Category: Languages

  • What is Panda diplomacy?

    Now I have landed after the trip to the USA. As usual, I look for interesting impressions along the way. There were a few hours of waiting at Heathrow on the way back. I really looked for something to buy, but couldn’t find anything. I had a good lunch instead of shopping. I like nutritious meals, for example, with a little chicken and some mix of salad. The food is presented differently from that in Stockholm. Also, a greater variety of vegetables. Yummy. I also had the opportunity to read news I didn’t have time to read in the USA, which you can see below.

    USA – a country from slavery to freedom. Easy to forget.

    On one of the flights before Heathrow, a passenger began moving strangely and violently just before landing. It became uneasy among all the passengers. He had no cramps, but he had uncontrolled movements. Other passengers and I tried to make eye contact with the man sitting in front of me. We also tried to speak with him. Strangely, it was as if he were fully conscious but had completely lost control of his body. As if his body were dancing like Michael Jackson. He didn’t say a word. The plane landed, and the seatbelt sign went out – the pilot was unaware of what was happening in the cabin. People were scared and started to quickly get up. Instinctively, without thinking, I stood up and told the flight attendant to announce over the loudspeaker that everyone should sit down. The plane became quiet, and I also sat down. We waited about 10 minutes for medical personnel to pick up the man. After that, we were able to leave the plane at Miami airport.

    Once at Heathrow, after sleeping across the Atlantic, I had my salad and then took the opportunity to browse through all the shops. I really don’t have room to buy any new things. I love books, but they also take up space. The digital world has taken over my life.

    Now I read in the news that President Trump has received a Presidential plane gift from Qatar. The Americans have just had a test flight. Maybe the Middle East is inspired by China’s soft diplomacy? They are so cute, the pandas below. Tomorrow there will be an intensive trip during the day, but within the country’s borders. Twelve hours on the train.

  • Back and forth to the USA

    Miami airport

    I have had a few intense days again, and I would have liked to write, but it takes a little extra focus to formulate reasonable sentences. I have spent hours in airports, and there is also always an extra hour of waiting time because I like to be on time.

    It is good for me. I cannot do anything but wait. Maybe think about how to travel from the next airport. Or make plans next week. Maybe listen to foreign languages ​​that I do not recognize. Possibly, I can at least guess.

    The best feeling is when I have not spoken or listened to Swedish for several days. Like when I traveled back to Sweden from Miami a few days ago. That special feeling when I suddenly hear someone speak Swedish that feels so foreign – yet is so familiar.

    I remember the time when I flew from Beijing to Kuala Lumpur, and I was the only passenger from Europe. In addition, almost no other women on the flight. As if I do not exist because no one recognizes me or can speak Swedish to me. Can there be more Jean-Paul Sartre?

    Now I’m thinking about how I can handle the trip this fall from Nepal to India. If that is possible in this world of trouble. Do I really have to bring antibiotics with me if I get a bad infection? Well, well.

    In the USA, I finally got to meet my American family. I really did have breakfast with Tiffany! A few intense American days. Wonderful with fresh exotic fruit for breakfast. The trip back went well, and it is actually an advantage to be petite sometimes. The man next to me was so tall that he almost doubled in the seat. We switched seats, and I got the window seat.

  • A night at Heathrow

    I have been so busy lately that I haven’t had time to write anything here. Last night I slept at Heathrow – the home of British Airways. It is so amazingly warm, almost 30 °C. I would have loved to travel in a dress, but unfortunately, it’s more practical to wear trousers. Heathrow is an intense, wonderful, international airport. The whole world meets here.

    I was a little nervous before I got on the plane, but that was mostly because I needed both an ETA and an ESTA to get into the USA. There are tensions in the world due to a lack of jet fuel and, above all, the general Trump chaos. Putin chaos, too, for that matter. Just because they cannot get along doesn’t mean I don’t like the USA. You have to distinguish between things—the land of freedom in the 19th century for many Swedes.

    There is a weight loss revolution in the world, and that must be the reason there was a needle box in the ladies’ room. Now I have a few minutes left before I’m on the plane to Miami.

