Words fail me this morning..

Days of ravishment..

Love is in the air. Back in Gotland dressed in all its beauty (how astonishing after this harsh winter!) the cherry trees are in heavy bloom and the horses are frolicking in the green pastures..Here my sister and pretty Pastel are kissing in front of the apple trees in my Gotland garden..

Sweet Pastel happily free grazing in the garden. What a pleasant, quiet way to have your lawn mowed!

The cherry tree in the Gotland sunset. Picture taken from my bedroom window. How priviledged I am to lay eyes on this first thing in the mornings and last in the long, bright Scandinavian nights! Now I am eagerly waiting for all the cherries! Will they be good and sweet? I totally missed out on them last summer since I was away during the fruit bearing period and have no idea..

 Maybe..

After the long flight across the Atlantic..

..It was high time to check out the good ol´Baltic and the situation in the Swedish archipelago after the long harsh winter..

So I went almost directly to Sandhamn to check if my summer house was intact!  And it was! All the roses had died though. But I guess it a fair price one had to pay.. A lot of people found their roofs leaking and pipes destroyed..

   A few days after arrival we went with old friend Anders to empty his huge fish trap elaboratey set a nautical mile or so southwest of the island. The archipelago presented itself in its greatest splendour this Whitsun weekend..Warm, sunny and with little wind.

The huge trap is slowly raised hydraulically.

And floating!

Huge traps like this are scarce in the archipelago as are the professional fishermen in this areas. Thus expensive traps like this are partially financed by the state to help improve the poor fishing industry of the Baltic.

            About 60 whitefish (sik in Swedish) was the catch of the day.

                   ..of which I got a few as present! Great! I am now off to Gotland          toprepare dillcured whitefish in time for the Sunday brunch!To dill cure fish - especially  salmon - is a very old way to prepare and keep fish in Scandinavia. It is decicious and was once a way to conserve fish for a few days in the past times-of-no-fridges! 

Recipe here.

Exciting stuff..

..to be encountered in Granma's suitecase..Thalia climbs up and quickly embarks on the journey of female indulgence..

"Oh, a jar of Clinique face cream! How great it smells! I think I am worth it!"

"I think I need a little bit more..What do you think?"

"The month feels a bit dry.."

"Mmmmm..and let's not forget the throat.."

"And I forgot the hairstyle! Just a little bit more..How do I look? I am sooo happy Mum and Dad are at work and can't see this!"

"And the best of all - Granma did not look very angry.. "

"Beautiful as never before I went to the Washington Zoo and I rode this great bear! The Clinique cure worked wonders, I must say!!"

Saturday night..

..with neighbours and colleagues in Washington..

..at Susans's lovely house. She lived for many years in Pakistan and her house just across from where we live is furnished with a distinct Pakistani touch. 

The cook preparing chapatis while Thalia looks on. She was just going to travel across the street that night.

The dining room all set..

A lavish meal in the making..

Malcolm dashing back home across the street to get the teddy that Thalia left behind. 

The gorgeous mirror in the dining room was brought all the way from Pakistan.

The hostess was off in the following morning on a five week mission to Zimbabwe. Liz was off to the Sudan and Peter to the far East. Cool travelling cats they are, these World Bank people! 

A great Saturday night with great food that totally absorbed me to a point that I forgot to snap a picture of it! Shame on me! 
Anyway, i am so happy that Hinda and Malcolm are not travelling to far away places for a long time!

Drill, drill drill..

(Photo: AP)
I got the following from the BBC today - confirming my esteem for Arnold as a quite visionary Governor of California: (In comparison, I happened to live in California during the years of the "not-quite-so-visionary" Governor Ronald Reagan.)

"The full environmental impact of the oil spill deep under water in the Gulf of Mexico has yet to emerge. But there has already been a sizeable political fallout:

Two Republican governors, in California and Florida, have withdrawn their support for the idea of expanded offshore drilling and a number of Democrats in Congress have warned that they can no longer support energy reform legislation if it includes such provisions.

"You turn on television and you see this enormous disaster," said California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, "and you say to yourself, why would we want to take that risk?"

The governor promptly announced that he was no longer in favour of expanded drilling off the California coast, despite that fact that the state's empty coffers could badly use some extra cash."
However, it just might have been even more courageous if the Governor of California had spoken up during the last election campaign when candidate Sarah Palin stated her well known: "Drill, drill, drill."
 Remember the days ?

More news on the oil spill in New York Times today  

Birthday dinner on the terrace..

..is being prepared Tuesday night - a beautiful night in Washington DC. The weather was cooling off a bit after a very hot day in the capital. The roses were smelling heavenly in the evening and the tablecloth studded with rose petals. How romantic! Time for a kiss or two.. 

..and the champagne was in its icebucket and the Alaska salmon with sesame seeds tasted heavenly!

Hello Washington! 29 degrees C and 90 % humidity!

Full summer here and soooo hot!  Thalia was there to greet me at Dulles Airport when

 a rather tired granma arrived! Was I happy to see her! And her father of course. Here we are taking a walk to Cleveland Park. 

Celebrating in the cool, air conditioned kitchen with Macarons Washington style - devine and some excellent wine. Thalia is taught to say "Skal" - Swedish style! 

The house is close to the residence of Joe Biden and we are frequently saluted by the sirens of the motorcade flashing by morning, lunch and evening.The roses on the terrace garden are in full bloom and pink and smells marvellous!

Breakfast and birthday presents greeted me this morning! The sun is shining from a clear sky and Washington is so beautiful - trees in bloom and flowers all over the gardens.. Life is good!