all my single ladies

friday

sisters are the best

click here

road trippin

road trip road trip road trip!

On Friday when I landed at Arlanda from Copenhagen I got a text from Brooke ( a friend of Lucy and mine who is from ontario and used to ski race with us) saying "I rented a car I think we should leave tonight because I have to be back by Sunday night!"

So i raced home (after sitting on the Arlanda express for quite some time as there was an accident on the tracks and no trains were moving) jumped in the shower, put some clean undies in my backpack , and Brooke picked me up outside my building!

At 10:46 we were cruising down the highway to goteborg under the midnight sun..
Or so we thought we were going to Goteborg... after about an hour and a half of "wow! not many people going to goteborg this weekend!" and "o hey uppsala!" .. we realized uppsala was north of stockholm.. and goteborg was south.. and the E4 N highway was a bit different then the E4 S highway that we actaully wanted!
So add about 3 hours to our drive and a hilarious venture into northern Sweden.  We laughed it off.

we forced ourselves to get at least an hour out the other end of stockholm so our friday night start to this road trip wouldn't be completely pointless, and then called it a night in the back of our tiny car in a cute little lakeside town called Mariefred.

our pimp ride. not a comfortable night. 

after about 2 hours of sleep (due to the good ol midnight sun and one reaallly squishy sleeping arrangement) we hit the road to goteborg, egg mcmuffins and coffees in hand. 

Goteborg was really beautiful, and although we were beyond exhausted, i still found this funny.

this is brooke

we then ventured into the most westerly point of the city called Saltholmen.  It was full of beautiful houses on these little islands all connected by bridges. We sat on the rocks and enjoyed the view and got a little bit zen. 

a really sad downward dog. note to self: get yoga pass upon return to canada. 

that night we went out for a great dinner and a few glasses of wine to guarantee an easier sleep that night. we then got cozy in our little car and slept in a parking lot.. in a city park. HA

had a better sleep that night, and started the day with a great coffee. It is officially official, a great coffee means a great day. 

doesn't get any more swedish then this!! (note unintentional H&M in background)

We decided to kill part of the drive in the morning and drove to a cute town on a lake called Mariestad (marie must be verryyy popular)

a picnic and a tan on a dock made a pretty perfect day. 

This road trip made so many amazing memories and I am so glad we did it (no matter how many strange situations we got ourselves into) and feel much more satisfied with leaving this country on Saturday now that I have seen more of it.   Brooke left Sweden today for the south of France before she heads back to ontario so I'm glad we got to chill together before we both go back to real life. 

Today is winding down and tomorrow will consist of a run (i must!) and a hefty amount of room cleaning. ANGELA arrives at noon on Wednesday and i am SO excited! Many crazy European adventures to come!!

Can't wait to see everyone back home!! I probably won't get another blog in as Rome and Greece are going to be packed with craziness and time on the www will be limited. See you all on June 25th (mom see you at the Edmonton airport? ... weird)

Bisous. 

J

hey time, slow down!!

whoa whoa whoa! It is the Monday of my last week in Sweden and I am wondering where the time has gone!?  I have had so many great experiences since arriving here in January when the sun literally didn't shine, to now when the phrase "midnight sun" could not be anymore accurate. Seriously, the sun NEVER goes completely down.


The past week has just flown by as I had an amazing trip to Copenhagen with Cara and then literally got off the plane and into a car that Brooke rented to spend the weekend on a road trip to Gothenburg  (in Swedish: Goteborg, pronounced: Got a buryyy... or something)  in south west Sweden.

So... here's some photos and stories from the beautiful, and full of overpriced hostels, city of Copenhagen (in danish.. Kobenhavn?) Denmark.

The weather was AMAZING which made the city even more stunning.  This is Cara and I over one of the canals that runs throughout the city...

I love europe!

This is the entrance to the hippy village of Christiana, where fat doobies are smoked all day long mon! After this photo some huge scary rastah mon told cara her camera would be destroyed if she took more photos... so we stopped, then noticed all the "no pictures" signs. 

climbing a very narrow old church with an amazing view from the top..

the top

we were walking to see the "little mermaid" a famous statue in the water in the city, and cara said "I feel like this is going to be really anti-climactic once we get there."  Indeed it was. This screen was in the water to show a "virtual mermaid" with a sign next to it saying "The little mermaid is in Shanghai for the World Expo".... cool. 

sun=smiles, and sunburn

finishing the trip off with a canal tour

So this was Denmark! So glad we were able to squish the trip in last minute, now I have officially done all of Scandinavia!

Next Post: ROAD TRIP!

xoxo J

easto heads south

easto just left this morning back to roma and we had a splendidly fabulous time! (especially that last night eh easto.. hahaha i hope you made it to the bus/plane)  
i have ONE more class on thursday evening and all of my assignments are handed in. finito folks!
now that emily's left and school is over it's really hitting me that my time here is coming to an end.  even lucy has left for berlin! its been amazing, but i really am getting excited for my departure from here. and to see ANGELA!
cara and i are going to plan a trip to copenhagen for next week to have one last trip together which will be awesome!!

