Rachel says, "I have no guest house, but a guest room
with its own bath - ask Kate Hallberg how our
hospitality rates.  Any Lactnetter from anywhere
making it to my town is welcome to stay, at least for
a couple of nights.  There is an
international airport, rail connections to E. and W.
Norway, and ferry service directly to Sweden and
Denmark.  We are a BF-friendly facility!"

Visiting Rachel and her family was one of the
highlights of our trip to Scandinavia a couple years
ago!  One of the other highlights was visiting a
fellow parent-l member and silent lactnetter outside
of Helsinki.  Unfortunately for us, Rachel had a
homebirth imminent so we didnt' see as much of her as
we wanted, but her son and husband stepped in nicely.
I wish her son had been able to come and stay with us
when he was in the US but he was too far away.

What Rachel says about the culture sounds very similar
to what we heard in Finland, but with some variations.
 some mothers there know that breastfeeding is
important, but it's difficult to find help if you need
it.  hmmmmmmm..... that second part exists in the US
too.

Scandinavia, in general, is set up for easier
child-rearing than the US.  There are play places in
many public places, numbered queues so you can sit
down and wait your turn, rather than *standing* in a
queue, trains have high chairs, trains have passenger
cars with play areas, the commuter trains and buses
have simple access for those giant perambulators that
have no role in the US,(as well as bikes, dogs...)
baby changing facilities are expected, and if there
isn't one, the staff will present you with a white,
starched tablecloth to change the baby on!  (happened
in a lovely restaurant in Bergen.)  Life is so much
easier there, in so many ways.  I envy Rachel.

kate

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