Thursday, January 31, 2013
Thursday, January 24, 2013
Shopping in Sweden
The colors, the clean lines, the organization!
It feels like a creative experience!
Two Month Reflections
Last night I went to my first gathering with the American Women's Club of Stockholm. We were a group of 20 ladies sitting around in a circle, talking about our lives in the US and how we ended up in Sweden. There were a few mentions of missing home, but mostly it consisted of comments on how much everyone loves Sweden, despite the shitty weather. One comment stuck with me though. A woman who has lived here for 36 years said "I've never met a bad Swede, they are just different."
Reflecting on these past few months, I would agree. Sometimes I am baffled by the behavior here, but I have to remind myself that their intentions might be different from what I might assume. But ultimately I am left with the feeling that I have been shown such incredible kindness from the Swedish friends I have met, including Micke's friends who spent an hour on the phone, unsolicited from me, trying to get a doctors appointment for me on New Years Day. Another of his friends offered to set up a time each week when we could have a coffee and practice speaking only in Swedish, which we did this week. We spoke for an hour in Swedish on topics ranging from advertising to taking out books from the library. I was so proud of myself! But then I tried to have a conversation with Micke's dad later that night and had no clue what he was asking. Sigh. The challenges of a new language.
Anyways, back to my point... Looking around there are times when I think Sweden is not so different from the US, which is why I was all the more surprised to experience such culture shock the first few weeks I was here. I can watch the Simpsons, in English, on TV every night at 8 pm. There are 7-Elevens all over Stockholm. I can drink coke and eat hamburgers, if I so desire. If I ask someone on the street a question in English they will most likely be able to understand and respond in English. The differences are subtle though. I can't find anything in the grocery store because the layout seems completely illogical to me. The doors open in the opposite direction (outwards). A regular cup of black coffee is $4. Since it is considered high quality, this is seemingly fine for the Swedes. Coffee also must be 4x stronger than the typical US brew. Credit cards have chips and codes, so I get hassled every time I use my American card. And things like the Swedish admiration for their own social, education and health policies and their love of very tight pants (for men and women) continue to baffle me. When Swedes talk about their society, you will often hear mention of "dignity," and how everyone should be given the same opportunities. "Unfair" is the word that I hear most often when discussing the US. How can it be ok for some people to not have any money or insurance when others have so much?
This weekend we are moving to a new apartment. I'm very excited. Pictures to follow.
Reflecting on these past few months, I would agree. Sometimes I am baffled by the behavior here, but I have to remind myself that their intentions might be different from what I might assume. But ultimately I am left with the feeling that I have been shown such incredible kindness from the Swedish friends I have met, including Micke's friends who spent an hour on the phone, unsolicited from me, trying to get a doctors appointment for me on New Years Day. Another of his friends offered to set up a time each week when we could have a coffee and practice speaking only in Swedish, which we did this week. We spoke for an hour in Swedish on topics ranging from advertising to taking out books from the library. I was so proud of myself! But then I tried to have a conversation with Micke's dad later that night and had no clue what he was asking. Sigh. The challenges of a new language.
Anyways, back to my point... Looking around there are times when I think Sweden is not so different from the US, which is why I was all the more surprised to experience such culture shock the first few weeks I was here. I can watch the Simpsons, in English, on TV every night at 8 pm. There are 7-Elevens all over Stockholm. I can drink coke and eat hamburgers, if I so desire. If I ask someone on the street a question in English they will most likely be able to understand and respond in English. The differences are subtle though. I can't find anything in the grocery store because the layout seems completely illogical to me. The doors open in the opposite direction (outwards). A regular cup of black coffee is $4. Since it is considered high quality, this is seemingly fine for the Swedes. Coffee also must be 4x stronger than the typical US brew. Credit cards have chips and codes, so I get hassled every time I use my American card. And things like the Swedish admiration for their own social, education and health policies and their love of very tight pants (for men and women) continue to baffle me. When Swedes talk about their society, you will often hear mention of "dignity," and how everyone should be given the same opportunities. "Unfair" is the word that I hear most often when discussing the US. How can it be ok for some people to not have any money or insurance when others have so much?
This weekend we are moving to a new apartment. I'm very excited. Pictures to follow.
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
In the Country
Last weekend Micke and I joined his parents for a relaxing weekend at their summer house in Los, a small town 4 hours NW of Stockholm. The name of the town was derived from the word lodjur (lynx) since there were and still are apparently lynx in that area.
