Oh yes, the Swedish school.
All of my classes are in Swedish. Some of the teachers don’t even speak English that well. French class is somewhat easy because I kind of know french…now I wish I had taken it more seriously!
In my opinion this school is a lot like college. Maybe not exactly, because I haven’t been to college but, similar, there is no bell telling you when class starts or when it is over. It depends on the teacher. Yes, there is a set time for when class starts and ends but the teacher decides when you leave. Sometimes early which is very nice!
There are different houses at PS. The house that I am in is house one. It is mostly social courses like the history, philosophy, literature, etc. The language classes are in house eleven. The maths and natural science classes are in house 9 mostly. There are rivarlies between the two houses, 11 and 9. Eleven is almost all girls ( I have maybe 7 guys in three of my classes.) House nine is a lot of guys.
For my schedule it is different every day I may have history three times a week but it will be for maybe an hour maybe a half hour. I’m not quite sure how that works.
There is a lot of time between each class. I have about 10-20 minutes between each class.
Lunch is free and that is soooo much easier than having to bring my lunch to school or worry about how much money I have in my lunch account! The food is not the best but it’s a meal. When you are hungry your hungry.
I love my classes. Even if I don’t know what they are saying the whole time, I can pick up what the main idea is and with translation its really good. Especially my philosophy and religion class oh and my Swedish class. I am going to try and look for the books in english because the information is really really interesting! And we don’t have those classes back home so its so cool to have that here! I was looking through our religion book the other day and I turned to a friend and said wow! I never knew there were this many religions! I wish the other kids in my class back home had an opportunity to learn some of this too!
My first day was really really good. I though I was going to get lost and that I would sit at a lunch table all by myself. But I made friends right away! Who says the swedish are shy! Not the teenagers! Okey, not all of them but most of them are quite outgoing.
The classmates are so great with helping me translate the words to english. The dictionary always helps too!
I don’t think I could even begin to count the times that I have been asked the same questions in one day. Where are you from in the U.S. what is it like there, what are the people like, how are things different, blah blah blah. But when I meet someone new I want them to know how things are in the U.S so i want people to keep asking me questions! I just forget sometimes if I repeat myself, because I am asked the same questions soooo much!
I have a book I will start reading for my Swedish class, it is basically swedish literature. Thankfully there are some books in engelska. The name of the book is Charlotte Bronte by Jane Eyre. We shall see how that goes!
It is hard being in my last year of high school and not seeing my friends back home or being at the football games. When you’re a senior, you pretty much rule the school. That is how it is here its just not the same. But I will get used things here. it is just hard to not have the Friday night ritual with the friends getting ready to go out and cheer on the football team and show our school spirit.
Almost everyday this week I have met a friend from school in town for fika! Its so handy to have the downtown area 15 minutes away just by foot! So we can just go grab a coffee or stop at the shops and look around then I just catch the bus home! Tonight I met Rebecca, Olivia, Emilee, and Edit in town for coffee and yum yums J. Then I went with Rebecca to her house, she lives 15 min by bike from the school. We had dinner (flying jacob, a traditional swedish dish, with bananas mushrooms bacon yummy sauce and chicken, served with rice. It was delicious, thanks again Tommy!! (her papa)
That’s another thing, you don’t call anyone here by their surnames, they will give you really funny looks, I haven’t tried an I do not want to! Even the teachers we call by first names. I like it! J
This week I rode my bike into school I believe it was onsdaj (Wednesday), I had a lot of headwind but it wasn’t too bad, the countryside is beautiful! It is about a 45 min bike ride. There were bike paths all the way into town so that was really really handy! I needed my bike in town so I don’t have to walk everywhere and because most people use bikes instead of walk J. Good exercise!!! I have gotten good at riding the bus! not that its that big of a deal for the people that live here but for me, I had never ridden a public bus that much so checking the times and getting on and off at the right spot was difficult! After my first week I’m already a pro! J
Fotboll (soccer) is really popular here in Sweden, like most countries in Europe. There are a lot of teams in town so I didn’t know where to look! I was hoping to get in touch with someone about it. When my friend Katrin from class asked me if I would like to come and train with the team and meet the girls. I said sure why not! I wanted to get involved in soccer somehow and this was a great opportunity.
The teams here are not connected to the school. It depends on where you live and that is the team you play for. In my case I will not be playing in games but I will participate in the training with the other girls. So we have training every mondaj (Monday), onsdaj (Wednesday), and torsdaj (Thursday), from about 6:30 till 8 or so.
The practice went a lot better than I thought it would. I was soooo nervous to go! I didn’t know anyone but Katrin and they all spoke swedish. You know how in soccer you communicate with the teammates?? Well that’s exactlly what the girls did and quite well, it was all in Swedish! I know some words so I kind of knew what people were saying. I was thankful to have the girls translate for me! Basically I had to just watch the people in front of me go and have a try at it! The scrimmage at the end of practice didn’t go too well for me, these girls are veryyyy good and I have not played in so long. So I just tired to stay out of the way for the most part and pass the ball when it came to me. It sounds so lame but its only the first training so its ok I suppose. There is a game this weekend for the girls so I may try and go to that to show my support! J more updates on training next week!
