Killed with kindness

I am sitting sipping a Rose with ice, nibbling on some crusty bread and foie gras, listening to the sounds of Paris and it is one of those moments I need to pinch myself to really comprehend where I am. Countless times I find myself taking my adventure for granted, so it is times like this, where everything is seemingly normal, that I often stop and have a moment, wow, I am in....(fill in the blank) It is so easy when “normal” does not exist like it used to, to get caught up and not appreciate the truly wonderful moments that I have each day. How cool, I am in Paris. I have had a busy month in Europe, whilst it has been very different from my India/Nepal adventures (see my last post “Alice in Wonderland”), it has been filled with many amazing moments and even more amazing people.

As I write to you now, this is my view :)

When I decided to come to Europe, it was purely to see friends. I was not really motivated by traveling in Europe and visiting places, more so visiting people that are special to me and that I had not seen in awhile. A mixture of IKEA colleagues and girls I had got to know through my yoga training are dotted around Europe, so I planned a rough agenda based on where they were located. My first stop after London was Poland where I had 2 weeks with the beautiful Ulla –  at the end of my time there Ulla said to me “I can’t believe you are going, there are still so many things for us to do!” and she was so right. Maybe it wasn’t the things we did, but the conversations, the time we spent discussing life and yoga and life....and yoga....that 2 weeks disappeared. From the town of Poznan in Poland we managed to occupy the days with yoga classes, a kayaking and camping trip (cut short by the weather) and some lovely time with Ulla’s mum and sister. Even with a language barrier, it reminded me of hanging out with my mum and sister – girls are the same everywhere.

Ulla and I on our kayaking/camping adventure

From Poland I then made my way to sunny Sweden. Having worked for IKEA for so long, and having had the pleasure of visiting in the cooler months, I was looking forward to experiencing a true Swedish summer and the main festival for the year “Midsummer”. I was lucky enough to be invited to the archipelago out of Stockholm to join a midsummer and birthday celebration. The crisp blue of the water, the countless Swedish flags and the typical red houses did not disappoint. As we ate herring, drank schnapps and sang Swedish folk songs, I realised why the Swedes celebrate this time of year. The light is truly magical, I have no other words. Whilst the sun rising at 3.30am and setting at close to midnight takes a bit of getting used to, the light is something that adds a magical feeling to an already pretty beautiful place. The hospitality of my hosts Britt and Dag was incredibly kind and I felt very lucky to join in on Dag’s 70^th birthday celebrations. From Stockholm I headed south to Gothenberg where I met up with a yoga friend Tara – her partner Toby is Swedish and they are spending summer in Sweden with their gorgeous little boy Phoenix. Again, incredible hospitality, company and times in another summer house by the sea before I headed south to Helsingborg.

Amazing people and always amazing food - fresh strawberry ice cream in Gothenberg

It was in Helsingborg I caught up with my IKEA colleagues, which was so much fun. In ways it felt like I had never left, even visiting the IKEA main office.  I still am an “IKEA person” at heart and have met some amazing people through the company. Not just colleagues, but true and very dear friends. It was wonderful to experience “Life at Home” in Sweden as they all welcomed me into their lives for a day or even more. I was beginning to feel overwhelmed with people’s kindness and generosity.  My last few days were spent with Johan and Marie, where I really felt part of the family. We celebrated their sons 20^th birthday, walked the foreshore, had a lovely dinner with like minded people and managed to have some amazing conversations about the world, life after IKEA and following your dreams (I feel like a bit of case in point in this situation)  It was with some sadness that I said my farewells with promises of returning as it really was so wonderful. And now I find myself in Paris, where my lovely friend Lucie is loaning me her apartment. 

Johan and Marie

I have learnt, you don’t need to travel to the East to see beauty in people, it is everywhere. You just have to look at those around you, I have been blessed to be surrounded by kind, warm and incredibly giving people. I only hope I can return the favour one day. Val has offered a room in Horsham should any of you want to visit in the near future, I can’t guarantee the shore line of Sweden or the views of Paris, but I can assure you the hospitality will be as warm and the food pretty good too.