So I am finally recovering from exhaustion after weekend in Berlin. And by finally recovering, I mean I hope I don't almost fall asleep every 3 minutes by tomorrow morning.
That clearly did not go well as I fell asleep shortly after I wrote that. Anyways, now I am feeling much more rested and am stoked to have the day off. Getting prepared for Katie and Rob to come this weekend, which is super exciting especially as it's supposed to be sunny (read: sunny but not warm).
So my biggest news is that I went to Berlin for 4 days this past week. Katreace and I left Malmo on Thursday to go to the city of currywurst and poor English. We arrived quite late at night and caught a combination of S-Bahn and U-Bahn into the city. We met some nice British fellows who had been to Berlin before and helped us find our way - which was quite convenient as they were basically heading to the same area of the city as us. We were in the "mitte" region also known as the middle section, quite near Postdamer Platz and the TV tower. Our hostel was a little sketchy looking at first as it was in a random run down looking building. But once we got up to the third floor, where the hostel was housed, the place was quite cute and homey. It also helped that the staff were nice and there was always some sort of treat (biscuits or chocolate) out for our consumption. We then set out to find some food at 12:00am which wasn't hard to do as Berlin is truly the city that never sleeps. We found a shwarma place on the block, were appalled by the low cost of delicious roast meat, then hit the hay.
Day 2: we went for a 3.5 hour free walking tour of Berlin. It was neat to see all the history that we clearly wouldn't have on our own. Of course we hit all the hot spots like the Brandenburg Gate, Reichstag, and Holocaust memorial. So. Many. Photo. Ops. It was funny as all the other tourists (from Britain, Spain etc.) were complaining how cold it was but we were stoked on the fact we didn't have to wear gloves! After this, we went to the main, famous shopping street near the zoo and partially destroyed church. The shopping wasn't that great as all the stores were basically repeated every block. H&M, Zara, C&A. Repeat. There was a cool department store that reminded me of Harrods but the security guard gave me a nasty look when I tried to go inside with my food. Oh well. Also! While we were walking down this street, we recognized people speaking Swedish. It was really rather amazing that we were able to pick that up, but it sure made us happy. After a long long day of walking, we headed back to the hostel to make some dinner and get ready for our first pub crawl. We ended up going with 3 Brazilian girls from our hostel to the 666 Anti-Pubcrawl. I know, it sounds scary. Basically it just takes you to pubs that aren't super main stream or that you would never find on your own aka crazy clubs. We went to a Ping Pong club, a Goth Club, an unidentified club and some more crazy spots. It was super fun due to the oddity of it all. We also met some cool girls from NYU who were studying in Prague as well as some Liverpoolians. The NYU girls were the one who dubbed me Rosetta Stone as I was able to translate any and all broken English. It was amazing. I think they'll probably remember me forever. All and all a good night when you consider we were dancing with people wearing gas masks. Here we were also informed that basically no one pays for transit in Berlin...and if you do, the lady gives you "special price". So confusing, so awesome.
Day 3: After breifly nursing our hangovers, we were up and at 'em quickly the next day. First stop was the Jewish Museum. It was a really cool building that combined a newly modern one with a Baroque one. It also was super interactive and we learned lots. Yay for museums. Then we went on a search for the painted section of the Berlin Wall which Google totally lied to us about. Instead we found the Charlottenburg Castle which was equally beautiful at sunset. We still were determined to find the wall so we roamed the streets looking for English speakers. Most Germans pretend to speak English so it's a lost cause, but a hilarious one at that. At an Internet Cafe, the man there finally resorted to speaking in "English" to us after he deciphered that we didn't speak Russian, Italian, or Spanish. Basically the conversation went like this:
Us: We are looking for the Berlin wall that is decorated by artists.
Man: What?
Us: Berlin Wall. With paintings...
Man: Ahhh! The Nazi's (fighting type motions)
Us: Umm...sure. Where is it?
Man: We don't care about the wall. It fell.
Us: Okay...
Man: Where are you from!?
Us: Canada and Australia.
Man: OH SO INTERESTING.
Us: Ha yeah, it's pretty cool. So where is the wall?
Man: So interesting. Canada AND Australia.
Us: Okay well thanks anyways. (Abruptly leave)
We decided to cut our losses at the point as the sun was starting to go down and we were in a strange part of the city without a wall. We also had another pub crawl on our horizon. After getting back to the hostel, we had a quick nap (aka kip, it's the new word for it). It was nice to take a rest and then get some food. We then headed to a bar called Zapata where we kicked off evening two. Free beer and jager shots looked like they would spell out a good night (even though there was a disproportionately high number of Edmontonians). We went to some cool spots ending with this huge club called Matrix. It had like 3 rooms each with a different theme and all with outrageous go-go dancers. We met people from London, Switzerland, Denmark, Ireland, and more. It was all and all awesome. And we didn't get home until 10am. Thanks Berlin, for the sleep deprivation.
Day 3: We washed up, ate some breaky, and headed out for another day. Kicking exhaustion and weird foot retardations (walking around a city in boots is not the most ergonomically correct), we walked up to Mauer Park for a HUGE flea market. Of course, we again got lost, but truly experienced the streets of Berlin. Once there, we were appalled by the amount of sweet stuff there. Hipsters would freak out. Majorly. So much vintage leather, fur, sunglasses and more! I bought a couple necklaces, a bell for my bike (whooo) and a german flag patch to add to my collection. After this, approximately 24 hours after the first venture, we went and found the Berlin wall. It was actually the easiest thing to find ever, kind of embarrassingly so. Oh well. We can blame it on being tired. We ran into Gui who is also studying in Malmo and took some opportune photos. Cute. We then continued on our journey back to our hostel for another quick kip before dinner. We went to this Vietnamese restaurant near by and it was amazing. It was like 20 euro for two entrees, drinks, and appies. And it was delicious. And it satisfied my Asian food hankerings. We ate happily then went outside where we found a photo booth and took some hideous photos. Ahh memories. Back to the hostel we made some tea and chatted with our fellow hostel-ers. Very cool to hear their stories. After that we hit the hay pretty hard as we had to be up at 4am. Though this was the case, we were woken up at 1am by our roommates. Thanks guys!
