A place I would live but have never visited

I have never been much of a traveler. I prefer my adventures to be within a day's drive from home. I am perfectly content to allow my sister be the world traveler. This post is about a place where I would live yet have never visited. For me, this was a very easy topic to tackle. I have always said that if I had the means, I would pack up my children and move to Sweden.

Why Sweden, you ask? Well, for starters, it is one of the countries that my family comes from. My mother's parents were Swedish and Norwegian, so it makes sense to me that I would want to go to my "motherland". The pictures that I have seen of the country show a stunning landscape of snow, mountains, agriculture, forest and lakes. While most people automatically assume that Sweden is covered in snow most of the time and quite cold, the opposite is true. Southern areas, where the bulk of the population resides, has a climate similar to what I currently experience here in Ohio, with four distinct seasons.

Another advantage, in my opinion, of living in Sweden is their standard of living. The country provides universal healthcare and tertiary education for its citizens. Two things I find sorely lacking here. It has the world's eighth highest per capita income and and ranks highly in quality of life, health, education, civil liberties and other metrics of national performance. The country also maintains a stance of neutrality when it comes to foreign affairs.

Sweden also appeals to me on a much more personal level as there is a relatively low number of people who believe in god residing there, the country was one of the first to embrace gender equality and they have a relatively high number of single people living in the country. Sweden has a culture that is deeply rooted in its history and revolves around the changing of the seasons.

Ever since I first heard tales of trolls and elves and gnomes and fairies, Sweden has always held a special place in my soul. I hope one day to visit so I can behold the beauty and richness the court has to offer. Who knows, if I do, I may never come back!