Great Feelings and endless views.

Its been a long time since I have blogged, written, caught up, whatever you want to call this, but I am here now ready to sit down and punch this out for whoever out there is reading and or viewing. Since my last entry the girls and I have moved upstairs to a bigger and brighter apartment. There are two bedrooms, a huge living room and equally as big a kitchen. The place in one word "dwarfs" the other apartment. Our view is really nice on sunny clear days and the sunsets we can usually see to the horizon.

Our setter Outi wanted to take us to a bright red tower a little outside of town one clear day. We drove up to this red and white painted tower on a hill that looked out over Kangasala and if it was really clear,which it was, all the way to Tampere. It was one of those buildings you only see in a place like Finland. Heights have never been an easy feat for me so climbing the wooden steps up to the top was dizzying and sometimes I felt I was holding my breath. Once at the top I stayed away from the edge even though it looked very sturdy and safe. The view was breath taking, everything was covered in snow and the sky was bright blue with a few whispy clouds here and there. That day we could in fact see the smoke from the factories in Tampere. I snapped a few pictures of the tower and the landscape and then we decided to head out. Luckily the weather wasn't so cold enabling us to stay for more then a couple minutes to take in the sites.

Last saturday we had our last home game against Pieksamaki. They are a pretty good team and are in the middle of the league. After my disappointment of the last match I had played I was ready to give it my all and not look back. Which is exactly what I did. We ended up winning in 4 sets and I was awarded player of the match! Felt good to finally be myself again and to show people in the league that I can be someone to watch out for. I feel like the last team I was on there was so much pressure to be perfect that I forgot how to play like me on the court. This team allows me to relax a bit and just play. I felt like I was totally committed to that match, I was in it, ready for anything. Plus I had my teammates out there supporting myself and each other. We all came together to win that match, out there was a team to be reckoned with. This league doesn't respect this team, therefor we have nothing to lose and everything to gain in each match. I honestly like being the underdog, no one expects us to do well so when we do, people start to second guess who we really can be, putting more pressure on themselves instead of us. Bottom line, it was a good win for us and a good win for the moral of the community. Three more league matches to go and then we have a long 3 and a half weeks off until qualifications.

This week has been extremely frigid and cold. The weather has gone from warm to ridiculously cold in about a day. Its been rough going outside at all. Walking to the bus stop which is 100 meters away is hard enough. Hopefully this week will be the only week that it is this cold. Its supposed to be Spring right? But I for one know that being this high up North, Spring doesn't really arrive until mid April. Heres to hoping for better weather and no more snow.

We had Friday, Saturday, and Sunday off after the last home match. Thursday night there was a dance at the school we play at for the seniors in high school, therefore leaving us no time to practice that night. Instead we all met up at the gym we are allowed to work out at and did an aerobics class. This woman kicked our butts! During the squats and lunges section I thought I was going to collapse because my legs were shaking so much. Needless to say, going to the gym out here and taking a class is just as hard or harder then going to the gym and taking a class at the Spectrum in MB. The only difference was the language. Luckily for the three Americans in the class, myself included, she opted to speak English and Finnish. She had great English so it all worked out for the best. Being who I am, I took a spot in the front with Outi. My Mom always said to sit in the front of the class as to get the most out of each session, thanks Mom! Friday Outi took us to another high tower that looked over the city of Tampere. On a clear day (the day we went luckily) you can see for miles. The cafe at the base of the tower sold these unbelievably delicious poppy seed donuts coated in sugar. After eating one of those, I was on an immense sugar high deciding after the elevator was not working for us, to run up the tower stairs. Bad idea. I was winded and also in need of some water. We snapped a bunch of really great pictures and then descended the tower to the mini pineapple (aka Outi's car) and drove home.

