Lifecruiser

The crayfish season begins now in august and is a big tradition over here.

The tradition started already in the Medevial days, when the monks fasted, they consumed large amounts of crayfish. Because the crayfish were counted as fish, the monks could eat crayfish without feeling guilt when they were not allowed to eat meat. After a while even the Royal courts and nobility realized that the crayfishes were delicious. The fashion to eat the red claw-provided animals spread even to Sweden.

From the beginning they ate the crayfishes warm or used in different stews, it wasn’t until the end of 19th century (1800-talet in Swedish) they begin to let the crayfishes cool off and decorated them with twigs of crowned dill. The meat is found in the claws and in the tail of the animal.

During 1930 the word crayfish party showed up in the press for the first time. The word originates from the middle-class crayfish supper they had on porches and in blooming bowers to bid farewell to the summer. When the time passed it became more and more popular to arrange crayfish party’s.

To not exterminate the Swedish river crayfish, they decided that there will be a première date, which is the 8th of august. But they took it away in 1993 and now we can have a crayfish party when ever we want to (wohoooo :-), though many people still wait until today.

The access of Swedish crayfishes is limited, so they are very expensive, which is the reason for why we import crayfishes - still cooked according to Swedish recipes - from other countries as Turkey, China and USA.

There is still held these very special party’s, with special decorations, where people wear funny hats and seems to have eating habits as savages *lol*.

I, myself, am no big crayfish fan, so maybe that’s why I can see it with a little bit different point of view… But I still like to go on a crayfish party - hey, it’s a party! *lol* We’ll see if it comes any invitations this year, my brother-in-law has been talking about it.

I often wondered how forreigners experience this behaviour if they get the chance to see it. People are eating them with their hands, loudly slurping and sucking out the fluid out of the cooked crayfishs, singing very loud snaps (very strong alcohol) songs.

Usually many people are having a very bad hang-over nauseous the day after….

NOTE: They often blame it on the mixture of the crayfish and the alcohol, but I do believe that it’s most of the time is the alcohol that does it. People tend to forget how many and how fast they’re drinking these snaps! *lol*

Did I ever tell you about our PARADISE ISLAND?

Yes, I did, but I’ll keep repeating it: Fårö, the small island above Gotland outside Swedens east coast, where we recently spent 4 weeks. As we do every year. Now we have to live on the memories for a while when we look at our photos (link in the end of the post).

If we don’t get tempted to run away there again…. *lol*

The island is separated from the island Gotland by the Fårö-strait, but connected by cable ferries, operated by the Swedish National Road Administration. It has an area of 111,35 square kilometers, whereof 9,7 area water areas – bogs – or islets.

It takes us about 6 hours to get from our home in Stockholm to our place we rent at Fårö. First by car to the ferry to Gotland, then driving up to the north-east of Gotland where we take the ferry to Fårö and then by car again. It’s a beautiful trip though, so we don’t mind.

The place we rent is on the property of a local, retired and truly wonderful farmer, which is the best way to really get to know the place - to live among the locals. There is only one (small!) bedroom and a small kitchen, no indoors water or bathroom, we have to share that with the other guests on the farm. Which is fine, that’s all we need in the summertime. We’re out most of the time.

If you’re one of our regular readers, you know by now that we sleep in a 90 cm (about 35 inches) bed at home, but incredible enough, when we’re on Fårö, we sleep in a 80 cm (about 30 inches) bed!!! Don’t ask me how we do it, but we sleep well. There is two 80 cm beds, so we don’t have to, but we like to be close. I guessed it’s called real love :-)

Though there are situations (no, I’m not going to tell you which situations ;-) who can be a little bit tricky and may end up in totally hysterical giggle attacks and even with some kind of injury when falling off the bed. [insert your own imagination here]

The renowned Swedish film-maker Ingmar Bergman lives on Fårö, he has an own part of the island which he keep very private. He has also bought a couple of farm propertys there for his children. The island provided settings for his Fårö-trilogy of Hour of the Wolf, The Passion of Anna and Skammen. Andrey Tarkovsky’s The Sacrifice was also filmed on Fårö.

There are and have been many Swedish politicians on the island too. To mention some of them: the former Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme, who was assassinated 1986 in Stockholm, his family still show up sometimes here. Even the current Minister for Justice Thomas Bodström, which we recently saw having fun singing Karaoke at the beach restaurant.

Well, let’s just say that it’s a lot of celebrities of all kind coming there too, I’m not going to mention them all here.

So, I guess we’re not alone thinking that Fårö is an paradise island….

