tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-67423978995290905952009-02-21T07:13:05.704+01:0030 days, 10 cities, 5 Americans, and more Elk than we could ever ask for!Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13097082270694232650noreply@blogger.comBlogger29125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6742397899529090595.post-61944379445515139712008-10-15T14:40:00.002+02:002008-12-26T05:02:05.821+01:00

For Sailing season:Fish House Punch There's a little place just out of town,Where, if you go to lunch,They'll make you forget your mother-in-lawWith a drink called Fish-House Punch.The Cook (1885)Original Fish House Punch Recipe:A batch consists of:30 limes, cut in half and squeezed, such pulp as gets through is fine15 lemons, treat as aboveThis constitutes a "Part" for measuring the rest of the

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13097082270694232650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6742397899529090595.post-86101247549468229432008-04-30T00:45:00.001+02:002008-09-21T05:21:00.480+02:00

Group Study Exchange is designed to develop professional and leadership skills among young adults so that they can address the needs of their communities in an increasingly global workplace.This adult exchange is an educational program of The Rotary Foundation where Rotary Districts in overseas are paired to send and receive professional study groups of 4 team members and a Rotarian team leader

Sandyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10226883634777765279noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6742397899529090595.post-43428480475420086102008-04-29T05:43:00.000+02:002008-09-18T03:09:26.010+02:00

Sandyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10226883634777765279noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6742397899529090595.post-88863059030954025852008-04-28T22:19:00.000+02:002008-09-18T03:11:00.928+02:00

First Day in KirunaOur first day in Kiruna was a day of rest and boy did we rest. We started out with a morning of cross country skiing, lunch and then off sightseeing by walking around the town on our own. We visited the most beautiful church voted by the Swedes in 2001. Pictures will be coming soon.That evening our families picked us up at the hotel. Laura and Sandy our staying with Anna the

Sandyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10226883634777765279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6742397899529090595.post-73563580571430959482008-04-27T07:43:00.001+02:002008-09-18T03:12:34.068+02:00

Our second day in Kiruna was spent on a tour of the LKAB Iron mine which is the main employer in the town. LKAB is the largest tunneled iron mine in the world and is working round the clock to meet increased worldwide demand. Our tour took us deep in the mine with a guide that showed us all aspects of the operation. They have developed a new technique that processes the iron ore into a

Sandyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10226883634777765279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6742397899529090595.post-62242697181730583912008-04-26T11:00:00.000+02:002008-09-18T03:20:05.158+02:00

Hello from Gallivare,We took the train from Kiruna to Gallivare, a little over one hour´s ride. Not to be missed, the local Rotarians, led by Sven-Eric, met us carrying a large American& Swedish flags. Sven-Eric and his fellow Rotarians and have gone out of their way to make our time here well spent.Host families have been more than accommodating. All of us have private rooms and comfortable

Sandyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10226883634777765279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6742397899529090595.post-53766523532625247722008-04-26T09:59:00.000+02:002008-09-18T03:41:02.349+02:00

We have left Gallivare -- we are on the way to Jokkmokk for lunch, a tour of the Sami Museum, and then to the Arctic Circle. The snow was so deep in Gallivare that you could hardly see the houses. It has continued to snow all the way to Jokkmokk -- the driving is slow. On the way, we stopped and met Rotarians from Jokkmokk and a wonderful stop at an English woman's photo studio featuring her

Sandyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10226883634777765279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6742397899529090595.post-38862971879445342612008-04-25T21:13:00.000+02:002008-09-18T03:24:58.896+02:00

Luleå is the first large city that we are visiting (pop.: over 100,000) and it is also our first city on the coast of Sweden's Baltic. It is located on the mouth of the Lule river and is a port for raw materials for the mines to the north.Lennart, the District GSE Chair and his wife Margareta hosted all of us for a dinner party upon arrival. We were able to get together with the host families and

Sandyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10226883634777765279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6742397899529090595.post-83868940069769743522008-04-25T17:55:00.000+02:002008-09-21T05:07:55.660+02:00

