Four Months In Sweden...

And I still couldn't tell you the difference between mellanmjölk, lattmjölk, filmmjölk and good old regular mjölk.

Except for the fact that I always buy the blue one, because a Swede working at the grocery store told me it was the best one. I've tried every one except for filmmjölk which is supposed to taste like milk gone bad..but I really couldn't describe to you any distinguishing taste difference. Now I just look for the one in the blue carton, if it doesn't come in the blue carton, I wouldn't know the difference.

Reason 3284923842 Why I love Sweden

In most recent news, I have officially been nominated and then elected for a foreman position at Wermlands Nation here in Lund. In Swedish, the position is called "hovmästare" which translates into head waiter. There are going to be 5 head waiters in total at the nation next semester; a head waiter is in charge of either a sittning (i.e. having workers to serve, setting up and making sure things go fairly smoothly) or a pub night which is a lot more relaxed and just consists of serving food etc. It's certainly one of the most relaxed positions at the nation, and I will only be required to work as a head waiter about once a month but I'm greatly looking forward to being more involved in a nation next semester to give it a different tone and feel from this semester.

I've mentioned before that at the traditional Swedish dinners at nations you sing a lot of songs..every nation has their own song book with different songs in them. There's a favorite of mine called "Yogi Bear," and here's a little tidbit of the lyrics that I can remember..

Yogi has an enemy, Ranger, Ranger
Yogi has an enemy, Ranger Ranger Smith
Ranger Ranger Smith, Ranger Ranger Smith
Yogi has an enemy Ranger Ranger Smith

Yogi has a girlfriend, Cindy, Cindy
Yogi has a girlfriend, Cindy Cindy Bear
Cindy Cindy Bear, Cindy Cindy Bear
Yogi has a girlfriend, Cindy Cindy Bear

Cindy likes it up the bum, kinky, kinky
Cindy likes it up the bum, kinky kinky bear
Kinky kinky bear, kinky kinky bear
Cindy likes it up the bum, kinky kinky bear

Yogi he likes furniture, Ikea, Ikea
Yogi he likes furniture, Ikea Ikea Bear
Ikea Ikea Bear, Ikea Ikea Bear
Yogi he likes furniture, Ikea Ikea Bear

Walking on pins and needle

So over the past year and a half I've acquired 3 tattoos: a script piece on my back that is a French proverb translating to "There's no place like home," as well as my parents initials on each ankle representing their dichotomy through left and right brain. It would only make sense then that in Sweden, my year abroad, a time in my life I have no doubt I will remember and that it will shape me, that I shall once again get another tattoo. Over the past 6-8 months I've played around with various ideas, and decided that I definitely wanted an image this time..words take up a lot of space and although they hold a lot of meaning, I don't want to be a human book. Which lead me to decide on pink lily flowers; I associate these with my mom's home in San Rafael..whenever we have flowers in a vase on our dining room table, they are always pink lilies.

I did some research of tattoo shops in Copenhagen and found a really nice place that reminded me of Spider Murphy's where I got my first tattoo a year and a half ago. I emailed and talked on the phone with a woman named Rosaminna, who never failed to make me feel as if we had been good friends for 10+ years. She recommended Yanni to me, a guest tattoo artist who was only going to be at the shop for the month of December..reluctant to wait so long I asked if there was anyone else who was capable of tattooing beautiful flowers. She said yes but that she would recommend waiting for Yanni, because he would do the best job. Alright, sold. Consultation and tattoo appointment booked for early December.

Fast forward to last week, I go to Copenhagen, get insanely lost two times but finally get to my consultation at Brightside Tattoo. Rosaminna goes to fetch Yanni, we meet, shake hands and we go to his station where we are to discuss my tattoo. He immediately asks where I'm from, I reply "The states" he asks where, "California near San Francisco," and he says that he is from Santa Clarita near L.A. Well, fancy that..come all the way to Sweden, and then to Denmark to get tattooed by an artist from California who's traveling through Europe; I immediately feel more at home and comfortable with him. Fast forward to today, December 7th, my friend Sofia comes with me to the tattoo shop and because of my killer visual memory we arrive to the tattoo shop early. Yanni calls me back shortly after 12 p.m. and asks if he can just freehand the tattoo directly onto me (usually tattoos are drawn onto paper and then placed as a stencil on the body), I said that he most definitely could, but only because he was from California. I go back and he begins drawing and I was immediately amazed at his talent to draw so well directly onto my body with what appeared to be minimal mistakes. I okay the preliminary tattoo and we get to going. Ohhh that very specific pain that only comes with a tattoo..I don't see the point in expressing it because hell, I have two hours to sit through so no point getting dramatic although I do have a natural knack for that sort of thing. And not to toot my own horn or anything, but I'd like to think that I can handle pain quite well..yes I would occasionally grip the side of the table I was laying on, or look away and mouth "Ouch" but I've got a pretty killer poker face. If anything I enjoyed watching because the technique and the art of tattooing is so unparalleled and fantastic, especially when he was filling in the flowers and told me that the tattoo gun had almost a dozen needles.

In the end, I have never been more consistently ecstatic, besides the pain that was uncomfortable, I immediately fell in love with the tattoo..it is exactly what I had wanted and more: all thanks to Yanni Vera.