On the islands north-eastern point the Fårö fyr lighthouse is situated. It is 30 meters high and was constructed in 1846-47, one of Gotlands oldest lighthouses. Why is there something so special about lighthouses? Most people seems to like them very much and so do we!

The Langhammar peninsula and the Langhammar nature reserve on north-western Fårö feature rocky beaches with rauks (sea stacks), many meter high rocks sculpted by nature. The Digerhuvud nature reserve features sea stacks and the Helgumannen fishing village. It’s an absolutely MUST to visit every year, to see at least one sunset there.

The long Sudersand beach on north-eastern Fårö is among the best beaches I’ve ever seen. The sand is almost like flour and soooo smoth. Even the beach at Norsta Aura is really good, our engagement beach. Very romantic. *smiling silly*

This island is quite unique, it differs even from the island next to it, Gotland, which most people find very beautiful - Fårö is even more special than that. It’s very difficult though to describe it in a way that can do it justice.

Except from all the sand & beaches, there is a lot of sheep-grazing areas with Juniper bushes, sheep huts, orchids, fields with Poppy (Papaver), low pines tortured by the rough sea winds during the winter time and wonderful old houses with sedge roof’s (with Gotlandic Rye) and an absolutely paradise for birdwatchers, especially in the spring or beginning of the summer.

I could go on and on and on, because there are so much to see at Fårö, even though it’s a small island. No wonder that people like us tend to come back there every year!

Read more in Lifecruisers earlier post about Fårö.

Our photos will remind us about what we saw this summer: very fun and special old shoe art, old cars, a country auction, stunning sunsets, lots and lots of beautiful butterflies, spiders, and birds.

Lifecruisers photos from Fårö Summer 2006

Or from earlier year:
Lifecruisers Fårö summer 2005
Lifecruisers Fårö summer 2004

Sources:
Wikipedia about Fårö
gotland.net/faro

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It’s a wonderful sunny Sunday and we’re going to the beach. Which beach? Well, let’s see how far we care to drive….

There are a lot of beaches in the Stockholm area you now. Not only at the Baltic Sea, but also around the lake Mälaren. So we’re spoiled ;-)

What do you think, aren’t I just stunning in my bikini? Maybe I could hold a place as a beach babe in Baywatch…?

UPDATE: Oh, I was HOT on the beach! *lol* So hot that I had a whole gang admirers around me all the time. They really bothered me! They were every where, touching my naked body, whispering in my ear, showing their sting thing…. I’m talking about the WHASP’S. Oh, my god, so annoying they were - I managed not to be stung by any one, but there were 2 children that got stung!

1. I laughed when my best teenage friend were slipping outside in the winter - and she was already handicapped by a wounded foot and were using crutches… She was so afraid of falling so she were holding back so strong that she fell in slow motion right on her butt with her feet in the air and it just looked so dreadful.

2. I was laughing hysterical sometimes during lessons in school when it was NOTHING to laugh about and I was the only one laughing. The others just looked at me as I were totally crazy (which I am) and waited until I stopped.

3. I laughed hysterical once when my best friend and I went to a guided tour in the small castle from 17th century in my growing up neighborhood and there was this absolutely insane pianist hammering totally crazy on the piano. My best youth friend has the most infectious laugh, so it was impossible to stop when listening to her laughs. The other grown ups didn’t appreciate our laughs, so at last they throwed us out…

4. I laughed when my best friend (the same one as above) where thrown off a pony once, not because she was thrown off, but because of the fact that she was still in the saddle but the saddle was on the ground!!! She hadn’t made sure that it was fastened alright before riding out. Oh, boy the look of her face sitting there *laughing right now*

5. I laughed (instead of crying) once when playing badminton with the wrong shoes on my feet - on slippery wet grass - and I slipped and went on my butt several meter, but not only that, I was hitting myself with the racket in the head at the same time and real hard! I’m just glad that no one caught that on video…

6. I laughed together with my sisters when we were at the funeral agency discussing my fathers burial. The woman serving us was weird, wearing those big orange glasses and talking very strange. Then she very dramatically unveiled the small miniature coffins behind the curtains and we were so surprised that we started to laugh despite the sad reason for being there. It was her behaviour that did it, she was so unbelievable weird.

7. I just couldn’t stop laughing when I ordered a Pripps Blå (beer) by mistake instead of Vicks Blå (mint tablets) in the store early a monday morning when I was very very tired. No one else in the line thought it was funny, neither did the cashier and that just made it even more fun of course!