Greetings from the Ice Hotel!When we arrived for a tour we were able to see how the ice blocks were made from the Torne river, how the hotel is constructed new each year from solid river ice, though it melts by the end of April. There's of a chapel where weddings are held, suites and rooms of ice with beds of ice, the Absolute Bar, a gift shop and lodge. Many of the rooms are unique with ice

Sandyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10226883634777765279noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6742397899529090595.post-45040650944209510892008-04-25T13:50:00.004+02:002008-06-10T18:45:06.486+02:00

At Luleå I was able to visit a Swedish prison. It houses 9 inmates between the ages of 18 and 23, that were sentenced to prison. Surprisingly, I was able to meet and talk with all the inmates. They wanted to know if the justice system in the US was just like 'Cops' the tv show. I assured them it was not. They were all interested in US culture and jails in the US. I was also able while in Luleå

Sandyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10226883634777765279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6742397899529090595.post-70949666252288300352008-04-24T22:17:00.000+02:002008-09-18T03:31:43.888+02:00

Today we visited the port of Luleå, had a tour and overview of the port, and boarded an ice breaker vessel that clears the harbor of ice for incoming ships. BUT that is not all that we did. The ice breaker departed with all of us on board for an ice breaking trip up the Lule River. It was amazing to see and feel the ice breaker crushing the ice but then the ship stopped in the middle of the ice.

Sandyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10226883634777765279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6742397899529090595.post-76837635242281704152008-04-24T10:28:00.000+02:002008-09-21T05:09:54.659+02:00

The team set out for its first vocational day in Gallivare bright and early on Thursday, April 3rd. I (Vanessa) visited Assurera, a small insurance brokerage company specializing in private pension placements and insurance solutions. The company is small, with a total of 4 employees, and was founded 5 years ago by Mikael Lundman. He and one his employees, Annika, spent the entire day telling

Sandyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10226883634777765279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6742397899529090595.post-57727955669498369162008-04-23T11:58:00.000+02:002008-09-18T03:26:46.169+02:00

The Swedish pension is quite complex, especially when it has to be explained in another language. My contact did a great job, though I think he was a bit nervous.The Swedish pension plan has recently been changed and so, currently there are various plans for different age groups as the government tries to phase out the old plan.The national basic pension plan for those born in 1938 or later

Sandyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10226883634777765279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6742397899529090595.post-40150713634061085202008-04-23T06:58:00.000+02:002008-09-18T03:53:47.650+02:00

Luleå has the old inner city up the river called Gammelstad (old town) that has been named a World Heritage site by Unesco. It is one of only a few remaining church towns. It was built in the 15th century with 400 small homes surrounding the church. The tiny homes, usually one room with bunks, a fireplace and table were built to be used for the family to have a place to stay when coming to church

Sandyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10226883634777765279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6742397899529090595.post-59416687115829972692008-04-22T07:51:00.000+02:002008-09-18T03:27:23.226+02:00

We have been in Northern Sweden for just over a week now and thought we would pass on some of the things we have noticed.More Swedes in this area have brown hair rather than blond.The Swedes have been fun, accomodating, and great to be with, not quiet and reserved.The Arctic is beautiful with mountains, streams, trees, quaint towns- not a barren wasteland of ice.The food is varied, delicious, and

Sandyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10226883634777765279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6742397899529090595.post-22855538348540296872008-04-19T08:42:00.003+02:002008-06-10T18:17:38.387+02:00

Umea was officially founded in 1622 by Gustavus II Aldophus, after the town was granted a it's second royal charter. In 1714, the city was burned down by Russian soldiers. Russian troops withdrew from Umea in 1809.The city burned again in 1888 by a widespread fire in which 2500 of the 3000 city inhabitants lost their homes. In order to avoid similar disasters, the city planted a great number of

Sandyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10226883634777765279noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6742397899529090595.post-89607897867606846812008-04-19T07:28:00.003+02:002008-06-10T18:20:29.801+02:00

