On the Ant Hill
It was supposed to rain all day in Stockholm. Instead, we were treated to one of the nicest days of spring. We took advantage and laid down in the grass for a while. Jon Hull
From mid-May:
An ant scrambled across the page of my notebook. She appeared frantic yet purpose-driven. Another is scaling the well-stickered face of my old Nalgene water bottle. A few others dart in and out of my vacant shoes. The smell — I wonder — may be what draws them in with the false promise of something deliciously smelly to bring back to their queen. They’ve left my bare feet alone, though.
Jessica in Rosendals Trädgårdkafe. Jon Hull
It’s more likely that I’ve blundered into some elaborate system of theirs. Or I’m lying on top of an ant hill… Occam’s Razor.
Another keeps squeezing himself between the holes in my mesh-lined raincoat. If I had the pheromones to speak ant, I’d assure him that there is nothing of interest in there. It would save him some time.
Thoreau taught me to watch ants. He and Attenborough enlightened me to their complexities: their perfect socialist monarchies. We are surely lying on an ant hill. They are everywhere.
We are in the partial shade of an orchard at Rosendals Trädgård in Stockholm. It is a magical place on a perfectly pleasant day in May. We were expecting rain, but it is beautiful out. Hundreds of other people had the same idea as Jessica and I, and they are scattered across the lawn, trampling their own ant hills, babbling melodically in Swedish.
I have never been so content to be covered in bugs.
…
Jessica in front of a perfect rainbow in Stockholm. Jon Hull
It did rain after all. We ate in a buffet-style vegan restaurant called Herman’s. It was one of the most delicious non-meat dinners I’ve ever eaten. If you find yourself in Stockholm, I recommend it even if you’re an omnivore.
The sun snuck below the clouds as we walked out of Herman’s, and a perfect rainbow arched from one island to another. We stood there for fifteen minutes, basked in nature’s beauty, and walked the streets of Old Town for another hour or two.
I could say that our post-rainbow walk was inspired by the perfect weather and a sense of adventure. In truth, we were exhausted. Our walk was an attempt to avoid our windowless room in our hostel… Jessica had let me handle the reservations 😬.
