Saturday, May 24, 2008

Sweden, Days 7 & 8: Söderhamn - Bergsjö - Bollnäs

Yesterday was our day of transition. I started the day in Söderhamn & spent the morning conducting a workshop about Moodle for the interested teachers at CFL. It was fun to be once again on familiar territory, talking about something I know (in English, no less!) to an enthusiastic small group. We left Söderhamn after lunch & headed north leisurely towards Bergsjö, where Ronny lives. On the way we visited all sorts of geographical, historical & cultural landmarks. We drove along the beautiful Ljusdal river, visited a handicraft & cultural centre at Stellengården (not necessarily the correct spelling!), drove up a mountain overlooking the Dellen lakes, & stopped for coffee in a village historical centre. Eventually we came to Bergsjö & enjoyed a wonderful supper with just about everybody who has been involved with our college's Canada-Swedish exchange project. Because I have met so many project people over the past 4 years, it really felt more like a homecoming than anything else. Priceless.

After the dinner at Bergsjö, we were traded over to our Bollnäs contacts & so headed back home with them. It was at least 11:30 pm when Ewa-Marianne & I arrived in Bollnäs but it was, of course, still somewhat light outside. I have a dim recollection of being introduced to her family & then crashed into sleep.

Today, a Saturday, I was able to first catch up a bit on sleep. Since morning, Ewa has treated me to a wonderful day driving around the area in her 1973? Pontiac Firebird. We circled the Ljusdal lake region, we saw the area (Djupa) where she grew up, had fika with her parents (a highlight of the trip), picked some wildflowers, & visited a handicrafts shop. In the afternoon, we attended a birthday party for a colleague who was, & technically still is, a Canadian.

To be honest, the day is a bit of a blur. I will try to find a decent map of the area so I can at least understand where I've been. Google maps does NOT do it justice!

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