Okay I am finally off to a blogging start after a bit of a delay. My original goal was to do a picture a day blog… I think I will probably do that going forward! But in this post I am just going to give some highlights and observations so far.
Summary of the First Week
*I LOVE my host family. I have 2 host brothers William (8) and Elliot (3). They are the sweetest boys and so full of energy. They are obsessed with Star Wars and legos in particular which is interesting because I know nothing about Star Wars. But I am learning…. Especially about clone army custom legos. My host parents Annie and Daniel are very nice and welcoming too. We have great conversations. I will post pictures of them at some point but I haven’t taken many yet.
*Stockholm is beautiful and my pictures don’t do it justice. But there are many bright buildings and just overall great architecture.
*I can now successfully use public transportation without getting lost… too often. This is a major achievement for those of you that know about my typical transportation struggles.
* My favorite place so far is Gamla Stan (The Old Town). It is very picturesque and has many cafes and good shopping. We went on a tour during orientation and saw the sights. If you ever go to Stockholm DEFINITELY go to Gamla Stan.
*We also went on a daytrip out to Grinda which is part of the archipelago. It looked a lot like Maine according to everyone in my program. It was beautiful. We also played a great Swedish yard game called Koob. It is great. I want to play it at home too. Oh and the boat that we took there was called the Cinderella II 🙂 
*Went to the Vassar Museum which an entire museum dedicated to a ship that was only afloat for 20 minutes. It was a pretty ship though and the museum is really fun.
*Went to the first ikea ever. What is more Swedish than that haha? And guess what… it is ROUND! Which makes it even more confusing and maze like than an American ikea. William was disgusted that I went to ikea because he hates it haha.
*I had a crayfish party with my host family and some of their friends. It is a celebration for the start of crayfish fishing season. I couldn’t help but think of my pet crayfish from about 4th grade as I was eating her relatives. But it was an interesting Swedish cultural experience.
* Today I went to the Stockholm Public Library. It is round and has rows of books in a circle! It is beautiful (google it) and will likely be my new study-spot this semester… although Goldfarb 3 will be hard to replace. It kind of makes me feel like Belle to be there!
Observations about Sweden
*They drink out of very small glasses…. As in I refill my glass probably 5 times during dinner.
*The escalators stop moving until someone steps on them… very eco-friendly.
*They eat with both their fork and knife. They are very good at using the back of their fork to hold food.
*They have the CUTEST strollers even… I will take pictures and post at a later date.
*All Swedes must take 5 weeks of vacation per year.
*Parents get 18 months of maternity leave after having a child and it is usually divided equally between the parents.
* They do have Swedish Fish here, despite Bailey’s Swedish friend telling her they don’t.
*There are Sweet Saturdays, which mean that kids can only eat candy on Saturday.
* Fikas are VERY popular. It is basically a coffee and pastry break. People can take as many as they like per day.
So far I am having a good time. I can’t believe it has only been about a week. I know the time will fly by soon. This is just a snapshot of everything thus far and I will try to update frequently! Please let me know how you are doing as well! Miss you all!! xoxo Ruairi
One reply on “Crayfish, Fikas, and Crazy Kids”
Stockholm Public Library!!!! I am so jealous, that library is GORGEOUS! anyway, I sent you an email today updating you about Banshee. Keep having fun kiddo!