Their house is like many Swedish country houses with a dark red wooden frame and white trim. The houses are so adorable, I can't stop staring.
In the summer without so much snow, a Swedish house might look more like this: Cute House
The house is so cozy inside as well. Here is Micke tucked into his snoopy sheets. Haha! Look how happy he is!
Since there is not much to do, which is the beauty of the place, we filled our days with watching birds outside the kitchen window, snowshoeing, walking to the town church (which was closed on a Sunday morning since the priest apparently has to rotate through other towns), snowmobiling, eating sausages and ham, and napping. It was lovely.
The town of Los:
Here I am looking like an eskimo before we went snowmobiling. I used to think those Russian hats were ridiculous, but they are WARM! And you can see Ubbe (Micke's dad) cruising by on the '88 snowmobile! He's by the trees in the top photo.
Total permanent population = 387 people
In the summer without so much snow, a Swedish house might look more like this: Cute House
The house is so cozy inside as well. Here is Micke tucked into his snoopy sheets. Haha! Look how happy he is!
Since there is not much to do, which is the beauty of the place, we filled our days with watching birds outside the kitchen window, snowshoeing, walking to the town church (which was closed on a Sunday morning since the priest apparently has to rotate through other towns), snowmobiling, eating sausages and ham, and napping. It was lovely.
The town of Los:
 |
| Many of the houses have the symbol of a goat on them |
Here I am looking like an eskimo before we went snowmobiling. I used to think those Russian hats were ridiculous, but they are WARM! And you can see Ubbe (Micke's dad) cruising by on the '88 snowmobile! He's by the trees in the top photo.
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Christmas
It's Christmas time in Sweden. I've been trying to ignore the snow and darkness and get into the spirit of it. Swedish-style.
Two weekends ago Micke and I visited a beautiful Christmas Market at Drottningholm Palace, where little stalls had sprouted up outside the royal palace to sell handicrafts and lots of sausage, herring, glögg (mulled wine) and, of course, candy.
We also saw this funny scene with two little kids who had built the biggest snowball I've ever seen. The little girl was carrying it on her back while the little boy spotted her. Then she just collapsed under the weight of it.
Kids also have a pretty sweet deal here. Many parents just carry them around in sleds.
Remember learning about the Lucia celebration when you were in elementary school? The little girl with a crown of greens and candles on her head and dressed all in white? Lucia day was last Thursday and I was so excited to see the real Luciatåg (the train of little kids all dressed up in white). I went with two friends to Södertālje, a town 50 minutes south of Stockholm, where my Swedish teacher had told us there was a big parade of children who would walk around the mountain. We got dropped off in the middle of nowhere only to climb the mountain, find a small ghost town/museum, then slip down an icy slope back into the town when we realized they had the Luciatåg the Sunday before. There was another train, but apparently poor little Lucia got stuck in an elevator! We missed all of it. http://lt.se/nyheter/sodertalje/1.1915256-lucia-fastnade-i-hiss It was still a fun adventure though! And we did find some marzipan snowmen, santas, angels and pigs (yeahhh. It represents the Christmas ham.)
Micke's mom sings in a choir so we listened to Christmas carols last week in a church that was originally built in 1190.
Another Christmas tradition here in Sweden is lighting candles and stars in the windows. It feels cozy. It's also common to decorate oranges with cloves and hang them in the window. You can see our handiwork below! Guess which one is mine... (Hint: It's the non-symmetrical one!)
Two weekends ago Micke and I visited a beautiful Christmas Market at Drottningholm Palace, where little stalls had sprouted up outside the royal palace to sell handicrafts and lots of sausage, herring, glögg (mulled wine) and, of course, candy.
We also saw this funny scene with two little kids who had built the biggest snowball I've ever seen. The little girl was carrying it on her back while the little boy spotted her. Then she just collapsed under the weight of it.
Kids also have a pretty sweet deal here. Many parents just carry them around in sleds.