8. I kind of laughed with big hold back when I was newly operated for appendicitis and wanted to show Mr Lifecruiser the very sexy underwear they had put on me. I just lifted the dress a bit to show them when I remembered that I couldn’t laugh, but it was too late and how do you laugh but not move your belly at all? Ouch. That was the most silliest laugh I ever have had in my whole life! Almost made me laugh at my own laugh.

9. I couldn’t help laughing when I was visiting my Mom at the hospital once and there was this old lady sitting in a sofa next to another old lady when she suddenly needed to go to the bathroom and just when she passed the other ladys face with her butt she farted heavily and it was a extremely long serenade too… The longest I ever heard in my whole life. Even my mother started laughing. We pretended that we said something funny, but I suspect the lady knew anyway.

10. I laugh hysterically loud at absolutely nothing together with Mr Lifecruiser, preferably in the middle of the nights when we should be sleeping and we’re disturbing the neighbours with our loud practically screaming laughs. Any one heard of complaints of neighbors laughing…?

11. I had severe problems not laughing during our marriage ceremony, nearly made it until I couldn’t put the ring on Mr Lifecruisers finger. Then I had a total laugh break down and bearly could beg for help. Pheew.

12. Every time I know I can’t laugh, I laugh my head off… I’m hopeless.

13. ♥ I LAUGH, ENJOY… LOVE… TO LAUGH!

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We’re home again after 4 wonderful sunny weeks at our favourite place on earth, the island Fårö. It was so wonderful that we didn’t feel like checking our mail or blog - or take so many photos (we’ll upload them later) - and that say it all, doesn’t it?!

It was almost too hot, really good summer weather (yes, we’re tanned now!), we we’re glad that we were at the the sea with the seabreeze cooling us off. This is one of the places where my bad weather curse doesn’t seem to hit me… Wooohoooo!

This was real relaxation, except from some of the late evenings out… There is several places to go in the evenings, often some special arrangements on special weekdays. As Karaoke on Tuesdays and Fridays at the restaurant at the most popular beach Sudersand or bar evenings in the old barn with a DJ so you can dance at Lauters nearby the rauk (sea-stack) area. Or Kutens bensin with old rock bands which we’ve been writing about earlier.

Not to mention having a BBQ or just sit and chat all night with all the friends which also stays around this farm we are staying at - sometimes we can be quite a lot of people - the same friends are coming back year after year. The more the merrier! One evening - or I may say morning - we went to bed at 5.30. It was so nice outside that no one wanted to go in!

We’ve been thinking of how it would be to live there during the whole summer, let’s say May to September. Or maybe even move to the island Gotland all year around - then we’re real close to Fårö and can go there when ever we want. Gotland is a little bigger island than Fårö and have more “facilities”. The town Visby is a real party town during the summer, so we may escape the “most lively” period to Fårö in that case. *daydreaming*

I went to Visby one day to enjoy myself (shopping, eating and drinking) when Mr Lifecruiser went to Slite Golf club to play in the Golf event Fårö Masters - a competition he started for 15 years ago. And yes you can congratulate him - he won his own trophy this year plus the long drive competition too - despite the fact that this was the first time this year that he went out on the golf course! The man is still still going strong with other words! Wooohooo!

The great town wall of 3 400 meters is still standing in Visby, as well as about 200 buildings, monasteries, church ruins and a cathedral from Visby’s grandest period. Visby is placed on Unesco’s prestige-filled World Heritage List.

You never get tired of the scenery at Fårö, it’s very special - as you can see at the top pics on this blog. Every sunset is unique from the other, so beautiful, romantic and giving you such happy feelings. On top of that the sea and the sound of the waves gives you the ultimate inner peace. Ahhh….

This year was the year of butterflies, insects, spiders and bugs for some reason, must be the warmth and dry weather - it didn’t rain there for over 2 months which is very unusual, so the farmers is not that happy. It reduces the harvest and they will be short on food for the animals during the winter.

It’s always so difficult to leave the island with the extra ordinary nature and atmosphere among the people there. As a matter of the fact, Mr Lifecruisers daughter who had planned to stay for maybe 3 weeks and then come back in August again, decided to stay so she’s still there. It’s that hard to leave.

But no matter how fun it is to be away, it’s always soooo nice to sleep in your own bed again and have all your own things around you. Your own kitchen and bathroom, what a luxury.

We have a lot of things to take care of now, not only 4 weeks laundry ;-)

I’ll try to catch up with you all as soon as possible.

Maybe I’ll need 4 weeks to do that…?