That Saturday night the girls and I went to a club in Tampere to celebrate the win and also to get in our own personal work outs on the dance floor. One of our teammates Triin came over before for some drinks and to play Quarters. I found out quickly that I was pretty bad at the game since I hadn't played since College...but lets be honest, when was I ever any good at that game? Mm never. We headed out to Tampere via bus ride around 10:30pm. We were told to go to this club called Tivoli and not to worry it was only a couple minutes walk off the main street. What I haven't told you was that night it was the coldest night I have ever experienced, in my life. We practically ran to the club only to realize there was a line that seemed to be getting nowhere fast. Reluctantly we got in line and proceeded to wait it out. One butt grab from a passer by, breathing in cigarette smoke, and some "VIP" walk ins later we were at the front of the line staring down at the door man. He checked our IDs and smiled seeing we were all from California, questioning us, asking if we liked Finland. We were all at our breaking points since all of us had ice blocks for feet and tears were starting to well up in my eyes (yes, it was that cold, -30 degrees celsius to be exact). Once we got in, checked our coats, and met up with the rest of the group of rowdiness we got to dancing. After being there once, I think that is enough for me. Tivoli reminded me to much of clubs in Hollywood, which I almost never go to because of all the egos that show up. Plus I'm no fashionista and definitely do not rock the latest brands so I leave the Hollywood style clubs and bars to the people who actually give a crap about that kind of stuff. I'll stick to the local bars where "everybody knows your name" and fun dance spots which allow you to wear shoes that don't ruin your feet and ankles by the end of the night (even tho I enjoy wearing those types of shoes on occasion). In conclusion, I would rather not go there again, it was a one time thing for me, glad I did it, over it, moving on.

We played a match this past Friday against the second place team HPK. Their coach is a highly mechanical, extremely stressed out, hyper active German coach. I believe some people come to their matches to watch him blow up about a call that was as clear as day and to yell at his team when they aren't doing exactly what he wants them to do. His quiet conserved "assistant" coach sits there on the bench and goes along with his tirades which makes me wonder, if he were to contest him at all, would the vein in the head coaches giant forehead pop? Anyway, enough about their insane coach, because he must be doing something right, they are winning. Would you say that instilling fear in his players "doing something right"? Eh, whatever, I have had my fair share of crazed coaches, he doesn't scare me, all his yelling and red faced anger does is make me smile and know that whatever we are doing on the court is working. Back to the actual game, we lost in three sets, bummer. However we were able to give them a run for their money and their coach most likely crap himself in the last set. The score was 27-29, enough said. It was a fight and I am proud of my team for how well we hung in there.  Its going to be a fight to the end and I'm ready to give it all I've got, it doesn't end until that final whistle blows.

TV match on monday, final league match on wednesday and then we are off for quite a bit until qualifications. I hope I can stay on top of this blog deal and get messages out every week, just been a little more busy then when I was in the middle of nowhere. Until then, take care all!

