Ex-Expat Day 180

A grey Saturday in February in Lund. Icy streets. Snow and slush. More grey. I’m having some coffee and a cinnamon roll – a Swedish power combo! – at Martas Cafe, a coffee shop attached to Lund’s city library.

I really enjoy spending time at this library. In fact, I come here almost every weekend. I read the newspapers, browse some magazines, work on blog posts, and get a bit of fun coding done. And yes, it’s nice to just sit here and ponder.

This is a great library. OK, here is a theory of mine: if a city has a great library, great restaurants, and coffee shops, then it’s likely to be a great city to live in. Let me present to you some heavily subjective, totally biased, and carefully selected (and clearly anecdotal) evidence to back up the bold claim:

• Durham, NC – great library, great restaurants, and great coffee shops
• Lund, Sweden – great library, great restaurants and bars such as Mat & Destillat, and great coffee shops … well, there are probably a million in this big little city, but definitely try Mannz Bageri or Patisseriet

Now, if we add one more parameter – walkability – then I’d argue that Lund is likely one of the very best places to live in the world. But wait, what about sunshine and weather? Bah, who needs warm and sunny days year-round? Grey days build character!

And when I sit in the warm library, AirPods in my ears and music on, looking out the big windows at the grey and icy streets … then … well, whatever … I love this place! Grey and icy days and all 🥶😊