Eldstorp Säteri

.. translated as Eldstorp Manor, is recorded as the last residence in Sweden of my Great-Grandfather before he emigrated to America.  It is noted as being near a "town" called Askeryd, in the region of Småland.  If you Google Map "Eldstorp, Jönköping County, Sweden", zoom in quite close and look off to the right of the pin you will see a looped driveway with several buildings around it.  That is it.

Both Askeryd and Eldstorp have modern signs on the side of the road, indicating there is something there, but in actuality neither is more than a couple farm houses clustered together.  No Main Street, no grocery store, nothing else really aside from pine trees and lakes ... for miles and miles and miles.

I started doing some basic research last year and found a woman online specializing in tracing emigrants from this area.  I gave her all the details I could come up with and she was successful in tracking down four generations back from my Great Grandfather and also forward to known relatives living in the area still today.  Wow!

Straight through, Eldstorp is about a four hour drive southwest of Stockholm.  We made the most of it, taking the scenic route off the E4 highway along the coast of an enormous misty lake that was dotted with neatly kept red or yellow wood-sided, white-trimmed homes.  The countryside is quite stoic, noticeably lacking the buzz of modern technology and sense of urgency.

Our turning off point, and one of the few actual towns we encountered along the way, was Gränna.  Known as the birthplace of the candy cane (polkagris), it is dotted with candy shops and off course an intoxicating bakery where I also got to tick the box for the open-faced seafood sandwich I had been pining for. Gorgeous!

As we arrived near Askeryd we came upon an old church, which I am still certain is where several of my ancestors are buried.  Off a long dirt road from Askeryd, the Eldstorp Manor itself is quite lovely.  There are several houses together, none of which seemed to have been inhabited at the time, and all appear to be from different eras.  The large yellow house is certainly more modern, but the two red ones on the sides must certainly be over a hundred years old and were likely standing at the time my grandfather was living there. The barns also seemed to be quite old and I sense were also there at the time.

With the patch of birch trees in the back, the stone walls covered in moss, the red heart on the door of the barn, the sun peaking through the clouds, and the weight of the silence, I did feel connected.  And grateful.

Before the day got away from us we got back into the car to head down to our castle for the evening.  Yep, a castle.  I am not kidding when I say, when looking for lodging in the area, the options are slim and the Teleborgs Slott castle near Vaxjo really just seemed like a no-brainer for our night's stay on this epic journey.  It is stunning ... wins the award for best castle I have seen to date (though getting a surprise in the communal bathroom was something we probably could have lived without!).

In the morning we headed off for more adventure.  Not too far away was the home of my Mom's cousin, Jonny Kack.  Disappointingly he was not home when we arrived, but we did speak with a neighbour and exchanged some information about our quest.  Bit of an emotional event ... even the neighbour started to tear up with goosebumps!

From there we toured some of the Swedish crystal shops, smashed the car into a tree stump, visited the historic village of Eksjo for some last minute souvenirs and pastries before starting the long road trip back to the Stockholm airport. Whew.

I am so glad we made this trip.  I may even go back some day.  There is more history to uncover, and despite there being several generations and influences from other cultures in my DNA I still sense the heritage of the Swedish custom in me and my family and it is something I am proud of.

<< Of course a slide show on this one!! >>

First Stop: Stockholm !!

Page 63 of the Household Examination Roll reports that Ernst August Teodor Hansson Jonsson (Hemmansägarson = unmarried man), born 7/12/1873 emigrated from Eldstorp Säteri, Askeryd, Jönköpings län (Småland), Sweden to Nordamerika on 3/7/1896.  How he ended up in Blackberry Township, Illinois, USA is still to be determined, but lets just say that I graduated High School one hundred and twenty years later within a few miles of there.  



I have a specific admiration for a 23 year old boy who leaves his homeland to pursue the chance of a better life for him and his future family ... quite possibly alone, at great distances on both land and sea, with fear, sadness, and great hope for what awaits.  However, I will save that perspective for the next post.  This one in particular is about his grand daughter, Elaine Carroll Hanson Jones, my mother.


Being of majority Swedish decent and having a particular fondness for her Father, it has been a dream of my Mom to visit our homeland.  Perhaps it sounds a bit strong from a fourth generation American (me) to claim to still feel roots, especially without any sort of obvious Swedish heritage in my upbringing.  However, I do, and after being there I certainly know better why. Certainly for my Mother, this was a journey of epic proportions.

This year said grand daughter flipped a significant birthday and with my current proximity to Sweden it seemed a very reasonable suggestion we should visit.  Done and done.  We shall start in Stockholm for two days and follow through with a road trip down south to find the origin of our modern family afterwards.


So here we go!  A flight to Stockholm, a booking in an antique furnished hotel in the old city (Gamla Stan), and 48 hours to see what we can see there.  The Gamla Stan island is a small but saturated piece of historic Stockholm.  As soon as we got in, we started zig-zaging the streets, browsing all the trinket shops, scenic coastalways, and lucked our way into a lunch of delightful Swedish meatballs ... how do we still feel comfort food from third generation relatives?  Not sure, but we do, as we also prioritized that meatballs with gravy and mash must also be our dinner for the last night in the city.