From Ianna, to Snow, to Stockholm and Back

Oh how daunting the idea of trying to summarize the last couple of weeks seems to me right now. Let's start off with last weekend: Ianna (a friend from UC Santa Cruz), came to visit me in Sweden from Friday-Monday. I was so excited and proud to show off Lund and my friends here, two new additions to my life that have undoubtedly altered me in the best way feasible. There are a few things I find necessary to experience when one visits Sweden: 1. The Systembolaget (the ridiculously high priced alcohol store owned by the government, but is amazing nonetheless), 2. The nation life, it's hard to really explain what nations are to people, it's better to just drag them around, 3. Pizza med pommes och vitlok sauce (pizza with french fries and garlic sauce on top, delicious!) 4. Viggo's burgers yumm, 5. A tradition Swedish sittning (and in Ianna's case, a tackfest at Wermlands) 6. A yummy falafel after a night out. and usually 7. Drinking ciders in the park, weather permitting. I am proud to say that we were able to accomplish all of that during Ianna's stay. Her first night here, we went to Hallands Nations, and were able to acquire some free drinks because we knew two of the guys working at the bar and danced until about 1:45 a.m. when we decided to head out. It was the first day of some snow collecting on the ground, and feeling as invincible as I did, I took off my cardigan and heavy duty jacket, frolicking in the empty street leading into town in nothing but a romper and some tights (don't worry I paid for it physically by shivering uncontrollably for almost a full hour after getting home). Saturday during the day, I took Ianna to Malmo, a nearby city very close to the water, and we trekked the long journey to the Turning Torso and unfortunately were unable to do anything else due to time constraints. That same night we had a tackfest at Wermlands Nation (one usually has to have worked for Wermlands to attend, but I am lucky enough to have friends who allowed Ianna to attend free of charge or physical labor!). Sittnings/tackfests are something that we've grown so accustomed to since being in Sweden that it's easy to forget how "foreign" (no pun intended), they can seem to newbies. The other Kaliforniens and I spent most of Friday and Saturday giving Ianna all the details of how they work: from the randomization of all the attendees so you end up sitting next to someone of the opposite sex that you probably don't know, to all of the free alcohol, the three course dinner you get, all of the funny songs that you sing (mostly in Swedish) that can often consist of standing on chairs or tables, with accommodating interesting hand gestures and pounds of the table with ones fist. All in all, having Ianna visit last weekend was a fantastic treat, making me grow increasingly excited for other friends from California to visit so I can share with them all of the magic of Sweden.

For probably about a month and a half now, the Kalifornien girls and I have been talking about Stockholm, let's go to Stockholm, we should go to Stockholm, we need to go to Stockholm. But life, time, prior arrangements and lack of full motivation always seemed to find us and prevent us from doing it. Finally, last week we just decided that we were going to do it, it was now or never. So Sunday night, Kristen, Jen, Sara, Peter and I booked our train and hostel in Stockholm (extremely last minute considering we were leaving early the next morning). It was impulsive in the best of ways. The trip overall was so much fun, Stockholm is very large compared to Lund, there was snow on the ground and the crisp air and wind would bite at your face constantly. Trying to figure out the right formula for warmth was probably the most interesting aspect of experiencing cold weather; our first day there I made the mistake of only wearing pants, and I swear to you my ass felt like 20 bees had stung it and it had gone numb. I didn't make the same mistake the next day: wearing a pair of tights, leggings, and pants. The makings for an impenetrable shield from the cold air and wind. We walked around Stockholm a lot, soaking in it's picturesque scenery and buildings, covered in snow. A memory I hope to never forget was when we decided that it would be really lovely to book a sauna in our hostel (best hostel ever, right?!), and decided it would be an even better idea to run from the sauna, up the stairs and out of the hostel into the snow and cold. We did that twice, part dying, mostly laughing and enjoying it. Another night we were wandering around old town of Stockholm and found a bench in a little courtyard area next to an alley and decided that a jumpingoffthebenchgrouppicture was in order. Low and behold, between the weight of 3 people, and the bitterness of snow and winter air, we ended up breaking the bench..running away like 7 year olds and laughing about it for the next few minutes saying to Peter, "Hey Peter, remember when you broke that bench?"

My head is exploding with thoughts, worries and desires: the main being that Sara and Jennifer's time here is quickly fleeting and I am feeling more and more like I don't know exactly what I will do with myself. In an attempt to create a new sort of routine next semester, I will probably be more busy with school seeing as I'm planning on taking departmental courses (WITH ACTUAL SWEDES), and am also in the process of trying to become a foreman at Wermlands Nation. I was nominated through my friend Sofia for three positions, hovmastare (head waiter of sittnings), lunch chef, and Saturday cafe chef. I tend to steer clear from cooking because of my genetic predisposition to messing up any sort of food that I touch, and hovmastare seems like it would be a fun position for me; I've dealt with 5 year olds, I'm pretty sure that I would be able to boss around some twenty something year olds. I am to attend a meeting on December 9th, where I believe is when I give a little tidbit about myself and the members will vote for those who they see fit to become more involved in the nation. Wish me luck! As I mentioned earlier, I am feeling increasingly sad about my two closest friends in Lund leaving so soon, which leaves me here..at the end of my update because I need to go get ready to create even more memories with the people I've come to love so much here.

Kram och puss

(Hugs and kisses in Swedish)

Adventures In Copenhagen

So last weekend, after talking and planning about a visit to Copenhagen, Denmark, Jen, Sara, Kristen and myself finally paid a visit to our neighboring country! We had heard that some other UC girls had spent the whole night in Copenhagen and then took the first train back in the morning at around 5 a.m., so we thought, hell..we can do it too! After missing the first train we were trying to catch to Copenhagen, we made it on the next one and huzzah, a mere 45 minutes later we were there! In Sweden, you're only able to buy alcohol in the Systembolaget, an alcohol store that is owned and operated by the country, with a heavy tax on all alcohol and in smaller quantities. Imagine our happiness when we walked into the first 7/11 we saw only to find mass amounts of ciders and beers in the refrigerators. We each bought a cider and confirmed with the young looking cashier that we were able to drink in public (although I was really skeptical about his level of validity; pretty much I thought he was trying to set up some stupid Kalifornien girls to get arrested in a foreign country).

