“I’ve got a spread-sheet listing accommodation, transportation and entertainment on a day to day basis”, I told Damien when we chatted online today. “I’m sure you have”, he replied. I think Damien thinks I tend to overplan things, whereas my friend Graeme thinks I underplan things. For example, I’m sure Graeme thinks I should have purchased thermal underwear by now, whereas I’m happy to wait until I get to Sweden to see if I need it, and then to purchase the right kind of thermal underwear for the climate. On the other hand, I’m happy that I’ve booked all but a few days accommodation (and have made good savings due to the advance notice), and have purchased tickets to a number of concerts and other activities I’m planning to attend. It’s odd, though, since Graeme tends to be a last minute-traveller, whereas I like to plan in advance. We all travel differently I guess.
Anyway, today I booked some more accommodation and plotted things out a bit more. Today I booked a hotel in Gävle, Hotell Gävle for two nights, co-inciding with the ABBA Tribute featuring Magnus Carlsson amongst others in nearby Sandviken. I haven’t actually worked out how I’m getting between Gävle and Sandviken, though there’s probably a bus or train or something. And I also booked a bed in a dormitory for a few days at same hostel I stayed eighteen months ago. It’s clean, well-located, and a good price.
So I’m clear now that I have only five days accommodation in Stockholm to think about. My head tells me I should probably just book into the same hostel but my heart tells me I should keep my options open in case I decide to do something different. So in summary, half my trip will be in budget (but nice) single rooms (barely able to swing a cat and half with shared facilities) and roughly half will be in hostels. There’s also a few days here and there in nice accommodation too.
I like balance. And I guess that’s why I like the Swedish word, “lagom”. Although I understand there’s no direct translation for the world in English, the essence of it is “just the right amount”.
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