Well, a lot has happened since my last blog. I’ve discovered more interesting things about living outside the US and I experienced a traditional Swedish dinner, went to IKEA for the first time, went to my first Lappis party, had a meeting with the mechanical engineering chapter, went to Stockholm’s culture festival, a welcome party at the union, and a crayfish party (Kräftskiva).

People from the UK don’t study, they revise. Scots call juice from concentrate “squash.” I have not seen any Pepsi products here but it could just be much less popular…? Swedes don't really eat breakfast (by my standards anyway)... they eat sandwiches; sandwiches with one piece of bread and something like meat and cheese (I'm sure fish-paste is also acceptable) on top. Also, a popular treat here is the kanelbulle which is like a cinnamon bun without the frosting... they are good and I believe someone told me there is a kanelbulle day that is nationally recognized! I'm going to have to look into that though; it's possible the person was just yanking my chain...

They get a lot of American TV here. It isn’t that bad for the most part… but they get MTV. Have any of you ever seen the show Yo Mamma? It is a disgrace to the US especially when shown in other countries! Some friends and I were flipping through the channels a while back and ran across Yo Mamma. One of them immediately said, “Yeah, this is what Americans are like!” I have also been asked whether the US is really what is portrayed in the movies. They wanted to know whether everyone in the south has a hot temper, a shot gun, and no reservations about using it and whether our parties are really like the ones in American Pie! A Texan I know jokingly told someone that he’s killed a few people and the person believed him! Hmm, maybe we’re not really helping… ;)

Speaking of the entertainment industry, I was shocked to hear that Regina Spektor is quite popular in Scottland… and here I thought my roommate, Dan, was her only big fan. Foreigners do seem very happy that they can listen to music from the US. Also, Lindsay Lohan and Paris Hilton are even on the covers of all the magazines here! I was talking with a guy one night and he made me realize just how universal the US is… I know I’m in the capital of Sweden, but I never would have guessed that there would be so many reminders of home. Sometimes it hardly feels like I’m in another country because they have McDonald’s, Burger King, Pizza Hut, TV, music, Skippy peanut butter, Weight Watchers meals, Cheerios, Pantene hair products, and the list goes on. H&M and 7-11s are like Starbucks here! If there isn’t one in sight, take two steps to your right, and then – yup – there’s one! I’m pleased to report that the 7-11s are like smaller, more up-scale Walgreens with a little food area (similar to the ones in Target) and H&M is just as inexpensive.

I have now had both Swedish pancakes and Swedish meatballs which are both very tasty. Meatballs are generally in huge plastic packages in the frozen food isle and very inexpensive. It is traditional to eat meatballs with potatoes (mashed or baked) and lignon berry sauce (tastes a lot like cranberry sauce but without all the zing - don’t get me wrong… there’s zing – just not as much). In an information meeting, I found out that Sweden is known for its lack of culinary expertise… but they are trying to turn that around and so far (except for one incident :) ) the food has been good.

So, the Swedish dinner was really good. I got to try reindeer paste, salmon with a potato and cheese loaf-type thing, an apple and rhubarb tart, as well as some beer, wine, and schnapps. During and after dinner there was a lot of singing… by the group who organized the dinner and groups of tipsy students. Luckily, there was only one other American in the room (of about 200) and neither of us felt like embarrassing ourselves. At one point during the dinner we were all given the phonetic version of a popular Swedish song Helan Går. As it turns out, the person who was in charge of writing the phonetic version decided to just write some of it in English so it makes absolutely no sense. Here it goes:

Hell and gore,
Chung hop father allan allan lay,
Hell and gore,
Chung hop father allan lay,
Oh handsome in the hell and tar,
Hand hell are in the half and four,
Hell and gooooorrrre… (shoot the schnapps)
Chung hop father allan lay!

Interesting, huh? After dinner there was a party at the union which was really fun. People are really really into techno music here so that was all that the dj played – I’m fine with that, techno is fun to dance to.

The next night there was a party in Lappis (the area where a lot of the students from KTH, Stockholm University, and other colleges live). Before the party, I played drinking games UK-style… meaning hard core! :) Unfortunately, the other American playing the games was at the point where he said he needed to stop, but two Scottish friends wouldn’t let him quit. When playing the game “ride the bus” we were drinking a finger’s width of our glasses instead of simply taking a drink when necessary! Then when one person must “ride the bus” nine cards are put face down in a diamond shape and the driver must get from one end to the other without turning over a face card. If the driver turns over a face card, he or she must drink half of their drink and start from the beginning! Yeah, they mean business here! :)

