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| Les, Susanne, AnnBritt Top L-R, Kalen, Gabrielle, Freja, Bottom L-R |
Sunday July 20 was about as perfect as a day can be. At 8:15 am, we reunited with our Lions
Club Exchange student of 1994. Twenty years later, Susanne is married to Leslie, a Canadian now living in Sweden, and mother of 3 beautiful children Gabrielle 10, Kalen 8, and Freja 3. Still beautiful and looking no older than the day we last saw her on our last visit in 1997, Susanne and her family met us in front of the Grand Hotel in Stockholm. After many hugs, handshakes, and introductions to her family, we gleefully boarded a ferry to Blido Island.3 hours north of the city.
Susanne, had planned a day on the Swedish Archipelago, where we sailed up to Blido, and were treated to a splendid steak bar-b-que by Susanne's Mom AnnBritt who was renting a summer cottage on Blido. On our way up to Blido, we presented some little gifts for the children, 2 sets of Russian nesting dolls for the girls, and a deck of St. Petersburg playing cards for Kalen. Little did we know, Kalen and his big sister Gabrielle were card sharks. In no time they beat me in crazy eights and whist. I taught them how to play hearts, and during her third hand, Gabrielle successfully Shot For The Moon.
Susanne and her family are sailors and had just spent two weeks sailing the archipelago in her father' 34 foot sailboat. The kids had rally honed their swimming, sailing, and card playing skills. Glad we weren't playing strip poker! The girls loved their little dolls too. By the time we arrived at Blido we were fast friends.
The children went swimming, we had a wonderful visit, and delicious lunch. All too soon it was time to catch the steamboat at the dock just below the cottage and return to Stockholm Susanne and Les left the children to spend the night with MorMor and they returned to Stockholm with us. They would return to their home about an hour's drive out of Stockholm, spend the night, and return the following morning with tent and luggage to spend a week with MorMor and kids.
As we sailed back through the pine studded granite islands in the late afternoon sun, we enjoyed beautiful scenery, good wine, and great conversation and catching up. When we arrived in Stockholm, we drove to the area within two blocks of where Russ and I were staying for dinner at an Italian restaurant. Here we had made arrangements to meet up with another friend from America.
Meredith is a friend of our daughter-in-law and son, and we had first met Meredith in Italy at our Garyn and Jess's Tuscany wedding. Meredith had the opportunity to relocate to Sweden with her job so she took it, and has been in Stockholm for about 4 months. We were happy to see her and introduce her to Susanne and Les. The five of us had a nice dinner, and before we knew it, even though it was not yet dark, it was 10:00 pm, and the long mellow day came to an end.
Thank you Susanne and Les for the perfect day! We look forward to a return visit in California.
Day 40, July 21, 2014 - On to Estonia!
Today is a travel day for us. We left Stockholm about 7:30 and drove to the airport, returned our car, boarded Baltic Air to Riga, Latvia, and transferred to another Baltic Air for the last 35 minute leg to Tallin. I am finishing this blog in the air and will post when we reach our guesthouse. I expect that we will spend the rest of our day which will be late afternoon by the time we are settled, catcing up on mail, laundry, and some planning.
In the meantime, all is well with the Worrall Travel R's
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