New Town, New Team, New Adventures

After a week and a half of being here in Kangasala, the two other Americans and I moved upstairs to a bigger apartment, have spent the better part of this week getting settled in to the new digs (however I am still sleeping on a mattress on the floor...hopefully a bed will be arriving soon) and continuing to explore the town and city near by. The weather has been more than bearable in the past couple weeks with temperatures dropping to about -2 degrees celcius at most. Practices have been pretty good however, the mentality here is different then my last team. The trainings are a little less strict and discipline can be lacking at times. I try to keep the mentality that I had with my last team, believing that someone is trying to take my spot giving myself motivation to work hard at every practice and eventually in every game. Its not that I "have" to think that way in order to work hard but it doesn't hurt. I believe the coach here has faith in me and trusts me to do the right thing. I just hope that I can deliver this weekend. I have been thinking a lot lately about how I need to just release the timid Whitney within. To let go of the immense pressure I put on myself whenever we begin to play, to let go of the fear of being yanked out of a game, letting go of the mistakes I make during a match because no matter what happens there will be a few. When I feel like I am needed on a team, I tend to play and lead better, so heres to hoping for the best, cheers!
This past weekend I went out for the second time since I have been in Finland (amazing I know!). However before we could have our fun night out, we had to endure a 3 hour long practice that afternoon, awesome. Once that practice was over, we were able to relax, make some food, get our make up on and get our butts to the city for some much needed and earned fun. Becca (roommate and fellow South Bay local), Erica (teammate), Kahwika (on the Tampere mens team hailing from Hawaii), and Dustin (another fellow Californian also playing on a team out here) went to a bar called Ale for some "cheap" beers ("its 9 dollar beer night", if you know where this quote is from you'r a champ!) and then on over to a club called Kuuba for some off the wall dancing. Unfortunately our other roommate Lauren was so tired that she passed out around 7:30pm and said she was done for the night,  hopefully next time. I am pretty sure the Americans and one Finish girl took over the club that night. At one point we developed a rally circle and jumped around for a solid minute yelling into the middle of the circle. Bottom line, we all had a really great time, and everyone went home with busted ear drums and a little sway to their step.
Sunday, Becca and I went to the Sauna down the back street from us on the lake to sweat off the night. The idea was to get really hot in the sauna first and then jog down to the lake, hop in and then jog on back to the sauna. We did this twice since we were not used to the traditional 4-10 times... The first time we went in up to our knees and the second up to our chins. Screaming the entire time as we dipped our soar bodies into the lake, taking relief and de-numbing our skin in the sauna after. It was truly amazing to see some people swimming laps in the water. I guess there comes a point when you just can't feel how cold it really is. My goal is to let go of the railing and tread water for at least 10 seconds before I go home. It starts to hurt after a while being that cold. Becca and I left the sauna house feeling refreshed, hang over free, and ready for a nap. That night all the roomies and a teammate went to the American Diner in Tampere. Best day after partying food ever! To finnish the meal we all ordered pancakes with ice cream, however these pancakes were small, thick, buttery, and dusted with powdered sugar.....perfect. Great end to a great weekend.
Our new place is starting to look more and more like people actually live in it. Club members arrived with our washing machine, a couch, two big rugs, and the hopes of another bed. So spirits are high in la casa de california natives. Tonight we have video and then practice, I am excited and pumped to rip it up tomorrow at the game and show the people who didn't believe in me that I can play well. Wish us luck :)

PS The pictures are of the sauna place and the church in Kangasala built in 1800. Enjoy!

"Lap pool"

















                                                                                  

Change of plans..

Ok, so its been almost an entire month since I have been back and a lot has happened. First off, we had a match 3 days prior to getting back from break. After a good showing at the last match we played before the break, I was not in the starting line up and barely saw court time during that match, bummer and slight confusion. Post match they told us that a player from Canada was coming for a try out. I knew my head was on the chopping block if she was any good. I had to buckle down and play hard in practices and hopefully get another chance to play in the matches. I had a meeting with the two coaches and a sponsor, in short I told them that I would not stop trying, that I was not going to quit unless they wanted someone else to come in for me. I am not a quitter and I made sure they understood that. She arrived on a Monday and was practicing with us by Tuesday. I knew of her since I played against her in Slovenia but I wasn't sure how she was playing now since that had been 2 years ago. I had heard that she hadn't played in about a year so I had a little bit of hope. At her first practice we got to talking and it turned out that we had a lot more in common then I was expecting. We clicked right away which was something I was not expecting to happen. Through the week I could tell that she was in fact a little rusty and was not really ready for the level of play at the moment, I think she knew this as well. Personally I was going for it, I didn't want there to be any reason why they shouldn't keep me on the team. I did everything I could do while in practice but still was not given a chance to play when it came time for our TV match. The coach told me that I had two very good practices but that she was going to start the other Finish right side over me. I would be lying to say that I was ok with this, I definitely was not. But I put on my game face and tried to cheer on my team as I tried to mask the annoyed feeling I had deep down. In all fairness I hadnt been doing that great a job all season (like a roller coaster) so I can understand why the coach didn't trust me but if I was showing that I could get the job done in practice then you would think she would give me at least a chance to show in the matches. Anyway, that is neither here nor there anymore. I ended up having a great time with the Canadian girl and was actually hoping that she would stay so the next couple months we had left would fly by. Unfortunately we were informed again that another Canadian from a team in the league was coming to us because she was out played by another foreigner who in turn took her job. After a week and a half of proving myself, I had to do it again with someone new. Once this other player showed up I knew I was on the outs. She walked in at 6'3-6'4, she was huge. She ended up wowing the club with her height and was starting in the next match while I watched from the stands. The worst that could have happened to me that night amazingly happened. She was awarded two awards for most points and something else, but since I can't speak or understand Finish I didn't know what for.