Dinners, bonding, cinnamon rolls, knitting shops (with an apple green Gotland wool skein I shall post about in the future), trolls, horsies, walks down scary dark alleys, pastries, jewellery shopping, paper shop hunting, blue plates  ... it was how it was supposed to be ... and oh wait, I can't close without mentioning the food market. 

Because I like what I like and what I like just happens to be food, there was an amazing food market in the Stockholm that we made a morning of.  Was quite delightful for me ... we braved the metro and I managed to get in a few salmon rolls, eyeball the lingonberry jams, and appreciate the reindeer meat sausages (yep!).

Stockholm ... a good portion was covered, but only a teaser into understanding our heritage ...  more to come ... until next post.
 

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Ayurveda

While browsing in my favourite book store, Daunt Books, I came across this book "Eat Right for Your Body Type".  A quick flipping through registered home for me.  The author is downright beautiful, so I picked it up to read about its theories in more detail.

The basic principle (founded from ancient Eastern thinking call Ayurveda) is that there are three distinct life energies.  We all possess some of each, but most will favour one more strongly.  Based on the one you favour, there are dietary recommendations to keep your systems in balance and keep you in good health.

All in all, this is an advanced holistic approach to wellness.  I did some quick independent research online regarding Ayurvedic medicine, and it is quite interesting to me.  Fundamentally, what we eat ultimately effects everything in our body ... if you are eating what is good for you, digesting it thoroughly, you will avoid premature health problems and be the best you today.

The book offers up a questionnaire to help you figure out your "dosha" based on your physical structure, personality traits, and bodily functions.  I am what they call "Kapha" and without getting too into the doctrine means that I tend to have a slower metabolism and would benefit from more spice (well, it is not quite that simple).  Of course there is the avoid meat, saturated fats, and processed carb mantra to go along with it.

I decided to give it a shot.  The book provides a menu for a week along with all the recipes, so off I went to go shopping.  It has been fun getting ingredients I typically would not buy like cardamom pods, rice milk, nigella seeds, and tofu.

There is a recipe for spiced tea that is delicious, and I am advised to sip on it throughout the day.  I also found it quite interesting they suggest I start the day with a hot cup of water with a lemon in it to get my system ready for business.  I had thought I would always prefer a cold glass of water, but I am kind of liking this warm water business ... it is still chilly here though.

Anyway, breakfast, lunch, and dinner for five days I stuck to it.  No cow milk (dairy is only to be taken in infrequent doses, as it increases mucus and allergies), bread, red meat, cheese, etc. for a week - mostly vegetables and grains and fun spices.

I actually really enjoyed it.  I got to try some new recipes, was not hungry ... and bam! I lost four pounds. I already planned out and bought for week two!

Drought

Upon considering my move to London, one thing I certainly did not expect to see was this sign.  Repeatedly, when talking through the pros and cons of living in the 'ole Blighty, the persistent, dreadful drizzle was top of the con list. Yet, indeed, Southeast England is in a drought, and has been for the last two years.

Knock on wood, I haven't needed an umbrella in months.  March was the warmest on record, ever.  There have been strings of days with blue skies and bright sun, skipping to get the morning coffee without a jacket, and pubs full of afternoon tipplers.  Glorious!

It is hard to not see this as a wonderful twist of fate, however there is this looming massive event taking place in the city in a couple months in which the demand for water is expected to be quite high.  You know, a little sporting event called the Olympics.

The press routinely discusses water bans, conservation, and "what if" scenarios in order to prepare us for the start of August.  Now, this American has seen my share of panicked water hoarding events - pre-hurricane / pre-end of world apocalypse - so I suppose I should get ahead of the crowd and start stocking up my Evian now ...

... or, prehaps the more likely event is it will rain non-stop from now through the summer straight to the end of the Olympics.  Boo.

Shakespeare's Stratford-Upon-Avon

Roadtrip!  My Mom has been in town, and our first adventure was to Stratford-Upon-Avon, the birthplace of William Shakespeare, less than two hours via train through the English countryside Northwest of London.


Well-preserved English towns are a delight with their black and white timbered inns, stone cathedrals, and bubbling streams full of swans.  We spent the day admiring fresh vegetables and plants at the farmer's market, weaving through the quaint streets browsing shops, lunch at the pub, and a stroll along the waterfront.


Stratford (upon the Avon river) is best known today as the birthplace of William Shakespeare, and several of his family homes are still in good condition throughout town.  Though Shakespeare left Stratford to live in London for the majority of his adult life, he was baptised and buried at the alter of the Stratford church surrounded by towering, jewel-toned windows.

I do not claim to be an aficionado of Shakespeare, nor even capable of naming more than five of his plays (hmm, let's see ... Hamlet, Romeo & Juliet, MacBeth ... drawing a blank ... wait, Othello ... Midsommer Night's Dream ... ).  

However, I do concur that he is deserving of the title "Best Playwright of All Time", enjoyed the plays of his I did read/see, and concluded he was worthy of buying a stuffed Christmas tree ornament in his likeness as a souvenir.

Though one of the most well known, I leave you with one of my favourite Shakespearean quotes (aside of course from "Et tu Brute?" ... ooh, one more ... Julius Caesar ! )

"This above all,—to thine own self be true;
And it must follow, as the night the day,
Thou canst not then be false to any man."
~ Mel Gibson, 1990