Day 4: Waking up in the darkness, we got our bags together and stumbled towards the first Schoenfeld Express Airport Train. Arriving in a timely fashion, we met Gui again who was on our flight. Safe to say we slept for most of this and were overjoyed to touch back down in our beloved Scandinavia. Arriving back at Malmo Central Station at about 9:15am, I biked as fast as I could home to drop off my stuff and grab some food. I was out the door at 9:50am for 5 hours of class. Glamorous life of an exchange student indeed.
Now I'm sitting in my room being lazy as all get out. Off to a Swedish school this afternoon to chat with some kids and eat some Swedish treats. Yum! Then a big weekend with my besties Kat and Rob. Hurrah!
Facts of funnnessss!
1. Swedes apparently have better English than a lot of the rest of Europe because all of their TV shows are subtitled in Swedish instead of dubbed in. Amazing.
2. Germans all pretend to speak English. You ask them, they nod and look confused. Then proceed to have no idea what you are saying. At least they try though and give you random discounts on train tickets.
3. We had another nude model this week in drawing class. It was a lady. Heehee.
4. It's almost consistently above zero now. I am excited. And it's supposed to be sunny. I don't know how I am containing myself.
5. This is the longest blog post ever.
xx
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Emily Ross, Swedish Translator
So apparently I'm actually okay at Swedish. We were on our way by car to Gothenburg for a day trip and I could translate at the gas station. Cool right? I thought so. Something that is not cool? How I went on a bike ride for a few hours this afternoon, have been home for about and hour and am still freezing. But hey, I was the one who chose to come to Sweden. At least it was sunny.
This week was pretty low key as I'm going to Berlin on Thursday. I wanted to get ahead with homework so that was super fun. I drew my first portraits in class this week, maybe I'll post some photos of those. No self-portraits yet though...those will come! I had Wednesday, Thursday and Friday off this week and most of that was spent doing homework, exercise and being a decent human being. On Thursday, I went for my first fika (Swedish for having coffee). Sarah and I went to Solde, a kaffebar. It was pretty good coffee, nice and simple like Cafe Fantastico at home. One small difference. As we were sitting inside sipping our lattes, we noticed a strange and slightly disturbing trend pertaining to Swedish mothers. This just proves how safe Sweden is. Every time a mom would come in to grab a coffee or loaf of bread, she would just leave her stroller outside. With the baby inside. INSIDE. OUTSIDE. Baby alone outside in stroller. Negative 5 degrees. Madness. And this didn't hapen just once, but like three times. Only in Sweden I tell you. Then we had a delightful Swedish class. I don't even know how I can sum up these classes for you. We are so ridiculous and usually end up making someone cry or spit out their drink. Yep. Still a class clown in Sweden.
Friday was highlighted by my locking my phone and keys in my room. I guess I was really tired. Luckily, Ingrid and I had to draw several portraits so that kept me busy while I located a master key. After said portraiture fest, we went to Willys, the grocey shop, and I finally fulfilled my wish of going down every aisle. It is so big. So this was quite the feat. I got some delicious foods including a Billy's Pan Pizza. Like in Steig Larsson's novels. I felt very Swedish. Speaking of very Swedish, I don't know how many times I say this, but the Swedes eat a lot of crap food (re: Billy's Pan Pizza's and cola) and are so skinny. I just don't understand. In fact, I saw the first actually fat person today and he was like 6. It wasn't even his choice to be fat. His mom better get him to lay off pizza and semlor. Friday night consisted of one of the weirdest parties I've ever been to. First it started with people sharing a 5L of 59% rum. Then taking shots of said rum straight from the box. That's right. Rum. In. A. Box. Then people were on other people's shoulders. Then people were lighting shots on fire in their mouths. Then a slip and slide was made in a hallway. Then someone had to get five stitches. I guess that characterizes a good party. Thanks boys from Mont Pellier.
Saturday morning came mighty quick as I had to get up at 6am to road trip to Gothenburg. Five of us piled into a car and made the 3 hours trek to the second largest city in Sweden. We roamed around for the day. Saw some sights and the sun (yay!). We also got cinnamon buns bigger then my head and that's saying something as my head is quite large. Then for the main event, we went and saw a hockey game. It's the best league in Sweden but is probably below the skill level of the Juniors. I scoffed when a Dutch guy asked if the league was better than the NHL. Said scoffing continued when I spotted a gentleman, wait I take that back, a jerk, wearing a Maple Leafs jersey. In Sweden. Maple Leafs. I wanted to go slap him. Anyways, I proudly explained the sport to all those less informed around me and felt very Canadian. One perk of the game you may ask? There was fire. Fire shows. Like rockets went off when the home team scored. Amazing. We then got some Max Burger, the slowest Swedish fast food and headed back home to the musical delights of Pop FM, playing the pop hits of years past. Amazing again.
Today I went on a little bike tour to Rosengard - the ghetto of Malmo. And let me tell you, this place makes Burnaby look like a dump. It is hardly a ghetto. There is nice student housing, parks, outdoor sports fields, public arts, murals. You name it, Rosengard has it (except for bullet proof vets). It just gets a bad rap because it's where a lot of immigrants live. There's this cool thing they have though where there are apartments above shops and in order to live in these apartments you have to own one of the shops. Full meal deal if you ask me. We then went to the city so I could take pictures of the cat sculptures on the water, meow, and had some more fika. Yum I love 5 dollar coffee. Now I am home again, bullet wound free and looking forward to a crash course in German tonight. Berlin comes next week and Katie and Rob come to visit the week following. I am a busy girl!
Facts of the week:
1. The bad parts of Sweden are about as bad as upper middle class areas in Canada. Love Socialism.
2. Bakeries in Sweden are amazing. Everything looks so delicious and I swear these cakes could make someone...who hates cake...love cake. That analogy sucked.
