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We officially kicked off the forest barbecue season by heading to Trindemossen in Änggårdsbergen twice this week! And both times, we got lucky with our favorite fireplace being free, as if it was just waiting for us to fire it up.

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First flames of 2025

![{2400[x]1600}{priority}](/journal/250326/learning-vietnamese-lesson-4-1.jpg)

Today's lesson focused a lot on conversation, introducing ourselves and where we're from. We also learned the names of different countries in Vietanmese, for example:

| English        | Tiếng Việt |
| -------------- | ---------- |
| United States  | Mỹ         |
| United Kingdom | Anh        |
| Australia      | Úc         |
| Germany        | Đức        |
| France         | Pháp       |
| Italy          | Ý          |
| Sweden         | Thụy Điển  |
| China          | Trung Quốc |
| Japan          | Nhật Bản   |
| South Korea    | Hàn Quốc   |

Some countries are same as in English, for example Canada, Mexico and Brazil.

And other countries sound similar to their English name, for example:

| English  | Tiếng Việt |
| -------- | ---------- |
| Denmark  | Đan Mạch   |
| Finland  | Phần Lan   |
| Norway   | Na Uy      |
| Thailand | Thái Lan   |

## Repetition on presentation

We practices how to introduce ourselves again, and this time adding where we're from as well:

- **Xin lỗi, anh/chị tên là gì?** – Excuse me, what’s your name?
- **Tôi tên là Andreas.** – My name is Andreas.

Then, if you want to ask where someone is from:

- **Anh/chị là người nước nào?** – What country are you from?
- **Tôi là người Thụy Điển.** – I’m Swedish.

For example:

**A:** Xin lỗi, anh tên là gì?  
**B:** Tôi tên là John.  
**A:** Anh là người nước nào?
**B:** Tôi là người Mỹ.

## When to Use “Là” in Vietnamese

One important thing to know is that **“là”** is only used before a noun, never before a verb or an adjective.

**Tôi là người Việt.** (I am Vietnamese.)  
**Tôi là cao.** (Incorrect! "Cao" means "tall" and is an adjective.)

Instead, if you want to say something like "I am tall", you just drop the **"là"** altogether:
**Tôi cao.** (I am tall.)

This is a big difference from English, where we always say "am/is/are." In Vietnamese, you only use **là** when the word after it is a noun.

## Saying Yes and No in Vietnamese

Another interesting topic of the lesson was how to say "yes" and "no". Vietnamese doesn’t use a simple "yes" or "no" like in English. Instead, you often repeat part of the question in your answer.

If someone asks:

**Anh là người Nhật, phải không?** (Are you Japanese?)

- **Dạ, phải.** (Yes, that’s correct.)
- **Dạ, không phải.** (No, that’s not correct.)

**Phải** means "correct" and **không phải** means "not correct". This pattern works for many yes/no questions.

For other types of yes/no questions, you often repeat the verb instead. If someone asks:

**Anh có hiểu không?** (Do you understand?)

- **Có.** (Yes, I do.)
- **Không.** (No, I don’t.)

It’s a little different from English, but once you get the hang of it, it makes a lot of sense. Now, onto some homework:

### First Dialogue

**A:** Xin lỗi, anh _tên_ là gì?  
**B:** Tôi tên là _John_.  
**A:** Anh là người _nước nào_?
**B:** Tôi là người _nước Mỹ_.

### Second Dialogue

**A:** Xin lỗi, _chị tên_ là gì?  
**B:** Tôi tên _là Jenny_.  
**A:** Chị là người _nước nào_?
**B:** Tôi là _người Nhật Bản_.

### Third Dialogue

**A:** Xin lỗi, _anh tên là gì_?
**B:** Tôi tên _là Martin_.  
**A:** _Anh_ là _người_ nước _nào_?
**B:** Tôi _là người Hàn Quốc_.

### Fourth Dialogue

**A:** Xin lỗi, _chị là_ người Nhật, phải không?
**B:** Đạ, không phải. Tôi là _người Việt_.  
**A:** _Chị_ tên _là gì_?  
**B:** Tôi _tên là Mỹ_.


Presentation and countries

Learning Vietnamese - Lesson 4

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More photos and prints at [Rockfoto](https://rockfoto.nu/artists/silvana-imam/20250322/30301)

Read the review at [GP.se](https://www.gp.se/kultur/musik/konsertrecension/recension-silvana-imam-pustervik-lordag.0737cb82-98e3-4222-8260-9cf2baeb9a48)


Silvana Imam @ Pustervik

![{2400[x]1600}{priority}](/journal/250319/learning-vietnamese-lesson-3-1.jpg)

I've now completed my **third** Vietnamese lesson! While I’m still at the beginning of my journey, I can already see how much there is to learn.

## The Importance of Tones in Vietnamese

Vietnamese is a tonal language, meaning that changing the pitch of a word can completely change its meaning. This is one of the biggest challenges for learners, but also one of the most fascinating aspects of the language.

A great example is the word **"ma"**, which can have six different meanings depending on the tone:

| Tone                     | Example | Meaning       | Pronunciation                     |
| ------------------------ | ------- | ------------- | --------------------------------- |
| **Mid (ngang)**          | ma      | ghost         | Flat, neutral                     |
| **High-rising (sắc)**    | má      | mother        | Starts mid, rises sharply         |
| **Low-falling (huyền)**  | mà      | but/which     | Starts mid, falls gently          |
| **Rising-falling (hỏi)** | mả      | grave         | Dips down, then rises again       |
| **High-broken (ngã)**    | mã      | horse         | Rises sharply with a slight break |
| **Low-stopped (nặng)**   | mạ      | rice seedling | Drops sharply and ends abruptly   |

It takes time to get used to these, but listening to native speakers and practicing with minimal pairs (words that differ only by tone) helps a lot. The pronunciation also differs between different parts of Vietnam, the hỏi and ngã tones are pronounced very similar in southern Vietnam for example.

## Mastering the Ngang and Huyền Tones

The second half of today's lesson focused on distinguishing the **ngang** (mid) and **huyền** (low-falling) tones. At first, they seemed similar, but after practicing, I realized that **ngang** is completely flat, while **huyền** has a gentle downward slope.

| Tone | Name | Description | Illustration

### Tips for Practicing

- **Listen to native speakers** and mimic their pronunciation.
- **Record yourself** saying the same word with both tones and compare.
- **Exaggerate at first**—pronouncing **huyền** with a stronger downward motion makes the difference clearer.

## The Battle Between "ê" and "e"

One thing my classmates and I struggled with was telling apart **ê** and **e**. They might look similar, but their pronunciations are quite different:

| Letter | Example     | Pronunciation Tip                                                                                                          |
| ------ | ----------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **ê**  | "tê" (numb) | Similar to the **"ay"** in English _say_, but more closed.<br />Sounds like the e in "Hey" or "Set"                        |
| **e**  | "te" (weak) | Similar to the **"e"** in English _bet_, but slightly more open.<br />Sounds like a broken machine or like the ä in "mäta" |

### How to Practice

- **Minimal pairs**: Try saying words like _tê_ (numb) vs. _te_ (weak), _bê_ (calf) vs. _be_ (small).
- **Feel the tongue position**: For **ê**, the tongue is higher and closer to the roof of the mouth. For **e**, it's lower and more relaxed.
- **Mouth shape**: **ê** makes the lips tense, while **e** is more relaxed and open.

