiday until decades later. However this event does signify the end of the Danish-ruled Kalmar Union, so in a sense, it is a marking of Swedish independence, though the event occurred so long ago that it does not have as strong of a presence in the social consciousness as does, for example, Norway(17 May).

In 2005 it became an official Swedish public holiday replacing Whit Monday. This change led to fewer days off from work (more working days) as 6 June will periodically fall on the weekend, unlike Whit Monday, which was always celebrated on a Monday. This, in turn, led to complaints from some Swedish unions.

Here's a man in a traditional costume with his dog

 

    

the band played the national anthem
 

  Some people sang the words very softly

 

This is a literal translation of the song

1
Thou ancient, Thou free, Thou mountainous north
Thou quiet, Thou joyful beautiful!
I greet thee, loveliest land upon earth,
/:Thy sun, Thy sky, Thy climes green.:/
2
Thou thronest on memories of great olden days,
When honoured Thy name flew across the earth,
I know that Thou art and wilt remain what thou werest,
/:Yes, I want to live, I want to die in the North.:/
After the celebration, they went for sight seeing around town and of course a "fika" (coffee and cake)
 
       
after a couple of nice sunny days, I'm disappointed to let you know it's raining again, so it'll be another lazy day doing nothing.
 
 
 
 

Av EvaLena Hallgren - 5 juni 2017 08:36

It seems like my travel story is having a problem getting started, Mom says it’s because we are still parked at the same place doing nothing, but I say she should let me be the judge of that.

We’re still at Lotta's place and I have no complaints about that. Selma is not Lilly but at least she’s not hissing at me like Morre does. Maybe Morre doesn’t like me because I steal his food any chance I get.

His Mom thinks it’s OK since he never cleans his plate like I do.

One day we went for a walk in the woods to collect pine tree shoots. Lotta was going to make a syrup of it? She also collects nestles to make pesto and soups. Lotta knows that you can buy all this stuff at the store and it’s not like she’s too poor to buy it, she just likes doing this stuff, and as a matter or fact Mom loved the pesto (syrup isn’t done yet) and asked for a jar to have in Lucy for later.

I never had the honor to taste it, and Mom says it’s because it’s garlic in it and supposedly that’s not good for me.

 



There’s a meatball farm next door and there are so many puppies there and I bet the little ones makes gourmet balls. I’m only allowed to look at them from the car window for some stupid reason. Mom says we can get in big big trouble if any of them would get hurt because they are very expensive race horses. I don’t understand how she expects me to hurt them? but it's no point to argue my case I know I'll loose this time

 

   

 

One day Mom was helping Lotta to put up a curtain, and Lotta had a box with screws and nails, which she dropped on top of the stairs. That noise put an abrupt end to my nap and Mom was happy to sort and organize it all.

   


The reason we aren’t on the road yet is that some problems with the little plastic card Mom uses to pay for stuff are messed up, so we have to wait for the mailman to deliver a new one.

Every year Mom and Lotta goes to Blankaholm bed and breakfast to eat the most amazing potato pancakes served with lingonberries and bacon. The owners are friends and the man an artist who makes gorgeous stuff of wood. We looked at his gallery and if Mom was rich she would have bought this one.

     

I could easily have made friends with this kitty if I only was given a little more time. She never introduced herself so I don’t know her name but I could tell she was smitten by me. The tall grass was infested with ticks which grossed Mom out and luckily my doc Grigsby had put me on the pill to prevent them from sucking my blood.

 

Driving home this bird came running over the road and kept on running into the field so we got a good look.It was a pheasant. Beautiful bird that’s also good cooked Mom says………..I didn’t know she had such cruel thoughts inside her.

 

it has been raining all night and Mom finds the raindrop noise on the roof soothing and says it’s OK if it rains every night as long as the sun is shining during the day. I’m not quite as comfortable with the smattering but I’m a lot better than I used to be.

Sun is on it’s way up now, and it looks like it’s going to be a gorgeous day with clear blue sky. Temperature has not been over 70 yet, and up north in Moms puppy town they still have frost at night, and a little further up it snowed………………..we're not going there yet.