3. There is a Swedish version of Skor bars called 'daim'. It is just as delicious if you were wondering.
Be jealous. I'm going to eat so much pierogi.
4. Sports teams all around the world are called the Indians. We went and saw the Forlunda Indians play hockey. Funny part, most people don't have any idea what a First Nations person is. Ha.
5. MEOOOW.
xx
This week was pretty low key as I'm going to Berlin on Thursday. I wanted to get ahead with homework so that was super fun. I drew my first portraits in class this week, maybe I'll post some photos of those. No self-portraits yet though...those will come! I had Wednesday, Thursday and Friday off this week and most of that was spent doing homework, exercise and being a decent human being. On Thursday, I went for my first fika (Swedish for having coffee). Sarah and I went to Solde, a kaffebar. It was pretty good coffee, nice and simple like Cafe Fantastico at home. One small difference. As we were sitting inside sipping our lattes, we noticed a strange and slightly disturbing trend pertaining to Swedish mothers. This just proves how safe Sweden is. Every time a mom would come in to grab a coffee or loaf of bread, she would just leave her stroller outside. With the baby inside. INSIDE. OUTSIDE. Baby alone outside in stroller. Negative 5 degrees. Madness. And this didn't hapen just once, but like three times. Only in Sweden I tell you. Then we had a delightful Swedish class. I don't even know how I can sum up these classes for you. We are so ridiculous and usually end up making someone cry or spit out their drink. Yep. Still a class clown in Sweden.
Friday was highlighted by my locking my phone and keys in my room. I guess I was really tired. Luckily, Ingrid and I had to draw several portraits so that kept me busy while I located a master key. After said portraiture fest, we went to Willys, the grocey shop, and I finally fulfilled my wish of going down every aisle. It is so big. So this was quite the feat. I got some delicious foods including a Billy's Pan Pizza. Like in Steig Larsson's novels. I felt very Swedish. Speaking of very Swedish, I don't know how many times I say this, but the Swedes eat a lot of crap food (re: Billy's Pan Pizza's and cola) and are so skinny. I just don't understand. In fact, I saw the first actually fat person today and he was like 6. It wasn't even his choice to be fat. His mom better get him to lay off pizza and semlor. Friday night consisted of one of the weirdest parties I've ever been to. First it started with people sharing a 5L of 59% rum. Then taking shots of said rum straight from the box. That's right. Rum. In. A. Box. Then people were on other people's shoulders. Then people were lighting shots on fire in their mouths. Then a slip and slide was made in a hallway. Then someone had to get five stitches. I guess that characterizes a good party. Thanks boys from Mont Pellier.
Saturday morning came mighty quick as I had to get up at 6am to road trip to Gothenburg. Five of us piled into a car and made the 3 hours trek to the second largest city in Sweden. We roamed around for the day. Saw some sights and the sun (yay!). We also got cinnamon buns bigger then my head and that's saying something as my head is quite large. Then for the main event, we went and saw a hockey game. It's the best league in Sweden but is probably below the skill level of the Juniors. I scoffed when a Dutch guy asked if the league was better than the NHL. Said scoffing continued when I spotted a gentleman, wait I take that back, a jerk, wearing a Maple Leafs jersey. In Sweden. Maple Leafs. I wanted to go slap him. Anyways, I proudly explained the sport to all those less informed around me and felt very Canadian. One perk of the game you may ask? There was fire. Fire shows. Like rockets went off when the home team scored. Amazing. We then got some Max Burger, the slowest Swedish fast food and headed back home to the musical delights of Pop FM, playing the pop hits of years past. Amazing again.
Today I went on a little bike tour to Rosengard - the ghetto of Malmo. And let me tell you, this place makes Burnaby look like a dump. It is hardly a ghetto. There is nice student housing, parks, outdoor sports fields, public arts, murals. You name it, Rosengard has it (except for bullet proof vets). It just gets a bad rap because it's where a lot of immigrants live. There's this cool thing they have though where there are apartments above shops and in order to live in these apartments you have to own one of the shops. Full meal deal if you ask me. We then went to the city so I could take pictures of the cat sculptures on the water, meow, and had some more fika. Yum I love 5 dollar coffee. Now I am home again, bullet wound free and looking forward to a crash course in German tonight. Berlin comes next week and Katie and Rob come to visit the week following. I am a busy girl!
Facts of the week:
1. The bad parts of Sweden are about as bad as upper middle class areas in Canada. Love Socialism.
2. Bakeries in Sweden are amazing. Everything looks so delicious and I swear these cakes could make someone...who hates cake...love cake. That analogy sucked.
3. There is a Swedish version of Skor bars called 'daim'. It is just as delicious if you were wondering.
Be jealous. I'm going to eat so much pierogi.
4. Sports teams all around the world are called the Indians. We went and saw the Forlunda Indians play hockey. Funny part, most people don't have any idea what a First Nations person is. Ha.
5. MEOOOW.
xx
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Camilla inte bor i Celsiusgarden!
It's that time again...blog time!
It's now Sunday night in old Sweden land and I am just about to go whip up some dinner. This past week hasn't been terribly exciting (no weekend trips to London or the like), but hey, I'm in Sweden so that's pretty exciting on it's own.
After returning from London, I had a lot of catch-up to do (like blog posts, homework, cleaning - the fun stuff). So after that was wrapped up on Monday and Tuesday, I had the rest of the week to dabble in some more homework and lounge about to nurse my cold.
