The Swede-ish Podcast

From ziploc bags, cooking spray and jaffa cakes; to sausages, vapo-rub and hot sauce! We've all got funny little home-comforts that we miss. But, if you could find them in Sweden, where could they possibly be??

In today’s episode we’re sorting through what you can, what you can’t and where you might be able to find those home comforts in Sweden.

After asking our Littlebearabroad Facebook group what sort of home comforts they missed in Sweden we were inundated with over 100 responses!!! From ziploc bags, cooking spray and jaffa cakes; to sausages, vapo-rub and hot sauce!

In the episode we mention a couple of website and online stores where you might be able to find what you’re looking for.

***EDIT: as of this episode’s release, we realise that BOOTS has now stopped shipping to Sweden***

The English Shop

The Little Britain Shop

The British Corner Shop

The American Food & Drink Store (according to Charles)

Gray’s American Stores (Whole Sale)

Taylor & Jones – Butchers (Stockholm based)

Milner’s British Catering (Stockholm based)

Next Online

Bigbaby.se

BabyProffsen.se

Babyworld.se

Lloyds Apotek

ApotekHjärtat.se

 

You can follow Littlebearabroad on Instagram on @littlebear_mag. On Facebook, just search for Littlebearabroad to “like” and follow our page. AND, if you REALLY want to, a little ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ star review on our iTunes feed would go down a treat, too.

The pros and cons of Sweden... what are your Room 101 vibes?

Room 101 – the room in which your worst nightmares are stored gets a mention tonight. What started out with the best of intentions, good and bad, descended into what your Auntie Madge would call “silly season”.

We’ve had so many emails and messages from people telling us they want to know more about life in Sweden we thought it best to give them some pros and cons…I went in with my tongue firmly in my cheek, Mattias still had his “dad-hat” strapped under his chin. So, the result, drinking games and play parks! What else?

**CALL TO ACTION** (internally I’m rolling my eyes at that awful jargon) Please do get in touch with me ([email protected]) with your good news stories about jobs and job hunting in Sweden for immigrants.

Links we mentioned:

The weather in Sweden

Parental Leave in Sweden

Play parks in Sweden

DRINKING SONGS IN SWEDEN

You can follow Littlebearabroad on Instagram on @littlebear_mag. On Facebook, just search for Littlebearabroad to “like” and follow our page. AND, if you REALLY want to, a little 5 star review on our iTunes feed would go down a treat, too.

One of the hardest parts of living abroad is the constant reminder of family and friends you've left behind. So, how do they feel about it? In episode 5 of the Littlebearabroad podcast, Jill and her mum, Isobel, talk about their relationship now that Jill's abroad, her relationship with her granddaughter, language barriers and hopes for the future.

Another cold open from Portugal!! I promise, the holiday is almost over.

 

Episode 5 is all about the family left behind, your mum and dad, bros and sisters, grannies, grandpas and friends. How do they feel about life abroad.

 

My own mum, Isobel, (the poolside queen, above) talked to me about her feelings on us being abroad, how our relationship has changed, her relationship with her granddaughter, language barriers and hopes for the future. We had a lot of fun recording this episode and it was the first time we’d sat down the two of us all holiday to just chat. We ended up spending the rest of the afternoon by the pool doing exactly the same thing. Bliss.

 

You can follow Littlebearabroad on Instagram on @littlebear_mag. On Facebook, just search for Littlebearabroad to “like” and follow our page. Thank you for all your continued support!

Coming to you from Portugal!!! Yes, we're on holiday for 10 days in the Algarve but we love this little podcast so much we've gone nomad and are recording from our little island in the sun. 

Mattias is in the house!!! As a native, does living with an immigrant who is going through all the feels of living abroad impact your daily life? Do we immigrants have even more to feel guilty about?! Secondly, we talk about an experience that we had whilst travelling to Portugal and it's relevance to the Hague Convention.

Coming to you from Portugal!!! Yes, we’re on holiday for 10 days in the Algarve but we love this little podcast so much we’ve gone nomad and are recording from our little island in the sun.

 

In this episode Mattias, the other half of Littlebearabroad and the person who has put his heart and soul into building this pretty amazing website, takes the hot seat to talk about what it’s like to live with an immigrant. As a native, does living with an immigrant who is going through all the feels of living abroad impact your daily life? Do we immigrants have even more to feel guilty about?!

 

Secondly, we talk about an experience that we had whilst travelling to Portugal and it’s relevance to the Hague Convention. This is an incredibly important treaty that was established about 20-30 years ago and impacts thousands of people every day. Littlebearabroad.com has written about it and the issues surrounding divorce and seperation whilst living abroad.  We also, very briefly, touch on “stuck parents”. These are mums and dads who have become stuck in their country of immigration because of a custodial battle or issue with children whilst trying to return to their home countries. It’s hugely messy and made very complex by the Hague Convention and other country specific legislation.

 

If you’d like more information about the Hague Convention or about “stuck parents”, please reach out to Global Arrk (Global Action on Relocation and Return of Kids). They are a fantastic organisation who are championing the rights and tragic situations many parents have found themselves in whilst trying to relocate or get away from extremely difficult domestic situations abroad. In the future episodes we hope to be speaking with some of the leaders from Global Arrk.

 

You can follow Littlebearabroad on Instagram on @littlebear_mag. On Facebook, just search for Littlebearabroad to “like” and follow our page. Thank you for all your continued support!

Jill goes solo to test drive the new podcasting studio and a turn of events leads her to talk about the changing seasons, what's in store and how to fully embrace those long, dark Swedish winters. Höstkänsla like a Swede...

Recorded on Monday the 4th of September, it was like some sort of seasonal switch had been flipped and the whole of Sweden was suddenly plunged into Autumn, full throttle.

 

It was the perfect day to totally dread the impending winter. But, is it really all that bad? Are there not so many things to look forward to and be excited about. New colours, new flavours, new clothes and new activities. So, let’s talk about what we have to look forward to this winter?

 

For some ideas of things to do during Autumn you can check out our seasonal activities here. Höstlov is a really big deal in Sweden, like a half-term, it’s all about getting outside, taking part in sport and being active. We created the activities page ‘Höstlov like a Swede‘.

 

You can follow Littlebearabroad on Instagram on @littlebear_mag. On Facebook, just search for Littlebearabroad to “like” and follow our page. Thank you for all your continued support!