The sailing trip!
We went to Uddavala. We, all the exchange students, had the opportunity to go on an actual ship for the weekend. Thanks to the Rotary club in Uddavala. J
Thankfully Victoria (the other exchange student from Argentina) met Beata in Geotemborg which was sooo helpful. We would have missed our bus if she had not met us there! She went on exchange to Australia last year so she is Rotex. There were for girls that were Rotex on this trip. J
So we went to the museum in Uddavala. Which was interesting but really we all just wanted to get going on our sailing adventure!
The ship was huge! There were a lot of people on this boat so I am glad that it was big! And no mom there was no need for life jackets!
The boat had bunk beds and everything!
So we sailed for about three hours on Saturday and met in a small sailing town and I cannot for the life of me think of the name! There were a couple small towns that we sailed by and it seems they all have similar names.
So when we stopped we walked around the town to stretch our legs. The town was so cute! It was full of little summer houses and apartments, all right on the coast.
After we got back to the boat we climbed up the masts! Good thing I’m not afraid of heights! J we had harnesses and everything so it was very safe. The view was breathtaking. Its like the horizon never stopped!
To be able to talk to the Rotex kids was great for all the inbound exchange students. They tell us their experiences good and bad. We also made great connections with these students, good thing everyone is just a train ride away!!!
The hardest thing for me right now is being away from my friends and family. Obviously this is to be expected but I never realized how hard it would actually be. To come to school and have to start completely over is a concept I never could understand till now. With Justin starting middle school, Keagan finally meeting girls, and my friends enjoying their last year of high school together. It is just hard to be away from that when things are actually happening back home, like the football games, new semester, dances, etc, etc. But in a way it is amazing to be here and I am so lucky to have this opportunity and I do not regret it at all. Everyone that I have met has been so welcoming and outgoing. To meet people like that is so comforting. Coming to a new place with new people one doesn’t really know what to expect. But when someone comes up to you and introduces themselves its just great knowing that people are making an effort to get to know you!
I know I will be extremely welcoming to any exchange student that I will meet in the near future, its not an easy thing. Definitely hard but totally worth it!
This month will be hard. Thank goodness I have good friends that will help me translate and that will help me with my Svenska!
Tomorrow I will go riding on a new boarder’s horse. I am definitely looking forward to it! J Then Amanda (miss Canada) is coming over and no idea what our plans are, hopefully something fun! I don’t really know my plans for the week yet but more happy blogging next weekend! I have decided I will update this once a week, I have been very busy with school and meeting people so its hard to be on the computer much. I believe this to be a good thing!
Friday, August 28, 2009
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
First Weeks continued......
So as I sit writing this I am enjoying my breakfast in the sun porch. Today the weather will be a perfect day for the beach. No Swede will be caught indoors. Plans for the day are to visit my friend Maria and go fishing!! Yesterday we went on a trail ride and I had the marvelous privilege to ride her horse. Her and the horse are qualified for a World title. So I was riding an amazing horse! Even though it was western it was still amazing!
Please note: Just ignore all of my grammatical and spelling errors. I am trying to write memories and it is a lot to write. I will try my best to be grammatically correct!
Some of my adventures in Sweden so far:
Sea Kayaking! Mats took me out on one and it was soooo much fun! I was trying really hard not to tip. The kayaks are a lot longer than what I am used to so it was different. But it was a sunny day and there were almost no waves! Perfect for kayaking!!
I went bathing when it was freezing outside and really windy. I am quite proud! The waves were huge! It was very refreshing though.
I have been on some life inspiring trail rides. My favorite one was last Saturday morning. The weather was a little chilly and it was sprinkling. I rode Mats horse Yova ( I usually do and I love her!) and Eva rode her horse Teardrop. We were galloping where we usually do and there were a couple horses in their pasture some had foals next to them. We galloped right past them and they all went into a frenzy. I couldn’t help but smile and take a mental picture in my mind. Galloping on Yova and seeing all the other horses run and be free was unlike anything I have ever seen. It made me love Sweden so much more. You can tell I am a horse fanatic!! J
Besides trail riding a lot I have been riding one a boarder’s horse, Texas. He is kind of a difficult horse to ride. He used to be a trotter so basically he knows to just trot really fast. Although his stride has gotten better it would be nice to work on him more. But he has left already because he was just here for the summer. L
My interesting time with the public transportation, I don’t ride the public bus very much back home in Iowa. So I thought when you wait for a bus you wait inside the little shed and the driver will see you and you are good to go. But I guess things are different here, obviously. So I did just that I sat inside the bus stop, little did I know that is not how you are supposed to board a bus. The bus did not stop. I had to wait an hour for the next one. I was really confused so I stood outside the whole time just to make sure he would see me. I have not seen a woman driving a bus yet, just thought I would throw that out there. Anyway, my ride home was a lot more nerve-racking. I think I should have asked Eva what stop I should get off at but I figured I would know when I saw it. Well, I didn’t and I missed my stop. So I got off and called Eva I was about 5 minutes away from where I was supposed to get off, thankfully I wasn’t in another town. I have ridden the bus twice more since this happened and I have not missed it and I got off at the right stop. Learn from mistakes! J
Shopping, when one thinks of European shopping, what comes to mind? I really had no idea I was just excited to be shopping in a foreign country. I am so thankful I met Amanda (my good friend from Canada, also an exchange student, she lives in Boras). If I had been shopping with an actual European I may have felt very out of place. We meet at the train station (its about an hour train ride from Varberg to Boras) and our shopping extravangza begins. The first store we went to was GinaTricot. It is a really nice store and we did end up finding some cute clothes. But when we first walked into there we both looked at each other and said what the hell are we doing in here!?!? But we gave it a shot and kept looking. Lets just say the fashion between Europe and the U.S. and Canada is very different. All in all it was a great day, it was interesting to see all the different fashions and have no idea how people wear some of the clothes.