Wednesday, Kat, Franz and I went for a bike ride to the sea. It was quite warm out and sunny which was so nice. We went just before sunset so we took some pretty nice pictures and had a photo shoot with our bike family. Every time we go on a bike ride, we discover a bit more of the city. I guess that's the benefit of living, rather than traveling, somewhere. There is still so much more I'd like to see but sometimes you get wrapped up in routine rather than exploring. On my list: Kallbadhus (a cold bath and sauna house, apparently where all the Swedish seniors hang out - score!), the Chocolate Museum & Cafe, various museums, the public library (a miss-mash of old and new architecture), and well there has to be some other things as well. Hopefully one day this week, I swindle someone to go on an exploration bike tour - weather permitting of course. Oh, Wednesday also included a cookie-baking-towel-fight-dance-party-to-fatboyslim. Yeah, be jealous.
Thursday brought the beginning of Swedish round 2. It's cool because now I can actually sort of speak/understand. Emphasis on "actually sort of". Hopefully by the end of it I will make an improvement on that string of modifiers. But hey, if all else fails, I can just claim I don't know as I'm not Swedish.
Another highlight of the week was all you can eat sushi and Chinese food buffet for 89 kr (about $13 CAD). You might be thinking "oh god sushi from a place other than the west coast?!" And if you were, you're right. The sushi was mediocre, but the rest was pretty delicious. Regular types of Chinese food, but as much as you'd like...including pop, tea, coffee, and dessert! Wow! Also the place was really classy looking. You'd think a Chinese food buffet would be kind of seedy. But nope, tranquil music, hostesses in traditional gown, fancy tiles and gold leaf. Really quite the experience. Following this, with many-a-bloated stomach, we went for a leisurely bike ride. In the hail. Joy. But at the end of this bike ride was a delightful second hand store. It's like Value Village, but more organized and way more hidden gems. Though Swedish people seem far more hipster, apparently they don't go for the vintage hipster look, because I have never seen so many un-bought vintage Adidas track jackets.
Friday night, me and a group of German girls and an American girl went to Lund (a small student town about 15 minutes by train away) to see a Swedish band, Movits! Here's a sample: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LnaeImQ0TSg. It was a really interesting experience. Everyone. There. Was. Swedish. And Swedes are strange people to run into at a bar. They not only are shy but a titch passive aggressive. They are so hard to talk to so we created a bad ass dance circle until they Swedes switched from passive aggressive to regular-type aggressive. Think mosh pit with the most beautiful people on earth (I don't know how bad that sounds now...ha). Anyways, it was still really fun and the band was awesome even though I had no idea what they were saying until they said tack (thank-you). Oh, and I got to put my bum on so much Swedish. Please see this reference if that statement concerns you: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3NjThjinDDQ (fast forward to 1:06 if Tom Green isn't your cup of tea). All and all a successful trip!
Saturday consisted of a group dinner for a French girls birthday, homework, and an awkward themed party. Yes, I was just as mystified by this theme as you. But being the classy girls we are, we wore pretty dresses, heels, and mustaches. What's more awkward than a bearded lady? We listened to some stellar awkward tunes (including My Pony by Ginuwine, courtesy me) and it was the first time I've heard ABBA in Sweden. I don't know how it took so long. Anyways, today constituted another sleep-in day. I am beginning to like this trend. Katreace and I then went on a walk got some delicious Swedish pastries that are only available for 4 weeks (sweet bun, marzipan, and fresh cream, yum!) and then headed home.
Next weeks adventures: planning a trip to Budapest and Vienna, hockey game in Gothenberg, and whatever else Sweden throws my way.
Fun fun facts!
1. As mentioned before, Swedes are really passive aggressive. Some guy got a drink spilled on him in Lund and just yelled "TACK!" about 4 thousand times. Effective sir.
2. Swedish pastries are so so so delicious. Even 7-11 is like a gourmet bakery. Staffed by models.
3. The wind has died down, but the cold is so...cold. Yep, I said it. It warmed up for a bit but it is again freezing (well below freezing in fact).
4. I am a sushi snob. That is all.
5. I don't know any more fact this week...is there anything YOU'D like to know? (This is a test if I have any readers, you can leave a comment under a sneaky alias).
Meow. xx
It's now Sunday night in old Sweden land and I am just about to go whip up some dinner. This past week hasn't been terribly exciting (no weekend trips to London or the like), but hey, I'm in Sweden so that's pretty exciting on it's own.
After returning from London, I had a lot of catch-up to do (like blog posts, homework, cleaning - the fun stuff). So after that was wrapped up on Monday and Tuesday, I had the rest of the week to dabble in some more homework and lounge about to nurse my cold.
Wednesday, Kat, Franz and I went for a bike ride to the sea. It was quite warm out and sunny which was so nice. We went just before sunset so we took some pretty nice pictures and had a photo shoot with our bike family. Every time we go on a bike ride, we discover a bit more of the city. I guess that's the benefit of living, rather than traveling, somewhere. There is still so much more I'd like to see but sometimes you get wrapped up in routine rather than exploring. On my list: Kallbadhus (a cold bath and sauna house, apparently where all the Swedish seniors hang out - score!), the Chocolate Museum & Cafe, various museums, the public library (a miss-mash of old and new architecture), and well there has to be some other things as well. Hopefully one day this week, I swindle someone to go on an exploration bike tour - weather permitting of course. Oh, Wednesday also included a cookie-baking-towel-fight-dance-party-to-fatboyslim. Yeah, be jealous.
Thursday brought the beginning of Swedish round 2. It's cool because now I can actually sort of speak/understand. Emphasis on "actually sort of". Hopefully by the end of it I will make an improvement on that string of modifiers. But hey, if all else fails, I can just claim I don't know as I'm not Swedish.
Another highlight of the week was all you can eat sushi and Chinese food buffet for 89 kr (about $13 CAD). You might be thinking "oh god sushi from a place other than the west coast?!" And if you were, you're right. The sushi was mediocre, but the rest was pretty delicious. Regular types of Chinese food, but as much as you'd like...including pop, tea, coffee, and dessert! Wow! Also the place was really classy looking. You'd think a Chinese food buffet would be kind of seedy. But nope, tranquil music, hostesses in traditional gown, fancy tiles and gold leaf. Really quite the experience. Following this, with many-a-bloated stomach, we went for a leisurely bike ride. In the hail. Joy. But at the end of this bike ride was a delightful second hand store. It's like Value Village, but more organized and way more hidden gems. Though Swedish people seem far more hipster, apparently they don't go for the vintage hipster look, because I have never seen so many un-bought vintage Adidas track jackets.