Let's make a very long story short: we heard about this college-y area in Copenhagen, and about the bus we had to take to get there..we took the bus and ended up outside of the center in a very sketchy area. In the end we were pretty much right back where we had started and made our way back to the center of the city and looking for bars/clubs/food. We collectively decided that since we never eat out at a nice restaurant (besides the occasional 2 a.m. falafel in fluorescent lighting) that we deserved a meal at a nice restaurant. And Italian food it was! I'm pretty sure that the Italian waiter wanted to kick us all out when I bothered him for bread repeatedly, Sara wanted her meal vegan, and Kristen and Jen wanted to split a dish. The food was nice, although I was still hungry after..but we got to sit around and have good conversation for some time before migrating back out into the cold and onto the remainder of our evening.

We ended up at a bar which was exactly when I was reminded that when one goes to a nation in Lund, there's a very specific age range of youth that are there. Talk about a rude awakening when we walk into this pub/bar that was underground to find that, yes, there were people our age there, but there also were men, I kid you not, old enough to be my dad there. When I was at the bar ordering drinks, this guy started talking to me..way upwards of 40 and I couldn't help but think to myself, "Dude, how old do you think I am?" Ahh, gag. Anyways, I spent a ghastly $8 on a yummy pina colada and the four of us exchanged some major girltalk for some time before we decided that we were all tired and couldn't bear to stay out until 5 or 6 a.m., when we couldn't even find a reliable club and weren't really feeling in the club mood we decided it was best to head back to little old Lund. On our way home we found some fake snow that we frolicked around in, that was quite lovely! Copenhagen is so incredibly different from Lund, big urban city versus a tiny itty bitty town..and as much as I enjoyed a night out on the town as I guess one could call it, it made me love and appreciate Lund even more.

à toute à l'heure!

Late Night Walks

When I first came to Lund, I (being the extremely paranoid person that I am) wasn't really a fan of walking at night and in the dark. But throughout my time here I've grown to really enjoy the cold air and the serenity of walking at night. Last night, with a million thoughts floating through my head I decided it best to go take a walk. I suited up in my jacket, scarf and gloves and went for about an hour long walk through the town, which is saying much because the city itself isn't very large. Something about the peacefulness here is intoxicating. Then again tonight for example, I headed to one of the Wednesday night pubs with some friends, and decided to take a longer route walking home. I don't remember much of the walk only because I was so wrapped up in my own head and thoughts, but there has to be something about the crisp air that adds to the appeal of the darkness here.

The Leaves Are Turning

Lund has to be one of the most beautiful places imaginable during autumn..the trees have been turning beautiful and deep reds and oranges, leaves on the ground everywhere and with the backdrop of the brick buildings, it's simply bliss to be here (pictures to come).

Yesterday (Sunday), Sara, Jen, Cyrus and I made crepes. Okay, so I mainly sat around and acted as moral support because me in the kitchen is just an accident and fire waiting to happen..but, it was lovely nonetheless. Cyrus being the French man of the group was in charge of making the vegan crepes, and after about six failed attempts and doctoring of the batter was able to make about 10 absolutely lovely crepes (beer included in the batter). We added all sorts of yummies such as mushrooms, onions (my favorite), spinach, zuccini and a garlic sauce that Cyrus made, delicious beyond belief! Unfortunately I had been munching on a baguette and some cookies the whole time of cooking so when the crepes were done, I was stuffed after just one. Along with some delicious food came some equally interesting conversation..mainly about the way that we were raised, and what kind of parents we think\hope to be, as well as our views on marriage. There's nothing more I enjoy than theorizing with other people (especially this group who are all so open and amazing), seeing where people come from, how we gather from experiences throughout our life and are constantly evolving and changing.

Random factoid that I recently learned from a Swedish friend about why classes start fifteen minutes past the hour, he was telling me that people used to not have watches and lived outside the city in the countryside..so on the hour a bell would ring and then the students would know that they had fifteen minutes to get to class (yay for a little bit of history!). Another point of amusement for us has been how the Swedes text, and when mixed with some form of alcohol certainly makes for some giggles on our end. We have rejoiced and tried to decipher the code of Swedish friends' text many a times (disclaimer:not all Swedes text with interesting sentence structure and incomprehensibility, just some). I have one friend who says "quite much" quite often, which I find to be adorable, another one of our friends says "okeeeej" which apparently is a Stockholm thing and one has to hear to understand it's hilarity and strong desired to be imitated constantly, we also has a friend who starts off most sentences with "well" or "well jaaaa." And secretly behind their backs, but with the greatest amount of love, I immitate them from time to time.

On another side side side note, it's officially November, which means that there is very little time left until two of the most amazing girls I've met here (Jen and Sara) go back home to California. I have extremely mixed feelings seeing as they've been such a large part of my time here in Sweden, we pretty much live at each other's corridors, spend every day of the week together filled with good food, good laughs, and good tv shows. It's so bizarre to imagine how the structure of my day will change so dramatically from fall term to spring term, so much so that I would rather live in denial and pretend like they're never leaving. Seeing as it is November, this also means that I'm officially a month and a half away from going home to California for two weeks, an event that I am both looking forward to and slightly nervous about, although I couldn't tell you why it makes me nervous. It's bizarre to imagine leaving Sweden, going back home to in a way mentally debrief from my first 4.5 months here in its eventfulness and intensity, and then return for another 6 months. And in conjunction with that, it's hard to grapple with the idea of leaving Sweden in June..of course I can't foresee how I might feel about my departure since it's so far in the future but for the moment, I'm recognizing how many connections I've made. Sure, some will follow me back to California and that will follow me back when I return home..but others that will simply, end. Not to say that I won't keep in touch with the Swedes I've become good friends with, but more that I don't know when I will see them again. The idea of being here for 10 months, creating these bonds and these memories and then leaving is an overwhelming one..I know, I know, I'm fretting far too prematurely. However, I must say that I've spent some extensive time thinking about all of the people that I've missed from California, all of the food that I will eat (and alcohol I will not be able to drink), as well as the beautiful California coast I hope to repeatedly visit, Mount Tamalpais that I will see outside of my bathroom window, as well as the Golden Gate Bridge that I miss so terribly. It's hard to conceive that there is a world that is still existing and turning in California without me there, and that I will go home and things will have somehow shifted, maybe not majorly or too noticeably, but time has an amazing effect and I'm eager to experience it for two weeks.