### Words and phrases

We also got introduced to some new words and phrases:

| Vietnamese                | English                     | Notes                                |
| ------------------------- | --------------------------- | ------------------------------------ |
| Đánh vần tên bạn thế nào? | How do you spell your name? | "Đánh vần" means "to spell"          |
| Bạn hỏi                   | You ask                     | Used when asking a question          |
| Bạn nói chuyện với        | You talk to                 | "Chuyện" means conversation          |
| Bắt đầu                   | Start                       | Common for beginning activities      |
| Kết thúc                  | Finish                      | Opposite of "Bắt đầu"                |
| Nghe                      | Listen                      | Focuses on hearing actively          |
| Nói                       | Speak                       | General speaking                     |
| Đọc                       | Read                        | Reading aloud or silently            |
| Viết                      | Write                       | Writing something down               |
| Lặp lại                   | Repeat                      | Used for repetition                  |
| Rất tốt                   | Very good                   | Complimenting something well done    |
| Rất giỏi                  | Very good                   | More emphasis on skill/expertise     |
| Vâng / Dạ                 | Yes                         | "Dạ" is polite, often used formally  |
| Bây giờ                   | Now                         | Indicates present time               |
| Thực tập                  | Practice                    | Can refer to both study & internship |
| Sinh viên                 | Student                     | University/college student           |
| Học sinh                  | Student                     | Primary/secondary school student     |
| Phát âm                   | Pronunciation               | Refers to how words are spoken       |
| Luyện                     | Drill                       | Practice through repetition          |
| Ai                        | Who                         | Question word                        |
| Muốn                      | Want                        | Expressing desire or intention       |


Pronuncation is a challenge

Learning Vietnamese - Lesson 3

![{2400[x]1600}{priority}](/journal/250312/learning-vietnamese-lesson-2-1.jpg)

Today's lesson was all about getting familiar with the **Vietnamese alphabet** and tackling **pronunciation**—which, as it turns out, is a completely different challenge compared to Swedish.

The Vietnamese alphabet has **29 letters**, just like Swedish, so at first glance, it feels familiar. But then come the **diacritics (accent marks)** and **tones**, which completely change how words are pronounced and their meaning.

A single word like **"ma"** can mean very different things depending on the **tone**:

- **ma** → **ghost**
- **má** → **mother**
- **mà** → **but / that** (used in sentences)
- **mạ** → **young rice plant**
- **mả** → **tomb / grave**

## **Key Differences Between Swedish & Vietnamese**

| Feature               | Swedish  | Vietnamese                  |
| --------------------- | -------- | --------------------------- |
| Number of letters     | 29       | 29                          |
| Special characters    | Å, Ä, Ö  | Ă, Â, Ê, Ô, Ơ, Ư, Đ         |
| Uses tones?           | ❌ No    | ✅ Yes (5 tones)            |
| Unique pronunciation? | Moderate | Very different due to tones |

We spent most of the class practicing **how to pronounce** tricky Vietnamese letters, like **Đ** (which sounds like an English "D" but softer) and **D** (which sounds like "Z" in northern Vietnam and "Y" in the south).

## Practicing the pronunciation

I got some help from my wife to practice the pronunciation of the alphabet. Tap the letters to hear her pronuncation first (which is correct) and then my imitation (probably not perfect):

```custom-LearningVietnameseTheAlphabet

```


Mastering the alphabet

Learning Vietnamese - Lesson 2

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More photos and prints at [Rockfoto](https://rockfoto.nu/artists/while-she-sleeps/20250309/30286)
/20250226/30274)

Read the review at [GP.se](https://www.gp.se/kultur/musik/konsertrecension/recension-while-she-sleeps-filmstudion-sondag.30a15a88-460e-4a7f-83f8-950ad1a88b45)


While She Sleeps @ Filmstudion

![{2400[x]1600}{priority}](/journal/250305/learning-vietnamese-lesson-1-1.jpg)

Today, I had my first Vietnamese lesson at Folkuniversitet, and I’m excited to finally learn the language in a structured way. I’ve tried studying on my own before, but let’s just say the results were… less than impressive.

Our class is small, just four students, which is a real luxury. With such a small group and an enthusiastic teacher, I think this will be a great learning experience.

To make the process more fun and to reinforce what I learn, I’ll be writing a short post after each lesson. This will help me review new words and phrases while hopefully sharing some useful insights with others.

In our first lesson, we focused on the basics: an introduction to the language and how to introduce ourselves. A solid foundation to build on!

## Personal pronouns

In Vietnamese, it's very important to correctly address the person you're talking to. There are many different personal pronouns, called đại từ xưng hô in Vietnamese. For example, if you meet a man slightly older than you, you would say:  
**"Anh ơi, cho em hỏi..."** (Hey anh, can I ask you something?). I listed all the pronouns we learned in the table at the end.

## Simple conversations

We also practiced some simple conversations, for example two people meeting each other for the first time:
**Andreas:** Chào em.<br />
**Milly:** Chào anh. Xin lỗi, anh tên là gì?<br />
**Andreas:** Tôi tên là Andreas, rất vui đươc gặp em.<br />
**Milly:** Tôi tên là Milly, rất vui đươc gặp anh.

Or if you already acquinted with each other:
**Andreas:** Chào cô Milly. Cô cò khoẻ không?<br />
**Milly:** Chào anh Andreas. Tôi khoẻ. Cò anh?<br />
**Andreas:** Chào anh. Hên gặp lại.<br />
**Milly:** Chào cô. Hẹn gặp lại.

If you are in a class, you would address your teacher as _cô_ instead:<br />
**Andreas**: Chào cô.<br />
**Milly**: Chào các bạn. Các bạn khoẻ không?<br />
**Andreas**: Dạ, khoẻ. Cám ơn cô. Còn cô?<br />
**Milly**: Cám ơn bạn. Tôi cũng khoẽ.<br />

### **Common Pronouns & Address Terms**

| Vietnamese | English Translation               | Notes                                   |
| ---------- | --------------------------------- | --------------------------------------- |
| **Anh**    | Older brother / You (man)         | Used for a slightly older man           |
| **Chị**    | Older sister / You (woman)        | Used for a slightly older woman         |
| **Em**     | Younger sibling / You             | Used for someone younger                |
| **Cô**     | Aunt / You (older woman)          | Used for women around your parents' age |
| **Chú**    | Uncle / You (older man)           | Used for men around your parents' age   |
| **Bà**     | Grandmother / You (elderly woman) | Used for very old women                 |
| **Ông**    | Grandfather / You (elderly man)   | Used for very old men                   |
| **Tôi**    | I (formal)                        | Polite and neutral                      |
| **Bạn**    | You (neutral/friend)              | Used with strangers or friends          |

### **Common Words & Their Meanings**

| Vietnamese | English Translation      | Notes                                        |
| ---------- | ------------------------ | -------------------------------------------- |
| **Tên**    | Name                     | Used when asking for names                   |
| **Là**     | To be / Is / Am / Are    | Used in basic sentences like "My name is..." |
| **Gì**     | What                     | Used in questions                            |
| **Không**  | No / Not / Question word | Turns a sentence into a yes/no question      |
| **Khỏe**   | Healthy / Well           | Used in greetings                            |
| **Cảm ơn** | Thank you                | Common way to express gratitude              |
| **Còn**    | And / As for             | Used when continuing a conversation          |
| **Thì**    | Then / So                | Used for emphasis in questions               |

### **Full Phrases & Sentences**

| Vietnamese                 | English Translation  | Notes                              |
| -------------------------- | -------------------- | ---------------------------------- |
| **Anh/Chị tên là gì?**     | What is your name?   | Formal way to ask someone's name   |
| **Còn em thì sao?**        | How about you?       | Used when returning a question     |
| **Anh/Chị có khỏe không?** | How are you?         | Polite way to ask about well-being |
| **Khỏe! Cảm ơn em!**       | I'm well! Thank you! | Common response to "How are you?"  |


Getting started

Learning Vietnamese - Lesson 1

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More photos and prints at [Rockfoto](https://rockfoto.nu/artists/jembaa-groove/20250226/30274)

Read the review at [GP.se](https://www.gp.se/kultur/musik/konsertrecension/recension-jembaa-groove-nefertiti-onsdag.65991aba-178d-4316-a43e-c11a2d3d8bee)


Jembaa Groove @ Nefertiti

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More photos and prints at [Rockfoto](https://rockfoto.nu/artists/kim-wilde/20250214/30269)

Read the review at [GP.se](https://www.gp.se/kultur/musik/konsertrecension/recension-kim-wilde-tradgarn-fredag-.6773ee14-39f2-4a27-8e3f-d03e01044734)


Kim Wilde @ Trädgår'n

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**Just got back home from a spontaneous and unplanned roadtrip to Paris with my family. I've been driving through Europe myself before, but this was the first longer roadtrip since having Martin so it was a bit different.**

We left late afternoon on Christmas Eve, driving down to Helsingborg. It's just a two hours drive, but it felt good to be able to start early next day and make it down to Germany. We stayed at Scandic Oceanhamnen which is located right next to the ferry terminal which was convenient.