Friday night, me and a group of German girls and an American girl went to Lund (a small student town about 15 minutes by train away) to see a Swedish band, Movits! Here's a sample: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LnaeImQ0TSg. It was a really interesting experience. Everyone. There. Was. Swedish. And Swedes are strange people to run into at a bar. They not only are shy but a titch passive aggressive. They are so hard to talk to so we created a bad ass dance circle until they Swedes switched from passive aggressive to regular-type aggressive. Think mosh pit with the most beautiful people on earth (I don't know how bad that sounds now...ha). Anyways, it was still really fun and the band was awesome even though I had no idea what they were saying until they said tack (thank-you). Oh, and I got to put my bum on so much Swedish. Please see this reference if that statement concerns you: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3NjThjinDDQ (fast forward to 1:06 if Tom Green isn't your cup of tea). All and all a successful trip!
Saturday consisted of a group dinner for a French girls birthday, homework, and an awkward themed party. Yes, I was just as mystified by this theme as you. But being the classy girls we are, we wore pretty dresses, heels, and mustaches. What's more awkward than a bearded lady? We listened to some stellar awkward tunes (including My Pony by Ginuwine, courtesy me) and it was the first time I've heard ABBA in Sweden. I don't know how it took so long. Anyways, today constituted another sleep-in day. I am beginning to like this trend. Katreace and I then went on a walk got some delicious Swedish pastries that are only available for 4 weeks (sweet bun, marzipan, and fresh cream, yum!) and then headed home.
Next weeks adventures: planning a trip to Budapest and Vienna, hockey game in Gothenberg, and whatever else Sweden throws my way.
Fun fun facts!
1. As mentioned before, Swedes are really passive aggressive. Some guy got a drink spilled on him in Lund and just yelled "TACK!" about 4 thousand times. Effective sir.
2. Swedish pastries are so so so delicious. Even 7-11 is like a gourmet bakery. Staffed by models.
3. The wind has died down, but the cold is so...cold. Yep, I said it. It warmed up for a bit but it is again freezing (well below freezing in fact).
4. I am a sushi snob. That is all.
5. I don't know any more fact this week...is there anything YOU'D like to know? (This is a test if I have any readers, you can leave a comment under a sneaky alias).
Meow. xx
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Danger: High Winds
So all else exciting aside (ex. London), riding my bike (now named Stina) today was TREACHEROUS. With a capital 'T'. I woke up this morning and of course, did not want to get out of my bed. I then peaked out of my blinds and noticed it was sunny. This cause me to spring to my feet and celebrate. No rain = waaaay greater options in terms of shoes. Nice. I got decked out in jeans and keds, spent several minutes debating whether my winter jacket was necessary (decided on no and wore leather, oops). Then set out to go to class.
The moment I stepped outside, I immediately regretted all of my fashion choices. It was windy. And not like Vancouver Island windy. Like WIN-dy. My eyes were instantly watering, my hair (which I wore down for the first time in ages) was all over the place, and I was an awkward combination of both sweaty and freezing. It took me about double the time to ride to school and I was actually fearing for my life. The wind was physically moving my bike in different directions. Once I finally made it to school, I came to the realization that my hair, yet again, would be put in a bun. I feel like a 90's revival. Where are the butterfly clips and hair mascara when you need them?
Annnyhow, now that I am home, safe and suffering only from minor windburn, I will update you on the past week.
So as a few of you know, I went to London. The days prior (ex. Monday and Tuesday) were just classes...so I will not go into detail. But Tuesday night after class I made my way to Copenhagen to catch my flight. After being fully patted down by a male security man (thanks Socialism) and walking to the end of the earth (EasyJet section in Terminal 2), I was on my way. I slept for most of the two hour flight and arrived in London Stanstead at 10:30pm. I then caught an EasyBus (big fan of all things easy) and thought I was going to get into a head-on collision as I forgot about the side of the road driving difference. Once in Central London, I was to meet my best friend from Victoria, Katie and her boyfriend Rob at Baker Street Station. My bus was early so I went inside to the ticket bays. After I had waited about 15 minutes after we were supposed to meet, I started frantically texting and calling both Katie and Rob. To no avail, I started to freak out. I walked back and forth from the Tube to the bus drop-off and could not find them anywhere. As the last tube was leaving soon, I went for one last trek and found them. Yessss. Reunited! We returned to Katie and Rob's place in Greenwich and retired for the night.
The next few days were great. They were spent doing the following:
- Meandering through Greenwich and it's parks
- Wandering Central London - Trafalgar Square, China Town, Covent Garden, St. Paul's Church and Monument
- Consuming delicious cider that is considered not-so-delicious in London
- Going for some stonebaked Pizza
- Seeing Wicked (which was in fact, wicked)
- Meeting with an old friend, Daina for lunch
- Reading in the Park
- Eating cookies and cupcakes
- Watching buskers
- Walking along the Southbank of the Thames
- Exploring the Tate Modern
- Drinking 1 pound beers and eating Aussie meat pies at the Australian Embassy
- Attending various local pubs
- Shopping at Primark
- Checking out London's ghetto (aka Peckham)
- Perusing the 99p store
- Going out for drinks and dancing with the girl (7 pound drinks? I'll have 3)
- Running out on our tab for 3 pound juices as the bartender told us they were cider
- Enjoying the Museums of South Kensignton
- Eating and drinking in Greenwich
That generally sums up the jolly good time I had in London. It was so good to see Katie and Rob both living so cutely in London. London London London. They have some of the cutest little words (ex. proper, manky, cheeky) and the most delicious junk foods (ex. cheese twists, custard creams, majestics). I shall miss it. But will be going back soon as I think I will be flying home from the Queen's land. And well maybe I'll relive it's majesty during the Royal Wedding.
