I’m behind the wheel on my way home to Nynäshamn from the summer holidays on the west coast. The rest of the family falls asleep after a few intensive days, I listen to summer talk and drink energy drinks to stay awake. Suddenly I drive past a large blue road sign with road distances to three different locations for my onward journey. Karlskrona, Varberg and Jönköping. What this trio has in common is that they have all been my hometown for a longer or shorter period of time. This particular combination of signs is the definition of “real crossroads” in my life. Weird that I’ve never commented on it since we’ve whizzed past this place countless times.
Depending on the circumstances, I could certainly have settled in one of the cities for the rest of my life. Is it all a coincidence or is everything predetermined in some strange way? What would life have been like if I had stayed in Varberg? Jonkoping? Charlemagne? Such Sliding Doors musings come and go in my life from time to time, read more here:
Real intersections, sliding doors and signs with towns I’ve called my own.
#1. Jonkoping
First up is Jönköping. Mine hatcity over the centuries, at least in terms of my own well-being. Well then! Perhaps it would be rude to blame the city itself, which is actually very nice, for the general feeling that lay over me like a wet blanket during the six months that Jönköping was my postal address. In another life and another time I certainly could have settled there. The weather is palpable almost as beautiful as the sea and Småland is really no shame. This is where I got my first real job as a lawyer, but I soon quit. But at the next workplace – in the next city – everything turned around. And that was it.
Read more: I want to give Jönköping a second chance
#2. Varberg
I still pay to queue for housing in Varberg, even though it’s been over twenty years since I moved there. That says it all, right? I had a great time and can too Real consider settling here again someday. The sea, the small town feel, the wind, the general feeling of freedom and the people living in the city are generally nice. My 1.5 years in Varberg were fantastic!
Read more: A long-awaited visit to Varberg.
#3. Charlemagne
Good away, but best at home. Whatever the case, whatever happens, Karlskrona remains one of my best places on earth. After completing my studies and several trips around the world, I thought I was ready to move back. I wasn’t, and I soon packed my bags back to Stockholm. Then I was 27, now I’m 45. What would have happened if I had insisted on moving back with my husband and toddler? I’ll never know, and maybe that’s a good thing. I may continue to romanticize about living in the South and hopefully moving permanently once the kids have flown out.
So. It was today’s dose of nostalgia. Which cities in Sweden have you ever called your own and Sliding Doors do you think about between rounds?
Feel free to follow along Travel Friday on Instagram. (Cover image: Varberg)
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