Sweden in the summer is nothing short of seductive. The light, the crisp, clean air, the stillness – it all conspires to bewitch you. I’ve lived here long enough and seen enough to carry a deep love for this country, especially when it shows itself like right now, July 25, 2025.

And yet, my love is often laced with contradiction. I don’t know how many times a day I catch myself thinking, “Self, if only it was this kind of weather all year round…” Maybe then I’d stop longing for far-off coasts and slow-decaying beach towns where bent and busted surfboards can be rented for a few coins.

This was my view earlier today as I sat on the boardwalk along Sundspromenaden, just in front of our condo. A quiet moment to take it all in – the water, the warmth, the beauty… and that quiet whisper of clouds moving along the horizon.

But some will no doubt argue, “But I love the seasons”. What seasons? It’s this and then dreary, dark, damp and dull.

Nope. Give me a humane temperature, sunshine and blue skies and everything else will fall into place.