I apologize for the inconsistency and rambly quality of this posting, I suppose it reflects how I'm feeling: overwhelmed, excited, full, stimulated, nervous\anxious, and loving every minute of it. Cheers

The Most Politically Incorrect Weekend in Sweden

And what a weekend it was indeed...some of our Swedish friends planned a White Trash sittning (which is retrospect is of course a recipe for disaster in one form or another). On Friday we went to a friends corridor to have a pre-party, and were pleasantly surprised to see how seriously our Swedish friend took the theme, you certainly don't want to be the only one looking ridiculous at such as white trash. Flannel, cutoff shorts, wigs, mustaches, fake pregnant bellies, teased hair, bright eye make up, bare midriffs, fake tattoos, and Confederate flags, yes, Confederate flags. It was a memorable moment turning around to see our friends Norberg, Kristoffer and Calle walk up from across the parking lot donned with camouflage and carrying a large Confederate flags; Calle even had a flag stitched on the back of his denim vest. The whole time the Kaliforniens and I would look at each other in disbelief, "This would never happen in the states, you would get shot for this." But this isn't California, and we rejoiced in the humor. We moved on to the Hallands nation where the sittning was scheduled, and the flag managed to find its way as well, being hung next to our three tables. The kicker of the sittning? There were four tables in the room, three for the white trash sittning and one table of only men, I believe Hallands "alumni" all wearing suits and looking quite dapper..talk about some sort of contrast. Jen and I bumped in to two of the men in the elevator, where I suddenly felt it necessary to cover up my picnic table cloth patterned bra as I said how bad I felt that they had to be in the same room as us while they looked so nice, "Oh no worries, we've been there before." Phew. The sittning itself was probably one of the best I've been to, singing traditional songs is a crucial part of sittnings, while pounding the table with your fist and often standing on top chairs causing many glasses of wine, cider, and champagne to be knocked over. My main goal of the evening was to get nothing on the overalls I was wearing (apparently they're coming back into style because I found them at H&M) because I had spent $60 on an article of clothing I hadn't worn since probably 2nd or 3rd grade and surely wouldn't wear after that night; rest assured, I was able to return them with no problem :).

The next evening Jen, Cyrus and myself had a Halloween themed tackfest at Wermlands nation (which we have determined through experiencing different nations tackfests that it is by far our favorite.) Desperate and overwhelmed by having another theme to dress to, I settled for a Native American, with war paint, a headdress and a tomahawk..while Jen was a "baker of love" wearing a red dress with white polka dress, an apron with a heart on it and a rolling pin, a true Betty Crocker. Of course the Swedes either wanted to call me Pocahontas or an Indian (to which I shutter at). As I mentioned before with the White Trash sittning, songs are a huge part of any Swedish dinner, however there's one in particular I refuse to sing that's about 9/11 (like I said, the Swedes are something different), however there is a song that I do quite enjoy:

If the ocean were whiskey and I were a duck

I'd swim to the bottom and drink my way up

But the ocean's not whiskey and I'm aint no duck

So let's go to Germany and have a good f...

In more news, I've officially booked a plane flight home for two weeks back to California from December 21st-January 4th! I came here with the idea that I wouldn't go home the whole time, I would be here consistently for ten months. However, as time has worn on I've felt increasingly more compelled to touch back with home base for a brief moment in time comparatively to how long I'll be in Sweden. I absolutely love Lund, I love the people that I've met, there isn't one moment I would take back from my experience so far, and I'm so excited to come back and continue my time. I feel like I have three homes now: San Rafael, Santa Cruz, and Lund..I'm so comfortable here and so incredibly happy, and I wouldn't call going home trying to escape..more like taking a breath for a second. After being in California for two weeks, I'll come back to Lund and hopefully in the next couple following days head to Utrecht in the Netherlands to visit Maura and come back with a few days to settle before school starts around January 17-19. With the end of the semester seeming to be fast approaching, it's hard to fathom Lund without Jen and Sara..two girls who have seriously made my experience here (they will kill me for my high corniness factor and even bringing up their departure), but I treasure them far beyond belief and I find it amazing the ability we have to connect to people on such a level in such a short period of time. And we have also officially been here for three months!!

Hej då

That Night We Ruled The World..

So tonight was a night that I feel I need to blog about in order to remember, not that it was especially different from most others but it had some lovely highlights that should be recorded. Leo, Jen, Kristen and I wanted to go out tonight to Östogöta Nation, also known as ÖG's..we biked there only to find that they weren't open (...but they should have been). Flustered, we went to Göteborgs..to find that they had two locations, and we weren't at the right one; finally we get to the right location and find an extremely long queue which of course we wait in. In line, this rather drunk tall blonde Swedish man begins a conversation with us in Swedish, kind Leo explains to him that we don't speak Swedish, and aren't from Sweden..but oh this man thought he had us completely figured out and was convinced that we were lying. After about ten minutes of his drunken ramble we show him our passports, clearly pointing to the "California, USA" line. We get inside to find that the TWO coatrooms that they have are both full, not only that but we also could barely move the place was so packed..especially when you're about a foot shorter than any Swedish male or female, you end up feeling like cattle being herded. We finally decided to leave and head to the last option: Lunds. We somehow are able to talk to the guys at the register and get our 50 kr. (about $8) back that we paid for entrance. Finally we arrive at Lunds with hopes of being in a nation where you could move your arms if you so desired, only to find that ohhh fantastic, they were full as well. Feeling hopeless, our friend Leo devised a plan telling Jennifer to go to the security guard and say that she was visiting a friend in the building (the nations also are corridor buildings housing students). Jennifer gets in successfully, next I go, saying the same thing.. "You aren't going to the club are you?" He asks me, "Nej" I reply and continue to make my way up the 6 flights of stairs feeling ever so triumphant. Having worked a couple of times, we knew the main security guard at the top of the stairs before the club entrance checking ID's, he looks at us and says "Oh I know who you are I don't even need to see your ID." Crisis averted! We go in to dance along with Swedes acting more like they were in a mosh pit than anything else, so much so that Leo was bumped leading to some of her cider flying through the air and conveniently landing on my hair and down my shirt. All and all, I feel like the Kalifornien girls and the Swede worked the system tonight, and does it feel so good! :) Good night all!