After the match I went to talk to the team we had just played since I knew two of the girls on the team. While I was talking to them about everything that was happening their libero was saying how they needed another hitter pretty badly and that I should talk to their coach. I didn't know what was going to happen with my current club so I wasn't sure if talking to their coach was even an option. The setter went and got their assistant coach and then asked me to come talk with him, so I did. Realizing that I probably wasnt going to see court time with the tall Canadian at my current club and the fact that they didn't have enough money to fund a 4th foreigner we (assistant coach, sponsor, and myself) decided as a group that it would be best if I went for a try out with this other club. I got on a train Tuesday morning with all of my stuff in tow and was on my way to Kangasala with a new motivation, to make that team. I met up with and have been staying with the two girls I know, Becca Sarenceno and Lauren Bledsoe who are from the South Bay area of Southern California (weird we all meet up here in Finland of all places). Rebecca went to Redondo Union High School who are rivals with Mira Costa High which is where Lauren and I went to. Crazy, this world continues to get smaller and smaller. I am glad to be here and ready to do work and get the job done. I hope this team want's to keep me here because it would be a great last couple of months and also a lot of fun to play on this team.                          

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Rebecca                                                                                                                    




......I made the team :)

Short View of Helsinki

Before I got back to Finland I decided that I wanted to spend the day in Helsinki. Luckily one of my teammates lives close to the city and was in town the day before we had to go back to central Finland for practice. She was able to pick me up from the airport which was hugely appreciated. We had decided to eat a little lunch before heading out. After what seemed like a roundabout bus ride into the center, we were there. I was very excited to get my sight seeing on since I had heard so much about the city from my Dad. My good friend Ulf told me about a church that was built into a hill and had a circular ceiling adorned with copper wire. The church was called Temppeliaukio Kirkko (the last word means church I believe). Unfortunately my friend and I ended up walking a mile or so in the wrong direction. The good news was I got to see more of the city. Once we arrived at the church, what I saw I had not expected. It was literally built into the side of a hill. Luckily it was still open when we arrived so we walked inside to the sound of beautiful classical music. The room opens up to a high ceiling and rock faced walls. Looking up I saw the copper wire coiled into one huge circular plate, covering the ceiling. The candle lighting area jutted out of the rock face, making itself known and appealing to the eye and my camera lens. I shot off a few pictures and then we headed out. My friend told me there was another church that was pretty famous in Helsinki that we should maybe check out before we made our journey to the new Harry Potter movie (oh yeah!). Unfortunately for us, the church was undergoing a little bit of construction, so we didn't stay long. Before we walked inside however, we noticed a large illuminated cross on the steps in front of this enormous church. When we were leaving we heard music and saw people gathering where the cross was, so we opted to check out what all the commotion was about. There was a pretty sizable courtyard called Helsinki Senate Square packed with people and zen like music was consuming the square. All faces and bodies were pointed directly at the cross and the church. I thought, cult following maybe? Coming to worship God in a new way? What we didn't know was during that time of year many of the historic buildings and residential areas were to be lit up and showcased for certain hours of the night for about a week. We got lucky and saw one of the shows, which wouldn't have happened if we hadn't gotten lost :)

We traveled back to my friends parents house, ate dinner, and then drove to the movie theatre close by for the new Harry Potter movie. It was fantastic! The movies have gotten a lot darker since the very first one. I can't wait to see the last one so I can put the Harry Potter saga (like the vampire saga) to rest for a bit....or re-watch all the movies and have a Harry Potter movie marathon one rainy weekend, either way I am excited to see the last one this summer. The next morning we took an express train which was very nice, comfortable, and a very scenic ride to Jyvasckula where our other teammate picked us up and drove us all to practice that night. I had a fun trip in Helsinki and would love to spend more time there in the future, maybe after this season.

