Tapas and pool night

To do something more than just eating and drinking was the idea when when we planned yesterday's night out. The original idea was dinner and bowling but then different injuries made us change the plan to dinner and pool.  

We were 12 people and went for dinner at Mondo Tapas which turned out to be a very cosy place with delicious food. Just a little too much garlic for my taste, but maybe that is a base in the Spanish food culture? Caliente at s:t eriksplan has always been my favorite tapas place in Stockholm but now Mondo joins at the top of the tapas list :-)

After dinner we went to play pool at JoLo & Co a very fancy billiards place in the Odenplan area. Normally all billiards places are kind of discussing and dark but JoLo was kind both clean and trendy. I must say we had a very fun nigh out. 

xoxo

Weight training

Free weight training is something I hate. I find it boring standing there alone pumping my weights listening to my own music. I am getting addicted to group training at SATS but I have a personal trainer that very kindly have set up a gym exercise schedule for me. Do you think I ever do it? I don't. But this morning at least I did. I warmed up with a 20 minutes run and then worked though his schedule. Ha. At least once I did it :-)

xoxo

Gamla Stan Christmas Market

Christmas is arriving and Stockholm is already full of Christmas songs, lights and markets. 

It is a month left but we all know that these four weeks but we all know that they will pass extremely fast. Yesterday I took a long walk with Hana and her sweet little Tiberia though town and we ended up at the Christmas market in the old town (Gamla stan). I remember this market since I was a small girl, I used to go with my grand mother and her sisters who always bought me some candies. Good memories. 

It was however a very nice little market full of (unnecessary) Christmas stuff :-)

I can't actually wait to decorate my place full of Christmas things, candles and cosy lightnings. I wanna visit as many Christmas markets and concerts as possible. I wanna eat lots of Swedish and Italian Christmas food and sweets. I wanna listen to and sing along to lots of Christmas carols.
I just gonna make this a very cosy Christmas!

xoxo

A tousand splendid suns - Khaled Hosseini

I read this book maybe four years ago but today I happen to read great parts of it over again which reminded me what a fantastic book this is. If someone haven't read it do so! It is one of those unforgettable masterpieces that remains within you for a very long time. 

xoxo

Fun dancing and thai lunch

Thursday and -6 to the exam. Sigh. 

Today I struggle to find study motivation and I find million other things to do instead of reading my auditing books. 

For example I spent an hour reading "articles" on the site Politism about politics, feminism and crime in Sweden. Good and fascinating reading.

At midday I went for my favorite dance class at Sats Medborgarplatsen. 

The class I once wrote about here. 

Today it wasn´t "just" the extremely good dance teacher that held the show, next to me danced a girl that was so f***** good. It was a true pleasure to see her own interpretations of the movements the instructor showed us to do. I was really amazed. 

After the dancing I met up with my dad for a late lunch in the area. We went to Restaurang Orkide and enjoyed some thai wok. Orkide actually has really nice food and their lunch menu is really praiseworthy. As you can see from the last pic the restaurant was almost empty when we had finished our lunch which for me was normal lunch hours 1-2pm but I guess that in Sweden they eat lunch around 11.30 or something...

xoxo

My audit seminar group

Second and last auditing seminar is now over and done. 

Such a relief!

During the past three weeks have I together with the three girls you see above gone through sweat, tears and laughter. We have experienced stress, sleepless nights and felt pressure in a way which should not be when you are "just" studying. 

The second project we had to do was to develop an own audit risk analysis and a full audit plan. Might sound like something simple but it was very tricky and time consuming. We have spent days, evenings and weekends working with this project and we could had gone on forever if it wasn't for the timeout. 

Today we had the presentation in English in front of the whole class. We had to defend ourselves, still in front of everyone when another group did their opposition job criticizing us. And we had to do peer review and a opposition upon another groups audit plan. 

All four of us were so nervous before the seminar today but in the end it worked out quite well. 

I am so glad I ended up in the group with these three sweet girls. Even if we have gone though hard times we have worked very well together and in the end we also have had some fun!

Now, finally, I can start concentrating on the audit exam next week. 

xoxo

Pyjama party with Stella

Stella is back at my place. 