You know how sometimes you may see someone on the street running to catch a bus or a train or some kind of transportation? Well I must admit I have taken part in this, along with dear Amanda. The bus we were riding was going quite slow, and we were in a time crunch so we got off the bus and ran through the downtown area of Varberg. I am sure we looked mental but we did not want to miss Amanda’s train! Oh what a day.
I have tried caviar in a tube, ham and cheese in a tube, lots of fish, and most interestingly of all I have tried the traditional Swedish crayfish. It is quite popular to have this during August. Many parties are held that involved this crayfish, fish and shots and usually what this kind of party entails. I have only had the fish. You break off the tail and body and suck out the juice then you just open the shell and voila there is all the “yummy” meat. I’m not sure what I think of it yet. Definitely not my favorite but I tried it. (pictures are on facebook.)
I currently have adopted a new pet from my friend Hana. His name is Herman. This is no normal pet, he eats sugar, milk, and flour. Do you know what he is? Yeast! Yes I am growing yeast, it takes about ten days I think. I am on day 7. It is this cake making chain. Swedish Mud cake is delicious and it involves yeast with a bunch of other yummy stuffins. So this yeast that I have now is growing and it will make five helpings. So I keep as much as I want and give the rest to friends so they can continue the chain. I just have to make sure Herman is still bubbly, or else he is dead. I can’t wait to try it! Hopefully it will not turn out like Tyler’s birthday cake disaster. J
Oh yes, my run in with the Swedish police. Just kidding! But I did meet them! There was an attempted break in of Mats and Eva’s cellar, the only things that were stolen, old wine. The police here are so much nicer than a police in the U.S. I am sure it depends on which policeman you talk to. All police here are pretty much the same. That is how they are trained. I am sure someone will beg to differ, this is just my opinion.
I visited the biggest grocery store I have ever seen! It was when I was with Amanda in Boras waiting for my train to come. We went with her host family and this grocery store is huge. Think Sam’s club only grocery store. They have these little scanner things that you can use and just scan all the items you have in the grocery cart and just pay for everything at the end. That way you don’t have to take everything out and repack it all. Great idea!! Also the recycling, there are machines that take the different kinds of recycling and so you put all your bottles and whatever else you may have into the machines and when your done you press a button and you get a receipt, you use that when you pay for the groceries and it saves you money! How cool is that! It makes me want to recycle pretty much everything! J
These are all that I can remember right now. Today and tomorrow I will be enjoying my last few days of summer. Maybe go to the beach or go for a trail ride or two. This weekend I am going on a sailing trip with the other Rotary exchange students in Uddevalla. We are going on a ship for the whole weekend! I will write more about it when I get back. Monday I will be attending my Rotary districts luncheon, I will have to use my Swedish skills and introduce myself in Swedish! Good thing we did that last week in Boras! Tuesday school starts. Oh my, there will be much to tell about that. I do not have my schedule with my right now but from what I remember I will be taking Swedish, English, French, I am on the Social Course so I will be taking Psychology, International Relations, Religion, and the ones that I got to pick, Tourism, and Film. All in Swedish except English, well some of it I will understand. It should be a very interesting and chaos filled day! My school is three times bigger than Muscatine High School and about four or five times bigger than Steamboat Springs High School.
More blogging later!
Hej do!!! (Swedish goodbye)
Please note: Just ignore all of my grammatical and spelling errors. I am trying to write memories and it is a lot to write. I will try my best to be grammatically correct!
Some of my adventures in Sweden so far:
Sea Kayaking! Mats took me out on one and it was soooo much fun! I was trying really hard not to tip. The kayaks are a lot longer than what I am used to so it was different. But it was a sunny day and there were almost no waves! Perfect for kayaking!!
I went bathing when it was freezing outside and really windy. I am quite proud! The waves were huge! It was very refreshing though.
