why having a long-distance relationship is not as scary as it sounds

Okay so maybe the title is a bit mis-leading. It's not a lecture on why everyone in the world should also go ahead and do it, more just to tell you the good things about it I have so far experienced.

The main one being the wonders of facebook, skype, texting etc. Without which I would not be able to hear about  the completely different yet still magically wonderful time my other half is having in the beautiful Swedish city of Göteborg.

The second good thing is that actually - from England - Göteborg is really not so far. So last week I got to visit. Another country ticked off my wishlist to visit!

But I have to admit that after a months' worth of language course in Italia, soaking up the culture and slowly filling my brain with Italian idioms, I was not at all prepared for the completely opposite attitude to everything which Sweden holds! Nor was I prepared to be spoken to in Swedish as soon as I landed...

But I was so so so glad to see the boy. Glad to see more than just his head and shoulders (from the skype conversations). Even more so to see him happily cooking up a perfect feast of meatballs and  Gräddsås, order a table for two in Swedish and show me the sights of Göteborg. We were blessed with some absolutely gorgeous crisp Autumn weather - which according to him was very lucky considering how wet it had been before I arrived...

So we wandered hand-in-hand round the city, hopping on trams, drinking and eating coffee, cake, steak and beer, going to the Opera, meeting his friends and lazing about - making the most of the three whole days and four nights we had together.

I loved the City he's chosen to spend his year abroad in. It's vibrant and fun, super-slick and super-modern and seriously eye-catching. If not horrifically cold in the winter time... But it truly seems like a worthwhile place for a musician to be in.

The following photos are a combination of the beautiful things I saw and had to capture and the on-going, un-spoken competition between the boyfriend and me about who could take the most arty photo... He won... unfortunately...

An afternoon spent trying (and failing) to find a waterfall

The Opera house where we saw Rusalka

Inside the Palm House 

The wonderful Autumn sunshine

A place which literally translates as the fish church  where they "worship Cod".
Thanks Hugo ... Hilarious.

The standard building in Göteborg

The sunset from Hugo's bedroom window the night before we said goodbye.

After a stunning five days in such a magical City with such a wonderful boy, I was sorry to leave the two of them! But now, as I've officially started my erasmus year abroad too (more to come on that one), I'm looking forward to sharing the Italian experience with him when he comes to visit me. It's always good to have something to look forward to, and counting down the days to our trip to Milan is right at the top of my list at the moment!!