Remember learning about the Lucia celebration when you were in elementary school? The little girl with a crown of greens and candles on her head and dressed all in white? Lucia day was last Thursday and I was so excited to see the real Luciatåg (the train of little kids all dressed up in white). I went with two friends to Södertālje, a town 50 minutes south of Stockholm, where my Swedish teacher had told us there was a big parade of children who would walk around the mountain. We got dropped off in the middle of nowhere only to climb the mountain, find a small ghost town/museum, then slip down an icy slope back into the town when we realized they had the Luciatåg the Sunday before. There was another train, but apparently poor little Lucia got stuck in an elevator! We missed all of it. http://lt.se/nyheter/sodertalje/1.1915256-lucia-fastnade-i-hiss It was still a fun adventure though! And we did find some marzipan snowmen, santas, angels and pigs (yeahhh. It represents the Christmas ham.)
Micke's mom sings in a choir so we listened to Christmas carols last week in a church that was originally built in 1190.
Another Christmas tradition here in Sweden is lighting candles and stars in the windows. It feels cozy. It's also common to decorate oranges with cloves and hang them in the window. You can see our handiwork below! Guess which one is mine... (Hint: It's the non-symmetrical one!)
Here are some more pictures of Stockholm at night (2-4pm):
The last Christmas tradition that I have to mention is Julmust. The strange-tasting soda that all Swedes love to drink at Christmas time. I am trying to like it...
Monday, December 3, 2012
Winter in Stockholm
It's now winter in Stockholm. The snow and cold temperatures have arrived! It's currently 5 degrees Fahrenheit. FIVE!
For Swedes, a good winter means a lot of snow. One urban myth that I keep hearing is that the worse the winter the better the summer. The snow does makes everything much, much brighter though when the daylight is so short.
Yesterday was a balmy 10 degrees. We dared to go running and I wore four layers, including a down jacket. It felt good to be outside anyways. (That's me running below.)
It also looked pretty from my classroom window this morning.
For Swedes, a good winter means a lot of snow. One urban myth that I keep hearing is that the worse the winter the better the summer. The snow does makes everything much, much brighter though when the daylight is so short.
Yesterday was a balmy 10 degrees. We dared to go running and I wore four layers, including a down jacket. It felt good to be outside anyways. (That's me running below.)
It also looked pretty from my classroom window this morning.
Saturday, November 24, 2012
Välkommen till Sverige!
It's been an awesome first week here in Stockholm! I started my Swedish class, which I love and think is helping me learn at a good pace. I have been learning about Swedish foods like Wallenberg (one big meatball with all of the accompaniments- lingonberry jam, mashed potatoes and pickles.) I've been navigating the supermarkets with my dictionary, exploring the city and walking around one of the many beautiful lakes. Micke has also been spoiling me and making me feel very happy here. He bought me flowers, cooked me dinner and cleaned the dishes. All in one night!
But the best part was...
MY SURPRISE WELCOME TO SWEDEN PARTY!!!
When I got my Sambo visa in September, Micke had told me that his friend Marie wanted to invite us over for dinner the Friday after I arrived. I didn't think much about it other than it was a really nice gesture and that apparently they like to plan ahead.
Come Friday I was super tired. I decided to take a nap at 6 pm and then woke up at 6:50 and quickly tried to salvage my hair and put on some eye makeup. At 7 pm we arrived at Marie and Ante's apartment where I saw a sign for San Francisco on their door. When we rang the bell, Marie showed up at the door in a traditional Swedish outfit and Ante was wearing a Viking costume. Since I lived in SF for many years, this didn't actually trigger any alarms in my head, I just thought it was cool they were excited to show me about Sweden. They had also hung a CA flag and photos of Micke and me on their wall!
As Marie showed me the balcony and her view, we noticed Micke has disappeared. When we came back inside he ran out of one of the bedroom dressed in a full body (skintight!) polyester blue and yellow Swedish flag. Behind him, came streaming out his closest 20 friends, the vast majority of whom I have never met! All dressed as Swedish celebrities, sports stars, condiments, Pippi Longstocking, etc. As I stood there in shock I was handed a long blonde wig and a lime green shirt with american and Swedish flags and a photo of Micke and me :)
After the excitement settled down, Micke had made a quiz on Swedish culture for me to answer in front of everyone. It included such important facts as who is the Swedish King (King Carl XVI Gustaf), what sound does a pig make in Swedish (nöff) and out of 4 photos, which foods are not Swedish. We'll just say I barely passed...
Not only did Micke, Marie and Jenny do so much planning to make this party happen, but Micke's friends gave me presents! I got a pair of warm gloves, a Swedish soccer shirt and a gift card for 800 kr to buy a warm coat! I was speechless.
It was such a special night and fun way to meet these great people. I'm still in shock at this incredible kindness.
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