After a long good breakfast on Wednesday, we boarded the ferry for a 20 minute ride over to Helsingør. Driving non-stop through Denmark for two hours and catching the next ferry from Rødby to Puttgarden.

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Continuing through Germany with a stop in Hamburg for some Vietnamese dinner and stopping in Bremen for sleeping. We stayed at Ibis Budget which was better than expected. Simple but clean and with a surprisingly good breakfast. Only downside was that the parking garage felt a bit unsafe.

Setting off early next day as we wanted to cover some distance and arrive in Amsterdam early afternoon. We immediately noticed the better road quality and calmer driving when entering Netherlands. For lunch we had salad at restaurant Waanders in the small town of Staphorst, where Martin made friends with a very strange animal.

![{1600[x]2400}](/journal/250105/christmas-roadtrip-to-paris-5.jpg|/journal/250105/christmas-roadtrip-to-paris-6.jpg)

Arriving a few hours later and checked into Four Elements Hotel in Ijburg in the eastern part of the city. Had a nice view of the water:

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/250105/christmas-roadtrip-to-paris-7.jpg)

After relaxing a bit in the room we took the metro to the central station and walked around Amsterdam before having a nice dinner at Cau Steakhouse.

![{1600[x]2400}](/journal/250105/christmas-roadtrip-to-paris-8.jpg|/journal/250105/christmas-roadtrip-to-paris-9.jpg)

We had booked two nights so Friday was all about exploring Amsterdam. Getting some really good Pancakes for breakfast and then walking around the city the whole day. Martin also really enjoyed going with the metro and trams everywhere we went. More fun for him than driving for sure.

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Bringing the stroller along for the trip turned out to be a good idea. It was a bit of a challenge to fit it in the car, but it was worth it. Martin also ran a lot by himself, but it's hard to keep up for a whole day. He also made friends with the bull outside the Amsterdam stock exchange:

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/250105/christmas-roadtrip-to-paris-12.jpg)

When in Amsterdam we of course also had to go on a trip along the canals. It was a one hour boat trip which we and Martin enjoyed every second of. Having just two nights in Amsterdam is of course not enough to explore the all of the city so we'll definitely go back and stay longer next time.

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Back to the road on Saturday with our aim set for Belgium. Since the trip was unplanned we also underestimated the amount of clothes we needed to bring. We decided to stop at an AirBnB for the next night to do laundry. On the way there we stopped by in Antwerpen for a absolutely amazing lunch at a Vietnamese restaurant called Hoi An. One of the best Vietnamese meals I've had outside of Vietnam.

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The weather was great so we spent most of the day walking around Antwerpen, enjoying the sunset from the top of Museum aan de Stroom.

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Driving another hour past Brussels we arrived at our AirBnB outside a small town called Linter. Very friendly and social host so we spent a bit more time than planned doing laundry and chatting.

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/250105/christmas-roadtrip-to-paris-18.jpg)

On Sunday we continued driving to the main destination of the trip: Paris. We arrived in the afternoon and checked into Ibis Styles in Bezons. It was over expectations and reasonably priced (for being in Paris...). Train stop for line T2 was just outside the hotel so it was easy to get to the city center. Which was great since the traffic in Paris is intense.

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/250105/christmas-roadtrip-to-paris-19.jpg)

Going with the stroller in Paris was a bit of a challenge. It's not easy to push it around in the metro and the streets are not always stroller friendly. But we managed. Many of the subway stations are not wheelchair accessible so we often had to carry the stroller up and down stairs or taking the escalator.

![{1600[x]2400}](/journal/250105/christmas-roadtrip-to-paris-20.jpg|/journal/250105/christmas-roadtrip-to-paris-21.jpg)

As always, Martin loved taking the subway and was getting along really well with the busy city life.

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We had a hidden agenda for the trip as well: Visiting Millys cousin who lives in Paris since a few years back. She was out of town the first day so we spend most of the Monday checking off a couple of must see places such as the Louvre, the Arc de Triomphe, Champs-Élysées and the Eiffel Tower.

![{1600[x]2400}](/journal/250105/christmas-roadtrip-to-paris-25.jpg|/journal/250105/christmas-roadtrip-to-paris-26.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/250105/christmas-roadtrip-to-paris-27.jpg)

![{1600[x]2400}](/journal/250105/christmas-roadtrip-to-paris-30.jpg|/journal/250105/christmas-roadtrip-to-paris-31.jpg)

On Tuesday, new years eve, we finally got the chance to meet up with Millys cousin Bambi. Spent the whole day outside jumping between coffee shops and more sightseeing. Here are us getting an old fashioned Vietnamese coffee before heading up the Montmartre.

![{1600[x]2400}](/journal/250105/christmas-roadtrip-to-paris-32.jpg)

We had dinner together with Bambi and her boyfriend, best crêpes ever at Le Cidre d'Or! Also took the opportunity to celebrate the new year together by the foot of the Eiffel Tower. First planned to go to Champs-Élysées but it was way too crowded for Martin.

![{1600[x]2400}](/journal/250105/christmas-roadtrip-to-paris-33.jpg)

![{1600[x]2400}](/journal/250105/christmas-roadtrip-to-paris-34.jpg|/journal/250105/christmas-roadtrip-to-paris-35.jpg)

We all woke up late on Wednesday after a long intense new years eve and had late breakfast at the hotel before checking out. Today's goal was driving to Luxembourg where we already booked the next stay. It was a four hour drive, which ended up being eight hours with all the breaks. Made it to Threeland Hotel just across Luxembourg border and a few kilometers outside of the city. Very old-school hotel, felt like travelling back in time 40 years, and breakfast was no great. But we had a good nights sleep and ready to explore the city of Luxembourg!

![{1600[x]2400}](/journal/250105/christmas-roadtrip-to-paris-36.jpg)

![{1600[x]2400}](/journal/250105/christmas-roadtrip-to-paris-37.jpg)

![{1600[x]2400}](/journal/250105/christmas-roadtrip-to-paris-39.jpg|/journal/250105/christmas-roadtrip-to-paris-40.jpg)

![{1600[x]2400}](/journal/250105/christmas-roadtrip-to-paris-38.jpg)

Looks gray and boring in the photos, but it was a really cosy city. Quite a change from the crowded streets of Paris.

Leaving in late afternoon again to make it to Germany. We had booked a night at Prizeotel in Münster to which we arrived late in the evening. It was simple but good and our plan was just to stay the night before continuing to home to Sweden. We didn't have any plans for the day after, just driving as long as possible and stopping for the night. We took the ferry back from Puttgarden to Rødby, had some thai food at Panya Thai in Maribo.

Taking the ferries on the way down went well, but the return trip from Puttgarden to Rødby was a bit of a challenge. It was very windy and we all got a bit seasick. Ended up taking the bridge from Køpenhavn to Malmö to avoid another ferry trip.

![{1600[x]2400}](/journal/250105/christmas-roadtrip-to-paris-41.jpg)

We decided to stay the last night at Scandic Segevång in Malmö. It was a good choice to stop for sleeping, but not as calm as we hoped for. Had the slowest breakfast of the whole trip the next morning to make the most of the vacation before returning home.

# Summary

With a total distance of 3,327 km and an average speed of 86 km/h we spent 38 hours driving. Checking off six countries in 12 days. Might sound like a lot of driving but wasn't that bad, we took a lot of breaks and no car sickness this time.

Another thing we realized after a few days was that studded tires are forbidden in most places in Europe. We had studded tires on the car but decided to take the risk. Luckily we didn't have any problems, and happy we had them when driving home through Germany as it was snowing and icy roads.

