Mastering Ä Masters

GRADUATED!

2013-06-04T18:00:00.000+02:00

Well, the day finally came! After feverishly working on the thesis for almost 6 months, it was presented and just like that, the degree came to an end. It is almost hard to believe... All in all, I am very happy with what I have been able to accomplish and knowing that everything I have done has been to the best of my abilities. I owe a great deal of thanks to all who have supported me through this journey - especially my family. I have the best wife and kids in the world! After taking a little break and spending time with them, it will be time to focus on the future, whatever that may hold... Here's to the rest of the year! Cheers.

Russia, Estonia, and Finland!

2013-04-03T21:49:00.002+02:00

Recently it was my wife's birthday and she decided she wanted to take a Baltic Sea Cruise to celebrate. As we are living in Sweden it only made sense to visit places close by that we otherwise would never think of visiting. So - Russia, Estonia, and Finland were on the list for this trip. For us, Estonia proved to be the hidden jewel - we loved old Tallinn with all its medieval charm. It was also fun to have our kids along during this trip, they thought being 'on a boat' was the coolest! Time for another mega-picture post - here we go!

Aiden getting his bed "comfy" - He loved the top bunk!

Kensie enjoying her upgrade from toddler to twin bed!

You would think that for a family of four eating twice a day,
the cruise line would just supply one family dining card...
Why would they do that when you can get 32 cards
to keep track of instead? Now that's efficiency!

The look of eating fresh shrimp and caviar for the first time -
not so sure I actually buy the 'thumbs up'!

Nothing beats ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT CHOCOLATE ICE-CREAM!!

Welcome to Tallinn, Estonia!

Entering the old city!

An old wooden door - pretty awesome!

Some of the old houses from the early 14th Century. Notice the wooden
beams extruding at the top of the homes - they are pulley systems used
for getting goods into the 2nd and 3rd floors of the homes.

I love the medieval architecture.

An old church in Tallinn - Check out the size of the window!

One of the old wall towers...

Aiden wanted a picture of this street because he noticed
the first three letters of the street's name were the same
as his - Aida Street. Always so observant!

Aiden saw this "train" and decided we needed our next car to be just like it!

More neat architecture.

Amber was convinced we needed a ride more like this - out-of-control!

Welcome to the beauty salon in the cellar...
for some reason I kept thinking Sweeny Todd!

Another neat old house - love the extended, enclosed balcony.

Amber feeling right at home! :)

Ships made from Amber...

and an amazing Amber tree.

An old cathedral (Alexander Nevsky Cathedral) in Tallinn.

Another Amber shop - the city was full of them!

Here is a scorpion attacking a bug which got petrified in Amber.

Whilst beautiful, Tallinn was sooo cold -
with the wind chill, it was 34 below freezing (F) to be exact!

Due to the weather drinks were limited to HOT options.

"Not a bad home!" says Amber...

After so much cold and walking, hunger was setting in.
Welcome to Olde Hansa!

The dazed look on Aiden's face once getting out of the cold was priceless!

Kensie - returning from what she called the "spooky" bathroom...

Playing with the decor!

Aiden needed his turn too.

Medieval meal of fillet minion, beans, and I'm not sure what the rest is...
but it was great!

Here we have bear, elk, and moose - All delicious!

Interior of Olde Hansa.

Tallinn main city square

Another exit on the old city wall.

I love when you find a little home smashed in between to large buildings!

I thought this particular gated home had some flair!

Aiden and Kensie give 3 thumbs up for cruising
through a frozen sea!

A view of the sea - the ice was between 25-75 cm thick
(12 and 30 inches) for most the cruise. Our ship was
basically an ice-breaker!

At Russia the sea was too frozen for the ship to dock,
so a another boat pushed from right outside our window.
I became aware of this when Aiden said,
"Why is the other boat crashing us Dad?"

Nothing like being greeted into Russia by a live band playing music in
temperatures 20 degrees Fahrenheit BELOW freezing!

On the shuttle buss into the city with one of the craziest drivers ever!
Me to Amber "Take a picture of us, it might be our last!"