The team was in Umeå from Saturday, April 12 through Tuesday, April 15. It was our stop before arriving in Ovik.We had free time with our hosts on Saturday evening and Sunday. Some of our activities included walking, hiking, snow-mobiling, going to the spa, or just relaxing. On Monday, we visited the Umeå Library, one of the main attractions and economic anchors of the city. At the University

Sandyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10226883634777765279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6742397899529090595.post-43729788199446694692008-04-15T20:26:00.003+02:002008-09-18T04:32:59.664+02:00

Today I joined my host Anders Iacobaeus at Sweden´s Court of Appeal where he is a judge. I met all the judges at the Court and was introduced

Sandyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10226883634777765279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6742397899529090595.post-26837453726497248852008-04-13T16:16:00.002+02:002008-04-13T16:26:28.069+02:00

I have joined my new host Maria and her family here in Umea. During our first evening together we attended the equivalent of an indoor block party. First, a small group of her friends joined us at home for wine and appetizers. Then we all rode bicycles to the party (about 15 minutes away). The name of the street is called wolf road and as such the announcer was wearing a wolf costume and his

Sandyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10226883634777765279noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6742397899529090595.post-9814401391516019382008-04-13T08:37:00.006+02:002008-09-18T04:35:12.778+02:00

While in Skellefteå, our team Rotary coordinator is Mats Svensson, a well-known artist in the region. His family founded one of the largest companies in the area, a rubber and polymer plant that produced seals and linings for mine equipment. Years later sold, and now a public company, it is a worldwide manufacturer of custom rubber products for wide ranging applications. The team had a tour of

Sandyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10226883634777765279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6742397899529090595.post-58095022163437700992008-04-13T07:39:00.003+02:002008-06-10T18:25:47.879+02:00

Bread in Sweden varies from region to region, many towns having their own speciality. Near Kiruna they use a wood-fired community stone oven that could be rented for the day. Old recipes and for making the bread are shared in these community ovens, often located in an old cluster of original buildings . In Skellefteå we had another unique oportunity to visit a commerical bread factory for a tour

Sandyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10226883634777765279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6742397899529090595.post-70916204103424482512008-04-12T08:31:00.000+02:002008-09-18T03:30:36.197+02:00

Posted by Sandy:While in Umeå, I had the pleasure of getting to know the Lindgrens, my host family. Stig-Ake, the head of the family, is a Luthern pastor, businessman, pilot, and Nobel Peace Prize winner. It is hard to imagine one person with all of these attributes but he has managed to fit amazing things into his life. Stig-Ake was part of a UN Task force in Lebanon that was awared the Nobel

Sandyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10226883634777765279noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6742397899529090595.post-5906716443443739512008-04-11T23:01:00.000+02:002008-09-18T03:37:38.565+02:00

Our second day in Ovik was spent on our various vocational visits. Enjoy the attached photos.

Sandyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10226883634777765279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6742397899529090595.post-44489244703891104612008-04-11T19:16:00.000+02:002008-09-18T03:31:07.955+02:00

I have had some wonderful and varied experiences in private veterinary hospitals, at distrikt (governmental) hospitals, and on farm calls. In the small animal hospitals, I learned that the practice of veterinary medicine is virtually the same as in the states. The major differences include the widespread use of pet insurance in Sweden and surgical practices regarding spaying and neutering cats

Sandyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10226883634777765279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6742397899529090595.post-56669705679679892792008-04-09T23:22:00.000+02:002008-09-18T03:35:59.489+02:00

Today, the team arrived by car in Övik, a coastal town further south along the Bay of Bothinia. We were met by Jan, a Rotarian and the GSE chair for this community. We were immediately treated to Fika (coffee break), a walk and views of galleries and the town. After this tour and wonderful explanation of the sights and economy for Övik, we made further plans to relax and use our available free

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13097082270694232650noreply@blogger.com0