## Accomodation

We were gone for 12 days totally, sleeping in seven different places. The hotels in Paris and Amsterdam were the best, newly renovated and very fresh. Breakfast was best at the Scandic hotels in Sweden. Staying at the AirBnB in Belgium was a great experience, even if it was a bit more socially intense.

## Getting around

Bringing the stroller was great, but it's not that easy to fit it in the car. We're using a Thule Glide which is absolutely amazing when running and going to the forest, but it's also a bit bulky when navigating through the city, going on buses and trams etc. We're planning a trip to Japan later this year so we might bring the backpack carrier instead then.

It was nice to book the places to sleep late as it gave a lot of flexibility on how long to drive and which road to take, but it also meant we spent some time searching for hotels.

All in all a great trip and we're already planning the next one!

```custom-ParisRoadtripMap

```


Christmas Roadtrip to Paris

```custom-WatchMotionIndex
activePost: 5
```

![{2400[x]1318}](/journal/241223/watch-motion-session-recording-1.jpg)

It's Christmas time! Just went on a two week break from my current freelance contract and started working on Watch Motion again. Bad news is that I catched a cold last week and have been sick since, so I haven't been able to go out and record any real world data.

The approach from the previous post with counting number of reps based on the peaks in sensor data looks promising. I would like to dive deeper into how this works when mixing noisy between-exercise data with the clean exercise data. To do this we need to capture longer sessions and have a ground truth for when an exercise starts and ends.

I did some updates to the app and added a session recording mode. Instead of just recording one exercise at a time, the app now records sensor data continuously. I can mark the start of an exercise by pressing a button, it will then count down from 3, mark the start and set the end to a few seconds later.

The sensor data is stored directly to a csv-file on the watch. That means that we now have two types of data, a csv-file containing the raw sensor data and an array of exercise slots looking like this:

```swift
[
  {
    "exercise": "battlerope",
    "start": 3219,
    "end": 4219
  },
  {
    "exercise": "chins",
    "start": 8429,
    "end": 9429
  }
  ...
]
```

The architecture for uploading files looks like this:

![{2400[x]1318}](/journal/241223/watch-motion-session-recording-2.png)

After finishing recording a session the following happens:

1. The app makes a POST request to a lambda function exposed through API Gateway
2. The lambda function creates a unique id for the session and stores it together with the metadata in a DynamoDB table
3. It also requests a presigned upload URL from S3 that is sent back as the response to the watch app
4. The watch app uploads the CSV-file to S3 using the presigned URL
5. S3 triggers an event when the upload is complete which triggers another lambda function
6. That lambda function reads the CSV-file and updates the DynamoDB entry with a condensed version of the log data scaled down to 1024 entries.

Below is the data captured, first some sample data I collected at home while sick, but you can click fetch latest to get the most recent recording:

```custom-WatchMotionSessionRecording

```

Pretty happy with the progress so far, next step is to collect a couple of workout sessions and see if we can get a good model for counting reps and ideally also classifying the type of exercise.


Session recording

Watch Motion

```custom-WatchMotionIndex
activePost: 4
```

![{2400[x]1318}](/journal/241124/watch-motion-a-journey-through-raw-data-1.jpg)

Spent a couple of hours at my favorite coffee shop this weekend to do some exploratory data analysis of the data collected so far.

Let's open up a Jupyter Notebook and dig into the data! First I list the contents of the bucket and print a couple of sample files for each exercise so we have something to work with:

```markdown
+--------------+-----------------+------------------------------------------------+
| Exercise     | Number of Files | Sample Files                                   |
+--------------+-----------------+------------------------------------------------+
| battlerope   | 49              | 27PXR, 3S3Y9, 3ZYW5, 5A479, 5FLRB (+44 more)   |
| chins        | 54              | 2AJNF, 2JGC2, 2QD55, 3CQGL, 4UJBZ (+49 more)   |
| press        | 51              | 2XQWW, 2ZXJC, 39YPF, 3YXKX, 498DH (+46 more)   |
| situps       | 55              | 29V2P, 2Q9JU, 2SXVW, 4GNA3, 4PFVJ (+50 more)   |
+--------------+-----------------+------------------------------------------------+
```

Here's a sample of what each file looks like:

```csv
acc_x,acc_y,acc_z,gyro_x,gyro_y,gyro_z,mag_x,mag_y,mag_z
-0.1658,0.08798,-0.08062,0.3743,-0.8699,-0.4627,37.865,-11.728,-33.783
-0.1332,0.0951,-0.01393,0.4457,-0.9735,-0.5086,37.844,-11.771,-33.803
-0.07474,0.004615,-0.01889,0.3523,-1.0037,-0.4846,37.893,-11.788,-34.096
-0.02115,-0.07249,0.08809,0.05389,-1.0022,-0.5502,37.731,-12.035,-34.409
...
(1000 rows)
```

We'll look at a situps exercise since I believe those will have pretty clear patterns. Picking a random one (2Q9JU if you're curious) and plotting the different sensors looks like this:

![{2400[x]1318}](/journal/241124/watch-motion-a-journey-through-raw-data-2.png)

If we take a closer look at the data from the magnetometer, we can see that the first 100 or so samples are much noisier than the rest, probably due to sensor initialization and calibration. To remove this noise, we can simply discard the first 100 samples.

Let's also try to see what happens if we scale each column to have a mean of 0 and a standard deviation of 1:

![{2400[x]1318}](/journal/241124/watch-motion-a-journey-through-raw-data-3.png)

Next, let's plot a heatmap over the values to get a feel for the correlations between the different sensors:

![{2400[x]1318}](/journal/241124/watch-motion-a-journey-through-raw-data-5.png)

The data is pretty noisy so we will apply a moving average to smooth it out, here's an example taking a window size of 100 samples:

![{2400[x]1318}](/journal/241124/watch-motion-a-journey-through-raw-data-4.png)

We of course lost some details, but we can now see the general trend of the exercise. Let's also try to do a 3D plot of the data to see if we can see any interesting patterns:

![{2400[x]800}](/journal/241124/watch-motion-a-journey-through-raw-data-6.png)

Also a bit noisy, but we can apply a moving average to smooth it out, here's another example with a window size of 100 samples:

![{2400[x]800}](/journal/241124/watch-motion-a-journey-through-raw-data-7.png)

Very clear pattern for all sensors, especially if we disregard the X-axis drift of the magnetometer.

With this data, we should be able to detect peaks, valleys and other interesting features. Let's count the number of peaks for each sensor:

![{2400[x]1318}](/journal/241124/watch-motion-a-journey-through-raw-data-8.png)

```markdown
+-----------------+----------------------+
| Column          | Number of Peaks      |
+-----------------+----------------------+
| acc_x           | 7                    |
| acc_y           | 6                    |
| acc_z           | 6                    |
| gyro_x          | 5                    |
| gyro_y          | 5                    |
| gyro_z          | 6                    |
| mag_x           | 6                    |
| mag_y           | 6                    |
| mag_z           | 6                    |
+-----------------+----------------------+
```

I'm using the `find_peaks` function from the scipy library and it works surprisingly well. The signature looks like
```python
find_peaks(x,
           height=None,
           threshold=None,
           distance=None,
           prominence=None,
           width=None,
           wlen=None,
           rel_height=0.5,
           plateau_size=None)
```

Using a `prominance` of 0.4 and a `distance` of 50 samples (expecting each exercise to take at least 0.5 seconds). One idea could be to just take the mean of the number of peaks for each column and let that be the number of repetitions. Remains to be seen how this approach generalizes to other exercises though.



And that's what we'll look at next!

A journey through raw data

```custom-WatchMotionIndex
activePost: 3
```

I'm still collecting data for the model, but I thought I should try to do some on-device inference to get a feel for how it performs and if it's fast enough. I used the training data I have collected so far and training a very naive model without much preprocessing. The model is trained on a window of 500 samples (5 seconds at 100Hz), and I run the inference every 100 samples (using the latest 500 samples).

