Three countries in two weeks... Part 1: Sweden!

I just got back from my last set of epic travels. First stop, Sweden! Back in the spring, a call for papers came up for a conference on the ancient family and since this is a topic I have touched on a bit in my PhD, I figured it would be worth submitting an abstract. It seemed to be organized by the Classics department in Birmingham and since I hadn't yet had the chance to visit there, I figured it might be a cool place to go. Anyway, my paper was accepted and the email concluded with "look forward to seeing you in Sweden". Sweden? I asked myself. Hmmm. I went back and looked at the conference details and sure enough, it was organized by the Classics department of Birmingham but in conjunction with the University of Gothenburg and was to be hosted in Gothenburg. And so it happened that I was able to head to Sweden, about two weeks after I had returned from South Africa.

Two of my friends from St Andrews had moved to Sweden about 5 months earlier so I decided to extend my trip a bit and visit them as well. So, off to Gothenburg for the three day conference. I arrived a day early and spent most of the day in Museums. First, the main museum which boasts the remains of a viking ship. It also explained some of the Norse traditions and I am definitely interested in doing some more reading on Norse polytheism and Viking history. I then headed off to the art museum since my ticket from the other museum got me in there as well. I have to say, I'm not really an art person, but it was quite neat to see some of the Swedish artists who are not really known outside of Sweden. I spend about an hour just wandering then headed back to the hotel. As far as the conference went, my paper seemed to go well, and I got to meet some really great people.

The day after the conference I met up with K and J for another exploration day in Gothenburg. It was then I had the truly Swedish experience. I believe that Tolkien had the Swedish in mind when he came up with the idea of hobbits. They really do eat all the time. First, there's breakfast. Then about an hour or so later, they have second breakfast. About an hour after that it's time for Fika, which consists of Tea or Coffee and Cake. Then it's lunch time! Then around 3, it's time for more Fika. Then dinner. Then about an hour or two before bed it's time for more, you guessed it, Fika. I really feel like I got to see the inside of most of Gothenburg's coffeeshops. We took a break from eating to head into the Modern art museum, which was even more confusing then the art museum. It was almost like walking into Ikea! At around 6:45 we caught a high-speed train to Skövde, and from there then headed north to J's parents' house. They live on a farm just outside of a town called Skara.

The next three days were spent relaxing, playing Wii, and making little trips around the surrounding countryside. Sweden looks a lot like Canada in places. It almost felt like I was home. Weird. One day, we went into Skara to look at the Cathedral and went to the local museum where 30 bronze shields are displayed. One day, a farmer was plowing his field and hit something. He looked down and called the local authorities. They brought in some archaeologists and uncovered 30 shields and some other artifacts, most likely some kind of ritual deposit. So cool! The rest of my trip was quite relaxed and it was really nice to visit with K and J and just shut my brain off. When it was time to leave, they put me back on the train and I headed back to Gothenburg. Next stop.... Germania!