Celebrate The Smaller Moments In Life...

• I've blogged about working at the nations in Lund multiple times, they're such a great experience and then getting the tackfests after (free dinner and alcohol) doesn't hurt too much after. However, there is an added bonus I have failed to mention. If you work at a nation a certain amount of times (often 3 but sometimes 2) you also are able to get in for FREE, yes, I repeat FREE for the rest of the semester which saves you about $7-$9 when you got out. Trust me, it's worth it and it's amazing. I know have free entry into Lunds Nation and Wermlands Nation for the rest of the semester. I've also worked at Blekingska Nation, Krischan Nation and Sydskånska Nation and I assure you, the Kaliforniens travel in packs and we aren't done yet :).
• I have gotten way more comfortable riding my bike here. I was pretty traumatized when I also got sideswiped by a moving vehicle while riding a bike in the Netherlands, and I must say that it has stuck with me. Riding bikes has become so handy, although Lund isn't large at all..it's a easy way to get from point A to point B. I also wonder if my calves and thighs will ever stop burning from that damn thing. I am proud to report that I am not able to ride with only one hand AND pedal at the same time (trust me, I had to work up to that as well), I can signal (but pretty much only if I'm turning left) and I'm starting to take both hands off the handlebars and it will happen, definitely will.
• I've been able to get away with not speaking English to Swedes..I'm talking in grocery stores, convenient stores, at nations. However this doesn't mean that I speak Swedish to them, I just say nothing at all, simply smile and pretend that I'm Swedish. There's nothing worse than letting a Swede get midway through a sentence before you interject with a "Jag pratar inte Svenska" or the Julia way "I'm sorry, can you speak English?" which then leads into the long conversation and great fascination of, "Where are you from?" "Oh California" "Ohhhhh California!!" I can't really understand for crap because different areas in Sweden have different dialects (not that I can pick up on them but it's a good excuse, at least), and I only can pick up small words here and there. But I'm finding that I can oftentimes read it fairly well, which means that I can sometimes understand Swedes Facebook status updates or wall postings :). I even had a friend say to twice on two separate occasions, "Vad sa du?" which means "What did you say?" and even after that said a whole sentence to me in Swedish, to which I must have looked quite dumbfounded. Is it possible that I'm even fooling that Swedes that know me into believing that I might be able to speak/understand their language? It's too soon to tell but I will certainly report back.
• I'm planning on getting a tattoo rather soon! I feel like I need to get something on my body while I'm here, and if possible I hope to acquire another tattoo again in the spring before I leave. I found this awesome tattoo shop in Copenhagen, Denmark (about an hour away by train from Lund) that reminds me of the Spider Murphy's back in San Rafael. I'm looking to get a pink lilly flower on my right lower calf, it reminds me of home and of my mom. I'm currently in the process of booking an appointment, more news on that later.
• I'M DONE WITH TWO OF MY FOUR CLASSES FOR THE SEMESTER. This has to be the most bizarre feeling to barely have school, less than I already did. Now instead of having maybe 4-6 hours of school a week, I have about 2-4..very bizarre feeling indeed but that just means I get to enjoy the beautiful Lund in autumn!

Well, I suppose that's all I have for the moment. This past weekend was a great success in my mind, filled with tackfests and tons and tons of dancing. Thinking of and missing everyone back home, and anyone who reads this. God natt och tons of love from Sverige.

Reason 84293842 Why I Love The Swedes..

How they dance! It's indescribable, fantastic and unique (or possibly just European). Having grown up in California I'm used to rap music whenever you're dancing and always the slightly too intimate, close up and personal types of dancing. However, here one often dances on their own, and when you dance "with" someone your bodies aren't stuck together like two magnets. Dancing here is far more enjoyable than in the states :)

I keep dancing on my own

The Beautiful, Carefree Life

There I go again, not posting for three weeks and consistently putting it off..thinking I'll do it tomorrow, or starting a blog post and saving it with intentions of finishing it at a later time but not. So here I am, forcing myself to reflect on my life the past three weeks although it feels daunting and overwhelming..but it has been a wonderful life nonetheless.

-Two of my four classes are officially over! Well, I still have a final paper due this coming Saturday for one of them, but other than that, I only have two classes that meet about once a week (sometimes twice) for the rest of the semester. This does seem slightly ridiculous, and don't be fooled because it is completely ridiculous. The SAS (Special Area Studies) courses that I'm taking are geared toward exchange students, and I really have enjoyed the different ways I've been mentally stimulated by the courses, although they aren't academically rigorous or demanding. Because in all honesty, who would come to study abroad only to sit in a library for hours on end and study? Nej, not I...so the relaxed feeling of my classes has really catered and in a way added to my experience here because school isn't something I necessarily have to actively stress and worry about.

-Although we haven't really had rain in about two weeks (yay!) it is definitely getting colder and the days are getting shorter. I've learned how to properly layer my clothing so that I am some degree of warm when the projected high for the day is something around 50 degrees. A couple of weeks ago I was walking with a couple of my friends to a nation in the evening, with gloves, a scarf and two jackets on, being a stupid Kalifornien and saying "It's so cold out!"..you say they get great pleasure out of this, laughing back at me and saying "This is warm, this is pleasant, just you wait" which often times across as some sort of threat..and I can't help but feel that they're waiting to see how I suffer when the weather is absolutely unbearable. Although I find myself following Jen's lead in wearing less clothing now while it's still considered not the worst weather so that I can hope to acclimate to the cold faster (we're crazy, yes). One would be amazed, while I'm wearing a scarf, two jackets and a pair of gloves, I'm walking next to one of my Swedish male friends wearing a leather jacket and jeans, daring to say that the weather isn't bad. Blasphemy.