Sweden Part 3, Back to Work

The title of this entry says it all. Still lethargic and tired from the holiday of eating and laying around, it was indeed back to work. It felt good to get back into the gym, in a way detoxing my body from everything that was ingested with in the past few days. The new gym smelled like fresh paint, rubber flooring, and plastic seats. Tina, the coach was ready as well, pushing us hard the first practice knowing we needed it. We always knew we were in for it after a holiday, because she wanted to shake off the cobwebs as soon as we touched the gym floor. The practices that entire week were good, however a little strange for me since it was my old team but with so many new faces. I felt a little slower too since playing in Finland the game is slightly different. Meaning higher sets and bigger blockers. So Muck the setter for EVS was working me, at one point I just laughed at how I had forgotten how fast she was. One week with them proved great for me since I was able to stay in volleyball shape while on vacation.

The week went by quickly with the double day practices and before I knew it we were getting ready for New Years Eve at the EVS team apartment. This year was a lot different then years past. Usually I get dressed up, go to dinner with friends or family and then to a party. This year we were going to a themed party. The theme was rubix cube. Rules: dress in multiple solid rubix cube colors, once at the party prepare to exchange clothes with others to achieve one solid color. First person dressed in one solid color wins! To me it sounded like a total blast. Sara and I went looking like girls from the 60s, except I was sporting an orange visor flipped up and blue fake Ray Ban sunglasses. I was also sporting a green dress, red tights, white socks, and a yellow tank top. Once everyone arrived, the party turned into a colorful array of outfits. We decided that everyone would make something and bring it to the party for dinner, ending up with a crazy awesome buffet of food from all over. There was Greek salad, home made sushi, cheeseburgers, exotic fruit and cheese, zucchini pie, figs wrapped and cooked in bacon (my favorite), etc. Just trust me when I say we ate well that night. After eating and drinking a bit we headed to the city by train. Once we got there we quickly realized our entire group and a few of the guys from the mens team were the only ones dressed in themed outfits. I sort of saw this coming since it is pretty much tradition for Swede's to dress nice (and in black) and have a dinner party with their friends on NYE. However I was proud of the Swede's who did participate and come out of their comfort zone that night, it turned out to be a really fun party. After the clock struck midnight some of us decided to go home and so I was in bed by 1:30am. It felt good to get in bed that early since I was exhausted by the time the fireworks in the city had subsided to a low roar.

The next morning Sara and I went for pizza at a new place in town, slipping and sliding our way on the frozen deserted side walks. We went to Ulf's place that night and had coffee before we returned to Sara's for another movie, which was just what we needed :) While I was packing up and getting ready for the morning I had ahead of me, I was sad to be leaving. I didn't want to go, although I am sure once I left sara was able to breath a little easier not having me in her space all the time, but it actually worked out really well. She and I know how to live with one another I believe, know when to leave each other alone and when to be bothersome. In the future, she wouldn't be a bad roommate at all and that is another reason why I love her.

Woke up the next morning at 4:30am, Ulf was to pick me up at 5:15am to Helsingborg so I could catch my train to Copenhagen for my flight back to Finland. Ulf has been like a father and most of all a great friend to me from the beginning so I was glad to have the opportunity to spend my last half hour with him before hopping on the train. I said my goodbyes to a half awake sara and a wide awake Muckie who had come over to see me off. At the train station Ulf parked his car and came in with me to make sure I got on the right train, always looking out for me :) We hugged and then he said something to me that made my chest tighten and my eyes well up, he said "I love you, you know." We pulled away from the hug and I said back "I know, I love you too." We said our millionth goodbye, he turned, waved and was gone. I stood there on the platform waiting for the water works to come unhinged when the train arrived, so I stiffened up, no need to have strangers see me cry. In my head I said farewell to Sweden with a heavy heart. However, I had to smile because I knew I was going to be back sooner rather then later. It was back to work for now, with 3 months to power through. I can do this.