St. Isaac's Cathedral, St. Petersburg, Russia

More Russian architecture.

Irony - The 'slippery when wet' sign is in the middle of a frozen canal!

Kazan Cathedral

A store on the main street of St. Petersburg.

Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood - probably our favorite photo of the trip!

And this is the consequence of having others take your photo's...

Some serious iron fence outside the church.

No explanation.
(Although, notice the speed at which they are approaching.)

The interior of the church was equally impressive!
Everything was mosaic's done in tile!

The ceiling.

Everything was so ornate - shoes had to be covered upon entering the church.

Another picture showing the extensive mosaics.

The ceiling of one of the domes...

Classic! Enough said.

I was amazed by all the overhead lines!

A "hidden" church we spotted.

Only in Russia - a Russian car advertising some sort of a hostel named
'Friends Place' - I know if they have a car like that, I trust them!

I have never had such a difficult time ordering McDonald's, it came down
to 'point the picture' and 'hold up the number of fingers' for quantity method.

The Russian dolls came in all sizes and price ranges...
This doll was about as tall as Kensie!

This doll was one of our favorites - only $400!!
Too bad I am on a student budget.

Then of course we have our own Russian doll!

Aiden had his own Russian flair he wanted to show!

An old Cathedral turned into a Russian navy training center.

By the time we got back to our ship, the water was already refrozen!

Kensie loving the Russian doll souvenir doll she received.

Welcome to Helsinki - the Helsinki Cathedral!

A view from the Cathedral looking over the main town square.

Looking back up at the cathedral...

For some reason, the wife and kids can never resist these! :)

The Bridge of Love filled with love locks!

Stairs? No way - Aiden & I saw opportunity for a slide!

Uspenski Cathedral in Helsinki

Another view of the amazing exterior!

Interior was not quite as impressive...
we were spoiled from our previous church in Russia.

Walking down the main stretch in Helsinki

Amber was thrilled with the vuoden uutuudet (new products).

Aiden in front of the public outdoor ice rink -
the Finnish National Theater is in the background.

Helsinki train station.

It seriously looks like a building out of Gotham City.

A close up of the statues.

Speaking of statues... what about a gold George Bush? Fail.

Although nothing says fail like this sign -
At least their probably honest I guess!

A panorama shot of old Tallinn, Estonia.
Make sure to click the photo for a larger view.

The band is back! I leave you with the farewell we received when leaving Russia. Until the next post - Enjoy!

Above the Arctic Circle

2013-03-15T14:23:00.000+01:00

So, my wife and I decided to head above the arctic circle in search for the northern lights. Unfortunately, due to the weather, it was too cloudy and stormy to see anything. However in our journey from Kiruna, Sweden to the Lofoten Islands, Norway, we saw some pretty spectacular scenery! So here are a bunch of pictures from the trip! Click on any picture for a larger view. Enjoy!

We arrived in Kiruna in the afternoon, but by by the darkness it felt like midnight!

After checking into the hotel, it was moose burgers and 'chili'.

The next morning we realized that the main transportation was not
bikes like in southern Sweden, but sleds! They even lock them up!

One of the unique buildings in Kiruna.

The old Kiruna church.

The church bell tower starting ringing just as I snapped this picture.

Another view of the old Kiruna church.

Kiruna is a mining city and the mine has gotten so large that the ground under
the city has gotten unstable, therefore the city is in the process of moving.
While many homes will be destroyed, some of the older historical homes will
be relocated. The above home is one of the homes they will relocate.

Another home which will be relocated.

Check out the height of the plowed snow on left.

Seriously?! This just assured us we were far north!

The outside of the Ice Hotel!

Amber entering the grounds of the Ice Hotel

The Ice Bar in the Ice Hotel. Notice the frozen fish sipping their drink.

Amber relaxing at the Ice Bar in the Ice Hotel

Another view of the Ice Bar sitting/standing area.

Ice Hotel reception

Myself through an ice pillar.

The Ice Hotel main hall.

Amber 'chilling' in the Ice Hotel common area.

Attending church in the Ice Hotel Chapel.

