Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Our trip to Dalarna

The Borlänge Ward Chapel is a large, beautiful building, built in the mid '80's. We are happy the elders are busy with investigators and members to help the ward grow.


Syster Johnson, Ann and Ingemar Åkerström, Äldste Johnson in front of the Borlange Chapel.


View of collapsed section of Falu Copper mine from the top. Collapse occured on Midsommarhelgen 1687. No one was injured or killed. Everyone was celebrating the midsummer holiday....elsewhere.



Ready to enter the mine with a good group of English-speaking tourists.




Inside the mine we found cold, damp and dark conditions. We can't imagine working there 10-12 hours a day under back-breaking conditions. Children as young as 10 began their profession working in the mine....and often worked in the tunnels mining ore until they died.

Carl Larsson painted a Welcome greeting at his door for all visitors to read upon entering the home. Direct English translation: Be welcome dear you (or my dear), to Carl Larsson and his wife.

The Carl Larsson home was built in sections. Some rooms were even moved in from other older homes in the area. He believed in using what was still good and even took apart tile stoves that had dates on them reaching back into the 1700's. His decendents continue to use the home, even though guided tours are provided daily in several languages.

Cowboy, Äldste Johnson, gazes at the huge horse in Darlana.

This was our first glimpse of what Darlana would be like. We love their colorful artsy horses.

Our short get-away to the central part of Sweden was a beautiful, relaxing weekend. After a busy Friday, we left the Office for a 2-night stay in Falun at the First Hotel Grand. Saturday (23 Aug) was spent at the Carl Larsson home. He (1853-1919) is one of Sweden's most famous artists, who lived in the 1800's. His work is mostly depicting home and farm life in rural Sweden. He had several children and they are shown in his paintings, along with his very talented wife who did art in textiles and designed her own furniture. Amy enjoyed the guided tour because English was spoken. We have several prints to bring home. The afternoon was spent deep in one of the world's largest and oldest (1300 years)copper mines. The Falu Copper mine is actually older than the Swedish nation. It has attracted visitors from around the world for hundreds of years. We were told that today 'Stora Kopparberget' is a World Heritage attraction.

The area is also the home of the famous "dala hästar," the colorful wooden, orange/red tole painted horses.

We donned rain capes and hard hats for the roughly two mile walk into tunnels and chambers, many of which were dug by hand hundreds of hundreds of years ago.

One of the highlights was going to church in the Borlänge Ward, where we met faithful, older members (Ingemar & Ann Åkerström) who joined the Church in the early '50's and remembered Grandfather Clarence and Grandmother Annie, Ilogene and Lyda and others. Then in 1984, Neil Bergstrom was here on his mission and they remembered singing with him in the special Temple dedication (1985)choir.

Thursday, August 13, 2009

Erik and Julie come to Stockholm

Erik and Julie took much more home than they came with. They graciously loaded our big suitcases and made sure they made it safely home to Honeyville. Tack så mycket!!! och Hej då!!!
Erik is loading the Mission van. We are sending home much of our memorabilia.

We pause for a photo on the morning of departure from the Mission Office.


President and Sister Anderson show great hospitality at the Mission Home.

Church at the Täby Ward was great. We always take Inga Kann-Siirak home after meetings.

Erik and Julie pause at the back of the little cruise ship for a special photo.

This is our favorite place to be on a warm, sunny summer evening.

Dinner and a cruise. What fun! Our waiter graciously took the photo and loved to speak English to us.

Julie and Syster Amy pose in front of the Cinderella 1 in the Stockholm harbor before embarking for the evening cruise.

We walked down the steps from the Katarina Hissen and enjoyed the view.

Erik and Äldste Johnson at the Mission Office.

No admittance to Svartensgaten 3. It is now a shelter for abused women and children. It is always nice to see the Church Mission logo above the door on the historic building, now newly refaced and preserved on the Stockholm registry.

Sigtuna is a favorite place for "glass." They have great fresh waffle cones and many fruit flavors to choose from.

We pose for a photo in the old church yard near the 1,000 yr old ruins. The building was also a fortress in Sigtuna, the oldest community in Sweden, dating back to the old Viking times.

We were thrilled that our son, Erik and his wife, Julie, could visit us on our Mission. We covered as much as we could in less than 3 days and even went to Church on Sunday. It was fun to introduce them to our Täby Ward members and have dinner at the Mission Home with President and Sister Anderson. They had a real European experience and spent time in Spain with long lost friends and baptized members in Erik's mission, tracking them down with great detective work. The weather was perfect and so was our time with them.

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Elder Zach Jensen and parents say Good-bye to Sweden

The rain has been taking care of the flowers most of the summer.

Former office secretary, Elder Jensen, has been traveling Sweden with his parents from Springville, Utah, for 2 weeks. We invited Täby Ward members, Anne Rosenlund and Anna Lena Boden, to join us for a last farewell lunch and Princess Torte. The Mission Office yard is Syster Johnson's little bit of soil to raise some beautiful arrangements. Hej då, Äldste Jensen.

Hot Air Balloons over Stockholm, Sweden

We rode the train to Slussen and then walked back to T-Central Saturday night. We saw a balloon going down and our photo caught the historic Stockholm City Hall with it.
It is good advertising for companies to put their name on a hot air balloon. Amazing.