<iframe
  className="video-1-2 mb-8"
  src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dV49P3sZiJg?si=iq54NC3G1wdatGE3"
  title="YouTube video player"
  allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture"
  allowFullScreen
></iframe>

To get started, I downloaded the data from DynamoDB with a simple Python-script and saved it to disk as JSON files. I then did some very simple preprocessing, just normalizing the data and splitting it into training and validation sets. I'm using CreateML to train the model, it's great for getting started but gives very little control over the training process so I will probably switch to TensorFlow or PyTorch later. This is what it looks like after training for 20 epochs:

![{2400[x]1318}](/journal/241117/watch-motion-first-try-with-on-device-inference-2.png)


First try with on-device inference

![{2400[x]1600}{priority}](/journal/241116/infinite-mass-at-pustervik-1.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/241116/infinite-mass-at-pustervik-2.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/241116/infinite-mass-at-pustervik-3.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/241116/infinite-mass-at-pustervik-4.jpg)

More photos and prints at [Rockfoto](https://rockfoto.nu/artists/infinite-mass/20241116/30181)

Read the review at [GP.se](https://www.gp.se/kultur/musik/konsertrecension/recension-infinite-mass-pustervik-lordag.07ad24d1-42ff-4fdd-9708-0efec8f8bdd6)


Infinite Mass @ Pustervik

```custom-WatchMotionIndex
activePost: 2
```

Now to the fun part: Getting a lot of training data! I'm trying to collect at least a couple recordings of each exercise every day. My plan is to collect enough data to train a simple model that I can implement in the watch app and do some basic exercise classification on device just to see that it works.

When building a machine learning model to classify exercises, the quality of the dataset is just as important as the algorithm. A balanced dataset ensures that the model learns equally from all exercise types, rather than favoring one over the others. To measure how balanced the dataset is, we can use the coefficient of variation (CV) which simply is the standard deviation divided by the mean. We want the CV to be as low as possible, if the dataset is balanced, the CV will be close to 0.

```custom-WatchMotionMoreTrainingData

```

The data is updated every time I add a new recording to the dataset, so check back later to see how it progresses!


More training data

```custom-WatchMotionIndex
activePost: 1
```

![{2400[x]1600}{priority}](/journal/241109/watch-motion-data-collection-2.jpg)

With the app working and the data collection endpoint ready I started collecting data. I made some small changes to the app so I can select which exercise I'm doing before starting the data collection.

There's also a 5-second delay before the recording starts to account for the time it takes to get started doing some reps. The samples are collected at 100Hz and by default for 10 seconds.

My first test from last weekend with situps looked good so I will keep that as one exercise. I also added overhead press, chins and battle ropes. The hardest one to predict will probably be chins as the wrists doesn't move that much during the exercise.

With that figured out, it was time to head out to the gym and start collecting some real world data!

<iframe
  className="video-1-2 mb-8"
  src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/IEwDTtB-taE?si=URbvqm8xEbkwJ8Rg"
  title="YouTube video player"
  allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture"
  allowFullScreen
></iframe>

Here are some of the samples I collected for the four exercises. This is unprocessed data straight from the watch, I will most likely need to do some processing and normalization before I can use it for training.

```custom-WatchMotionDataCollection

```


Data collection

```custom-WatchMotionIndex
activePost: 0
```

![{2400[x]1600}{priority}](/journal/241101/watch-motion-getting-started-1.jpg)

Started the weekend with a new project. It's an Apple Watch app that
collects and analyzes motion data from your daily activities. By leveraging
the watch's built-in sensors, it tracks your movements throughout the day to
provide insights about your physical activity patterns and movement quality.

The data is sent to a serverless function that stores it in a database and
exposed via a REST API to be visualized here. Made a small test in the
outdoor gym and it worked pretty well. Next step is probably to see what I
can do with the data, it would be pretty cool to be able to predict exercises
for example.

<iframe
  className="video-1-2 mb-8"
  src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/WjQSIbHgatA?si=RpozVyp4HzGUtM2F"
  title="YouTube video player"
  allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture"
  allowFullScreen
></iframe>

I collected the data for 20 seconds with a sampling frequency of 50Hz, and this is what it looks like:

```custom-WatchMotionGettingStarted

```


Getting Started

![{2400[x]1600}{priority}](/journal/241013/nils-frahm-at-storan-1.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/241013/nils-frahm-at-storan-2.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/241013/nils-frahm-at-storan-3.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/241013/nils-frahm-at-storan-4.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/241013/nils-frahm-at-storan-5.jpg)

More photos and prints at [Rockfoto](https://rockfoto.nu/artists/nils-frahm/20241013/30142)

Read the review at [GP.se](https://www.gp.se/kultur/musik/konsertrecension/recension-nils-frahm-storan-sondag.e0185f8e-2ae8-4640-9392-5b54844e3157)


Nils Frahm @ Storan

![{2400[x]1600}{priority}](/journal/241005/london-symphonic-rock-orchestra-at-partille-arena-1.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/241005/london-symphonic-rock-orchestra-at-partille-arena-2.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/241005/london-symphonic-rock-orchestra-at-partille-arena-3.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/241005/london-symphonic-rock-orchestra-at-partille-arena-4.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/241005/london-symphonic-rock-orchestra-at-partille-arena-5.jpg)

More photos and prints at [Rockfoto](https://rockfoto.nu/artists/london-symphonic-rock-orchestra/20241005/30131)

Read the review at [GP.se](https://www.gp.se/kultur/musik/konsertrecension/recension-london-symphonic-rock-orchestra-pa-partille-arena.94e4e969-6a3f-4b09-8ffa-64d27e0e2419)


London Symphonic Rock Orchestra @ Partilla Arena

![{2400[x]1600}{priority}](/journal/240802/hov1-at-tradgardsforeningen-1.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240802/hov1-at-tradgardsforeningen-2.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240802/hov1-at-tradgardsforeningen-3.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240802/hov1-at-tradgardsforeningen-4.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240802/hov1-at-tradgardsforeningen-5.jpg)

More photos and prints at [Rockfoto](https://rockfoto.nu/artists/hov1/20240802/29901)

Read the review at [GP.se](https://www.gp.se/kultur/musik/konsertrecension/recension-hov1-i-tradgardsforeningen.6dbb7555-a435-41a2-ad64-8c2352d10a54)


Hov1 @ Trädgårdsföreningen

![{2400[x]1600}{priority}](/journal/240731/gene-simmons-band-at-liseberg-1.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240731/gene-simmons-band-at-liseberg-2.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240731/gene-simmons-band-at-liseberg-3.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240731/gene-simmons-band-at-liseberg-4.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240731/gene-simmons-band-at-liseberg-5.jpg)

More photos and prints at [Rockfoto](https://rockfoto.nu/artists/gene-simmons-band/20240731/29900)


Gene Simmons Band @ Liseberg

![{2400[x]1600}{priority}](/journal/240727/ryan-castro-at-liseberg-1.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240727/ryan-castro-at-liseberg-2.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240727/ryan-castro-at-liseberg-3.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240727/ryan-castro-at-liseberg-4.jpg)

More photos and prints at [Rockfoto](https://rockfoto.nu/artists/ryan-castro/20240727/29899)

Read the review at [GP.se](https://www.gp.se/kultur/musik/konsertrecension/recension-ryan-castro-liseberg-lordag.695570fb-4825-4873-adfc-23535e163675)


Ryan Castro @ Liseberg

Calculate how much to charge to achieve your financial goals, whether funding projects, taking a sabbatical, or sustaining your lifestyle. The numbers you input should be after-tax figures. Your spending and savings goals should reflect the money you have available after taxes have been deducted.

```custom-FreelanceRunway

```


Freelance Runway

![{2400[x]1600}{priority}](/journal/240703/mando-diao-at-liseberg-1.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240703/mando-diao-at-liseberg-2.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240703/mando-diao-at-liseberg-3.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240703/mando-diao-at-liseberg-4.jpg)

More photos and prints at [Rockfoto](https://rockfoto.nu/artists/mando-diao/20240703/29833)


Mando Diao @ Liseberg

![{2400[x]1600}{priority}](/journal/240623/catfish-over-open-flame-1.jpg)

**Made a short Sunday hike to one of our favorite spots in Delsjön a picked up some fresh catfish on the way for lunch. Martin was still a bit tired after the wedding yesterday and fell asleep in the carrier later.**

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240623/catfish-over-open-flame-2.jpg)

Prepared it on top of the car before heading out. Just some herb salt, butter and some slices of lemon. Wrapping it in aluminium foil and ready for the fire.

