Adiós a mi hermano, Bíodh am iontach ar an gcuid eile de do thuras! (a PRIZE to the first one who can translate that!)

Dropped Tom at the Gothenburg airport this morning, as he joins his family in Barcelona and Dublin, and I took over the little Peugeot for the next few days. Didn't have too much trouble getting onto the highway headed north. I think I only had to turn around once to correct myself. Getting the Scandinavian maps for my GPS was probably the best thing I did to prepare for this trip. We didn't need to use it as long as we were being driven around, but the past few days it was a very necessary tool.
As I drove north, I entered Skaraborgs län, the area where Terry's grandmother and great-grandparents lived before emigrating to America. I plan to look for the places they actually lived in a couple of days......So I was surprised to see a sign on the highway pointing to Sodra Härene Kyrka (Church) and passed right by the very beautiful church next to the road. I also saw signs pointing the was to the villages I remember researching for these families......this search may be easier than I thought!

This area is so much different than the Småland area where my great-grandparents came from. I have seen many less rocky areas here, and lots of very large fields of crops.

My trip this morning ended in Lidkoping, a beautiful city on the south end of Lake Vanern, Sweden's largest lake. There is a canal running from the lake through the city with lush green parkland along both sides of the canal. Many of the roads are for pedestrians only, making for a great tourist area around the central square.
Today I spent the afternoon orienting myself to the city. I visited the tourist information office and found a few things to do while here. Tonight I went to listen to a Jazz trio, playing in a small square just a few blocks from my hotel. The audience filled the tiny square and spilled out onto the sidewalks, to hear the 'New Orleans Jazz Katten" (cats). They were really very good. The band and most of the audience seemed to be 75+ yrs old, and looking very good. Dinner of Chicken Caesar Salad and a Rhubarb Sour Cocktail at the hotel were both excellent and expensive. (note to self: look for less pricey food tomorrow.)

 tree lined pedestrian walk just outside the city center

 city canal

 city canal

 just a building

 My hotel - Stadtshotellet Lidkoping

Garden at the city center square

My little home away from home for a few days

I don't have lots of photos for you today, but tomorrow I will be spending the day at Läckö Slott.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L%C3%A4ck%C3%B6_Castle

There should be some great photo opportunities then.