    Stay safe 🐾

  • Gutenberg editing

    Finally, after some work, I have landed in a new, updated diary. I have a new web hotel, and you will surely notice that it is much faster than the last one. Last fall, I started looking for a new web hotel, and after Christmas, I found out that Telia’s web hotel would stop. How lucky I was. A big thank you to Peter and Michael, who have guided and helped me with data support in this data jungle.

    Now I have a lot of new things to learn about WordPress Gutenberg. In my regular job at Apoteket, I get a lot of use out of my humanistic skills. Knowledge of various languages simplifies, but sometimes body language is enough, which is to some extent universal.

    Generative AI as a co-pilot of various kinds is starting to progress. Data technology is dressed in various human characteristics, and for me, this is still revolutionary. I do not write prompts because I get suggestions of grammatical changes that I do not agree with.

    I am curious and follow the development. Today, AI cannot read our thoughts. Yet!

  • Hi webhotel!

    This is so refreshing. I have been writing this diary for 13 years. Nice to change. I remember lots of travelling that I have tried to catch by photos and writing – so happy for this change, and also for the opportunity to learn.

    This autumn I will go to Nepal and Kathmandu. I am staying in touch with Professor Trilok Pati Thapa. I just learnt that Kathmandu was very popular in the 1960´s as the Hippie trail. Well, I must admit that I also search for some answers. I have so much to read, and my Professor sends me literature.

    I am now concidering of traveling from East Asia to reach Nepal, India and Sri Lanka. The world is fragile, as Sting points out.

  • The Panama Canal, and will the next pandemic be worse?

    Now war is a reality. Not only a trade war. No economist has spoken out, but from what I remember, trade tariffs are a textbook example of what a country can do to increase domestic growth macroeconomically. Real protectionism.

    Strategic targets are being attacked in the Middle East. I think about how important it was to control the Panama Canal so that the Nazis in the 1940s could not conquer the Caribbean and America. We will see how it develops with Greenland, which in a way has a similar geopolitical location to the Panama Canal.

    We must not be naive. In Sweden, banks and pharmacies are being targeted in cyberspace, affecting our everyday lives. I am working as usual and was reminded of the swine flu. T. Bäckstrøm and O-A Olsen were my bosses. Wash your hands! Which still applies even though I sometimes wear nail polish. The article from Boots Pharmacy Kråkerøy, Fredrikstad Blad (Norway) is still online: Swineflu short nails and wash your hands!

    It is with some concern that I wonder why Magnus Gisslén was not allowed to remain as state epidemiologist. We are the only country in the Nordic region where authorities with a medical mission are led without medical expertise. Why cannot the highest medical expertise be allowed to govern? Without expertise, the ability to assess signals, prioritize correctly, and, above all, understand the consequences disappears.

    It is similar to the first snow in November in Sweden. Even though it happens every year, it’s always the same chaos with slippery accidents, canceled public transport, etc. What if the next pandemic is also likely to be worse?

    I want to be involved and influence the day for the better. Time is passing. I heard such nice words about time in passing. Time that can be described with the laws of physics. Humanism has also tried to capture time. Me too, in my book “Time for Freedom”. Here is a variation of “seize the day” by an unknown author:

    You have no yesterdays.

    Time took them away.

    But you have today.

  • Fitness and Writing & Leisure

    My goal is the 5th of September 2026 – good that I signed up for the next women’s 10-kilometer right away. Training requires discipline. No late nights. Two hours today, and I was in good shape, which means it was great fun. Not hard. In Norway, I went to Elixia after work on weekdays. On Sundays when we were off, I had an early, tough Sunday session. Four to five hours of exercise per week. I am searching for that focused Elixia Norwegian feeling. Tomorrow I’ll watch a bit of Vasaloppet and then Power Step before lunch. Attention is required to reach the level I was at before.

    For those of you who are wondering how the updated diary is going, it will be ready towards the end of March. I’m learning to navigate the new environment. It needs to be fine-tuned. Writing & Leisure will also be refreshed.

    Writing & Leisure

    I developed my writing in France, and in these times of the Ukraine war, it feels good that the French Marine is visiting the south of Sweden. Sweden is currently classified as a very unsafe country to travel to. Canada 🇨🇦 is saying “Exercise a high degree of caution in Sweden due to the threat of terrorism”, see https://travel.gc.ca/destinations/sweden

    Sharing some French music.

    Stay safe 🐾