![{1600[x]2400}](/journal/240623/catfish-over-open-flame-3.jpg)

Had a bit of challenge getting the fire going, heavy rainfall in Gothenburg yesterday so most firewood I could find was moist. Worked out using some smaller branches and a bit of cheating with fire sticks and paper.

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240623/catfish-over-open-flame-4.jpg)

The final result, served with cold potato salad, delicious!


Catfish over open flame

![{2400[x]1600}{priority}](/journal/240613/hooja-at-liseberg-1.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240613/hooja-at-liseberg-2.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240613/hooja-at-liseberg-3.jpg)

More photos and prints at [Rockfoto](https://rockfoto.nu/artists/hooja/20240613/29802)


Hooja @ Liseberg

![{2400[x]1600}{priority}](/journal/240531/victor-leksell-at-scandinavium-1.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240531/victor-leksell-at-scandinavium-2.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240531/victor-leksell-at-scandinavium-3.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240531/victor-leksell-at-scandinavium-4.jpg)

More photos and prints at [Rockfoto](https://rockfoto.nu/artists/victor-leksell/20240531/29744)

Read the review at [Dagens Nyheter](https://www.dn.se/kultur/scandinavium-for-stort-for-victor-leksell/)


Victor Leksell @ Scandinavium

![{2400[x]1600}{priority}](/journal/240523/dan-berglund-at-aftonstjarnan-1.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240523/dan-berglund-at-aftonstjarnan-2.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240523/dan-berglund-at-aftonstjarnan-3.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240523/dan-berglund-at-aftonstjarnan-4.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240523/dan-berglund-at-aftonstjarnan-5.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240523/dan-berglund-at-aftonstjarnan-6.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240523/dan-berglund-at-aftonstjarnan-7.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240523/dan-berglund-at-aftonstjarnan-8.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240523/dan-berglund-at-aftonstjarnan-9.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240523/dan-berglund-at-aftonstjarnan-10.jpg)

More photos and prints at [Rockfoto](https://rockfoto.nu/artists/dan-berglund/20240523/29698)


Dan Berglund @ Aftonstjärnan

![{2400[x]1600}{priority}](/journal/240520/a-tiny-photographer-1.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}{priority}](/journal/240520/a-tiny-photographer-2.jpg)


A tiny photographer

**First time ridig the slide all by himself. One very positive side-effect of leaving the phone at home has been that I more often bring the real camera when going to the playground.**

![{2400[x]1600}{priority}](/journal/240519/ride-the-slide-1.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240519/ride-the-slide-2.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240519/ride-the-slide-3.jpg)


Ride the slide

![{2400[x]1600}{priority}](/journal/240512/a-weekend-in-vienna-1.jpg)

We took advantage of the extended weekend with ascension day and booked a cheap flight to Vienna. Leaving Wednesday evening and landed around 8pm. Going from the airport to our hotel was easy using the airport train to city centre and then a tram ride to our hotel located near the Schönbrunn Palace. It was a calm convenient location to stay as we could take it easy and explore the gardens around Schönbrunn. The Vienna Zoo is also on walkable distance and we spent a full day there.

Vienna has great public transport which we made extensive use of when exploring the city. There's a lot to see in the centre and many good coffee shops. We found a favorite one named Kaffein close to St. Stephen's Cathedral. All in all, highly recommend for a couple of days travel. And of course some photos from the trip:

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240512/a-weekend-in-vienna-12.jpg)

![{1600[x]2400}](/journal/240512/a-weekend-in-vienna-2.jpg|/journal/240512/a-weekend-in-vienna-3.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240512/a-weekend-in-vienna-15.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240512/a-weekend-in-vienna-4.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240512/a-weekend-in-vienna-16.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240512/a-weekend-in-vienna-14.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240512/a-weekend-in-vienna-5.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240512/a-weekend-in-vienna-6.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240512/a-weekend-in-vienna-7.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240512/a-weekend-in-vienna-8.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240512/a-weekend-in-vienna-9.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240512/a-weekend-in-vienna-10.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240512/a-weekend-in-vienna-17.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240512/a-weekend-in-vienna-11.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240512/a-weekend-in-vienna-13.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240512/a-weekend-in-vienna-19.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/240512/a-weekend-in-vienna-20.jpg)


A weekend in Vienna

![{2400[x]1600}{priority}](/journal/231109/tonbruket-at-stenhammarsalen-1.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/231109/tonbruket-at-stenhammarsalen-2.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/231109/tonbruket-at-stenhammarsalen-3.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/231109/tonbruket-at-stenhammarsalen-4.jpg)

More photos and prints at [Rockfoto](https://rockfoto.nu/artists/tonbruket/20231109/29531)


Tonbruket @ Stenhammarsalen

**A couple of years ago I attended a talk with a woman who had done relief work in the Romanian countryside for over 30 years.**

She was going back to Romania a couple of weeks later and invited me to come with her. Here are some of the families we went to visit:

![{2048[x]1365}{priority}](/journal/220820/romania-1.jpg)

![{2048[x]1365}](/journal/220820/romania-2.jpg)

![{2048[x]1365}](/journal/220820/romania-3.jpg)

![{2048[x]1365}](/journal/220820/romania-4.jpg)

![{2048[x]1365}](/journal/220820/romania-5.jpg)

![{2048[x]1365}](/journal/220820/romania-6.jpg)

![{2048[x]1365}](/journal/220820/romania-7.jpg)

![{2048[x]1365}](/journal/220820/romania-8.jpg)

![{2048[x]1365}](/journal/220820/romania-9.jpg)

![{2048[x]1365}](/journal/220820/romania-10.jpg)

![{2048[x]1365}](/journal/220820/romania-11.jpg)


Portraits from the Danube Delta

![{2400[x]1600}{priority}](/journal/231006/darin-at-scandinavium-1.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/231006/darin-at-scandinavium-2.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/231006/darin-at-scandinavium-3.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/231006/darin-at-scandinavium-4.jpg)

More photos and prints at [Rockfoto](https://rockfoto.nu/artists/darin/20231006/29491)

Read the review at [GP.se](https://prenumerera.gp.se/kultur/musik/konsertrecension/recension-darin-scandinavium-fredag.73acee57-1c2e-4a6a-84c0-783db5161fec)


Darin @ Scandinavium

![{2400[x]1600}{priority}](/journal/230801/the-baboon-show-at-liseberg-1.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/230801/the-baboon-show-at-liseberg-2.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/230801/the-baboon-show-at-liseberg-3.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/230801/the-baboon-show-at-liseberg-4.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/230801/the-baboon-show-at-liseberg-5.jpg)

![{2400[x]1600}](/journal/230801/the-baboon-show-at-liseberg-6.jpg)


The Baboon Show @ Liseberg

![{3200[x]2133}{priority}](/journal/230616/laurie-anderson-at-pustervik-1.jpg)

![{3200[x]2133}](/journal/230616/laurie-anderson-at-pustervik-2.jpg)

![{3200[x]2133}](/journal/230616/laurie-anderson-at-pustervik-3.jpg)

![{3200[x]2133}](/journal/230616/laurie-anderson-at-pustervik-4.jpg)


Laurie Anderson @ Pustervik

![{3200[x]2133}{priority}](/journal/230603/sofia-karlsson-at-liseberg-1.jpg)

![{3200[x]2133}](/journal/230603/sofia-karlsson-at-liseberg-2.jpg)

