the dream of sweden

*a campfire by the lake, where the golden sunshine lasts forever*

frank and i love to dream. dreams make us laugh, wish, dance, cry and celebrate. and when dreams come true after a long wait, it feels exactly like diving into the dream itself. feeling emotions, seeing natural wonders and hearing sounds you hardly knew existed.

let us tell you about our trip to sweden. a trip that which means escaping the eternal rain in switzerland and the mediterranean, and reconnecting with our dreams.

“come on, let’s go to sweden! it’s gonna be sunny there in the next few days!” i said, remembering the time of one of my most beautiful trips to stockholm in sweden with my mom a few years ago. i saw the fire in frank’s eyes right away. excited by the warmth and promise of a blue sky he added: “and… let’s rent a little cottage by a lake in the middle of nowhere and just… be!”. we hugged.

*frank sneaked out to capture the golden moment we were approaching sweden on the ferry!*

and here we stand, in a parking lot in grenaa at 1 am waiting to take us to the shore of halmstad, sweden, 5 hours and 60 bucks away. in franks old volkswagen, we crossed frank’s home, frankfurt, hamburg, and aarhus in the past three days and slept at different park4night places. they’ve been wonderful, so i’ll link them below.

exhausted, we fell onto the benches left and right of a picnic table on the ferry surrounded by truckers at work who do it the millionth time. cuddling into the sleeping bag, it didn’t take us longer than 10 minutes until we both had fallen asleep. it was the cheapest way to get into sweden. if there was one thing we have mastered in our lives is that we can sleep pretty much wherever!

day 1: hello sweden

right before our ferry, we booked our little lakeside cottage in sweden. we started out in a small fishing village called smögen, where frank almost bought a wooden mallard and drove all the way up to sweden’s lake province, dalsland, where our little cottage waited for us.

our hosts kristoffer and johanna, greeted us with open arms and radiant smiles. with plenty of time, kristoffer showed us all the love and heart they have poured into creating the experience over the past few years.

the lovely lake accesses, the sauna right by the lake, their little boathouse, the spacious concert barn for bluegrass and folk, the small hawaiian-style bar, countless cute hammocks, picnic spots, and benches to feel comfortable, and last but not least our new home.

from the first minute, it took us far away from the busy, from the stress of everyday life. we hopped around like little children, played music on kristoffer’s record player, sang and danced to it, cooked delicious pasta on the wood stove (yes, things always taste better on a wood stove), showered outside in the woods and played music late late into the night. life up here is still perfect, flawless, infinite.

acoustic interlude: a swedish granola girl summer

may we interrupt you for a sec with our heartfelt playlist we have carefully curated? it peacefully and profoundly resembles our feeling of the perfect swedish summer and has some of kristoffers tunes from the stack of records. dive right in!

*granola for the granola couple to get the next day started: oatly, fresh strawberries, a cup of coffee, sparkling apple, cantuccini and cookies!*

day 2: a perfect day

the next morning, i was awakened by the tickling sunrays that peeked through our window. frank was already preparing a delicious breakfast, and me, i just felt happier than i have ever been. on my way to our composting toilet across the garden, i watched as kristoffer played his banjo by the shore. spontaneously, we sat down next to him with our guitar and ukulele, and the three of us played together. kristoffer taught us the song “jamboree“, and we learned one of his self-written songs about asheville, the happiest and most wholesome song ever! frank and i shared our favorite granola tunes by caamp with him.

*happy us after the little music session*

we laughed, talked, played and sang. and life seemed to stand still. i was exactly where i wanted to be, i wouldn’t mind if the moment could have lasted forever.

after some plant-based köttbullar inspired by a seaside reastaurant we rented a canoe to explore the deserted bays and islands on the lake we had all to ourselves. it was frank’s first time paddling a canoe across the serene waters of västra silen.

when was the last time you did something for the first time? for an eternal moment, it was just frank, me, the canoe and the natural beauty of sweden. we glided over the water, observed ducks and geese, fish and frogs, listened to the wind and the water gently rippling in the breeze and discovered sweet picnic spots in the wilderness. leave me alone! oops, we got too close to a breeding goose.

we danced across that island with the soft moss, passing by dry, the infinitely beautiful scent of the pine trees and felt transported back to a time when we were still children: carefree, light, joyful in the simplicity of life.

together, we sprinted across the lush green summer grass. we picked up corn and got charcoal for the grill, which we took to the lakeside dock. after a refreshing plunge to the water, we enjoyed a cozy evening. i relaxed on the hammock while frank serenaded us with acoustic tunes as we savored our delicious dinner.