The meeting with the mechanical engineering chapter went well. We toured our building, our pub (each chapter has it’s own little pub – I think that should be standard world-wide), and then played the Zero game. It is where everyone squeezes together in a circle (back to front) and then sits. This was awkward for me for two main reasons… first of all, I like my personal space (which seems almost nonexistent here) and second, the guys right in front of me and right behind me were both at least one foot taller than me! When we first formed the circle (everyone faces inward), the lady in charge said, “Alright everyone, squeeze together – shoulder to shoulder.” The guy to my right looked in my direction and said, “Hmmm, I guess we’re more like shoulder to elbow!” …So after that fun game, the leader invited all of us to try herring on crackers (a traditional Swedish snack). It was herring from a can, on a cracker, and smothered in either sour cream or a honey mustard sauce. I had the one with the mustard sauce and all I can say is thank goodness we got little Dixie cups of Guinness to wash it down!

Sorry these are so long… I find it a lot easier to write everything down in large chunks rather than every day (…obviously :) ).

Alright, so here’s my first blog entry from Sweden:

First of all, thank goodness for kind Europeans... since I took two large suitcases and a carry-on, I was having problems lugging it all until two nice Brits insisted on helping me and sharing a taxi. They were going to central Stockholm but KTH’s main campus was on the way so they also insisted on paying the 440 SEK ($80+) bill. A couple guys helped me get my luggage in the union so I could register and pick up my keys. The lady who gave me my keys told me I needed to walk 2 blocks, take the subway to “Universitetet,” and then take the bus to the dorms…. I called a taxi. The driver was very nice but got lost because there are about 15 dorm buildings on three different streets and there is no method to the numbering of the dorms. Eventually he found it and offered to help me take my luggage to my room. I said no and it was while he was driving away that I realized my room is on the fourth floor! It took me a while but I got to my room which was shockingly clean.

That night there was a barbecue at the union for all the international students, so I went, met some Germans and experienced the language barrier. One girl actually told me it was hard to speak English because she had to think about it so much! Luckily, that isn’t the general consensus and I have met many other people who have asked me to correct their mistakes. It is amazing how well most of the people here speak English and how much they want to improve their speaking capabilities. I am meeting a lot of great people and having a lot of fun with the communication challenges.

Swedish 1 began on August 2nd at 9 AM. I got up at 5 to make sure I could find the class and look around the campus (and this can’t be all that surprising to anyone who knows me since you know I always get lost… and that’s when I can read the signs). Class is going well; we are already writing essays! I remember when I was in Spanish 1, back in 7th grade, we started out learning how to count, the alphabet, and pronunciation. Ellen taught us polite conversation on our first day! We went through the alphabet and numbers about two days later!

When I’m not in class, I’m normally wandering around downtown Stockholm. The city is made up of 11 islands and I have been on 4 so far. There are tons of beautiful old buildings with small parks and boats along the sides of the islands. The “tunnelbana” system here is quite extensive and very useful (especially when you buy the card for unlimited rides for a month).
People here are very elegant; the women wear very fashionable clothes and most of the men (that I think are Swedes) wear suits. I have gone to the shopping district multiple times to people watch and check out Swedish fashion. Baby doll dresses and tops, skinny jeans, and Keds (shoes) are all very popular. I went into one store (that I think is like Sweden’s Macy’s) and they were selling distressed Keds for $30+ with the more distressed and colorful ones reaching $65! I have seen so many outfits that most Americans (at least the people I know) wouldn’t be caught dead in! I have also seen what seems like millions of tall, lean, tan, and blonde people. I don’t feel too out of place when I’m with all the other exchange students but that may change when the Swedes come back for school in September.

Food here has been an interesting situation. There is a food market at the bottom of the hill my dorm is on and everything is labeled in Swedish. I guess it’s not that surprising but it’s scary to buy something when you’re not completely sure what it is. I guess cheese, lunch meat, and dairy products are the most difficult to pick out. Cheese is just hard because they sell it in blocks and most of it looks pretty much the same and I don’t think they have cheddar (which is unfortunate because I really like cheddar). I know now that “skink” is ham, “ost” is cheese, and “mjölk” is milk. The milk is sold in the same containers as yogurt (cardboard boxes about ½ the size of a cereal box) and a few people I know guessed incorrectly. I’ve also realized that I have to be more cautious of what I eat here. On Sunday, I went to a café downtown with a Swede and had a warm apple crisp with whipped cream. Monday morning, about 40 minutes after class started, I began to feel really sick. I excused myself to the bathroom… but I didn’t make it! This was not alcohol induced since I haven’t had any for two weeks now, but I had my head in a garbage can in the hall! My conclusion is that the whipped cream at the café had gone bad. I have been sick like that two times in the past six years and I don’t even think someone’s 21st birthday should count (I blame the other time on The Big Ten’s 2 for 1 long island night). Anyways, it was gross and I’d like to avoid any future exposure to spoiled food!