![{3200[x]2133}](/journal/230603/sofia-karlsson-at-liseberg-3.jpg)

![{3200[x]2133}](/journal/230603/sofia-karlsson-at-liseberg-4.jpg)

![{3200[x]2133}](/journal/230603/sofia-karlsson-at-liseberg-5.jpg)


Sofia Karlsson @ Liseberg

Vitsippsdalen with Martin

![{3200[x]2133}{priority}](/journal/230423/the-waterboys-at-tradgarn-1.jpg)

![{3200[x]2133}](/journal/230423/the-waterboys-at-tradgarn-2.jpg)

![{3200[x]2133}](/journal/230423/the-waterboys-at-tradgarn-3.jpg)

![{3200[x]2133}](/journal/230423/the-waterboys-at-tradgarn-4.jpg)

![{3200[x]2133}](/journal/230423/the-waterboys-at-tradgarn-5.jpg)

More photos and prints at [Rockfoto](https://rockfoto.nu/artists/the-waterboys/20230423/28859)

Read the review at [GP.se](https://www.gp.se/kultur/musik/konsertrecension/recension-the-waterboys-tradgarn-sondag.d05bc17a-c081-4ff5-a4c8-1b48f593d611)


The Waterboys @ Trädgårn

Just going for a walk

A small side project for the Apple Watch. I've had a IKEA Idåsen desk for a while and decided it was time to make a watch app for controlling its height. It actually turned out to be pretty useful to raise the desk when having my one-year-old around to prevent him from reaching all the fun stuff I keep there. Also: Highly increased productivity when doing pair-coding together with him.

<iframe
className="video-1-2"
src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/EoBN0yaZbHY"
title="YouTube video player"
allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture"
allowFullScreen
></iframe>


Watch Standup

![{3200[x]2133}{priority}](/journal/230302/stefan-sundstrom-at-storan-1.jpg)

![{3200[x]2133}](/journal/230302/stefan-sundstrom-at-storan-2.jpg)

![{3200[x]2133}](/journal/230302/stefan-sundstrom-at-storan-3.jpg)

More photos and prints at [Rockfoto](https://www.rockfoto.nu/artists/stefan-sundstrom/20230302/28815)

Read the review at [GP.se](https://www.gp.se/kultur/musik/konsertrecension/recension-stefan-sundstrom-storan-torsdag.d54a8838-dd0a-4ded-8a08-582299f6504a)


Stefan Sundström @ Storan

![{3169[x]2113}{priority}{caption: Martin enjoying his time in the crib, keeping his fellow passengers awake.}](/journal/230118/flying-with-a-baby.jpg)

Yesterday, me and my wife took our son for his first longer trip: we're spending six weeks in Vietnam. We got here from Gothenburg with a 2 hour flight to Paris followed by a 12 hour flight to Ho Chi Minh city, my wife's hometown. We dreaded the long flight but it turned out not to be that bad.

We had brought some toys and snacks but that's pretty much all of the preparation. A note to next time is to also bring some teething sticks that he can chew on and some more children books. Martin is very close to walking so maybe the flight home will bring on some new challenges. Now we have six weeks ahead of us with the goal to eat as much phỏ as possible.


Flying with a baby

![{3200[x]2133}{priority}](/journal/230113/stefan-andersson-at-kajskjul-8-1.jpg)

![{3200[x]2133}](/journal/230113/stefan-andersson-at-kajskjul-8-2.jpg)

![{3200[x]2133}](/journal/230113/stefan-andersson-at-kajskjul-8-3.jpg)

![{3200[x]2133}](/journal/230113/stefan-andersson-at-kajskjul-8-4.jpg)

More photos and prints at [Rockfoto](https://rockfoto.nu/artists/made-in-china-med-stefan-andersson/20230113/28755)

Read the review at [GP.se](https://www.gp.se/kultur/musik/konsertrecension/recension-stefan-andersson-made-in-china-20-kajskjul-8.acfdb342-944e-49b6-81fd-d9dba4d9a8a7)


Stefan Andersson @ Kajskjul 8

![{3214[x]2142}{priority}](/journal/230110/quality-time.jpg)


Quality time

**My wife Milly has recently started looking for a job after being home with Martin for a couple of months. We put up a simple website to show off her background and skills. It's written in NextJS with TailwindCSS and is as simple as one can imagine.**

![{3600[x]2400}{priority}](/journal/230105/online-resume.png)

Check it out at [MyVo.se](https://myvo.se)


Online resume for my wife

**As 2022 comes to and end I figured I can spend a little time reflecting back and looking forward for what is ahead.**

![{1200[x]800}{priority}{caption: The most life-changing event last year was of course having our first son, Martin. He came to us in late Februari and has given a lot of new perspectives on life.}](/journal/221231/my-2022-2.jpg)

## Learnings from last year

- Time is limited and valuable. I have learned to minimize time wasted on scrolling social media or doing stuff I don't like.
- Avoid trying to multitask. I don't think true multitasking exists, just rapid context switching. And it is way more energy-draining and inefficient than focusing fully on one thing at a time.
- Take breaks. Long stretches of time on front of the screen destroys the body.

## Goals for next year

- Spend as much time as possible with my son. My plan is to be on 75% parental leave until Martin goes off to pre-school, and I want to maximize that time together.
- Create something every day. Write, photo or coding.
- Stretch goal: Post it online.
- Read more real books. My plan is to always have one book in progress, and to write down some notes and reflections here while reading it.
- Reflect more instead of just maximizing information intake.
- Exercise daily. Preferably a visit to the gym or running in the forest.
- Take more photos with the real camera. As I written about earlier, I want to let go of my phone and using the DSLR instead gives me less opportunities for distractions. And way better photos.


My 2022 reflections

![{3024[x]2016}{priority}{caption: When you just want to relax a bit.}](/journal/221228/taking-a-nap.jpg)


Taking a nap

![{3600[x]2400}{priority}](/journal/221112/artists-against-cancer-1.jpg)

![{3600[x]2400}](/journal/221112/artists-against-cancer-2.jpg)

![{3600[x]2400}](/journal/221112/artists-against-cancer-3.jpg)

![{3600[x]2400}](/journal/221112/artists-against-cancer-4.jpg)


Artists against cancer

![{3600[x]2400}{priority}](/journal/221022/crossroads-1.jpg)

![{3600[x]2400}](/journal/221022/crossroads-2.jpg)

![{3600[x]2400}](/journal/221022/crossroads-3.jpg)

![{3600[x]2400}](/journal/221022/crossroads-4.jpg)

![{3600[x]2400}](/journal/221022/crossroads-5.jpg)


Crossroads @ Scandinavium

## Having been an iPhone user for well over a decade, and developing apps for a number of years, I have spent my fair share in front of that small, rectangular screen. Part of that time has been useful and contributed to my life, for example reading interesting articles, taking photos and meeting my wife. But quite a large chunk of that time has also been wasted.

![Been sick for a couple of days so the activity rings looks less than good. {3000[x]2000}{priority}](/journal/221003/no-phone.jpg)

I took a (semi-)break from social media around two years ago, removing Instagram and Facebook from the phone but keeping my accounts. Main reason for this was reading the excellent book [Digital Minimalism](https://www.calnewport.com/books/digital-minimalism/) by Cal Newport (highly recommend!). This immediately affected my life in a positive way. But it was not an escape hatch from the smartphone addiction. Instead of scrolling the feeds, I started to follow the news, the stock market, tech blogs and even the weather forecast(!) more intense. Just to have something to do whenever I had a moment of unoccupied time.

Just to get that sweet dopamine kick from pulling down to refresh.

Getting off social media and switching to other apps was not a cure, it was a substitution.

Whenever life is slightly slow or boring, just pop up the phone from your pocket, unlock and you have the world in front of you. Renuka Gavrani recently posted a [Medium article](https://renukagavrani.medium.com/i-spent-120-hours-without-phone-i-wasnt-ready-for-what-happened-why-you-should-care-e1f924fb021f) which is right on point here. My biggest take-away from the article is how you can look at your life from the perspective of having an invisible film team covering you, making the movie about your life. Will that movie be more or less interesting if the main character spends hours every day staring into a smartphone screen?