I have been on some life inspiring trail rides. My favorite one was last Saturday morning. The weather was a little chilly and it was sprinkling. I rode Mats horse Yova ( I usually do and I love her!) and Eva rode her horse Teardrop. We were galloping where we usually do and there were a couple horses in their pasture some had foals next to them. We galloped right past them and they all went into a frenzy. I couldn’t help but smile and take a mental picture in my mind. Galloping on Yova and seeing all the other horses run and be free was unlike anything I have ever seen. It made me love Sweden so much more. You can tell I am a horse fanatic!! J
Besides trail riding a lot I have been riding one a boarder’s horse, Texas. He is kind of a difficult horse to ride. He used to be a trotter so basically he knows to just trot really fast. Although his stride has gotten better it would be nice to work on him more. But he has left already because he was just here for the summer. L
My interesting time with the public transportation, I don’t ride the public bus very much back home in Iowa. So I thought when you wait for a bus you wait inside the little shed and the driver will see you and you are good to go. But I guess things are different here, obviously. So I did just that I sat inside the bus stop, little did I know that is not how you are supposed to board a bus. The bus did not stop. I had to wait an hour for the next one. I was really confused so I stood outside the whole time just to make sure he would see me. I have not seen a woman driving a bus yet, just thought I would throw that out there. Anyway, my ride home was a lot more nerve-racking. I think I should have asked Eva what stop I should get off at but I figured I would know when I saw it. Well, I didn’t and I missed my stop. So I got off and called Eva I was about 5 minutes away from where I was supposed to get off, thankfully I wasn’t in another town. I have ridden the bus twice more since this happened and I have not missed it and I got off at the right stop. Learn from mistakes! J
Shopping, when one thinks of European shopping, what comes to mind? I really had no idea I was just excited to be shopping in a foreign country. I am so thankful I met Amanda (my good friend from Canada, also an exchange student, she lives in Boras). If I had been shopping with an actual European I may have felt very out of place. We meet at the train station (its about an hour train ride from Varberg to Boras) and our shopping extravangza begins. The first store we went to was GinaTricot. It is a really nice store and we did end up finding some cute clothes. But when we first walked into there we both looked at each other and said what the hell are we doing in here!?!? But we gave it a shot and kept looking. Lets just say the fashion between Europe and the U.S. and Canada is very different. All in all it was a great day, it was interesting to see all the different fashions and have no idea how people wear some of the clothes.
You know how sometimes you may see someone on the street running to catch a bus or a train or some kind of transportation? Well I must admit I have taken part in this, along with dear Amanda. The bus we were riding was going quite slow, and we were in a time crunch so we got off the bus and ran through the downtown area of Varberg. I am sure we looked mental but we did not want to miss Amanda’s train! Oh what a day.
I have tried caviar in a tube, ham and cheese in a tube, lots of fish, and most interestingly of all I have tried the traditional Swedish crayfish. It is quite popular to have this during August. Many parties are held that involved this crayfish, fish and shots and usually what this kind of party entails. I have only had the fish. You break off the tail and body and suck out the juice then you just open the shell and voila there is all the “yummy” meat. I’m not sure what I think of it yet. Definitely not my favorite but I tried it. (pictures are on facebook.)
I currently have adopted a new pet from my friend Hana. His name is Herman. This is no normal pet, he eats sugar, milk, and flour. Do you know what he is? Yeast! Yes I am growing yeast, it takes about ten days I think. I am on day 7. It is this cake making chain. Swedish Mud cake is delicious and it involves yeast with a bunch of other yummy stuffins. So this yeast that I have now is growing and it will make five helpings. So I keep as much as I want and give the rest to friends so they can continue the chain. I just have to make sure Herman is still bubbly, or else he is dead. I can’t wait to try it! Hopefully it will not turn out like Tyler’s birthday cake disaster. J
Oh yes, my run in with the Swedish police. Just kidding! But I did meet them! There was an attempted break in of Mats and Eva’s cellar, the only things that were stolen, old wine. The police here are so much nicer than a police in the U.S. I am sure it depends on which policeman you talk to. All police here are pretty much the same. That is how they are trained. I am sure someone will beg to differ, this is just my opinion.
I visited the biggest grocery store I have ever seen! It was when I was with Amanda in Boras waiting for my train to come. We went with her host family and this grocery store is huge. Think Sam’s club only grocery store. They have these little scanner things that you can use and just scan all the items you have in the grocery cart and just pay for everything at the end. That way you don’t have to take everything out and repack it all. Great idea!! Also the recycling, there are machines that take the different kinds of recycling and so you put all your bottles and whatever else you may have into the machines and when your done you press a button and you get a receipt, you use that when you pay for the groceries and it saves you money! How cool is that! It makes me want to recycle pretty much everything! J
These are all that I can remember right now. Today and tomorrow I will be enjoying my last few days of summer. Maybe go to the beach or go for a trail ride or two. This weekend I am going on a sailing trip with the other Rotary exchange students in Uddevalla. We are going on a ship for the whole weekend! I will write more about it when I get back. Monday I will be attending my Rotary districts luncheon, I will have to use my Swedish skills and introduce myself in Swedish! Good thing we did that last week in Boras! Tuesday school starts. Oh my, there will be much to tell about that. I do not have my schedule with my right now but from what I remember I will be taking Swedish, English, French, I am on the Social Course so I will be taking Psychology, International Relations, Religion, and the ones that I got to pick, Tourism, and Film. All in Swedish except English, well some of it I will understand. It should be a very interesting and chaos filled day! My school is three times bigger than Muscatine High School and about four or five times bigger than Steamboat Springs High School.
