Sweden - the search for ABBA

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Well Royal Brunei is an excellent airline - great food and service! I didnt sleep much on the plane, despite taking a sleeping tablet. I was sitting next to a guy on the plane who was travelling to Brussells to see his girlfriend, so we helped each other find our way around the airports - especially in Heathrow - that place is a mad house!

Immigration at Heathrow was a bit of a nightmare, I got questioned a fair bit and also was told "you're lucky the troubles are over" for Armagh (the county in Northern Ireland I am staying in). Not sure if the level of questioning was normal... anyway...had annoying Americans in the line with us. Why do they have to talk so much? They finished their conversation and then one guy starts to read out the screen that lists the location of which belt your luggage will be unloaded to. Umm hello.... what the f*ck was the reason for that? You're not doing the world a favour! hahaha First thing I see out of customs is STARBUCKS!!! mmm Mocha Frappacino.... but then there were no bins to put my rubbish- "bloody poms" - later found out it was because bins can be used to hide bombs.

Went straight onto Stockholm, Sweden - only to find my luggage hadn't made it for my transfer to Kalmar, Sweden. You can only imagine what sort of stressed out panic state this put me into. I had checked my luggage all the way to Kalmar, but I was told to get it in Stockholm as I was transferring to a domestic flight. I reported it lost, hoping it would turn up in Kalmar still. No show in Kalmar also. hahaa funny thing, I ordered a coffee on the plane and the sugar packet said "as the sugar dissolves it spreads happiness" - unless it was made of cocaine... nothing was making me happy hahaha Was a comfort to see Dan at Kalmar airport - finally something familiar!! Thankfully they found my luggage and it was delivered the next morning and I could finally get into some fresh clothes! Jet lag got quite bad for me, waking up very early and I felt like the room was moving - kinda like when you've been on a boat all day and you lie down and it feels like you're still on it.

Kalmar is the nicest place, so pretty and the people are lovely! They all speak excellent english, although often with an american accent, which they pick up from TV or attending university in the USA. A couple tried to speak 'Aussie' - like 'Cheers Mate' hahaha sounded funny but was cute. Because the country is so far north, it isnt dark until after 10pm at night! Which didn't do the jetlag any good, but great for looking around the town until late. The roads are all cobbledy in Sweden, looks pretty, but no good for us girls wearing high heels! Dan and I nearly got run over plenty of times cause they drive on the right. Very hard to get used to!!

The wedding we went to (Dan's irish cousin married a swedish girl) was beautiful, it was held in Kalmar castle. Was strange listening to a wedding in Swedish! The reception was different also - we sung alot of songs - both Irish and Swedish. Was great seeing people really getting into songs like 'Molly Malone' and 'Drunken Sailor'. Was good Craic hehehe I tell ya what - the irish put the aussies to shame in the drinking! All the boys have done in Sweden is get hammered - I can't keep up!



After Kalmar, we headed to Copenhagen, Denmark for the night before catching the plane to Ireland. Copenhagen was a huge shock after being in quiet little Kalmar. Its very busy - and not with cars... but bicylces... nearly got run over by them too! We'll be lucky if we make it home alive at this rate. We all went to the pub of course..... Dan's cousins started singing songs.... these songs arent your normal irish songs - they are very political. Lines like 'The fields of Ulster, The fields of ulster and the orange will live on'. You wouldn't want to say the word 'fenian' - meaning 'catholic'. I was scared to admit I was one! Also learnt some good drinking games - great for our next trip down south Marcia!!


Don't forget to check the gallery for pics I have uploaded. My next entry will be about Ireland.... I am here now and already have LOADS of things to tell you all. Like how I am picking up the accent already AHHHH.... its terrible and I need to wash my mouth out with pins.

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