A room in the Ice Hotel that was inspired by the re-growth of nature
in the aftermath of the Japan tsunami disaster.

Another Ice Hotel room which had a couple ice tracks that you could send
rubber balls rolling down, which would eventually roll around the bed!

The Ice Hotel observation deck for northern light viewing.

A corridor to the outside of the Hotel.

Another room called the 'Dragon Room'.

A close up of the dragon ice sculpture.

Another room called 'The Nest'.

'Cleaning' the Ice Hotel.

This room I believe was called 'The Abduction' - out of control!

Sámi tribe knives with sheaths carved from reindeer antlers.

Another old church outside of the Ice Hotel.

A Sámi cultural center.

Leaving Sweden (and the sun) while on the way to the Lofoten Islands in Norway.

Welcome to Norway - So much snow, wind, and bad weather!
I am still trying to figure out why I still had my sun glasses on!

A hostel we stayed at on our way to towards the Lofoten Islands.
Check out the view of the fjords from the bedroom windows!

Driving down the coast there were some awesome bridges!

A view from the bridge above.

Check out the color of the waters in this part of northern Norway!

The mountainous islands were amazing!

Anyone for a picnic?

A stunning view of the Lofoten Islands.

One of the many small villages we passed on our drive!

More beautiful scenery.

These mountains looked as if they had been dusted with powdered sugar!

If it wasn't for the snow, you would think this was on a Caribbean Island!

Some view those homes have...

Dried fish (cod) is one of Northern Norway's largest exports.

A close up of the drying fish heads!
Poor pregnant Amber, I thought she was going to lose it!

Lots and Lots of drying fish...

The Island we stayed the night on...

Enjoying the sunrise - we stayed in one of those red houses you see.

Another morning picture.

The small wharf of the fishing village.

More scenery...

We finally made it to the end of the road where we got out and walked...

...Until we could walk no more! Here Amber is at the end of Norway - literally!
Next stop would be Greenland once you cross the ocean!

The colors of winter.

A large rock sits wedged between the two walls.

A boat sits for the winter awaiting restoration.

The last island has the smallest name you can have!

Looking back at the island of Å!

As we were driving back, a rainbow appeared and I can finally say we
found the 'end of the rainbow', but there was no gold... just a splash!

Driving past another beach on the way back.

The waters were much rougher here - lots of waves.

Overlooking another fjord.

A traditional viking lodge.

All of Norway's beauty is a strong point. Its prices are not! While this fast food we
ate was really, really good, the double combo meal set us back $50 - ouch!

Hilarious translation! This sign was posted above our toilet in the hotel.

A panorama of the Lofoten Islands.

All in all, it was a wonderful trip and we would love to get back in the summer and see the scenery then. We drove a total of almost 750 miles over two countries and numerous mountain passes. I lost track of the number of bridges crossed after 12 and know we went through over 14 tunnels (the longest almost five miles long). In the four days of driving we averaged 48.8 mpg in our rented diesel auto which was appreciated as gas averaged close to $9.00 a gallon! Until next time - c'est la vie!

Good Bye 2012, Hello 2013!

2013-01-14T21:41:00.003+01:00

So here is a small update of the last few months... First off, they have been a whirlwind! So much school and holidays... but now, I have finished the third semester and had a chance to enjoy the holidays with my family. This means I am now officially in my last semester! So next up is pushing hard through my thesis and discovering what adventures lie ahead... Now on to the pictures!

Who says you can't find traditional American food in Stockholm?
@Flippin' Burgers, Stockholm

My homemade tri-layered pistachio dessert!

A couple weeks prior to Christmas the snow came... and never left!

In Sweden, this is what you will find plowing all roads... Bring on the snow!

As it was below freezing for so long, there became a permanent layer of
snow on the roads. This meant taking the kids to school by sled became
a daily routine...

...and they loved every minute of it...

...even when the occasional crash occurred!

Decorating the tree - yes, the lights were that bright!

Which is better - the cookie or the dough?

Kenise thought she was so hilarious... She was!