So how will I use these insights to change my phone usage, i.e. drastically reduce it?

I have been an Apple Watch user since the very first release, and now I will use it to cure my smartphone addiction. And of course: Share the progress, mistakes and learnings.

Wait, isn't that also just substituting one addiction with another you might ask? 🤔

The watch is a double edged sword. If not used intentionally, it can make the smartphone addiction even deeper. Getting mindlessly notified of updates and buzzed not only by your phone but also from your watch will most certainly increase stress. Used with the right motive however, I believe switching more phone usage to the watch can have a very positive impact on the relationship to your smartphone.

Step one is to turn off all notifications.

Being connected to internet via your watch allows for being reached, and reaching others without the phone. And without carrying the phone everywhere, it will be way easier to resist the temptation to just check that one social media app, news app, or whatever it might be. My family and friends knows that I am most likely to be reached via texts or phone calls, not on any social media. Carrying the watch also allows for sharing location with my wife.

I will try to reduce my screen time on the phone to a minimum, and spend more time **being** in real life. Instead of using the phone to write or edit photos, I will open up the laptop and do it deliberately. Instead of using the iPhone camera, I will bring my real camera, which is both more fun to use and has better image quality. I will try to find (or maybe create) watch apps that can replace even more use cases where I earlier relied on the phone.

Some things I will probably still use the phone for, for example learning Vietnamese with Duolingo, but I will aim to set aside time to do this purposely.

Not just as a way to pass time.

Life is way too short for that.


Getting rid of the phone

![{2400[x]1600}{priority}](/journal/220923/launching-wrist-words.jpg)

As a part of my journey on learning Vietnamese I decided to make a small watch app where I can practice vocabulary on the go. The idea came up when walking to the local coffee shop with a sleeping Martin in the stroller. I hacked together the first version in less than an hour. Did automatic translation of the words and got some help from Milly to correct small mistakes. After two more hours of polishing I decided to call it a day and send the first version to the [App Store](http://apps.apple.com/us/app/wrist-words/id6443452802). Have some ideas for how to make it more interesting but I the basic functionality is there for now at least.

Available for free on the [App Store](http://apps.apple.com/us/app/wrist-words/id6443452802), enjoy!


Launching Wrist Words

![{3000[x]2000}{priority}](/journal/220903/timbuktu-1.jpg)

![{3000[x]2000}](/journal/220903/timbuktu-2.jpg)

![{3000[x]2000}](/journal/220903/timbuktu-3.jpg)

![{3000[x]2000}](/journal/220903/timbuktu-4.jpg)

![{3000[x]2000}](/journal/220903/timbuktu-5.jpg)

![{3000[x]2000}](/journal/220903/timbuktu-6.jpg)

More photos and prints at [Rockfoto](https://rockfoto.nu/artists/timbuktu/20220903/28622)

Read the review at [GP.se](https://www.gp.se/kultur/musik/konsertrecension/recension-timbuktu-kungstorget-kulturkalaset-lordag.e8e127f7-3700-4c15-91e7-b0fb27df637c)


Timbuktu @ Kulturkalaset

Writing in Vietnamese

![{3200[x]2133}{priority}](/journal/220825/mikaelwiehe-1.jpg")

![{3200[x]2133}](/journal/220825/mikaelwiehe-2.jpg")

![{3200[x]2133}](/journal/220825/mikaelwiehe-3.jpg")


Mikael Wiehe @ Lorensbergsteatern

Spent the whole day in Ängårdsbergen and found this beauty close to Trindemossen:

![{3200[x]2133}{priority}](/journal/220814/dragonfly-6.jpg)

![{3200[x]2133}](/journal/220814/dragonfly-2.jpg)

![{3200[x]2133}](/journal/220814/dragonfly-3.jpg)

![{3200[x]2133}](/journal/220814/dragonfly-4.jpg)

![{3200[x]2133}](/journal/220814/dragonfly-1.jpg)

![{3200[x]2133}](/journal/220814/dragonfly-5.jpg)


The red dragonfly

![{3200[x]2133}{priority}](/journal/220813/tomasledin-1.jpg)

![{3200[x]2133}](/journal/220813/tomasledin-2.jpg)

![{3200[x]2133}](/journal/220813/tomasledin-3.jpg)

![{3200[x]2133}](/journal/220813/tomasledin-4.jpg)


Tomas Ledin @ Trädgårdsföreningen

![{1200[x]800}{priority}](/journal/220806/ugglamisslipetter-1.jpg)

![{1200[x]800}](/journal/220806/ugglamisslipetter-2.jpg)

![{1200[x]800}](/journal/220806/ugglamisslipetter-3.jpg)

![{1200[x]800}](/journal/220806/ugglamisslipetter-4.jpg)

![{1200[x]800}](/journal/220806/ugglamisslipetter-5.jpg)

![{1200[x]800}](/journal/220806/ugglamisslipetter-6.jpg)


Uggla, Miss Li & Petter @ Trädgårdsföreningen

![{1200[x]800}{priority}](/journal/220805/pegparnevik-2.jpg)

![{1200[x]800}](/journal/220805/pegparnevik-1.jpg)

![{1200[x]800}](/journal/220805/pegparnevik-3.jpg)

![{1200[x]800}](/journal/220805/pegparnevik-4.jpg)


Peg Parnevik @ Liseberg

Stumbled upon these beauties in the botanical garden just before sunset.

![{1200[x]800}{priority}](/journal/220801/bee-in-botanical.jpg)

![{1200[x]800}](/journal/220801/another-bee-in-botanical.jpg)


Dinner in the garden

![{1200[x]800}{priority}](/journal/220729/orup-1.jpg)

![{1200[x]800}](/journal/220729/orup-2.jpg)

![{1200[x]800}](/journal/220729/orup-3.jpg)

![{1200[x]800}](/journal/220729/orup-4.jpg)


Orup @ Villa Belparc

![My son Martin {1200[x]800}{priority}](/journal/220719/hello.jpg)

**Welcome to my experimental home on the web. This is where I share my thoughts, projects, ideas and whatever else pops up in my head. The guy in the photo above is my son Martin, my biggest inspiration.**

I'm not yet sure what this will evolve into, but I have some ideas:

- Practice writing
- Do experiments and write about them
- Publish photos (mostly concerts and nature)
- Share thoughts and ideas
- Learning Vietnamese


Writing

First flames of 2025

Learning Vietnamese - Lesson 4
Presentation and countries

Silvana Imam
at Pustervik

Learning Vietnamese - Lesson 3
Pronuncation is a challenge

Learning Vietnamese - Lesson 2
Mastering the alphabet

While She Sleeps
at Filmstudion

Learning Vietnamese - Lesson 1
Getting started

Jembaa Groove
at Nefertiti

Kim Wilde
at Trädgår'n

Christmas Roadtrip to Paris

Watch Motion
Session recording

Watch Motion
A journey through raw data

Writing

First flames of 2025

Learning Vietnamese - Lesson 4Presentation and countries

Silvana Imam at Pustervik

Learning Vietnamese - Lesson 3Pronuncation is a challenge

Learning Vietnamese - Lesson 2Mastering the alphabet

While She Sleeps at Filmstudion

Learning Vietnamese - Lesson 1Getting started

Jembaa Groove at Nefertiti

Kim Wilde at Trädgår'n

Christmas Roadtrip to Paris

Watch MotionSession recording

Watch MotionA journey through raw data

Learning Vietnamese - Lesson 4
Presentation and countries

Silvana Imam
at Pustervik

Learning Vietnamese - Lesson 3
Pronuncation is a challenge

Learning Vietnamese - Lesson 2
Mastering the alphabet

While She Sleeps
at Filmstudion

Learning Vietnamese - Lesson 1
Getting started

Jembaa Groove
at Nefertiti

Kim Wilde
at Trädgår'n

Watch Motion
Session recording

Watch Motion
A journey through raw data