More blogging later!
Hej do!!! (Swedish goodbye)
First 3 (tre) veka i Sverige
“The woods are lovely
Dark and deep
But I have promises to keep
And miles to go before I sleep”
Robert Frost
This is one quote I received from a family friend before I departed from the U.S. to Sweden. It has stayed with me ever since. J
When introduced to people I get the normal questions, where are you from, how old are you, and the one that always gets me, why did you decide to come to Sweden?
My mom had made the suggestion to me that I should “explore my options” there is more in the world than just a small town in Muscatine Iowa. At first I didn’t want to go away from my friends and family and what I was used to. I soon realized that this could open new doors to my future, regardless of what I would be leaving behind. It was one of the hardest choices I have ever made. But, I am finally in Sweden after months of stressful paper work, intense planning, tears of joy and sadness, I am finally here.
My arrival to Sweden was…well interesting. Starting with the hardest goodbye of my life, to leave your family, friends, and boyfriend for a whole year is not something that you can just say…oh bye, see you later. Not knowing who you will be meeting in the next year, or what your host family is like, or anything about what the future may bring. I have never traveled by myself, so when I almost missed my plane in Minneapolis I was pretty rattled. But things ended up well, I was there with 10 minutes to spare. I flew into Amsterdam and thank God for the German Angel that I met on the plane there. She was an exchange student last year and was flying back from the states (she was visiting her host family) I can’t remember her name, but she helped me find my gate for the airport in Amsterdam. Oh the people you meet J
Once to the airport in Goteborg I was meet by Eva and Mats (mats being the tall Swedish guy wearing the American cowboy hat.) with hugs and smiles welcoming me to Sweden. The weather in Sweden when I arrived was rainy cold and windy…oh yay…rainnn. No it is not winter in Sweden all the time like most people may think, there is still summer. The Swedes will always talk about the weather. There is a lot of rain and windy weather here in Sweden so when it is sunny out…time to go outside or to the beach!
My first thoughts from getting off the plane… ok, so far so good, I don’t have a bad host family. I’m not homesick yet. Wow, this is a lot of rain!!!
The only thing I don’t like is not knowing the language. It’s so hard to not understand what people are having a conversation about. With time I will be able to understand it and speak it.
One of my first nights I witnessed a sunset on the beach. Seeing the sea so close to where I live is something I never imagined. Coming from Iowa, a completely landlocked state, I am not used to the sea at all. When I see jelly fish, its like finding a new toy! The landscape is a lot like Iowa only more trees and the climate is much cooler. There are a lot of horse farms here. Major plus for me! J Yes my host family has horses, two and they are the nicest horses ever. Going on trail rides here in Sweden is unlike anything I have ever experienced, the horses galloping, the forest and the cool weather, the feeling of being in another country, yet feeling at ease and comfortable with where I am.
Eva and Mats (my host parents) have introduced me to so many good people. It is a bit difficult not having any host brothers or sisters. Catrin who is 17 is on an exchange in Australia and Anton, 19 has recently left to join the army. All the people I have met have been so outgoing and friendly. Even if they don’t speak English too well that make a tremendous effort to try and help me to understand. Dictionaries are a Godsend J
The thing about my host parents knowing so many people is that their friends know other people and then I get introduced to more and more people. I have met some kids my age. Its funny to have a random text on my phone saying Hi you don’t know me but your host parents do! Lets hang out!! It is very comforting to be able to have people that want to get to know me and make an effort to be friends. It is always hard for an exchange student to make friends. Trust me, back home I do have friends! My social life really isn’t this dull!! But this is only the beginning and school hasn’t even started yet! The thing about meeting new people that one must keep in mind is that you cannot be close minded when you meet someone. Actually listen to what they have to say. Being in a different country one must be open to trying new things and meeting new people. If not, don’t bother going on exchange!
Speaking of keeping in touch with people, that brings me to the story about my phone. I am sure that if Eva is reading this, she is already laughing. J On my 3 day in Sweden Eva takes me to go into town to get their old phone activated. (to stay in touch and to have the thriving life that a teenager can’t live without.) We get to the Telia store and this guy Marcus helps us. Well Marcus spoke great English (yes your welcome marcus) so we were just talking about how my first few days were…being insanely jet lagged but loving Sweden so far. Then by the time my phone was activated he gave me his number and said here is my number in case you have “problems” with the phone or if you just want to hang out…exact quote. Well with this only being my third day I was already starting to make friends!!! That’s not the end of it. Bapi, mats and eva’s friend from Stockholm was in Varberg for a visit and he needed to get a new phone. So Marcus said to come into his work and he will help Bapi figure something out. So Bapi got a new phone and while Marcus was helping me with mine (it was an ancient phone) he said well lets get Audrey one too! This is not cheap phone people. Do you get the picture of how amazing the Swedes are?? J
The first weekend I was in Sweden we went to a Marine Festival in Halmstad (spelling??) Sweden. With Aneka and Donal (so sorry guys if I am spelling your names wrong!!!) I had my first sip of Swedish coffee…fell in love and am now a proud addict of Fika. J (Fika is a coffee break) Enjoying the company of good weather and friends we sat and drank our amazingly strong black coffee. In town there were tons and tons of old ships coming in and out, from all over Europe. That was also the first night I had Swedish Salmon. MmmmmMMMmm good J
Fridas is a local restaurant by the beach in Varberg, I have come to love this restaurant. It is a fancy but laid back place, if there is such thing. There are many famous bands that come through this restaurant. I was there when one of the bands were playing. I am not sure of the name… I will ask. If was great because you can sit and have dinner and dessert then you get to listen to great bands play! It is incredibly nice to have the beach right in front of the restaurant and just watch the sunset. It is so easy to get around here too! The beach is just a ten minute bike ride. J In addition to visiting Fridas I have also taken part in a Swedish Pop Quiz! It involved a lot of old music so I was not much help to my team but it was fun to watch everyone guess who the band was that played! I have also been boating. Even though it was a small boat it was amazing to go out on the sea. It is so different from the Mississippi mud water that I am used to! I also say 8 seals and a thousand jelly fish!!
