June 1, 2018. Unseasonably hot weather, 31° every day, was not what we had expected of Sweden. But my cousin lived in the woods by a lake so it seemed as if she had specifically planned the perfect weather for us to visit her at her place near Alinsås.

We had programmed the GPS to take backroads, and it led us straight down an unnamed dirt road smelling of fresh-cut hay and mellow manure.

And then the GPS announced that we had arrived at my cousin’s place. She was there waiting, showed us to the little cabin that was to be our new residence for a few days.
We shared our porch with a bunch of young tomato plants, way ahead of where they would normally be at the beginning of June. There was also a modern residence for bees. I was impressed with the fire pit, an inviting shady place to sit.
Come in, the water’s 23° and warm! Luring us into the water. The woods were cooling although I was alarmed at what a dangerous place the woods were, full of ticks in the tall grasses. Later I checked my insect repellent and ticks were included in the list of repelled items so I never actually found a tick on me.Being in the middle of the country means a bit more planning when it comes to meals – you can’t just run out and pick up something on a whim. So the next tour was of the several fridges and freezers, all packed to the brim, with a detailed notebook to keep track of where everything was.
And what a meal my cousin had planned! Banquet number 1: Norway lobster (also called langoustine or scampi) in Sweden. A different form of rye crisp.Once the mosquitos came out we headed to the fire pit where the smoke would keep them away. At some point my cousin had put out candles to lead the way.The evening was warm but not so warm that a blazing fire didn’t end that summer’s evening in the very best way. The fire pit was put to good use during our stay, with next morning’s breakfast cooked up in a special Swedish pan. Steen’s breakfast cooked over a fire.
From there we were off on an attempt to track down some stories that my father had written about his time in Sweden, although we had an interesting detour to an antique ‘barn’ where we were tempted into an extra treat or two at their spectacular breakfast.

More of the Lens-Artists Photo Challenge: Summer Vibes.