Eating Christmas breakfast:
Homemade Cinnabons, Bacon, Eggs, Rice Pudding & Fresh OJ!

Aiden playing with his train set Christmas gift...
apparently more popular than the puzzle! :)

Enjoying a new family board game.

The JOY of winning!

Christmas windows at NK (large department store in Stockholm).
This window was decorated with the theme of Pippi's Christmas.

The Christmas Dinner spread - with my cousins and aunt - sooo good!

I guess my daughter needed something, but never quite made it...
found her sleeping like this! The holidays are so much work!!

Celebrating the New Year - Releasing a Sky Candle...

Off with the old and in with the new!
Here's to a fantastic 2013 - Cheers!

Halloween in Stockholm

2012-10-29T18:05:00.002+01:00

Well, among all the chaos with my school classes, homework, and studies (hence the tired looking expressions), I decided to take a night out to celebrate my birthday and Halloween with my wife in Stockholm. Here are some pictures from the evening!!

Kensie and I enjoying the train ride into Stockholm.

Amber and Aiden

Skyfall on Opening Day! What a great flick!

We found a dedicated Halloween store in Stockholm...

....and had some fun!

What is this?

Looks like a good place for Dinner!

Trick or Treat!

....and it is just as crazy on the inside!

Oh glorious Halloween!

The ambiance could not have been better!

All this decoration is put up over 2 day and left for roughly 2 weeks...

FYI, The food was so good we forgot to take a picture!!

Turns out they sell "Utah Beach" in Stockholm!
Strange I have never heard of this before...

The Summer!

2012-08-06T13:05:00.002+02:00

With the summer being full of visitors, traveling, and time with the kids - blogging took a hiatus. However, now that school is soon starting up I thought it would be time to post some pictures of some of the random summer events.

Waterfall in Norway located in a Valley said to be one of Norway's most beautiful.

Shopping at "Bryggen" in Bergen, Norway

The old town square at Bergen, Norway

Sunset in Norway

Trying Monk Fish - An extremely ugly, yet tasty fish.

In the Fjords of Norway.

A small village church in Norway.

Another Norwegian city... The water was always so still with amazing reflections.

Boating in Norway.

Homes on an island in the fjords.

More fjords... The weather was stunning!

At the peak of a mountain in Norway!

Bergen, Norway

Aiden driving a kids tractor for his birthday...

and an oil truck...

and a train... For some reason he always picked the green vehicle.

Old school rafting with the kids.

Kensington during Midsummer. 21+ hours of daylight - the kids were in heaven!

Folk dancing in Oslo, Norway.

An old Norwegian storage house.

A Norwegian Stave Church.

Front of the Stave Church

Church Details... All out of wood - incredible.

Vigeland Park - Oslo, Norway

It is hilarious how many people have obviously held the baby's hand.

Coast of Oslo.

A homemade Salmon Burger with fresh Salmon.

Enjoying the sites of Stockholm.

The oldest town square in Stockholm - In 1520, 90 people were hung and
beheaded here in what became known as the Stockholm Bloodbath.

The Vasa museum - The original Vasa ship from the 1600's.

Enjoying a walk along a harbor just south of Stockholm...

Another picture from the walk.

A train stop between Oslo and Bergen - Elevation was quite high as seen
from the snow on the ground (this was in July).

Another train stop at one of highest points of the journey... Cold, Foggy and Wet!

Getting the Balcony Summer Ready!

2012-05-02T23:00:00.000+02:00

Close up of 1st flower pot

Close up of 2nd flower pot

The start of my salsa garden - Tomatoes, Jalapenos, Anaheim, Bell Peppers

Hilarious that she got herself in and then started to laugh!

Our Balcony - 9:15pm and still some light from the sunset

Our new balcony furniture - good summer nights ahead!

Well, between all the homework, I finally had some time to finish cleaning off the balcony, assemble some furniture and plant my 'salsa garden', herbs, and some flowers. I can't wait to spend the summer evenings eating good food and enjoying the sunset outside. In the fall, I have plans for some awesome fresh salsa!

