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Up North!

A lot of things haven’t gone as planned in 2020, like celebrating my moms BIG birthday in March. However, we had planned to go to her hometown Dikanäs, all of us in the family. And we were able to do that, and it was such an amazing trip. I’ve been thinking for a while that I need to share this trip in a blog, and here we go!

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Driving up to Dikanäs, or Saxnäs where we stayed, was a good 10 hour drive. Dikanäs is located about 800 km north of Stockholm. Me and Erik actually really enjoyed the drive with all the beautiful views.

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On day one we went on mountain hiking. There’s a lot of mosquitoes in the north of Sweden so I geared up before leaving Stockholm. I got the net, I got the boots, we got mosquitoes repulsers, we got it all now, haha! I did however forget a second backpack so I ended up walking with my extra shoes in a little bag. Not so experienced in the wild after all… at least it’s been a while since I did this kind of thing!

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We used to do those hikes as a family each time we went up here to visit grandma. So when we got up to the rest area I immediately recognized myself! All the childhood memories from these places, like in the winter time when we went sliding down the hill on our sledges.

Hello gorgeous views!

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Drinking water from the stream is a must.

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Reaching the top!

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When we came back to Dikanäs we went to eat a very classic Swedish Northern food called Palt. A friend of mom runs this Palt-restaurant in the summer. She also makes clothes, and I couldn’t resist buying this knitted sweater. The place is called Sagabodens mat och MC-museum. The cook is called Birgitta.

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Erik loves fishing, and of course this was like a dream destination for him! Here together with Torbjörn (or TeeBee as we like to call him).

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The rest of us were just enjoying the night…

My dad coulda been a model for all I care! It’s not too late dad!

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Fishing line getting stuck, too funny not to post.

Destination Dikanäs! Here’s on the way over there with my mom and my sisters.

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Fika at a local spot at Dikanäs.

Visiting my grandparents, and three of moms siblings grave. Very emotional.

Tour led by mom in Dikanäs.

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Here’s her school. (In Lappland you naturally write Palt on the wall when you do graffiti).

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My grandfather was a pastor, but he also built houses. Here’s two of my moms homes that grandpa built. Grandpa helped tear down a house in the village, and built the house to the right from the remains from the house he tore down. Isn’t that amazing!

So many beautiful memories from visiting grandma at the this house. It used to be red back in the days. In the winter times we jumped from the roof down in the snow, and that little brown house in the background was our play house.

Kittelfjäll

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This is where mom and dad had their wedding party and wedding portrait.

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48 years later.

The nowadays closed Hamreby, aka Sport Albins, opened up especially for us so that we could do some nostalgia shopping. I LOVED this shop as a kid. They had EVERYTHING.

Me and my baby!

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Last night in Lappland!

The nights up north is something else! This is around 10 in the evening.

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On our way home we did some last fishing. My lil’ fisherman had such a hard time leaving this place, and I don’t blame him.

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Stoping for dinner at Höga Kusten.

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Somewhere in Norrland.

A little short video below, for those of you who can’t get enough :)

Thank you mom for initiating this wonderful trip! We will never forget it, and we wanna go back soon!

Greece Recap

Hi!

I went to Zakynthos in Greece a couple of weeks ago, and I’d love to share some thoughts and pictures with you. In case you’re thinking about going to Greece, or to Zakynthos specifically, I hope this will be helpful for you!

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On our way to Zakynthos we made a quick visit to Athens. First of all, I was so surprised by all the marble in Athens, so gorgeous!

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If you’re into history you’ll appreciate Athens. On picture number 1 you have Acropolis of Athens. On picture number 2 you have the prison of Socrates. On picture number 3 you have the location for where the Olympic Games started, and on picture number 4 you have the armor you can buy to prove that you’ve been to a tourist shop in Athens!

My only regret was that we didn’t stay over for a night. As we were walking around, I only had a little backpack with me, but it was way too hot to carry anything. I never felt more in need of a shower than when we finally got to the hotel at Zakynthos, haha!

Thank you babe for carrying my backpack as well!l

Thank you babe for carrying my backpack as well!l

As you all probably know, Greece is a super popular tourist destination. I actually didn’t mind, it was kind of a fun game to guess where people were from. When I first booked our hotel, I booked one in Zakynthos city, but then changed to another hotel outside of the city. I’m super happy about that because although Zakynthos city was a nice place, it’s very touristy and busy with, yes, tourists.

When I travel, I really don’t want to waste my time accidentally going to the “wrong” places or in this case, “wrong” beaches. I think we found some really awesome destinations. Here’s my review of some beaches we visited.