Swedish Food, Family, and Fun part 2

The 23rd ended with full bellies and a slight food coma. The morning of the 24th came and I knew what was in store for us that day and I was excited to get started. Trivia question walk through Hestra was first. Sara's oldest brother Tobias was the leader of the questions this year, Sara and Johanna were the leaders last year. We started our first question at the house and walked a path along the lake and through the woods answering a total of 12 questions with one brain teaser at the end. He had made one question specifically for me, it said, "what mountain peak is the highest in California?" The answer was Mount Whitney, very clever of him. However, some of them were stumped and thought it was a trick about my name being up there. The walk was beautiful and the sun was out, only problem with that was how freezing it gets when the sky is clear. No clouds to keep in the warmth. Sara and her younger brother Philip were so cold by the end of the walk that they decided to run the last stretch to the house. I ran a bit too since I was also feeling the cold, especially in my feet. When we were all at home thats when the Glogg (scandinavian christmas drink) came out and the ginger cookies. Tobias tallied the scores of the trivia questions and the prizes were set out on the table in the living room. Amazingly I was 4th, compared to last year when I was dead last, it was an improvement. I took a purple head band that goes over your ears to keep them warm, very cute. After the prizes and winner were announced we headed down stairs for the famous cartoon that comes on every year at the same time. It is estimated that over 4 million Swedish people watch it each year. The population of Sweden is around 9 million, so quite a bit of people watch the same show every year, thats what I call a dedicated tradition. We turned it on and after about 5 minutes the 6 of us were fast asleep. After the show we woke up with a little coffee and started dinner. Sara's moms parents were there and us. A smaller family gathering but one that I like the most when it comes to the holidays. We tucked ourselves in around the dinner table and ate the traditional Swedish dinner of Salmon, swedish meatballs, herring and potato, broccoli and salmon pie, etc. Since the gathering is smaller, Sara's mom made everything unlike the day before when her grandma had the dinner catered. I would have done the same thing considering how many people were there its seems only natural to order in. Sara's mom also makes amazing Swedish meatballs and this bread that has a cake like texture but there are a lot of grains in it, making it seem healthy enough to eat a lot of, hehe. She let me take home a whole loaf, thanks Swedish mom!


After dinner we migrated to the living room where the tree was surrounded by tons of presents. Sara was santa this year so she handed out the gifts to everyone. My parents had sent along my gifts via mail so I was able to open a few as well. Her mom, brother, and grandparents also gave me gifts as well which was much appreciated. Her brother drew me in the secret santa gift exchange and got me a really cool bowl that was Swedish made and a bunch of small vodkas (uh oh). It was really cute the way it was wrapped and he wrote a card that was hinting to what was inside. Loved it, but unfortunately I couldn't fit it in my bag with out the fear of crushing it, so I asked Sara to bring it to California when she comes this summer. I drew her little brother for the secret santa gift. I quickly asked my mom to go out and get him a surfer hat and a RVCA tank top from the surf shop in Hermosa Beach before she sent my stuff. I wanted to get him something that was authentic californian, something that would be rare to have in Sweden. He was really happy with what he got, I was excited for him. It made me smile to see him wearing the stuff I had gotten for him around the house that night and the next day, he looked like a surfer, a really tall one :)

I was lucky to be able to skype with my parents while I was opening presents from them. They also got to see the family and the atmosphere that I was in when I turned the computer around so the family could say hi to my mom and dad. It was quite humorous since my mom had just gotten out of the shower and had a towel around her head. She was slightly embarrassed but no harm done. Both my parents seemed really happy to have gotten the chance to see me open what they sent me, which in turn made me smile. After all the presents were opened and the mountain of wrapping paper had been disposed we settled at the dinner table with some ice cream and rice pudding.

On the 25th we woke up had some breakfast and then headed to the school gym for some volleyball. Feeling lethargic and tired from all the eating, I wasn't sure how good I was going to be. I was also ill equipped to play, I did not bring any work out clothes or gym shoes. Sara was helpful and let me borrow some old tennis shoes she wore in high school I think. The soles were flat and extremely slick making it hard for me to make any sudden movements on the slippery floor. I ditched them in the beginning of the first game only to put them back on later because my feet were starting to bruise. After a few games we headed back to the house for some Christmas day turkey. It almost felt like the Christmas food I eat back in the states, everything was really well cooked and tasted amazing. Needing to leave that day because of the night we had planned ahead of us, we said our goodbyes. I hugged everyone tightly and thanked them repeatedly. Her mom said that I was welcome again next year and mentioned that they had fun having me there again. I truly love the Pettersson family, they have and always will be my Swedish Family.