A New Level of Freedom

2012-04-29T22:24:00.000+02:00

My boy received his first bike this weekend! Talk about excitement. We could not get him to leave it alone for two minutes. He wanted to take it everywhere... and we let him - even to Central Stockholm. It was hilarious watching him ride down the main street dinging the bikes bell for people to move out of the way. Each time he would ding it, people would literally jump! It was nice to get back into our small city where he had a little more open space...

More Baking...

2012-04-26T22:12:00.000+02:00

Apple Crisp

Paron Smulpaj

I tried out two new recipes this last week... One was for 'Apple Crisp' and the other was for 'Paron Smulpaj'. Both were absolutely delicious!

A Weekend in Oslo...

2012-04-15T22:00:00.002+02:00

For Amber's birthday she wanted a short get-away, so we went by train to check out Oslo for a weekend. Lucky for us the weather was absolutely perfect - warm and no rain! Some highlights from the weekend for Amber was the Viking Ship Museum, Vigeland Sculpture Park, and watching The Hunger Games. Being the 'design' guy I am, I really enjoyed it all, but also thought the modern architecture of the Opera House was pretty cool... Here are some pictures:

Electric cars were all over the city, but this had to be our favorite!

On the roof of the Oslo Opera House

Oslo Opera House (Its right on the water)

Olso Main Street (right outside of the train station)

One of the many sculptures at Vigeland Sculpture Park

It took 3 carvers 14 years to complete this...

Another Sculpture.

Showing the detail on a Viking Ship.

A view of the entire viking ship (it was built sometime prior to 800AD).

Hobbies and Inspiration

2012-04-07T12:58:00.000+02:00

I have always had an interest in piano playing / music. It turns out that one of pianists I admire has put together a new group - The Piano Guys - and produced some amazing stuff. Some of it original and some of it different arrangements of existing music (e.g. the video above). The filming locations mixed with the music is just inspirational. If you haven't heard/seen them yet. Check out their youtube channel for all their music and videos! Be prepared as you might lose the next hour of your life...

School for Everyone

2012-03-27T16:49:00.000+02:00

A lot has occured since I last wrote. First, I have finished another class - only 2 more to go before summer break! Secondly, we celebrated Waffle Day on the 25th of March. As you can see the kids enjoyed their waffles a little earlier in the week at school (in case your wondering, Aiden is focused on the other kids starting to play on the playground). This brings me to the last big change - The kids are now officially in preschool and love it. Aiden has discovered biking and taught Kensie how to tag along for a ride. He also played with 'real' Lego (or cubes as he calls them) and was captivated for over an hour and a half building, which for Aiden is a very long time on one particular toy. So now the whole family is engaged in School. Myself at Stockholm University, Amber taking Swedish, and the kids in preschool. Good Times.

Fettisdag (Fat Tuesday)

2012-02-21T17:23:00.000+01:00

Happy Fat Tuesday! The wonderful day that just about everyone in Sweden eats 'Semla' (sweet bun with almond paste and cream). I got some for us from Vetekatten, rated to have one of the best 'semla' in Stockholm - made fresh every day. Delicious!

Interesting fact: In 1771, King Adolf Frederick of Sweden died of digestive problems after a large meal which was topped off by fourteen helpings of Semla... I guess there can be too much of a good thing!

While on the topic of food, here are some other meals we have made from scratch lately.

Grandpas Honey Ribs

Teriyaki Chicken

Hidden Talents

2012-02-12T21:13:00.000+01:00

Everyone has hidden talents and I just discovered one that my Aunt has... knitting barbie clothes. She knits them for grand kids to play with when staying at their home. I couldn't believe that she comes up with the designs herself! Here are some examples:

Lost and Found

2012-02-07T22:35:00.000+01:00

When coming to Sweden, I knew I was going to be giving up both Root Beer and Dew for the next few years... little did I know a small store near us imports the drinks from the U.S. So, it looks like after a hiatus of 6 months, I am being reunited with my old friends! Unfortunately, it does come at a price... a meager $2.22 per can. I guess each can will just taste that much sweeter.

Lessons Kids Learn...