......
................
..okay you probably guessed it, i'm really hungover and can't come up with anything creative to write.

hej da

May 12th

It's ALREADY May 12th!?!
Mom and Dad left Stockholm today (luckily dodging the wrath of volcano   ejgjghalsdjfhasdkjfhasusjdfasjdflasjfasfh) and i leave Stockholm a month today!!!!
As much as I will miss this place, I am super excited for what comes after it, being rome, greece, and home!
I had an awesome time with Ma and Pa.  Eating at amazing restaurants, Travelling through Norway, showing them around Stockholm, and sending home a ton of winter luggage.

Here are some photos from our excursions:

sun spot hang

pretty oslo

coffee shop chic

awesome naked grumpy baby in oslo

being barfed up by a troll in bergen

        

THE SKI SIMULATOR

funniest ride in the WORLD (in norway?) it takes you down the kitzbuhel downhill. I've never felt so ill after a ski race.

Part of our fjord adventure to bergen! train, train, boat, bus, train

2 more projects to go and I am done my third year of uni!  (this term was reaaallllyy hard right?) Emily Easto is gracing me with her awesomeness next wednesday for some silly jill and easto fun. Then Ange is out, then i'm ouuuuttt!!!

Going to continue reading La Prisonairre (spell that?) now. Its good!

xoxox

Yill Erin Mingay Young

and this guy is awesome!

http://www.myspace.com/deertick

McGenius

I've been giving McDonalds a bit too much business these days. (and that stops NOW). but I thought this was funny in a gross.. not that funny sort of way. I'm lovin it!

ASIA

Across Asia, you can pick up a McHotdog Mega Breakfast Sausage.

Sausage and Egg Twisty Pasta, a breakfast item. Sausage, eggs, and pasta in chicken broth and “other greens.”

Bacon potato pie. It’s like an apple pie, but with mashed potatoes and bacon.

Cheese Katsu sandwich, a fried pork sandwich stuffed with cheese.

Double Beef Prosperity Burger from Malaysia. 2 beef patties (or chicken patties) dipped in aromatic black pepper sauce and layered with fresh onion slices in a sesame seed bun.

The Ebi Filet-o, a fried shrimp sandwich. In Hong Kong, it’s known as the Shrimp Burger

Shake Shake fries. You dump your fries into a bag, sprinkle  seasoning on them, and shake. There are several different flavors including seaweed, chargrill, French onion and salt and pepper.

McWings – deep fried chicken wings.

Fresh corn cup, a nice alternative to fries.

Banana pie.

The Shogun burger, served in Hong Kong. It’s a pork patty with Teriyaki sauce and cabbage.

Bubur Ayam, which literally translates to “chicken porridge”. Chicken strips in porridge, with onions, ginger, and chili peppers.

McSpaghetti. Spaghetti noodles served in sweet tomato-based sauce.

McRice burger. A ground beef burger, or chicken fillet, served with special sauce in fried rice cakes.

MIDDLE EAST

The McArabia is made with grilled chicken or grilled kofta (beef with spices). Comes with lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and garlic mayonnaise, wrapped in an Arabic style pita bread.

The Chicken Big Mac. Two breaded chicken patties (de-boned breast meat), lettuce, sesame seed bun, McDeluxe sauce, and cheese.

The Recette Moutarde (mustard burger on ciabatta bread). Introduced in Morocco in 2006.

The Veg McPuff Pizza. Rectangular dough, filled with tomato sauce and vegetables.

The Paneer Salsa Wrap. Cottage cheese, drenched in cajun seasoning and then wrapped in flatbread and fried.

The Chicken McCurry Pan. It starts off with a rectangle dish made out of dough and is topped with a tomato-curry sauce, spiced with thyme, basil, and oregano, chicken, bell peppers, and cheese.

EUROPE

In Italy, not surprisingly, they serve their burgers with pancetta and usually are on ciabatta rolls.

CBO: Chicken, bacon, and onions

Croque McDo. 2 melted slices of Emmental cheese and a slice of ham toasted between 2 flattened hamburger buns.

BEER! Offered in Germany, France, and a few other locations across Europe.

Onion rings, sold in Turkey and a few other countries in Europe.

The Lakse wrap (fish) is sold in Finland and Norway.

The McTurco, sold in Turkey, is 2 burger patties covered in cayenne pepper sauce, and vegetables, and served on a fried pita.

The Little Chorizo Melt, offered in England: a 100% beef patty in a herb watersplit bun dressed with chorizo, a cheese slice made with Emmental, shredded lettuce and rich tomato sauce.

The BACON ROLL, also from England, is just slices of bacon on a hard roll with ketchup.

NORTH AMERICA/SOUTH AMERICA/OCEANIA

Traditional grilled cheese sandwich, served in Canada.

My Poutine, also from Canada. Consists of french fries topped with cheese curds and gravy.

McDonalds Pizza. Started off as a family sized pizza, but turned into an individual-sized pan pizza.

You can order gallo pinto (rice and beans) at the McDonalds in Costa Rica.

The Kiwiburger, sold in New Zealand. It’s a beef patty, with an egg, tomato, lettuce, cheese, onion, cooked beetroot, sauce and mustard on a bun.

Big Mac not big enough? Try the new TRIPLE MAC in Argentina.

McMolletes, served in Mexico, are refried beans, cheese, and pico de gallo served on an English muffin.

McPatatas, also from Mexico. Thick cut cajun steak fries.

The McDonalds deluxe breakfast in Hawaii comes with spam, rice, eggs, and sausage patties.

The McLobster roll is served seasonally in Canada.