So far I am not too homesick. I have stayed very busy. I think that is the key. If I am bored I may start missing home!! Swedish Camp in Friskad Skola was so much fun. I got to meet all the other exchange students in my district. Most were from America and Canada, which is bad because we all speak English, mixed with a girl from Japan, another from Argentina, and one from Germany. It is great to have kids my age that share some of the same experiences that I am going through. We shared our stories of our trips through the foreign airports, the Swedish food, and mostly the different culture.
So far the Differences:
Way of dress- guys wear a lot of skinny jeans and tight shirts, not like gym t-shirts but nice shirts. Girls- wear a lot of skinny jeans also and the fashion is very different than what I am used to. More make up and veryyy blonde hair with tanned skin.
The food- lots of break/cheese/butter.
I think the swedes like to eat things out of tube? There is bacon cheese and kavir, mayonasse, pretty much anything you can think of.
The cereal is different, its very healthy (at least in my family) we have Musli on our cereal. It is oats that have dried berries mixed in. Just add milk or yogurt!
A lot of the food is really fresh. Eva picks most of the veggies out of the garden. There is a lot of cooking that they do! I love Eva’s cooking. Mom I may learn to cook this year…be proud J
There are a lot of potatoes and meat in traditional swedish meals. Don’t forget the bread!!! J
Swimming is called baths or “lets go to the beach and take a “bath””
I guess it is very European to do this, and it probably depends on the person but many people change on the beach. We are so used to being in our swim suit and going some where. But no the swedes just change right there on the beach, no changing room needed. I must say I was surprised but now I am used to it. I have tried it, I’m quite proud J because here it really is not a big deal. In the states we wouldn’t even think about changing where people could see us!
Fika is a word I have come to love!
Coffee break!!! It seems that there is a lot of coffee that is consumed here. It is quite stong but on a chilly morning it is the best! With a patry of course. I am a huge fan of these heart shaped vanilla things and of the blueberry muffins! I will know the swedish words for them soon enough. It is too late to think of them right now. The coffee is reallyyyy strong compared to US coffee. The call our coffee black water, I think you get the picture!
People ride the bus, train, or bikes everywhere. Or they just walk. Gotta love the environmentally friendly people!!
When one would walk into a shop of any kind there is a machine where a number must be taken and when that number is called the person that has that number can be help. Its pretty smart actually, no worries about someone buddging in line!
No problem….. OY!.... OKEJ!..... are words that I hear allllllllllllllllllll the time. Love it!
The roads are very narrow compared to the US but in other places in Europe they are considered big. There are also a lot of roundabouts, not so many stop lights. And cars always yield to pedestrians, so go ahead cross the road!...but you may want to look both ways just in case!!
Ahhh yes how they eat, well knife in right hang fork in left make sure to eat slow and if there is a conversation going…don’t eat!! When you think about it it’s a great idea. You enjoy each others company and indulge in great food without shoveling it all down at one time.
School is free here…so are the lunches and snacks. Cool right? I’m pretty jealous. Even university is free.
There is a lot of carbonated water…watch out for that, it may look like regular water but its not! I like it actually. The minerals are really good for you.
The toilets are different… I won’t go into too much detail for that. But in the states when you need to go to the toilet you ask where is the restroom/bathroom… when you ask a swede or european this, they look at you really funny and ask what your talking about. You don’t rest or take a bath while you are in there…. You simply use the toilet, so why do we say restroom/bathroom????
Adults do not go by Mr/Mrs everyone is called by first names…even teachers.
I like this J
Marriage and religion are not as big here in sweden as it is in the states. Swedes will live together and have children and grow old together and may never get married. It just works out differently for them. I am sure there is a political viewpoint to this too but I will not go there at the moment.
Well this is my first blogg ever. I hope everyone enjoys reading it. I am terribly sorry if I rambled on or went from one subject to the next. There is so much to remember and so many memories and I have only been here three weeks!!! I will write more every couple days. This is just the beginning!!! J if you have any questions please e mail me. And if you want to see pictures, they are up on my facebook or I can send pictures if you ask. J
To all my family and friends I miss you terribly and I hope you enjoy reading this and keeping up with what I have been doing while in Sweden. J
Dark and deep
But I have promises to keep
And miles to go before I sleep”
Robert Frost
This is one quote I received from a family friend before I departed from the U.S. to Sweden. It has stayed with me ever since. J
When introduced to people I get the normal questions, where are you from, how old are you, and the one that always gets me, why did you decide to come to Sweden?