Tonight we have even planned a sleepover which means I will stay in and have a girls night in with her. We have just together eaten "blodpudding" for dinner and now I gonna study a bit while she is sleeping in my bed. Later we will go for a long (and cold) walk before we gonna get in under the duvet together to watch a movie. That is what I would call a cosy night in. 

...and I need it. These days are all about studying. Together with my seminar audit group I studied the whole weekend, we even sat all Sunday in School(!) and today from early morning until late we have been preparing for the presentation, opposition and essay hand in we have tomorrow. 

If that wouldn't be enough, next Wednesday I have a very big and difficult exam and I need all time and effort that I can find to prepare for it otherwise there is no way I will pass it. Sigh. 

I actually had enough about studying and I am actually thinking of quitting. Now you had chock right? I normally don't like giving up on things but this is different... 

Well, I will take that up another time, as now I have to get back to the books. 

xoxo

2nd Hunger games movie - Catching fire

The Hunger Games! 

The book trilogy that cached my heart. I don't like neither science fiction books or movies but the storyline in these books really attracted me and even if it was some time ago I read them I remember them perfectly. The books won many awards and even the first movie received very positive critics.   

You can read here what I though about the first movie... 

Yesterday Stephanie (my very sweet Swiss study-mate) and I went to the cinema to see the second Hunger Game-movie, Catching fire. You might be surprised when I say that I loved it. 

I don't know if it was the experience to go to the cinema (first time in maybe 6 months that I go), or that I didn't have any great expectations or, if it actually was a fantastic movie that made me enjoying every second of it, but I just loved it.  

The film is 2,5 hours long, we went quite late in the evening and before the movie I was afraid to fall asleep during the film as it is so long but I absolutely didn't. 

2,5 hours passed as it would had been 30 minutes and kept both of us thrilled from the beginning until the end.   

xoxo

Pub night with Johanna

To make up for the lazy night in on Friday, yesterday Johanna and I had dinner and then we went out for a night at the pub. Just like in the old days. Johanna and I met when we both lived in Ireland so you can image how many pub nights we have been having together back then.

We were supposed to meet up Laura and friends at Dubliners, the most popular pub(?) here in Stockholm but arriving there we stopped already at the entrance as it cost 100SEK to get in. Entrance fee at a pub? In a second we decided it wasn't worth it so we went on to Galways pub further down the street. I haven't been there in maybe 10 years but it looked exactly the same as before but what mostly surprised us was the mix of people in there - all types of style and ages, so cool.

xoxo

Stella, my new study mate :-)

This is Stella. My mum´s little star, and my "sister" :-)

Today Stella and I have spent the whole day together which actually is really cosy. 

I so much wish I could have my own little dog but as I am never at home and always around at different events and happenings I could absolutely keep a dog - here in Stockholm you can hardly bring your dog anywhere due to the allergy risk, sigh.

Unfortunately I have been forced to study (making a real audit plan) in a kind of conference call with my auditing group almost all day and I believe Stella thinks I am quite boring. But now I gonna bring her out for a walk around Söder and later Johanna is joining us for dinner. 

xoxo

Fredagsmys

"Fredagsmys" is a very commonly used Swedish expression meaning "cosy Friday".

When I lived abroad I kept seeing lots of facebook statue updates or blog posts about "fredagsmys" every single Friday and I kind of found it a bit ridiculous. Not until now, when I live in Sweden myself I have understood the true meaning of it. 

The Swedish cosy Fridays is an expression for staying in with friends (I guess you can use it if you are alone or with your partner too...) cooking dinner and eating together, watch the Swedish Idol, watch a movie, eat nice snacks and yea, just have a good (cosy) time together. 

Last night Cicci and I were planning to go out but just before we met we agreed to have a "fredagsmys"-evening instead. I cooked salmon with bulgur, vegetables and a feta-herb-sauce, we watched the Swedish Idol, ate crisps with dip and enjoyed some episodes of sex and the city. 

A great friend, good food and entertaining TV was just a perfect Friday evening. 

But now you non-Swedes might think, "she is becoming one of those boring Swedish never going out girls" and maybe I am, who knows? ;-)

xoxo

Good start of a hard day

Today will be all about studying so what could be a better start of the day than going to the gym. A soft start with a easier kind of yoga class. Feeling great after a big breakfast and the yoga and now I will pick up the dog (I am dog sitting today too) and then the afternoon will be spent studying. Sigh.

xoxo