something-to-remember: #joy

Dienstag, 17. Februar 2015

My love with a swedish tradition- Fettisdagen

Fettisdagen, is -The Fat Tuesday- and will be celebrated every year in February and it is always the last day before the Lanten fast or 47 days before easter.

(so easter is not far away now)

People eat sweet things but mostly it is about the Semla- also called fastlagsbullar (Fat Tuesday Buns).

Some may also read about the - White Tuesday- as the buns are very much white.

The name fat is because of the food. It contains a lot of fat but the taste is sweet.

It is a christian tradition, thought in Sweden no one really things about that. It is more that you just happen to like the -Semla- as a perfect food for coffee and friends.

Of course you can already buy those -Semlor- weeks before this day.

Once it was forbidden, now they should not sell it right after x-mas.

Mostly you buy a minimum of two Semlor just for one person.

Sometimes it is kind of a fight between my friends who got it first, who got most. But all we have in common is the love to eat that sweet and fat thing called Semla once a year.

I came several years ago in contact with that and from the very beginning I fell in love with it. Perfect for a cup of coffee, you just want another one to eat.

For me this is on swedish tradition I try not to miss.

On the pic below you can see, I'll get crazy having them.

And if you pass Sweden these days- buy them, eat them or go to a coffee and eat them there! This is a very swedish thing and will give you a very good impression on what is Sweden a like.

LOVE & LIGHT

Happy fettisdagen to my swedish friends!

Mittwoch, 11. Februar 2015

Thailand- a journey (part8)

Flying next to two hours to the North. Landing next to the town. Chiang Mai I am here.

The big hills around. The nights colder and the breakfast needs more cloths on your body to not get icy.

But what a wonderful town. My luck was also to take a taxi from the airport and getting without any problem to the hotel which was in the center of the town, well next to it. The middle of the town is kind of an Island as the river is going around. Of course quite old this part with old walls and most of all Chiang Mai was once a very important spot for the Buddhist religious. That's why you can walk through the streets and meet one Wat next to another. The town became famous in 1296 because of King Mang Rai and because it is caravan routes which lead from China to Myanmar.

Those Wats are very beautiful and in the morning you can watch the monks going through the streets to get food and in the afternoon you can talk to them while sitting next to a Buddha or in a small garden of the Wat. The Wats from different times and so in different styles.

But you can also go shopping and get wonderful food. And after the walking you can take a Massage - well maybe at the "Violet massage" studio.

The it is time to visit the Temple! It is a very big one, though part does not exist anymore as earthquakes destroyed much. But there is also the second most important Jade Buddha of Thailand to find in the original Temple which misses his top. Most part of it.

But take also the chance to tour around Chiang Mai, as there are art villages, places to meet old folk, places to see how things are made, places to discover while climbing in the hills. Though the art tour is often a mix of seeing art and how to produce it and selling shops with far to high prices for silver, clothes and so on. Best is to do morning tours in little groups as you won't be meeting the big tourist mass.

On weekends there is a very big market on the Walking street and you should be there as it is amazing what you see and can get. Foot massage, food to eat like typical chinese and thai food (be open for everything!), art to buy and games to play and after all meeting people from all a round the world. The atmosphere is very easy going and a lot of laughter was to hear.

Be there a minimum of three nights as you have the chance this way to enjoy Chiang Mai much better.

The staff in the hotels have been very friendly and also in stores and restaurants. For me it was a pure enjoyment and then when you plane to take the bus to Bangkok or just Lampang, it is the Bus station "Chiang Mai Arcade". It takes about 20 minutes with the taxi/ cab. But you don't have to buy the ticket the day before you travel. It is o.k. to buy the day itself and the busses goes every hour.

Now it's time to enjoy the pics... again a lot of pictures to discover the world of Thailand.