My mom had made the suggestion to me that I should “explore my options” there is more in the world than just a small town in Muscatine Iowa. At first I didn’t want to go away from my friends and family and what I was used to. I soon realized that this could open new doors to my future, regardless of what I would be leaving behind. It was one of the hardest choices I have ever made. But, I am finally in Sweden after months of stressful paper work, intense planning, tears of joy and sadness, I am finally here.
My arrival to Sweden was…well interesting. Starting with the hardest goodbye of my life, to leave your family, friends, and boyfriend for a whole year is not something that you can just say…oh bye, see you later. Not knowing who you will be meeting in the next year, or what your host family is like, or anything about what the future may bring. I have never traveled by myself, so when I almost missed my plane in Minneapolis I was pretty rattled. But things ended up well, I was there with 10 minutes to spare. I flew into Amsterdam and thank God for the German Angel that I met on the plane there. She was an exchange student last year and was flying back from the states (she was visiting her host family) I can’t remember her name, but she helped me find my gate for the airport in Amsterdam. Oh the people you meet J
Once to the airport in Goteborg I was meet by Eva and Mats (mats being the tall Swedish guy wearing the American cowboy hat.) with hugs and smiles welcoming me to Sweden. The weather in Sweden when I arrived was rainy cold and windy…oh yay…rainnn. No it is not winter in Sweden all the time like most people may think, there is still summer. The Swedes will always talk about the weather. There is a lot of rain and windy weather here in Sweden so when it is sunny out…time to go outside or to the beach!
My first thoughts from getting off the plane… ok, so far so good, I don’t have a bad host family. I’m not homesick yet. Wow, this is a lot of rain!!!
The only thing I don’t like is not knowing the language. It’s so hard to not understand what people are having a conversation about. With time I will be able to understand it and speak it.
One of my first nights I witnessed a sunset on the beach. Seeing the sea so close to where I live is something I never imagined. Coming from Iowa, a completely landlocked state, I am not used to the sea at all. When I see jelly fish, its like finding a new toy! The landscape is a lot like Iowa only more trees and the climate is much cooler. There are a lot of horse farms here. Major plus for me! J Yes my host family has horses, two and they are the nicest horses ever. Going on trail rides here in Sweden is unlike anything I have ever experienced, the horses galloping, the forest and the cool weather, the feeling of being in another country, yet feeling at ease and comfortable with where I am.
Eva and Mats (my host parents) have introduced me to so many good people. It is a bit difficult not having any host brothers or sisters. Catrin who is 17 is on an exchange in Australia and Anton, 19 has recently left to join the army. All the people I have met have been so outgoing and friendly. Even if they don’t speak English too well that make a tremendous effort to try and help me to understand. Dictionaries are a Godsend J
The thing about my host parents knowing so many people is that their friends know other people and then I get introduced to more and more people. I have met some kids my age. Its funny to have a random text on my phone saying Hi you don’t know me but your host parents do! Lets hang out!! It is very comforting to be able to have people that want to get to know me and make an effort to be friends. It is always hard for an exchange student to make friends. Trust me, back home I do have friends! My social life really isn’t this dull!! But this is only the beginning and school hasn’t even started yet! The thing about meeting new people that one must keep in mind is that you cannot be close minded when you meet someone. Actually listen to what they have to say. Being in a different country one must be open to trying new things and meeting new people. If not, don’t bother going on exchange!
Speaking of keeping in touch with people, that brings me to the story about my phone. I am sure that if Eva is reading this, she is already laughing. J On my 3 day in Sweden Eva takes me to go into town to get their old phone activated. (to stay in touch and to have the thriving life that a teenager can’t live without.) We get to the Telia store and this guy Marcus helps us. Well Marcus spoke great English (yes your welcome marcus) so we were just talking about how my first few days were…being insanely jet lagged but loving Sweden so far. Then by the time my phone was activated he gave me his number and said here is my number in case you have “problems” with the phone or if you just want to hang out…exact quote. Well with this only being my third day I was already starting to make friends!!! That’s not the end of it. Bapi, mats and eva’s friend from Stockholm was in Varberg for a visit and he needed to get a new phone. So Marcus said to come into his work and he will help Bapi figure something out. So Bapi got a new phone and while Marcus was helping me with mine (it was an ancient phone) he said well lets get Audrey one too! This is not cheap phone people. Do you get the picture of how amazing the Swedes are?? J
The first weekend I was in Sweden we went to a Marine Festival in Halmstad (spelling??) Sweden. With Aneka and Donal (so sorry guys if I am spelling your names wrong!!!) I had my first sip of Swedish coffee…fell in love and am now a proud addict of Fika. J (Fika is a coffee break) Enjoying the company of good weather and friends we sat and drank our amazingly strong black coffee. In town there were tons and tons of old ships coming in and out, from all over Europe. That was also the first night I had Swedish Salmon. MmmmmMMMmm good J
Fridas is a local restaurant by the beach in Varberg, I have come to love this restaurant. It is a fancy but laid back place, if there is such thing. There are many famous bands that come through this restaurant. I was there when one of the bands were playing. I am not sure of the name… I will ask. If was great because you can sit and have dinner and dessert then you get to listen to great bands play! It is incredibly nice to have the beach right in front of the restaurant and just watch the sunset. It is so easy to get around here too! The beach is just a ten minute bike ride. J In addition to visiting Fridas I have also taken part in a Swedish Pop Quiz! It involved a lot of old music so I was not much help to my team but it was fun to watch everyone guess who the band was that played! I have also been boating. Even though it was a small boat it was amazing to go out on the sea. It is so different from the Mississippi mud water that I am used to! I also say 8 seals and a thousand jelly fish!!