On our walk yesterday, we saw three hot air balloons over our neighborhood. A yellow one came so close to the ground, we thought it was going to land in the park near us. But, they gave it some more flame and it went higher. We were able to see the people and wave to them. They were excited to greet us back. One day, we saw a landed balloon on our street in an open field. All of the riders helped gather up the equipment and put it on trucks. We heard it costs about $160 for a one-hour ride. What a thrill! We probably won't do it though. It is fun to see.

Monday, July 20, 2009

Rainy day at Tullgarn Castle

The walk around Tullgarn was refreshing. Yes, it is raining in Sweden, AGAIN!
Too rainy to find many butterflies today!

On a rainy Sunday afternoon, we stopped at a castle to have a look. The cutest little baby in an old-time wagon caught our eye for a photo. We love these little side trips to relax.

Orientation and Departing July 2009 Group and beyond

Aledander Androsovic from the Czech Republic attends Täby Ward with us.
Elders Langston, Jackson, Adamson and Edmunds show hospitality to Alexander at the Mission Office. He is an elder and branch secretary back home.
Limerick: We took the day just as it came--
Orienting and checking out was the game.
We tried to make time go smooth,
Any gliches we'd soothe.
Then, Alex showed up from the Ukraine.
A cot was offered on the deck.
He told us he's a wandering Czech
Joined the Church in the Ukraine
With his testimony, he'll remain;
And, hoping his trip won't be a wreck! --Syster Amy Johnson

Elders enjoy last surströmmming party at the Mission Office yard. Alpeter is determined to eat it before he goes home. It was a smelly situation and brought all the mosquitoes from miles around to our property. Yuck!

Friday Lunch photo shoot with the regulars and guests. It was a great time and beautiful day.

Newly arrived elders come to the office for orientation. We have a seasoned violin player who will bring the spirit of beautiful music to the Swedish people. They will love it.
Limerick: There is more new blood in the mission
They've come with great ambition.
Fifteen in all,
Have heeded the call
What a wonderful, welcome addition.
But, when missionaries come to Sweden,
And live in this Garden of Eden;
A group must depart,
And take with them our heart.
The effort they gave is unbeaten! --Syster Amy Johnson
The memorial of the missionaries in the daisy garden. We will miss this incredible group. They have worked so hard and accomplished so much.

Thursday, July 16th was super busy for the Mission Office. We oriented 15 new missionaries and sent them on their way to various locations throughout Sweden. Then, we checked out the departing 10 elders and 5 sisters and prepared them to either fly home on Friday, or meet their parents for a few days touring in Sweden. Elder Alpeter from the Office went home after a grueling few weeks as AP. He was very tired. The last official act at the Office was to make a marker for my daisy garden with the names of the elders leaving. He wants to see it again when he comes back in 30 years. We'll have to put it in the attic if it is to survive. After we thought it couldn't be any crazier here, a Czech member showed up here wanting some help. He didn't have a place to stay, so we accomodated him by putting a cot on the deck. He slept there for three nights and said it was great. We then found a Russian speaking member in another part of Stockholm to take him in for the rest of his trip. He wants to apply to study here. Alexander was very nice and wanted to be near the missionaries. We took him to Church on Sunday. What a wild week. After Friday lunch, our group of 19 read our limericks and had some great laughs. It was especially fun to have some guests from the USA. (Elder Zach Jensen's parents and Elder Winston Larson's parents and brother). Our couple from Jonköping (Varr and Bernice Nelson) were also with us. It was a beautiful day and wonderful Hawaiian haystacks served on the deck. We are ready for a little quieter week, but something else always comes up. We are doing the best we can.

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

4th of July in Sweden

Elder & Sister Johnson love the big American flag, thanks to Elders Drake and Adamson.

Even though we were at the Office, we still remembered to celebrate our country and how much we love the USA. We ended the day with a barbeque at the Mission Home with former missionary guests from Utah and their families (Jacobsons, Birkelands), along with fun couples and missionaries. The weather even allowed us to eat outside on the patio. We were all missing our local celebrations at home, but we did the best we could. What a beautiful 4th of July!

Sunday, July 5, 2009

Gotland, Sweden

Loading and unloading cars, horses, humans and dogs on the large 1500 passenger ships. They carry several hundred cars, trucks and trailers.
A beautiful day to be on the water. We loved the sunshine.

Walking the inner city streets of Visby was beautiful and educational.


Visby is called "the city of roses." But, we found that the countryside had a problem with poppies in their grain fields. We thought they were beautiful, anyway.


More Viking grave sights. They are formed to represent a viking ship.



On the southern tip of the island we find a rock formation called Hoburgen. Rock formation shows an old man's face and nose....just like the two gamla Elders (Herrey & Johnson) in the forground!

Typical old farm yard with thatched grass roofs. Still in operation.

Old Viking grave in the background. About 400 such graves have been located on Gotland.



Äldste Johnson standing next to the first LDS church in Gotland...we are told 1861.



A functioning Swedish Church in the background.


Inside the Visby wall near shops and on cobblestone streets.


Syster Johnson with the Visby Wall in the background. The wall is nearly two miles around.


At least 96 old, very old, Swedish churches can be found on the island. This old Gothic Church is found in Visby's inner city. Gotland's largest city, Visby, is surrounded by a large rock wall which is about 30 feet high, complete with entrances and corners....and old churches and all the typical cobblestone roads and shops.
Gotland, the island of the Goths, was our latest mission 36 hour assignment. The island is in the middle of the Baltic Sea a 3 1/2 ferry ride SE of Stockholm. It is just over 3,000 square miles which is smaller than Box Elder County.