the sun was already close to the horizon casting the most lively and vibrant tones as we set out on the canoe again. the darker the sky became, the more intense the colors grew. once again, frank took out the guitar, and together we practiced a hauntingly beautiful song, “flume“ by bon iver for the very first time after we've discovered it on one of kristoffer’s records. it will forever describe sweden for us - the time when we became children again, felt alive and could have stayed forever.

we tried to capture the moment. but my camera was subpar, and frank’s, just like on our usa west coast road trip was struggling with storage. we attempted to record it countless times - me cautiously crawling through the boat again and again to start the recording, sitting in the freezing puddles of water at the bottom of the canoe, frank barely feeling his knees from contortions, let alone his hands, which must have turned into icicles in the cold. over and over again, just to see that the video had been interrupted due to insufficient storage. frank and i looked at each other furtively. he deleted everything imaginable on his phone until it finally worked on the seventh attempt, during the most magical blue hour we could’ve imagined.

back on the shore, we ran into our cottage, snuggled under the warm blanket, and watched our video. countless times until sleep eventually caught up with us late at night. it was the most perfect video in the most perfect moment.

day 3: into the wild

the next morning, we decided to extend our stay for one more night, both dreaming in our innermost thoughts of easily adding indefinite nights. but for now, that had to remain a dream.

kristoffer and johanna were away for the weekend, which meant that today we had the entire property to ourselves. we danced and ran around, slipping all naked into the ice-cold lake water, played music on our favorite hammock right by the lake access, and make time stand still.

together, we explored the surrounding forests and for the first time since i returned to europe, i realized how much knowledge i could just use here, whether it was animal tracks, food remnants or clues. as we crossed paths with a fox, two deer and finally, just when we were almost giving up hope of encountering sweden’s national animal, i spotted a rhinoceros in the distance! habits can really trick your mind! it took me a few seconds to realize that what stood before us was indeed what we both dreamed of since our arrival: a female moose, beautifully and healthily grown.

in the late afternoon, after another delicious serving of köttbullar, we set out again in the canoe, this time equipped with fire and food for our soul. we sailed to the other side of the lake. a flat rock in the pure wilderness that extended like a tongue and streched into the lake for the perfect sunset? that’s a perfect campfire spot.

late into the night, we grilled, made music, and danced on the rocks. we enjoyed bread on a stick and drank lättöl, our new favorite swedish beer.

in the late evening hours, we rowed back to our home while trying to sing stand by me. dear sweden, please forever remain in our hearts. just as long as you stand, stand by me.

day 4: our new life

the next morning, we didn’t want to think of what was ahead of us. we turned up our records, cooked chocolate porridge with strawberries.

*whenever each one of us would leave for the restroom, the other would wait with open arms and we would hug intensely*

we sang and laughed, and as we enjoyed our breakfast outside, i felt that late spring sensation once again, the one i always experienced as a child. the sun warmed my skin like a gentle silk blanked, new light green buds sprouted from the firs around me, blackbirds, chickadees and finches serenaded each other with tender melodies above our heads, and the scent carried the freshness of leaves and lush grass. with shining eyes, i embraced frank and told him that after all this time, i had finally rediscovered my childhood spring. he kissed my cheek softly; he was the reason why.

we began packing all of our stuff, cleaning our little home and then said our goodbyes. both of us wondered: when will be the next time we return here? who will we be then, what will our wishes and dreams be until then? where will we stand, how will we look, and what will have changed? silently, we drove on. both of us struggled with tears. yet, memories remain deeply engraved in the heart when you leave at the height of beauty. and to this day, we carry them, and they give us strength each day to navigate our everyday lives.

on our way back to switzerland, we made several more stops. we didn’t want to leave sweden and spent two more nights at serene wild camping sites found on park4night before taking the Øresundsbron to copenhagen, visiting this unique city, and then heading home with another night in frankfurt.

*our stop on the way, another smaller lake in the wild!*

i hope, that with this little blog post we could brought the dream of sweden closer to you, and that you are able to visit places such as these too, and let them get into your heart and may they hold the same significance for you as they do for us.

with 🐿️ and 🐝 and 🦆 by evelyne.

useful information

feeling inspired? here are some resources (we’re not affiliated with any of the links) you might find useful if you would like to follow our footsteps:

park4night place for frankfurt, where frank grew up, he and his kindergarten would take him to the königsbrunnen spring
park4night farm in northern germany with beautiful facilities, sheep and an incredibly kind host
vänna gård, our magical and infinitely wholesome airbnb in sweden
park4night at lake inside a nature reserve, where we had a beautiful breakfast the next morning