So far I am not too homesick. I have stayed very busy. I think that is the key. If I am bored I may start missing home!! Swedish Camp in Friskad Skola was so much fun. I got to meet all the other exchange students in my district. Most were from America and Canada, which is bad because we all speak English, mixed with a girl from Japan, another from Argentina, and one from Germany. It is great to have kids my age that share some of the same experiences that I am going through. We shared our stories of our trips through the foreign airports, the Swedish food, and mostly the different culture.
So far the Differences:
Way of dress- guys wear a lot of skinny jeans and tight shirts, not like gym t-shirts but nice shirts. Girls- wear a lot of skinny jeans also and the fashion is very different than what I am used to. More make up and veryyy blonde hair with tanned skin.
The food- lots of break/cheese/butter.
I think the swedes like to eat things out of tube? There is bacon cheese and kavir, mayonasse, pretty much anything you can think of.
The cereal is different, its very healthy (at least in my family) we have Musli on our cereal. It is oats that have dried berries mixed in. Just add milk or yogurt!
A lot of the food is really fresh. Eva picks most of the veggies out of the garden. There is a lot of cooking that they do! I love Eva’s cooking. Mom I may learn to cook this year…be proud J
There are a lot of potatoes and meat in traditional swedish meals. Don’t forget the bread!!! J
Swimming is called baths or “lets go to the beach and take a “bath””
I guess it is very European to do this, and it probably depends on the person but many people change on the beach. We are so used to being in our swim suit and going some where. But no the swedes just change right there on the beach, no changing room needed. I must say I was surprised but now I am used to it. I have tried it, I’m quite proud J because here it really is not a big deal. In the states we wouldn’t even think about changing where people could see us!
Fika is a word I have come to love!
Coffee break!!! It seems that there is a lot of coffee that is consumed here. It is quite stong but on a chilly morning it is the best! With a patry of course. I am a huge fan of these heart shaped vanilla things and of the blueberry muffins! I will know the swedish words for them soon enough. It is too late to think of them right now. The coffee is reallyyyy strong compared to US coffee. The call our coffee black water, I think you get the picture!
People ride the bus, train, or bikes everywhere. Or they just walk. Gotta love the environmentally friendly people!!
When one would walk into a shop of any kind there is a machine where a number must be taken and when that number is called the person that has that number can be help. Its pretty smart actually, no worries about someone buddging in line!
No problem….. OY!.... OKEJ!..... are words that I hear allllllllllllllllllll the time. Love it!
The roads are very narrow compared to the US but in other places in Europe they are considered big. There are also a lot of roundabouts, not so many stop lights. And cars always yield to pedestrians, so go ahead cross the road!...but you may want to look both ways just in case!!
Ahhh yes how they eat, well knife in right hang fork in left make sure to eat slow and if there is a conversation going…don’t eat!! When you think about it it’s a great idea. You enjoy each others company and indulge in great food without shoveling it all down at one time.
School is free here…so are the lunches and snacks. Cool right? I’m pretty jealous. Even university is free.
There is a lot of carbonated water…watch out for that, it may look like regular water but its not! I like it actually. The minerals are really good for you.
The toilets are different… I won’t go into too much detail for that. But in the states when you need to go to the toilet you ask where is the restroom/bathroom… when you ask a swede or european this, they look at you really funny and ask what your talking about. You don’t rest or take a bath while you are in there…. You simply use the toilet, so why do we say restroom/bathroom????
Adults do not go by Mr/Mrs everyone is called by first names…even teachers.
I like this J
Marriage and religion are not as big here in sweden as it is in the states. Swedes will live together and have children and grow old together and may never get married. It just works out differently for them. I am sure there is a political viewpoint to this too but I will not go there at the moment.
Well this is my first blogg ever. I hope everyone enjoys reading it. I am terribly sorry if I rambled on or went from one subject to the next. There is so much to remember and so many memories and I have only been here three weeks!!! I will write more every couple days. This is just the beginning!!! J if you have any questions please e mail me. And if you want to see pictures, they are up on my facebook or I can send pictures if you ask. J
To all my family and friends I miss you terribly and I hope you enjoy reading this and keeping up with what I have been doing while in Sweden. J
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