Sara and I arrived back in Angelholm around 4pm and were getting ready for the night out right when we got home. The people who were coming over were Muck (the setter), Jonas (assistant coach), and Calle (Swedish vballer and good friend). We were also going to meet Sara's sister, her boyfriend, and his friends at the bar we were going to. I had a feeling it was going to be a great night. After a couple glasses of wine we headed out to a bar called 57 in one of the hotels in town. This bar was geared towards an older crowd which was fine with me since most of the bars in town were littered with 18-20 year olds that night. We ended up dancing all night long leaving the club at around 2am. It was for sure one of those nights you never forget.

Swedish Food, Family, and Fun

The 22nd, 23rd, 24th, and 25th was the beginning and the end of a wonderful Swedish "family" Christmas. The 22nd I went to lunch with Maria (Massage therapist from last season) and Muck (last season setter). Muck and I decided to do a little shopping after lunch and then head to the new arena they had built for a couple different sports, the main one being volleyball. At first sight, it was a bigger, higher ceiling gym with stadium style seating. I was excited to be practicing in it the following week. To Hestra (Sara's home town) I go with no time to spare getting to the train station. A quick ride to Bastad, where we were picked up by her sister Johanna and her boyfriend Christian. Along for the ride as well was the best dog probably in the world, Mogly. Once we got to her parents house, I could see the happiness and smiles on everyones faces to see me again, what a great feeling. Warm hugs were given all around and then we headed upstairs for dinner, taco's! I love the decorations in their home, very clean and not over the top. I feel like I am in Martha Stewarts house during Christmas because Sara has told me that her mom makes most of the decorations she has around the house. Love it!

The 23rd, we headed to Sara's dad's parents house about 5 miles away. They have a cute 2 story old Swedish style yellow house situated on farm land. When we walked inside we were instantly greeted by grandparents, uncles, aunts, cousins, etc (around 25 people). Everyone seemed to have remembered me which was really nice and very welcoming. Sara's grandmother is hilarious because she has from the beginning spoken Swedish to me. This time it was a lot more and so I was hoping someone around me would help translate. I could understand bits and pieces but she is a fast talker with a slightly different accent then I'm used to. The Pettersson family and I sat around in the living room and chatted until the food was ready and everyone had arrived. The food was the same as last year, no surprises there, with the staple items including salmon, herring and potato's (my favorite), ham, spicy mustard, macaroni salad, swedish meatballs (her grandma makes the best I have ever eaten), and shrimp. They also have this type of soft thick ginger bread that is only made during that time of year, very very good with butter. This year I decided to have only one shot of shnapps and let me tell you it was a big one and to add it burned for about 5 minutes afterward. So I was done after one, you can call me weak sauce or whatever, vodka does not do the body good anymore...or ever has. Thank you Philip for peer pressuring me into doing that, love you brother! Sara's grandpa however was on a roll and probably had up to around 10 schnapps which left his nose bright red. After dinner, the Swedish Santa (Tomten) came to hand out presents to everyone. Once that was over we headed back into the dinning room to conclude with the 50 kronor gift exchange, kind of a "white elephant" gift exchange. I got a red candy bowl, Sara got some water glasses, her sisters boyfriend got the funniest gift of all. It was a wine opener in the shape of a man with a mustache, a lepoard print speedo, and white tennis shoes. The cork screw was located where his.....well you get the point, plus I will add a picture for clarification. Super classy to say the least. We ended the night with coffee and cake an every day tradition in Sweden no matter what the occasion may be. I said my goodbyes to the family thanking them immensely, I had the best time this year, especially since I knew most of them, it was a lot easier to interact this year. Hope to see them all again in the future, they always make me feel so welcome in their home.