This week so far has been full of homework and class. Luckily, I don't have class until Monday now so I should be able to sleep in and enjoy Swedish life (though I still have a smidge of homework, as I'd rather do more now and get ahead and travel later). Speaking of travelling, I am planning trips to Uppsala, Budapest and Vienna, Stockholm, and Lappland. Oh and I'm planning for when Katie and Rob and my mom and aunt come visit. I guess I am a busy lady.
That being said, I have to change out of my ever-so fashionable sweats (not acceptable in Svenland) as I am going to an open mic night at a bar. No I am not singing. You're welcome world.
Facterinos:
1. Risifruitti is hereby known as the best food in the world. It is rice pudding packaged with fruit sauce. In the most Ikea-like container. I love you Sweden.
2. A lady at the airport asked me what time the train came in Swedish. I answered in Swedish. I guess that's how Swedish works.
3. This weekend there is an awkward theme party. Prepared to be blown away Sweden.
4. HOW COULD I FORGET?! Last week in drawing class, we had a live male model. He was nude. No clothes. Naked. Me and Ingrid giggled. For the whole three hours.
5. Swedish grocery stores still confuse me. Who wants to go on a full day excursion to Willy's? Awesome.
6. I think I am going to be blogging for Malmo Hogskola. Keep your eyes out for links, cause I know you think my writing is stellar.
Love love. xx.
Ps. Swedish lessons start again this week. Jaha!
The moment I stepped outside, I immediately regretted all of my fashion choices. It was windy. And not like Vancouver Island windy. Like WIN-dy. My eyes were instantly watering, my hair (which I wore down for the first time in ages) was all over the place, and I was an awkward combination of both sweaty and freezing. It took me about double the time to ride to school and I was actually fearing for my life. The wind was physically moving my bike in different directions. Once I finally made it to school, I came to the realization that my hair, yet again, would be put in a bun. I feel like a 90's revival. Where are the butterfly clips and hair mascara when you need them?
Annnyhow, now that I am home, safe and suffering only from minor windburn, I will update you on the past week.
So as a few of you know, I went to London. The days prior (ex. Monday and Tuesday) were just classes...so I will not go into detail. But Tuesday night after class I made my way to Copenhagen to catch my flight. After being fully patted down by a male security man (thanks Socialism) and walking to the end of the earth (EasyJet section in Terminal 2), I was on my way. I slept for most of the two hour flight and arrived in London Stanstead at 10:30pm. I then caught an EasyBus (big fan of all things easy) and thought I was going to get into a head-on collision as I forgot about the side of the road driving difference. Once in Central London, I was to meet my best friend from Victoria, Katie and her boyfriend Rob at Baker Street Station. My bus was early so I went inside to the ticket bays. After I had waited about 15 minutes after we were supposed to meet, I started frantically texting and calling both Katie and Rob. To no avail, I started to freak out. I walked back and forth from the Tube to the bus drop-off and could not find them anywhere. As the last tube was leaving soon, I went for one last trek and found them. Yessss. Reunited! We returned to Katie and Rob's place in Greenwich and retired for the night.
The next few days were great. They were spent doing the following:
- Meandering through Greenwich and it's parks
- Wandering Central London - Trafalgar Square, China Town, Covent Garden, St. Paul's Church and Monument
- Consuming delicious cider that is considered not-so-delicious in London
- Going for some stonebaked Pizza
- Seeing Wicked (which was in fact, wicked)
- Meeting with an old friend, Daina for lunch
- Reading in the Park
- Eating cookies and cupcakes
- Watching buskers
- Walking along the Southbank of the Thames
- Exploring the Tate Modern
- Drinking 1 pound beers and eating Aussie meat pies at the Australian Embassy
- Attending various local pubs
- Shopping at Primark
- Checking out London's ghetto (aka Peckham)
- Perusing the 99p store
- Going out for drinks and dancing with the girl (7 pound drinks? I'll have 3)
- Running out on our tab for 3 pound juices as the bartender told us they were cider
- Enjoying the Museums of South Kensignton
- Eating and drinking in Greenwich
That generally sums up the jolly good time I had in London. It was so good to see Katie and Rob both living so cutely in London. London London London. They have some of the cutest little words (ex. proper, manky, cheeky) and the most delicious junk foods (ex. cheese twists, custard creams, majestics). I shall miss it. But will be going back soon as I think I will be flying home from the Queen's land. And well maybe I'll relive it's majesty during the Royal Wedding.
This week so far has been full of homework and class. Luckily, I don't have class until Monday now so I should be able to sleep in and enjoy Swedish life (though I still have a smidge of homework, as I'd rather do more now and get ahead and travel later). Speaking of travelling, I am planning trips to Uppsala, Budapest and Vienna, Stockholm, and Lappland. Oh and I'm planning for when Katie and Rob and my mom and aunt come visit. I guess I am a busy lady.
That being said, I have to change out of my ever-so fashionable sweats (not acceptable in Svenland) as I am going to an open mic night at a bar. No I am not singing. You're welcome world.
Facterinos:
1. Risifruitti is hereby known as the best food in the world. It is rice pudding packaged with fruit sauce. In the most Ikea-like container. I love you Sweden.
2. A lady at the airport asked me what time the train came in Swedish. I answered in Swedish. I guess that's how Swedish works.
3. This weekend there is an awkward theme party. Prepared to be blown away Sweden.
4. HOW COULD I FORGET?! Last week in drawing class, we had a live male model. He was nude. No clothes. Naked. Me and Ingrid giggled. For the whole three hours.
5. Swedish grocery stores still confuse me. Who wants to go on a full day excursion to Willy's? Awesome.
6. I think I am going to be blogging for Malmo Hogskola. Keep your eyes out for links, cause I know you think my writing is stellar.
Love love. xx.
Ps. Swedish lessons start again this week. Jaha!