2012-01-20T22:17:00.000+01:00

The kids provide hilarious moments on a continuous basis... here are some recent ones!

Its OK to blend in, and hide like a vampire...

Having food stuck on your face, knowing it, and doing nothing about it is funny.

Comfort is lying on top of the duvet, not under it... and who needs a pillow?!

Sweden is not that far from the US, I can touch both at the same time!

The Nature of Man (We found him like this after he went to the toilet and never returned).

Here we go again...

2012-01-17T10:30:00.000+01:00

And so the second term begins. Hard to believe I am 25% finished, so statistics update - I have finished reading:
31 Articles
8 Books
and written:
9 Papers consisting of
29,014 Words
The second term starts with a global strategic management class, should be interesting!

Happy New Year!

2011-12-31T19:15:00.000+01:00

Kitchen / Dining

Living Room

Bedroom 1

Bathroom 1

Bedroom 2

Bathroom 2

Closet

View from Balcony

Just a year ago we were discussing applying to Graduate School in Stockholm Sweden... a year later we are not only living in Sweden, but 25% finished with the degree. It truly is amazing how much can change in just a year! Hopefully next year wont be quite as stressful, but equally full of adventure! Above is our apartment which is now put together and clean. Happy New Year!

Fire!

2011-12-23T15:48:00.000+01:00

So, just as we are preparing dinner we hear an alarm go off, not thinking much about it we continue to prepare to eat when we start smelling an extensive amount of smoke... I open the apartment door to see if everything is alright and am bombarded with more smoke! So Amber and I grab the kids and head out. Turns out the first floor of our apartment complex was on fire. Luckily, the fire department came quick and put it out, so it did not spread to the second floor. Other than some smoke smell in the apartment, everything was alright! Thank goodness... if I would have had to reassemble all the IKEA furniture, I might have gone crazy...

Jet-Lagged on a Train...

2011-12-11T16:09:00.000+01:00

One of the best days in Sweden yet... I picked up the family from the airport! While the kids were extremely excited to see me and talked non-stop for the first half hour, it did not take long for the lack of sleep to set in and they were out... luckily we had a long train ride ahead of us!

Great Food, Atmosphere, and Friends...

2011-12-08T00:28:00.000+01:00

Tonight after a full day of studies, I went to a restaurant in Stockholm known for its out-of-control decor/atmosphere with a couple friends. The restaurant is called Peppar and had great food at a reasonable price! They periodically change their decor according to the holiday/season. Right now, as seen above, the theme is Christmas - so fun. I love hanging out with friends outside of the school atmosphere, it is so much more relaxing...

Destroyed Hands

2011-12-07T00:03:00.000+01:00

13 Hours of putting together 6 Chairs, 2 Beds, 2 Lamps, 1 Crib, 1 Sofa, 1 Coffee Table, 1 Nightstand, and some bathroom cupboards all from Ikea = some very painful hands, but an apartment that is starting to feel like a home! I must say, I am quite done with the do it yourself assembly for a while... Pictures of the finished products will soon follow!

Chocolate Ball

2011-12-03T19:29:00.000+01:00

I think I found it... The largest chocolate ball you can buy - Weighs more then my children at birth 5kg (11 lbs)! It is slightly cheaper then my kids were as this delectable treat can be all yours for a measly 295 SEK ($43.50). Enjoy!

For the record, while I resisted the chocolate ball, I could not resist the princess tårta next to it (which happened to be 50% off. Needless to say, it came home with me.

Work Hard, Play Hard!

2011-11-13T23:14:00.000+01:00

In life there needs to be a balance. With our school class having worked extremely hard over the last 3 months, it was time to have some good times! 29 Students, 1 Restaurant, 1 Bar and 6 hours later... good times were had. I can now officially say I am in one of the best group of Masters students ever! On to the last class of the semester...

Moving Along...

2011-11-07T23:12:00.001+01:00

The second class is officially done, which means 12.5% finished! Consequently, up to this point I have read 7 books, 13 articles, and written 7 papers totaling 17,589 words for 2 teachers. Get tired just thinking about it...