Emigrating to Ulricehamn?

It is slowly getting warmer but the snow remains and despite that I am constantly feeling cold I do enjoy the weather. The snow reflects the light and when I drive home in the evening the snow and all the small light spots form an almost magic atmosphere. In the Netherlands everyone gets rid of all Christmas decorations on the 6th of January but here we leave the lights on and I think they are needed. The girls go skiing in the weekends and in the late afternoon (when possible) and come home really tired but with cheeks as red as the nose of Santa’s Rudolf. Jochem went cross country skiing for the first time last Friday but I don’t think it’s his cup of tea. He will continue with the snowboarding and the whiskeyclub as his main hobbies.

Talking about the Netherlands; I am expecting Dutch visitors tomorrow at work. Two families are planning to follow their dream and move to Sweden and possibly Ulricehamn (www.slaktbasiccamp.com). With the municipality’s goal to grow to 25 000 inhabitants by 2020 we need to take good care of anyone interested in starting their business here. I will show them some businesses that are for sale, visit some schools and show them around a little bit. The noticeable problem is the lack of English material. Neither Ulricehamn, nor the surrounding municipalities have up to date information on businesses or houses for sale, school information in English, information about bank or tax related issues). We are lucky that people are finding their way to us as we are so bad at promoting ourselves abroad.

But, we are working on it and improvements are on their way. Last year we were a number of municipalities from the Sjuhärad region who took part in the International Emigration Fair (www.emigratiebeurs.nl) in the Netherlands and this year we will be there again. Many Dutch people are seeking new opportunities in a country which offers a lot of nature, an outdoor lifestyle, peace and quiet, generally a low crime rate and who is in need of the Dutch spirit of entrepreneurship. It is not because we took this step that I am now trying to sell the concept to others but I actually believe that we have a win-win situation here. Dutch people are driven, focused and see opportunities that many Swedes does not see. With low house prices, beautiful surroundings with a wide range of sport possibilities, bigger cities nearby (employment possibilities) and an airport only 45 minutes away I think Ulricehamn offers the whole package. (yes, I know you’ve heard it before :)!)

We even have live Opera from the Met in NY in Ulricehamn and last Saturday Jochem and I went to Carmen with a group of friends. If you have the same possibility where you are (Live with the Met is being streamed to many places around the world) it is a must! Even Jochem who had never been to the opera before was impressed and we continued the evening enjoying great food with wonderful friends until early in the morning.

Time to serve dinner! Take care everyone!