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Something hillarious...
The site called It's Learning (it's like WebCT) is down. I just google translated the message. This is what the last line said: "Technicians in Norway working on a solution." Thanks Sweden.
If you were Swedish, you would know.
Me again. This past week has been full of tons of things, so I'll try to sum it all up for you!
I had Monday and Wednesday off this week which was great as I was able to finally get some things done - like getting supplies for class, doing laundry, and cleaning my room top to bottom. I've finally really nested in my room which feels great and rather homey. Pictures to come soon, I promise. Oh, and the bring a dish party on Sunday was delicious. So many things to try and so many desserts! Yum.
This past week also marked the last of the Swedish classes. We had one lecture on Monday and our exam on Tuesday. The exam went pretty well as I got a VG (which means very good), the grading system is very strange here. Oh, another weird thing about the Swedish academic system...if you fail, you have three chances to redo work or an exam. My international coordinator told me that and I was like PARDON? I guess that's a titch of socialism for you. I will miss our Swedish class as our teacher was awesome and provided us with a pretty sweet introduction to not only the language, but also the city. She also was hilarious (like when we asked how we know which form of "one" we should use in a sentence and she just said "Well, if you were Swedish, you would know") and put up with my sass. I can extended my Swedish classes (10 more 2 hour lessons), but I'm not too sure yet. Thoughts?
I also had class this week. I had Image Making again (only for 2 hours!) on Thursday and my first class of Sketching and Drawing. It seems like its going to be very interesting - we already started to learn how to draw people that actually look like people. Exciting, I know. Once I produce some quality work, maybe I'll get up the courage to post it, but for now, my stick people will stay nice in protected in the safety of my sketchbooks. A great thing about classes, which I think I've already mentioned but will again, is that we meet Swedish people who are typically reserved and hard to get to know, although very friendly. The best is when someone Swedish tries to speak to you in Swedish in class...and then they realize you have no idea what's going on. It's the small things in life really. One can only hope that I will make outside of school Swedish friends who can show me around and teach me the ropes of true Swedish Viking-ness.
Some exciting things: my mom and aunt have booked their flights to come and visit me over Easter and my birthday. I really can't wait. I know my mom will just love it here. (Ps. I think you would too Dad, hint). Also, I am going to London on Tuesday to visit Katie, Rob, and Daina which I cannot wait for! We're going to see Wicked and be British. Pip. Friday, I went to Copenhagen with my friend Katharina to meet my friend from grade 8 Youth Combating Intolerance (YCI) club. It was a lot of fun as we met people from all over the world (including Estonia and Iceland) as well as some other people from Victoria. This simultaneously emphasized a weird big-world/small-world thought. We also explored the city (it's gorgeous, pictures of that also to come). I also bought the nicest boots in the entire world for $90 CDN. Amazing. I almost wore them to bed last night. Oh also, Copenhagen is kind of crazy expensive. I had a 6 dollar 12oz. latte. INSANITY I tell you. Oh and a small bottle of coke was about 4 dollars. Considering Danes appeared to be the happiest people on the planet, I don't know how they live like this. Ha.
Other activities this week included: watching handball (the world championship is on now in Malmo!), going for walks through the park (as there have been some nice sunny days, like today), cooking lots of food, drinking tea, biking, Australia day, and other bits and bobs.
Coming up next: planning a trip to Lappland - details to come. Homework until forever - drawing takes longer than you expected. Planning all the things for me to show people when they come visit! Exploring the city to find cute restaurants and cafes (apparently there's an all you can eat sushi place for about 11 dollars...we shall see how it compares to the delicious fish of the west coast.
Some tidbits from this week:
1. Swedish folk have the equivalent of "John Doe" or "Joe Schmoe" here. It's Sven Svensson. I almost died when I heard this.
2. My most commonly used Swedish besides "hej" and "tack" is "jag talar inte svenska" (I don't speak Swedish). This is generally helpful unless the mailman subsequently asks you "what language do you speak" in Swedish. I though saying I didn't speak any would be a good clue. BUT, you can basically say the same thing to a Danish person and they'll understand. Awesome.
3. The train ride from Malmo to Copenhagen is amazing when it's clear out. This rarely happens. We saw dozens of windmills in the sea at sunset. Amazing.
4. The people who work on the train (and collect tickets) here are the friendlies people of all time. I now know why Scandinavia is considered one of the happiest places on earth. I have never seen so many smiling people in my life - from 7-11 employees to strangers, it's pretty unreal.
5. People's party stamina here is unbelievable. I am not able to stay up until noon the next day. I am not a robot. I need sleep, food, and love.
6. Graffiti is legal here. It is every where. But same as in Vancouver, some is awesome and some just sucks.
7. More people still need to skype me.
Next time you hear from me I may have an accent. Be warned.
xx
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Being locked in a room/ Sparkling wine
So it's noon on Sunday and I just woke up. I guess that's what happens when you are up until 3am and everyone around you is still sleeping. I could never sleep in like this at home...but maybe it's still the jetlag catching up with me.
This past week has been full of Swedish, sparkling wine, my first class, and biking. Monday and Tuesday were our last early morning Swedish classes as regular classes started on Wednesday. Swedish is going pretty well, but it's hard to pick up as people from different areas have different dialects almost - Malmo Swedish is much closer to Danish, weird. Our Swedish class is pretty awesome especially because our teacher is amazing. She has brough us candy and told us about good places to shop, eat, and drink. It's great to have a Malmo native on our side. Sadly, our class ends in two days, one of which is an exam.
Pauuuuseeeee I have been beckoned for coffee.
Alright, so we just cleaned up the after math of the party in our building last night. We have this creepy room in our basement that doubles as a party lair - complete with a bar and streamers taped up to spell "AY CARUMBA!". Needless to say, I bet you wish you partied there every second weekend.
