My first Halloween pumpkin

I carved my first Halloween pumpkin. We bought a pumpkin from Lidl, one of the grocery stores with affordable prices. It is SEK9,90 per kg and this is a 5kg pumpkin. So about SEK50. 

First, estimate at where the lid of the pumpkin is to be carved out. I was afraid initially for the knife in case the pumpkin skin is hard. It is not hard at all and with a few thumps at the bottom of the knife, the knife went in and one follows the drawn line around the pumpkin. One has to carefully twist the knife a bit so that the knife does not detour much from the drawn line.

Now, the pumpkin lid is off

Then, remove all the fillings from the pumpkin with a spoon. Scrape everything out. 

Time to draw the eyes, nose and mouth. The reason the eyes and nose are in straight lines is because it is easy to carve them out. 

The Halloween pumpkin is done!

I crocheted a bag!

Next skill unlocked! Crochet. 

I crocheted a bag. I cannot believe that I could do it. Those who crochet say that it is easy. Now, I can say that too. I bought a DIY kit from Lidl, a grocery store. I thought it will be a kit for kids but it came with an instruction and materials. I was frustrated in the beginning because I did not understand. I searched through many articles and videos online. Finally, I understood.

I crocheted half of the bag in one evening, about 3 hours. Then, I completed the strap the next evening. I did not follow the instruction for the strap. The instruction to do the strap was a simple chain mask and I read that a chain mask needs to be strengthened as the strap can be pulled down by the contents of the bag. So, I made the strap thicker and now, the bag can definitely hold contents.

The kit came with beads to make braided beads at the bottom of the bag but I skipped it because I will give this bag to a kid. 

I am so proud of myself. Now I have a hobby to keep me occupied during my retirement. 

Tastebud : Kanto Bistro (2nd time)

7 October 2026

After dinner at Rara, we took a stroll to look for a place to have dessert. First, we went into Bröd & Salt (Bread & Salt) but they have buns only. Then, we passed by Mellqvist Kaffebar. There were so many people sitting outside on the outdoor serving enjoying their drinks and it was quite lively. I thought it was cold but I guess that don't stop anyone from enjoying a cold beer and wine. Continued on to the end of the street and we saw Kanto. We were here in 2024 to have Filipino food. I loved it here! 

We had ube cassava SEK120 and ube ice-cream SEK120. My friend had the ice-cream and I had the cassava. Price increased by SEK10 from the last time we were here. I had cassava too when I was here the first time.

Tastebud : Rara (2nd time)

7 October 2026

Today's dinner is Nepalese food. Well, the only significant dish is momo that is from Nepal. A different name for dumpling. Looks exactly like a dumpling, like how I make mine and the fillings are similar, pork, chicken, mushroom or prawn. The rest of the food in the menu is similar to Indian food. The restaurant was full and there were even walk-ins who had to wait. I was here in 2025 and had fried momos, curries, naan bread and starters with individual prices. Today's price, a year later, has increased, as expected.

We shared 3 smalls SEK365 - pork belly cooked in gochujang, puri, and spinach sprinkled with pomegranate seeds. SEK122 per plate is quite expensive since the portion is small. Also shared two of 8 momos SEK400 - one set with hot soup and the other with butter gravy (cooked in tomato sauce. Each set costs SEK200. 

Based on the description in the menu, puri dish is made of Semolina puff, potatoes, yogurt, mint &

coriander, tamarind and lentils. There is 5 balls. 

Chill belly - Slow cooked Pork belly, schezwan, gochuyang, soy, onion and paprika. There are 4 pieces of pork belly. It is sweet due to gochujang. No taste of sichuan pepper though although it is one of the ingredients in schezwan. I like this dish.

The momos. The one on the left is momo is tomato-butter sauce. We chose the filing with pork, shrimp and chives. The filings did not have any special taste. The sauce is good. I hope there were 8 momos because I am seeing 7 momos in the photo. The one on the right is momo in Nepali hot soup that is infused with Himalayan spices. I can taste the spices and I prefer this compared to the butter sauce. 

Tastebud : Farsi (2nd time)

30 August 2026

Iranian food for lunch at Farsi located in Mall of Scandinavia. I was here last year and had lamb stew. This time, my friend and I had grilled plate for two persons - Grilled lamb, grilled ground lamb, grilled chicken, cucumber yoghurt, grilled tomato and salad (some cut tomatoes, onions and cucumber). With a plate full of rice. So full. Shared between two persons SEK499. Not spicy. Meat is juicy. Not the kind of food I will go back to again. I thought I could not finish my rice but I did. We chose this place because all the other places were packed as a football match was taking place in 2 hours' time and many people were in the mall occupying the restaurants to have lunch and beer. 