-My Kalifornien friend from UCSD, Sara deserves her own blog posting in

hopes of conveying her overall amazingness on so many levels. Sara has been vegan for about 6 months and is my absolute idol when it comes to cooking. Jen, Sara and I have cooked together quite a bit (all vegan of course) but I've had so much fun exploring the different ways to substitute dairy and animal products while still having the food be delicious (no offense vegans, I just never really thought it was possible). Jen and Sara are the type of girls to read food blogs late into the night and get overly excited about a recipe and then the next day make it. Our recent triumphs are all in the realm of baking: we make a pie that was 1/4 plums, 1/4 bananas, 1/4 blueberry, 1/4 blueberry banana and it was absolutely delicious! The crust and dough were a little overcooked and harder to eat but regardless, we were very proud considering none of us had ever baked a pie. And yesterday, we made banana bread that was unspeakably amazing, my taste buds must have died at least thirteen times over, it was perfect in every way. Lastly, yesterday was Gaby and Kristen's birthday (Grattis my loves!) and we headed over to Gaby's corridor to make apple pie. Fear not, this time we got it soooo right, we took the pie out of the oven a little early and it was absolutely perfect in every way..needless to say I consumed enough sugar to make a 7 year old bounce off the walls for 6 hours and my tummy is bursting at the seams with deliciousness, but I've never been one to complain about eating a copious amount of dessert!

-I've still been working a decent amount for nations, most recently I worked

at Lunds Nation again last Thursday and Blekingska Nation on Friday. And this week I have three, yes, you read that right, THREE Tackfests at different nations. Wednesday: Sydskanska, Thursday: Lunds, Saturday: Blekingska...and just to reiterate, one doesn't get paid for working at nations, rather you receive tackfests where you often will get a dinner and free alcohol or sometimes just free alcohol. Also, if you work at a nation three times you are able to get into that nation free for the rest of the semester. The people we work with at nations are always so surprised when they realize that there are multiple Kaliforniens working together (there are usually at least 2 of us working at a nation, if not sometimes 4), yes, we travel in packs and are planning for overall nation domination.

-My lovely UCSC friend Ianna, who is studying abroad in the UK for fall term will be visiting in about a month and I'm am so excited for my first visitor :)! My parents are set to visit in March and I'm just getting so excited to share a place like Lund with people that I love and care about, because I do believe it's an extremely special and beautiful place. And surprisingly enough, I've felt very, very minimal homesickness..which is so nice. I haven't had any time where I've thought to myself "God, I just can't wait to go home," I feel so planted here, so rooted and so comfortable that when I think of leaving it does make me sad for the Swedish friends I've made and truly care about. In the same way, when I think of Sara and Jen leaving (which we've deemed an unspeakable topic) I simply can't imagine what the content of my days will look like without them to cook/bake/bicker with.

Cheers from a way chillier place than California!

The Turning Torso

I feel so terrible for my lack of blog posting the last ten days. As I've said before, it was quite easy to consistently post when I first arrived in Sweden, when everything was brand new...and now some (only some) of the novelty of living in Lund has worn off..which leaves me feeling slightly less compelled to blog but I promise not to let that stop me!

Well, to start off..I've been in school for about a month(and officially in Sweden for TWO MONTHS), which isn't really exciting or much to speak of..BUT, I was lucky enough to go on an "excursion" or field trip to Copenhagen and Malmo for my class about economic geography. I went absolutely insane over the architecture: a mixture of traditional Scandinavian buildings and modern architecture. I have a great love for some beautiful buildings so this was just the place for me. Don't get me wrong, Lund is beautiful in it's quaint attributes, quaint buildings...we lack any tall or modern buildings here, and I really love that. Not to mention I almost died when I spent about $30 on a meal at a cafe in Copenhagen, I'm quite sure that the exchange rates are slowly killing me here.

Aside from school, it's been the same ol' same ol' here in good ol' Lund. I

had the great pleasure of working at Wermlands Nation on Wednesday evening and then Krischan Nation on Friday evening. Wermlands is one of the smaller nations in Lund, I love it for its pub and really friendly atmosphere. They ended up closing the dance floor early so I ended up staying at the bar in the pub for most of the evening (we usually do rotations similar to Lunds Nation). A friend of mine, Jens and his friends were at standing at the bar most of the night..and I must say that I greatly enjoyed messing with them, dishing them a little bit of my "American sarcasm" as it has been deemed by various Swedes. Not only did I really enjoy the low-keyed atmosphere of working the pub at Wermlands, but also got to eat delicious french fries and drink cider after clean up. As a side note: I'm pretty sure I'll be coming back to the states with about a dozen cavities from all of the free soda and yummy candies I get while working at nations..it's deadly. Seriously, what red blooded American could turn down unlimited and free soda? That's right..no one. On Friday night, Gaby, myself, Jen and Kristen worked at Krischan Nation which was also enjoyable but the club was experiencing what seemed like an unusually slow night. Another side note: Swedish youth go to university for free, yes, I will repeat that...Swedish college students go to university for free. It's amazing and enviable coming from a university with growing tuition that you could by a nice car with. Anyways, in addition to getting free education, they get some sort of "allowance" from the state, which they also have to pay back a portion of later..but apparently the nations become slow at the end of each month because the Swedes are running out of their allowances from the state. What's ultimately nice about working at nations is getting to meet Swedes as well as other international students; I met a fellow Kalifornien from UC Davis, as well as a guy from Lithuania (I'm endlessly amazed at how most Europeans are able to speak at least three, if not more, languages. Way to go, U.S...we're pretty worldly). I still have issues grasping how amazing it is to sit in a classroom, and work with people who are from all over the world, it's fantastic and unforgettable experience that I need to consistently remind myself of.

