Fika

On October 25th, Stockholm got its first snow.  It was just a light dusting, barely covering the ground, but it was snow!  I can only imagine how it will get in the winter.  Regardless, the kids and I put on our snow clothes, and still did the walk to school in the negative (celcius) degree weather.  

One thing I haven't mentioned yet is the language barrier between the children and I.  They don't know English (yet) and I don't know Swedish (yet), so everyday is a struggle.  Mostly, we just try to point to objects, and I will say them in engelska (English) and they will say them in Svenska (Swedish).  Gabriel who is 7 is picking up on English very quickly, but unfortunately Swedish is taking me a while, and also English is harder for Ella to learn at age 5.  I downloaded a great app called iTranslate, which is my lifeline in order to figure out anything that is in Swedish.

Mochaccino at Chokladkoppen in Gamla Stan (Old Town)

Another thing about Swedes, is that they love fika! Fika is basically just a coffee and cookie break.  In the US you would ask a friend if they wanted to grab a cup of coffee, and in Sweden you would ask if they wanted to go out for fika.  Of course fika can be as simple as a cup of black coffee or as heavy as my mochaccino above, with a kanelbulle (cinnamon roll). If I come back a few pounds heavier in August, you'll know why.