Thailand Festival 2026

21 July 2026

I am at Thailand Festival this year. I was here in 2018 and 2019. I enjoyed during those visits because I got some freebies and there were cultural tents too which are not related to food. Potpouri, fruit carving. I thought that I would get to experience something similar this year. No, unfortunately. There were MANY food tents which sell similar food - papaya salad, mango sticky rice, porkball skewers, noodles or rice with beef or pork, cold drinks and smoothies, Singa beer everywhere. The event is for 5 days! There were parasols, benches, tables in abundance for visitors to enjoy their meals. They really thought this event well! There is security too that requests to check your bags to remove any liquid. I suppose this is a method for them to encourage folks to buy drinks from the food tents. Singa beer 330ml for SEK93. Daylight robbery. I got mango smoothie for SEK99. Also daylight robbery. Not fresh mango, but frozen mango chunks from a sealed package (saw that the brand is Simply Good). Felt cheated by this.

Once the performances ended, two persons came up and sang loudly at the top of their lungs - seem like karaoke to me. So loud that my friend and I needed to leave the stage area to hear each other. 

Most of the food was pre-cooked and ready to be served. Except for papaya salad. The food was cold when we bought ours.

Mangosteens, rambutan and durian available too. Seems expensive for me. SEK130 for the rambutan packet.

Blueberry picking at Lovön

19 July 2026

Blueberry picking adventure continues to today. Yesterday, I was at Översjön, dissatisfied with my picking as I spent most of my time looking for blueberry bushes rather than picking them. Today, I cycled to Lovön. I was here in 2020 where we cycled to Lovön and passed by blueberry bushes with large blueberries. I did not get the chance to cycle back here as I found other places to pluck blueberries. Today's weather was not sunny but I was adamant to continue with my plan to pick blueberries. The weather forecast showed rain and it rained on my way to the island. My arms and hands were in physical pain and I questioned my decision. But I just went ahead because I know I am going to get good berries and I don't like to give up. Either I finish it or I don't start it. 

For the destination, I chose K2 Scoutstuga - Mälarscouterna, 178 93 Drottningholm, also another scout hut. I did not see any scouts. Distance is 19km and it will take 1 hour 5 minutes. So, the way to the destination took longer with a distance at 22km because I had a problem understanding the direction in Google Map. For the way back, it is 19km but still, it took me longer to get home as there are slopes. Also, Google Map did not give me a cycling path for the route back on Lovön (before I reached Drottningsholm Palace) and I cycled on the main road that has a speed limit of 70km/hour! Shit. I was stressed and prayed that I don't get hit by a vehicle. Thankfully, only 2 vehicles passed me and gave me ample of space. I tried to cycle as fast as I could but I am not a pro-cyclist and I had been doing squats for 2.5 hours picking blueberries. I did not use the same way back where I came from because I did not remember the way - sense of direction is bad in me. 

Stop at Drottningholm Palace on my way to the destination.

I stopped about 2km before reaching the scout hut as I saw blueberry bushes. I parked my bicycle, took a selfie for check-in point to my boyfriend.

A photo to show that my bicycle is locked and fastened to a tree trunk. Evidence to insurance in case my bicycle gets stolen. Home insurance covers household items, including a bicycle but it has to be purchased during the insurance period. But thankfully, there was no one in the area as it was drizzling and the rain came back after a pause. I saw a jogger when I was finished, 2.5 hours later. 

I did not have to move far to pick the blueberries. The bushes are everywhere! Hands were unfortunately in pain from the direct contact with the continuous cold rain. I did not have my gloves on me. Thankfully, I was wearing a thumb-hole dri-fit top and I pulled the sleeve over my thumb and covered the hand. Pain became manageable. 

I am happy today. 878g. Legs exhausted. Bum hurts because I did not wear my padded cycle shorts. My colleague commented that she did not wear padded cycle shorts when she was younger and it was fine for her. I said that my bum hurts if I don't and she mentioned it is dependent if the saddle is narrow or wide. I have no idea what my saddle is but a quick search on the Internet now explains that mountain bike (mine is a mountain bike) has narrow saddles. I thought I could manage without my padded shorts but I know now that I can't. And I know now that I have a narrow saddle on my bike. 

Blueberry picking at Översjön

This weekend on both Saturday and Sunday, I picked blueberries from the forest. I fill up the freezer with a one year's supply that will last until the next summer. I am extremely grateful that my knees are strong as I could squat sufficiently long to pick the blueberries. I did not have the blueberry rake that will speed up the picking and one need not squat too long. So, I picked the berries by hand. I must love picking berries because I did that when it rained today (Sunday) and I do not like to go out when it rains. But I was very adamant about my plan. 