And now, I suppose that the reality of being a student is going to set in: I have my first few papers due for a class that only lasted about 4 weeks (which is shorter than a summer school course at home)...so I assume that the library and I will become quite well acquainted in the next four days. Cheers!

Heineken, 15 People Limit, 10 SEK To Check Your Jacket, Please

Up until last night, I had only worked at Wermlands Nation, which technically isn't even the nation I belong to. The Kalifornien girls and I had worked in the kitchen making burgers and fries on a pub night, and then worked an 80 person sittning a few weeks ago. I have to say, it was stressful going around crowded tables, reaching over people, trying to grab any empty bottles/glasses or plates only to have them glare back at you in a manner to communicate "No, I am not finished," or my personal favorite, a sort of hand gesture that has the same effect. Anyways, I had only done these two tasks which have a relatively low level of stress (of course I get stressed out extremely easily and would say that it was very stressful but please, for that reason, don't listen to me)...and when Kristen said that Lunds Nation (the nation I actually belonged to) needed some extra help during their Thursday club night, I was reluctant but said yes in the end. Let me explain, I'm the kind of girl that will let boiling water give her anxiety..so the thought of serving drunk people even more drinks, oy vey, not something that sounded all too appealing. But after I found out that Calle, Norberg along with some of my Kalifornien girls were also working, I decided that it was now or never.

Before the night even begins, we get to eat some yummy food: some sort of white breaded fish, mashed potatoes and some herbed bread..not to mention UNLIMITED soda. Oh yea, my dentist is going to love me. So the way it works when you work at nations is this: you have different rotations, each lasting for an hour throughout the night. My rotation schedule was 1. coat check 2. entrance (which included taking peoples money and stamping their wrist) 3. big bar 4. smoking area. Coat check was pretty slow overall but when there was a large

group of people, I found humor in those few people who asked where Jennifer and I were from, or those couple of guys who refused to speak to me in English and tried to speak me Swedish..at which I tried to repeat, smiled, laughed, and walked away to put their jacket away. I find amusement in the fact that Swedes and I look at each other in the same way, like some sort of rare animal. My next rotation was entrance, which was really nothing to speak of, I sat at the register which I could barely see into and had the same line of "Hej hej, femtio..tack." Seeing some already fairly inebriated people fumble through their wallets looking for their ID's, or money was quite amusing, along with those couple Swedish guys who tried arguing with the security guys for various reasons. And my next rotation was dun dun dun...the big bar. I walked in through the kitchen and to behind the bar, only to stare at a group of people (mostly men), all waiting. I go up to the first person I see and get a mixed drink order, two appletinis I believe. I nod obediently and go to the list of drinks and stare at the ingredients for the drink and I suddenly freeze and have an inner freakout. Fear not, I did make that drink and a variety of other drinks in a calmer manner and somehow managed to survive the bar (and actually really enjoyed it). I have learned from my Swedish counterparts, especially at cafes and other nations, to just take my time. Those who want shots, beers, drinks, will still want them even I take my time..and hell, chances are they're probably a little too drunk to notice anyways, right? Right. Another mess up of mine during the night was about beer on tap. I have never dispensed beer on tap, and pulled down the handle with hesitancy/not all the way down so that all that was put into the cup was foam; "This can't be right," I thought to myself, "I don't even drink beer, but I'm pretty sure you don't have this much foam." By the end of my hour at the bar (which was between midnight and 1 a.m.) my brain was barely functioning, I was struggling with the total of an order of 3 shots, 1 beer and 1 mixed drink..closing one eye and trying to concentrate while the booming music is only 12 feet away from me. My last rotation of the night was the smoking area which is outside on this large patio with a beautiful view of Lund. Although the outside area can undoubtedly accommodate a lot of people, their were complaints on noise from neighbors, and now they only allow 15, yes, 15 people outside at any given time. So here are Jennifer and I, two very petite, Californian girls attempting to regulate a group of drunk Swedes. Not only did I hit my own heels with the back of the door multiple times, but I also had my personal space invaded too many times by very tall Swedish men trying to convince us to let them outside, "But we're very quiet, what's two more people?" Jennifer and I gave no mercy. And after we were done working the smoking area, all that was left to do was walk around and pick up empty glasses/bottles and....DANCE, and oh, did we dance! After the club closed at 2 a.m., we were around cleaning up until 3 a.m. and then set free to bike ride in zee freezing cold.

"Reflection is a flower of the mind"

I have officially been in Lund for six weeks (and ONE day) hoorah! I realize that my last entry sounded partially melancholy, however it was an accurate description of how I have felt since being here. Life has its fluctuations and inconsistencies and it doesn't stop when you hit the dreamworld of Lund. When we first arrived at Lund, everything was fresh, new, stimulating, it feels all like a daze now..now that I've fallen into a routine: wake up, go to school, hang out with friends, come home, sleep. I nag myself constantly even when walking around this beautiful town not to forget its beauty and all that is has given me so far. So I felt this entry would be an appropriate time for an overall reflection..