All is well.


 

 

 

 

Av EvaLena Hallgren - 31 maj 2017 20:31

Mom is in a better mood, and this time it didn’t come out of that box she and Elvy drank from.  I think it’s because finally, Lucy is healthy again. We did drive to a city and Mom made an appointment to get a new water pump. Avery nice girl helped us out and said we could stay for free at this beautiful campsite until Monday morning when the mechanic will arrive to install the new pump. The first night there was entertainment in a tent nearby and it was supposed to be music but in our ears, it was only loud noise. That ended at 2 am so we didn’t have a very peaceful sleep

   

Mom made her first supper in Lucy and it was Swedish pirogi's (called body cakes) with lingonberries, nothing that I had an interest in although I got a little taste of the bacon inside. At our walk along the lake, we came upon a big field of Lilly of the Valley. Mom said it smelled like childhood so she couldn’t resist picking a few despite the strong scent and her allergies.

 

Monday morning we got up real early and parked outside the repair shop very excited to get Lucy fixed, and the girl called at 8 am to let us know the mechanic was sick so they couldn’t help. A very disappointed Mom called around to other cities with RV shops and with a lot of begging managed to get help.

They too were extremely busy but agreed to help anyway and quickly replaced the pump which worked great, but now it was leaking in the faucet which also had to be replaced. These guys are like acrobats working in such cramped spaces. Mom went into their shop to look at stuff she wants but do not need, and she actually resisted buying unnecessary stuff. But she remembered the inspection guy had said something about the propane hoses needs to be changed out.

Girl in the shop was so helpful and came out to look at the hoses and found a hole!!!! so grateful for that discovery. The expert guy came to look and said the way that is connected is not legal anymore, the inspection person should not have overlooked that. Mom had 2 propane tanks with 2 regulators and a T connection to both. Now we have 2 tanks and one hose and one regulator.  

 

 

Mom was real happy when we left this place because she feels safe everything is working now.

The last thing was to rotate the tires and that was done at a shop in a few minutes. The left front brake was squealing but that was taken care of with some grease.

Our trip is continuing south Mom driving and I mostly napped until I recognized where we were going. I immediately got a whiff of the meatball factory and knew we were going to Lotta's house ……….I jumped around in my seat singing, can’t wait to see Selma and Morre, and of course Lotta too.

According to Mom, she’s an amazing cook and she’s preparing all Mom’s favorites.  


       

Selma was only a little kitten first time we met so I was hoping she’ll remember me, not sure she did because she hissed at me. Morre did too but he has always done that so I ignore it. He’s the same age as I am, so I understand he’s a bit cranky, (not that I ever am)

Selma did lighten up and was very curious about me, but she’s no Lilly so I mostly ignore her.

 

     


 

 Early morning Mom got to do some gardening before Lotta got out of bed, and that’s probably the therapy she needed to become happy again

 


This little guy is also contributing to the happy feeling as he is chirping away sitting on top of the roof.

 


A relative to Lotta from our hometown had visited recently, and she brought homemade Swedish matza and cloudberries...............what a breakfast treat

 

 

these creatures Mom likes cooked on a plate.............I say it looks gross and don't want anything to do with them, and that's a statement from a guy that eats horse poop Mom says.......meatballs I remind her

 

Lotta son came to put a house together where hens are supposed to live, and of course Mom couldn’t leave him alone, she just had to help. It was raining but they both kept on working until they found a few pieces that didn’t fit.

Convinced the factory had sent the wrong pieces they stopped and Mom went into town for some errands in Lotta's car and left me to watch over everybody.

   

At dinner, we got homemade "palt"a dish mostly Northerners makes. and this time I made sure I sat next to Lotta because she is easily swayed into giving me some from her plate. I wink at her a little and she’s mine ………


 


We’re having an awesome time here and Mom is being pampered so now everything is just dandy. Lotta has washed all Moms stuff the mice had shitted in and tomorrow it's supposed to be sunny ……………..life is good again.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


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