I was very nervous initially as I was doing this alone and my sense of direction is very bad. So, I was worried that I might get lost in the forest but I was quite confident that Google Map will bring me out. I always have my boyfriend to lead the way as he has excellent sense of direction. He said that they learnt orienteering in school and he was often in the forest with his mum to pluck mushrooms when he was little. 

18 July 2026

Today, I cycled to Översjön (the Over Lake). I asked the Internet which nature reserve or forest in Stockholm has blueberries. I cycle 10km to work so I know I could cycle that distance and maybe slightly further. So, the Internet suggested this place, the east side of Översjön, amongst others and I looked at the map. I chose the Scout cottage (Översjön, Hässelby Scoutkår Hajkstuga) as my destination. It looks like a good route with 13.8km and about 45 minutes. 

I started my ride at 10am. When I reached the entrance of Norra Järvafältet (north of the Järva field - pronounced as Yar-va) nature reserve about half an hour later at KM10, I took a picture to send to my boyfriend to update him on my whereabouts. So, if I go missing, he has some information.

The path to my destination is a nice gravel road. I saw many families with children taking a walk or visiting the barns that have grazing animals (cows and sheeps). I thought that this is a safe place then. There are also many benches. I was not the only cyclist that day. I even saw tourists on bicycles. How did they even know of this place? Is this recommended to tourists too? 

Finally, I arrived at the scout's cottage about 10.55am. Right opposite the cottage is the lake. Another check-in photo to my boyfriend. 

I had no idea where to start to look for blueberries. So, I asked Chatgpt where I should start. I gave information on where I was by sharing a printscreen from Google Map. It suggested me to start northwest about 150meters as it is better to be further from the waters. 

So, I led my bicycle and looked around, and it was right. I saw some blueberry bushes! It was, unfortunately, up a slope. So, I hiked upwards and into the forest to be away from the walking trail. 

I borrowed my boyfriend's 2m security cable that is used to lock bicycles to objects that are not meant for bicycle parking. In this case, a tree trunk. I attached it to my bicycle lock. I took a photo to show that my bicycle is locked in case my bicycle goes missing and I can show this photo to the insurance company that my bicycle is locked with an insurance-approved lock. Sweden's home insurance includes loose items in the household but the items has to be bought during the insurance period. 

As I feared, I got lost as I wondered further into the forest. I got off the walking trail. So, Google Map helped me to get me back on the main trail. I checked the map to make sure my distance to the main trail is shorter and along the way, I saw the walking trail and finally, the scout huts. Phew. I was extremely nervous when I realised that I was lost. 

On the way back to my bicycle from the scout huts, I saw more blueberry bushes on a slope close to my bicycle which I missed! I could have stayed there and plucked many. Today's pick weighed about 600g. It was 2pm when I left the area.  

Ocean Bus Stockholm

15 July 2026

Finally, I get to experience the amphibian bus! I have always wanted to do this. I see it and I always thought that I have to try it. I booked this the day before because my colleague commented that it was boring for me to be at home after work on a sunny day. So, I checked out activities to do in Stockholm and came across this activity. And I thought, yes, I should do this tomorrow because it is going to be sunny. Not only was it sunny today, it was really hot. I could feel the intense heat from the road. 30 degrees today. I longed for this temperature during winter when it is -5 degrees wondering when summer will arrive. Now that it is here, it is really hot but I appreciate that I can wear shorts and be in sleeves. However, I applied sunblock and had a thin windjacket on to cover my arms. Also, had an umbrella with me. I walked from my workplace to Tres Taco Joint before the activity and I was the only one with an umbrella. 

The amphibian bus has a propeller and a rudder underneath it so it could move in the waters. The tyres do not fold upwards and are still under the bus. A ticket costs SEK329 for the time 6.30 - 7.30pm. Earlier hours cost SEK399. Another slot for 7-8pm costs SEK329. The experience took about 55 minutes. We were driven around some parts of Östermalm for the first 20 minutes and then went into the waters for 30 minutes. There was a guide to explain on some landmarks and historical sites along the way. It was in English as this is obviously, an activity for tourists. 

This is the area where the bus drove into the waters - in Djurgården, right after the diplomatic area where some embassies are located. The captain accelerated and we went in with a loud splash. Quite fun! 

The captain gave a check before we went inside the waters.

The other amphibian bus that we met along the way.

It was nice to see some of the buildings from waters. Here is the Nordic Museum. My favourite museum.

Then, passed by Vasa museum.

The bus/boat made a turn at Gröna Lund amusement park and we headed back to shore.

It was a lovely ride on the bus/boat. Fun experience to get as a tourist!