1. Kalamaki Beach

This is where we stayed at Zakynthos, and I really liked it. It’s a peaceful resort 7 km from the town of Zakynthos. It has plenty of restaurants but the night life is pretty quiet, (which is what I prefer) The beach is also a production place for the famous Caretta sea turtles. There’s turtle nests on the beach, and if you’re lucky you might see some turtles.

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2. Laganas

I liked Laganas until I didn’t like it. It’s cute to walk over the bridge to the little island . (You pay an entrance fee about 5 euros). It’s a cool beach etc , but it was super crowded. We hung out there for about an hour, and then we walked over to Agrilia beach. It was very peaceful for a few hours.

It all of a sudden it turned into a CRAZY beach party. Seriously not my cup of tea. That’s when we went back to the hotel and hung out at the wonderful pool.

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3. Vasilikos

AMZING beach! Love love loved it! If you want action, this is not for you. But if you’re like me and love a beautiful peaceful beach with a stunning view, this is definitely for you!

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Lunch with a view…

Lunch with a view…

4. Porto Limnionas

Maybe we got there on a extra busy day, we weren’t even able to get sun chairs because it was so crowded, but what a gorgeous beach. If you get there around 10am you should be fine. Awesome for snorkeling. Would not recommend this place if you have very young kids, or if you’re having trouble walking. It’s pretty steep, and it’s kind of tricky to get in the water.

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5. Porto Azzuro Vassilikos

Another really awesome beach that I highly recommend. It’s also the only beach we went to, that had a little bit of waves, which was nice when I was on my little mattress.

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Okay guys, that’s it for this time! Hope you enjoyed it. Thank you so much for reading!

Love,

Johanna

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Down South Baby…

Hello friends!

How is the summer treating you? I’m currently in the south part of Sweden, Blekinge, where my fiancé is from. Before I met my Erik I rarely spent time here. I feel like I’ve missed out. Seriously… So happy that Erik is from such a gorgeous place so I get to spend so much time here.

We took a little day trip today to Skåne, which is right by the border from where we are, to Bäckaskog Castle. I realize that I’ve been taking little day trips this summer, where it’s and a bunch of 80 year olds, but I love it.

Just look at this beautiful castle!

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Erik always walks up to all the signs to get all the facts… Apparently a Danish prince proposed to a Swedish princess under this tree!

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Skåne and Blekinge has the most gorgeous nature. I keep on telling Erik to stop the car so I can get out and pick flowers. (I sometimes keep scissors in the car).

Back in Hällevik we took the dog for a walk.

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That’s it for this time!

Love,

Johanna

My Prague Recap

Hello!

I decided a couple of years ago that I need to prioritise traveling to places I hadn't been before. So far, so good! I just had the opportunity to spend a few days in the beautiful capital of the Czech Republic, Prague, and I'm mesmerised! What a stunning city! If you live in Sweden there's really no reason why you shouldn't go there. It's not far away, the flight is cheap and the hotels are inexpensive. I was a little hesitant about going to Prague at the end of February since I thought it would be too chilly. Well, I was right about that! However the entire Europe was FREEZING! I haven't experienced cold like that in years. So, with that being said: I would recommend you going there later in the spring. 

Here's seven reasons why I think you need to visit Prague at some point in your life! 

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1. The beautiful architecture and surroundings

I feel like these pictures says it all and needs no introduction!

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These front doors had me dreaming...

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2. The historic landmarks

Here I am staring at the Charles Bridge. It was built 1357 (I just knew off the top of my head) (okay, no I didn't but I could see it was old :) It's suppose to be one of the most beautiful bridge in the world, and I agree!

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Hi guys, how you doing?

Hi guys, how you doing?

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3. The concerts and the ballets 

There's a huge amount of different concerts and ballets that you can go to when in Prague. I loved listening to Parnas Ensemble play. Who wouldn't want to hear a mix of Tchaikovsky, Vivaldi and Smetana etc on a Wednesday night? If I stayed longer I would have visited several concerts.

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4. It's priceworthy

The food is lovely, and the hotels are nice, and you pay SO LITTLE it almost feels weird when you get the check!

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5. To buy crystal and perhaps jewellery

Prague is known for their crystal and jewellery. I didn't buy any diamond rings (!!!) but I thought they were mighty pretty. A beautiful crystal carafe seems like a big enough investment to me.

As you can see on these pics my poor hands were FROZEN!!!

6. The design and decor

If you visit Deelive Design store you can buy art from new and very talented designers from the art school in Prague. 

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7. For views like this:

I could stare at this view forever! So romantic and beautiful that I'm ready to write a new song after this trip!

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Before I let you go I have to share one last picture that just had me giggle. I'm never missing an opportunity to be in a picture. Look at me peeking out there in the crowd, ha ha!

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Love,

Johanna

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