• In Lund, everything is a lot more leisurely, not anything like the frantic energy I'm conditioned to coming from California. In California, there's always somewhere to be, something to be doing, and efficiency is the goal to be obtained. Take for example, going to class in Santa Cruz, everyone is anxious and crowded around waiting for a bus to get across campus..all plugged into their iPods, texting on their phones. I see very few people college students in Lund "plugged in," you really get the sense that they're enjoying something, whatever the magnitude. This leisure also translates into many other things..say me getting my coffee for example and staring at the girl making my latte at a sloths pace with a line of people out the door. I used to get annoyed by the Swedes tendency to stroll through such critical parts of my day such as the consumption of caffeine, but I've somehow found a way to make do.
• I have yet to really mention all of the lovely people I have met, both Californian, Swedish and everywhere in between. I absolutely adore my "Kalifornien" girls as I call them: Jennifer, Gaby, Kristen, Sara. We all are so different with a lot of different energies to offer to most situations, and I am amazed at how quickly I feel attached to them, how quickly I've become comfortable being my crazy/obnoxious/random self..and for this I feel endlessly grateful. And through Kristen, I have had the great pleasure of meeting and spending time with some fantastic boys..Norberg, Schonke and Calle and then one lovely lady Sofia; with whom I have shared some fantastic nights and laughs. For this reason, I feel increasingly planted in Lund.
• I've looooooved loved looooooved having a bike (that now has TWO, I repeat, TWO functioning brakes, hallelujah!). Lund isn't large by any sense of the word, and walking is plausible to pretty much every place you need to get to..but biking here can be one of the nicest things. My favorite times to bike I've found are either late at night or early in the morning; both times the town feels deserted, very few people and (even less) cars, with air so crisp that it slightly stings your face but feels so refreshing at the same time. It's indescribable.
• To touch on something that my dear Sara addressed in her blog, Lund truly does have lazy Sundays, and do they do it well. Because Lund is such a small town and not a tourist attraction, they have the flexibility to pretty much close everything (and I mean everything) except for a few select cafes, and the grocery stores. It seemed like a hassle and inconvenience in the beginning but it didn't take long to adapt and when making plans for a Sunday afternoon, you grab coffee or just hang out (no H&M shopping, thank god).


• I am endlessly fascinated at how Swedes are given the "benefit of the doubt" here, I'd much rather assume guilty. In my Swedish Social Policy class, my Californian professor was saying how unusually law abiding the Swedes are; that she has seen someone standing at a crosswalk waiting for a the green light..even in the middle of the night. I was talking to one of my Swedish friends, and I was telling him that I didn't want to pay the 10 SEK to take a bus (we quickly found that if you say "ett barn" on the bus which means that you're 19 or under, you can save yourself 7 extra SEK..being the greedy Americans that we are, always say "ett barn" to save those precious SEK). Anyways, I told my friend this and he angrily replied "YOU PAY THE CHILDRENS' PRICE? YOU'RE NOT 19! The reason why Sweden works so well is because people obey the law!" It was worth a good chuckle for me, if there's a way for me to get around spending a little more money, I will do it. Apparently I'm contributing to the downfall of Swedish culture and society as we know it.

I s'pose that is all for now, over and out..and I wish the best to whoever may be reading my mumble jumble.

One Tenth Of The Way There, I Think I Can, I Think I Can...

First and foremost, I've officially been in Lund for five weeks! It's an interesting sensation; initially, time went by rather slowly, and now I can't believe how quickly it's going. Lund truly feels more like home than anytime before. All of us Kalifornien girls seem to have really cemented ourselves in Lund; and through Kristen/her Swedish corridor mates have met some truly fantastic people. I can't deny that during the past couple weeks I've had feelings of regret around staying for the full academic year..especially considering that my California girls leave me in December and not knowing exactly how I'd adjust to the shift in social circle. However, in that time, I've continued to meet more Swedes and felt increasingly more comfortable with the thought of really living here and going all the way through to June. On a side note, I've realized that I have the ability to adapt to new situations and settings really quickly, and I partially fear that I may become disenchanted with Lund and this unforgettable, unfathomable opportunity that I have with studying here. Sometimes I stop what I'm doing and realize that this is a time of my life that is going to leave a great impression on me.

Okay, so now for a general update..it's been quite a week indeed. I've felt reminiscent of the first few weeks of my freshman year at UC Santa Cruz; everyone is excited to get to know each other, you're overloaded with a variety of stimuli, you want to do everything, meet everyone and savor every opportunity. Essentially, the beginning of freshman year of college and the first month in Lund have felt like summer camp. And unfortunately, summer camp has ended..meaning that yes, class has started. This past week was probably one of the most random, flustered, confusing week of my whole life. I'll be taking what are called SAS class (Special Area Studies), they're in English and only for international/exchange students (also known as joke classes because they aren't departmental). It's insane to hear all of the different places that my peers are from(Finland, Switzerland, Singapore, China), my situation feels all too surreal to fully grasp. After quite a hectic first week of classes, it appears that I have my final schedule pinned down: Swedish Social Policy, Governance and Conflict in the Middle East, Global Environmental Justice, and Population Settlement and Economic Geography. So, a difference that I've noticed that irks me slightly about the Lund University system is that 1. no meeting time/day is ever really consistent 2. because of this general inconsistency leads to another issue, classes can have time conflicts! Which absolutely, never ever is allowed to happen at UCSC. Two classes at the same time? Just decide which one's more important. This, I can tell will be a consistent struggle for me. All in all, I'm pleased with my schedule and classes. For a variety of reasons I'm sure (partial homesickness, partial unhappiness with school seriousness starting), I've felt slightly melancholy throughout the week. But with the promise of my mom and Ron visiting sometime in the near future, as well as getting a care package in the mail..I feel like this little raincloud on top of the current rainclouds in Lund will pass.

Last week, we were more or less forced to decide on which nation we would like to join; which for us exchange students only staying for a semester, or year is slightly irrelevant because no matter which nation you join, you can go to any other nation. Nonetheless, I decided on Lunds Nation (mainly because it's close to me, the largest nation, and I didn't really care either way), Gaby, Kristen and Sara joined Krischan Nation, and Jennifer joined Blekingska. Another general highlight of the weekend was working as a server at a sittning (formal dinner) at Wermlands Nation on Saturday..which once again reinforced my general anxiety revolving around doing anything that involves serving, food, and potentially mean people. The

Californian exchange students dominated most of the kitchen: Jennifer, Sara, Gaby, myself and Cyrus all worked with serving the food for the evening. Munching on bacon and delicious french fries all throughout the evening. Besides having fun while working in the kitchen and getting free food, there is an added bonus: the thank you sittning that occurs a few weeks after you work for a nation where they in turn provide free food and drinks. It truly is quite glorious.

Over and out.