Today I received the June issue of Nordic Way. Since its articles are not yet posted on the Web, I decided to copy out this lovely piece by Anders Neumeuller for all our blog readers to enjoy:
“Once upon a time Sven Rudstrom’s grandmother ran an inn in Eksharad in the province of Varmland. Now he is following in her footsteps, albeit in a scaled down version, at his Chez Sven Bed and Breakfast in Wellfleet, Massachusetts. Here you can sample the best of Swedish hospitality a la Cape Cod in one of two cottages set in a lovely garden.
Located in one of the oldest houses in Wellfleet, Chez Sven is tucked away in the woods along Old King’s Highway, a scenic dirt road that has a history of being used by tax collectors in colonials times. Atlantic beaches are two miles away, and you are close to the National Seashore Park, several fresh water ponds, and the center of Cape Cod’s “art gallery town”.
Apart from being a “green" B& B, where you sleep on “100% organic cotton sheets laundered with non-toxic washing powder” and get freshly baked bread served with homemade organic yogurt and “Peace” coffee in the morning, Chez Sven’s greatest asset is its two hosts. They can give you an insider’s view of Cape Cod, but above all share their interesting life stories.
The couple met in Paris where Alexandra Grabbe, of Russian aristocratic background, had been a housewife and a radio personality and where Sven-Olof Rudstrom worked as a teacher at the International Lycee in St. Germain.
Like all Varmland folks, Sven is full of stories and “quite a raconteur” according to his wife. And as he has taught history of art, psychology, religion and social science, there is a lot of substance in what he talks about. As a young man he was fascinated by Sweden’s northernmost city of Kiruna, where you really experience the midnight sun. An avid skier, he decided to live here with his first family. Even after his divorce, he stayed on for seventeen years bringing up two of his four sons there.
Alexandra and Sven moved to Cape Cod to be close to her aging parents. Sven brought his love for the outdoors and practical “Swedish can-do” with him. He renovated the house and cottages with love and respect and, above all, keeping them allergen-free. During the renovations he found a 1798 Lady Liberty penny under the floor, hence you can today stay at Chez Sven’s Liberty Coin Suite with antiques and hand-crafted period reproductions. Guests can also stay amid the flowers in Seagull Cottage, an independent building with a full kitchen.
The high season is July, August and September, but the B&B stays open all year round. Among last year’s visitors was a Swedish-American actress whose boyfriend realized that he had actually lived in what was not the B&B as an adolescent. He also told his hosts that his father had entertained Faye Dunnaway in the house some forty years ago. Another couple chose the B& B for a romantic rendezvous – he drove down from Montreal and she few up from Baltimore. They returned a month later and he proposed. Alexandra and Sven are invited to their wedding!”
Tuesday, June 27, 2006
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