A visit to Sweden, particularly to see Eleanor and Ingemar, would be incomplete without a daily session of “Oh Shit!” For those unfamiliar, it is an engaging and fast-paced dice game suitable for all ages, from five to 555 years old. The rules of the game are available upon request.
A visit with Eleanor also entails a comprehensive schedule of activities. This began yesterday, when we arrived, with a complete tour of her new residence (they relocated last year from their farm annex B&B in Hismossa to a house in Tyringe). The tour also encompassed the histories of the neighboring houses and the families who have resided or continue to reside in them. This is precisely what we admire so much about them both: their deep connection to this region of Sweden where they live, and their eagerness to share this history with their family and those who are interested.
Eleanor, who is from Canada, has thoroughly researched her family’s history. She even published a book about it several years ago.
During dinner on arrival day, she made a tight plan for the coming two days so we wouldn’t be bored.
Day 76 Forest management
In the morning we got a traditional for breakfast. To be honest, we actually chose it: pancakes. Every time we visited Eleanor and Ingemar’s B&B with the children in the past, they asked for pancakes for breakfast. A tradition we could not break.
After a delicious breakfast, we were chauffeured to Torupasjön, a charming lake in Västra Torup! It was amazing to see the beautiful path created by her, Ingemar, and many other community members. Plus, it’s packed with fascinating historical and biological info, thanks to a local teacher and Eleanor!
To make this path an accessible walkway, they had to remove all the excessive shrubbery and make the gravel and the wooden paths through the marsh land. It’s even accessible for handicapped people.
We drove further and payed a visit to their family that was working in the family forest and learned about their multi-generational approach to forest management, including how they grow trees and maintain the woods. To give you an idea, it takes about 60 years to harvest newly planted trees!
She had a pleasant walk planned, but we needed to have lunch first: hot dogs made from local meat, cooked over an outdoor fire.
Following our lunch, we embarked on a stroll through the family forest. We saw the remains of a water-powered sawmill, constructed by the local farmers to fulfil their need of timber. It was decommissioned around the 1950s due to a lack of further utility. The wooden structure that housed the saw, originally situated above the stone foundation, was disassembled and reassembled in a nearby village.
The drought currently impacting significant portions of Europe is also having an effect on Sweden. The creek that once provided the water mill with the necessary flow has now dried up. Furthermore, one of the wells from which Ingemar’s family previously drew water is also dry.
Following our farewells to the family, we continued with our afternoon activities, which included enjoying some ice cream. Near their forest, there was a place (en kiosk) where you could get some. The people who sell it just trust you to make a payment for it.
In the evening, Eleanor prepared a delightful enchilada dish, and we enjoyed a few rounds of the game “Oh Shit!”.
Day 78 Åhus and Olle Jönsson
We began our day at a slow pace, as it was Sunday and a day for rest. Following breakfast, Ingemar and Eleanor drove us to the sea in Åhus, a journey of approximately one hour. We had previously visited this location in June 2019, making this a pleasant stroll down memory lane, allowing us to observe the changes that have occurred over the past seven years.
We walked along the beach and checked out some restaurants where we could have lunch, but nothing could convince us.
So we drove further to the center of Åhus to see if we could get lunch there, and yes, we found a cozy rökeri where we could eat some delicious fish. Fun fact: We needed to take a ferry that was run by the restaurant to cross the water of the river Helge å.
For dessert, ice cream is certainly a delightful choice, certainly when taken from the Glass Båten, a ship renowned for serving enormous ice cream cones with a wide variety of flavors and toppings.
In the afternoon, we returned to Tyringe to attend a performance by Olle Jönsson, a renowned local singer. Olle was a member and lead vocalist of the dance band Lasse Stefanz, and he has been an active performer since 1967. During his performance in the park in Tyringe, he utilized an Apple laptop and his live vocals, which bore a striking resemblance to Willie Nelson‘s style.
After the intermission, we returned to Eleanor and Ingemar’s home to enjoy a period of rest for the remainder of the afternoon. For our evening meal, Eleanor skillfully prepared chicken burgers, which we enjoyed with great appreciation and gratitude.
There were some leftover desserts from the previous days, and we concluded the evening with a few games of Oh Shit!
Tomorrow we will be biking through Kristianstad and go a bit further to Rinkaby where we will spend the night. 56 kilometers and only 120 climbing meters but some showers are to be expected, we’ll see how it goes. Our current plan consists of four biking days along the coast of Skåne to Trelleborg. We will then decide if we take the boat from there to Germany or go back via Denmark, as originally planned.
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