Oh so I guess you want to hear about my classes. Well I have only had one so far. It's called "Image Making" and is focused on graphic design, digital photography, and website design. Basically, it is everything I love rolled into one. Also, it's really neat because there are only 4 exchange students in my 40 person class which means I get to meet real Swedes! In fact, me and Ingrid (from Guelph) ate lunch with some Swedish people!! None were named Sven, sadly. Basically the first class, we played pictionary with beautiful Swedes, did some drawing, and longed to be outside as Thursday was the first clear, blue day since I've been here. Anyways, I think this class will be pretty good, especially because by the end I will have an online portfolio (which may help me snag a job come July ;)).
(I can't believe I just did a winky face, ps.)
I start "Sketching and Drawing" on Tuesday, so that should be interesting as well. I will update you on lovely Swedish people and that class soon. The Swedish academic system is slightly strange, mostly in the fact that I have a class that runs for 6 weeks in the middle of the semester. It's called "Globalisation, Culture, and Identity." Just taking it to keep up my academic skills. The syllabus makes it look pretty interesting (and easy!) so that shall be grand.
This Friday I also had my first experience at the System Bolaget aka Swedish BC Liquor Store. All the alcohol is regulated here and can only be bought at this store (unless it's alcohol content is under 3.5%). Wine and beer are fairly cheap compared to Canada but liquor is just as expensive. One thing that was strange was the Veuve Cliquot was waaayyy less expensive. I guess this means I need to find some things to celebrate.
Yesterday, a group of us went for a bike ride to a market and then the sea. The market was pretty scary as there were people yelling at us in Swedish to buy food. But we did find a nice cheese and meat shop (you would love it mom!). Our time by the sea was short lived as it was freezing, so logically, we went shopping, where we could stay warm inside. I bought a nice knitted ear warmer which will be great for biking! Then we had dinner and a little party in our basement.
That brings me to today. We're having a bring a dish party tonight and trying some foods from different countries. What's typically Canadian you ask? I'm bringing cookies. So I've got to get to baking those as well as putting together a project and studying for my Swedish exam.
Some facts:
1. People it Europe find it appropriate to smoke inside. I do not. Ahhh well.
2. Swedish people have the equivalent of "your mom". Highly amusing.
3. Drinking 5 bottles of wine between 3 people is just as bad of an idea in Sweden as it is in Canada.
4. Not having Megabite sucks.
5. More people should skype me.
6. I'm going through "meow" withdrawl. People just don't recieve it in the same way here.
7. Oh and the title. The doors all have locks on the inside to get out. Like you can't just push the door. You have to turn the lock. Panic is induced the first time when you're trying to get out of your room and can't.
xx
This past week has been full of Swedish, sparkling wine, my first class, and biking. Monday and Tuesday were our last early morning Swedish classes as regular classes started on Wednesday. Swedish is going pretty well, but it's hard to pick up as people from different areas have different dialects almost - Malmo Swedish is much closer to Danish, weird. Our Swedish class is pretty awesome especially because our teacher is amazing. She has brough us candy and told us about good places to shop, eat, and drink. It's great to have a Malmo native on our side. Sadly, our class ends in two days, one of which is an exam.
Pauuuuseeeee I have been beckoned for coffee.
Alright, so we just cleaned up the after math of the party in our building last night. We have this creepy room in our basement that doubles as a party lair - complete with a bar and streamers taped up to spell "AY CARUMBA!". Needless to say, I bet you wish you partied there every second weekend.
Oh so I guess you want to hear about my classes. Well I have only had one so far. It's called "Image Making" and is focused on graphic design, digital photography, and website design. Basically, it is everything I love rolled into one. Also, it's really neat because there are only 4 exchange students in my 40 person class which means I get to meet real Swedes! In fact, me and Ingrid (from Guelph) ate lunch with some Swedish people!! None were named Sven, sadly. Basically the first class, we played pictionary with beautiful Swedes, did some drawing, and longed to be outside as Thursday was the first clear, blue day since I've been here. Anyways, I think this class will be pretty good, especially because by the end I will have an online portfolio (which may help me snag a job come July ;)).
(I can't believe I just did a winky face, ps.)
I start "Sketching and Drawing" on Tuesday, so that should be interesting as well. I will update you on lovely Swedish people and that class soon. The Swedish academic system is slightly strange, mostly in the fact that I have a class that runs for 6 weeks in the middle of the semester. It's called "Globalisation, Culture, and Identity." Just taking it to keep up my academic skills. The syllabus makes it look pretty interesting (and easy!) so that shall be grand.
This Friday I also had my first experience at the System Bolaget aka Swedish BC Liquor Store. All the alcohol is regulated here and can only be bought at this store (unless it's alcohol content is under 3.5%). Wine and beer are fairly cheap compared to Canada but liquor is just as expensive. One thing that was strange was the Veuve Cliquot was waaayyy less expensive. I guess this means I need to find some things to celebrate.
Yesterday, a group of us went for a bike ride to a market and then the sea. The market was pretty scary as there were people yelling at us in Swedish to buy food. But we did find a nice cheese and meat shop (you would love it mom!). Our time by the sea was short lived as it was freezing, so logically, we went shopping, where we could stay warm inside. I bought a nice knitted ear warmer which will be great for biking! Then we had dinner and a little party in our basement.
That brings me to today. We're having a bring a dish party tonight and trying some foods from different countries. What's typically Canadian you ask? I'm bringing cookies. So I've got to get to baking those as well as putting together a project and studying for my Swedish exam.
Some facts:
1. People it Europe find it appropriate to smoke inside. I do not. Ahhh well.
2. Swedish people have the equivalent of "your mom". Highly amusing.
3. Drinking 5 bottles of wine between 3 people is just as bad of an idea in Sweden as it is in Canada.
4. Not having Megabite sucks.
5. More people should skype me.
6. I'm going through "meow" withdrawl. People just don't recieve it in the same way here.
7. Oh and the title. The doors all have locks on the inside to get out. Like you can't just push the door. You have to turn the lock. Panic is induced the first time when you're trying to get out of your room and can't.
xx
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