Nothing too exciting has been going on here, except that I am experiencing my very first Autumn! It really hit me last weekend when I was on a run...it was really windy and leaves were falling like crazy. Aside from it getting colder (lows in the mid-to-upper 30s) and darker (there are 5 minutes less light each day), it's really pretty to see all the leaves changing colors.
Yesterday I spent the day with El and Kyle (2 of the other UT students here) at Bornsjön natureservat, a nature reserve southwest of Stockholm. The bus stopped at Salem Kyrka, a really old church built in like 1100. We walked around there a bit and then headed down the road to the nature reserve. Then we just spent the day just hiking and wondering through nature, and the perfect sunny and cool weather made it all the more enjoyable. In the middle of the reserve are large rock mounds that are actually graves from between 500 BC and 500 AD, where the inhabitants were cremated together and then buried under massive piles of granite...crazy stuff.
Oh ya and I obviously didn't end up going to Dublin for a half-marathon this weekend as you may remember me mentioning; flights just turned out to be too expensive. But here's an update on my semester travel plans: so far I've got a trip to Prague planned in mid-October, a week-long roadtrip in late October to the northernmost city in Sweden to see the northern lights, Greece/marathon plans in the works for early November, and also hoping to get in weekend trips to Copenhagen and/or Oslo in late November. Then I'll be flying home through Amsterdam so I'll spend a couple of days there as my last big hoorah. And mark your calendars - I arrive back in Austin at 10:45 pm on Sunday, December 20th!
My mom arrives here tomorrow morning and will stay for a week, so it will be nice to see her and do some more touristy things that I haven't really done since first arriving.
New pictures: 252 - 303
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
more videos of international student sing-a-longs
My german roommates singing a german Karnival song
And again...
Meet Miguel from Portugal and Sebastian from Germany, two students that live in my apartment complex. We were headed out to a bar (they'd already had quite a bit to drink) and they really wanted to sing Sir Mix-A-Lot's "Baby Got Back", but were unable to remember any words. I tried to teach them the first two lines, and this is the best they could do. (I also had to explain what the phrase "when a girl walks in with an itty bitty waste and a round thing in your face you get sprung" means). They now have the lyrics to the whole song taped to their kitchen wall, in hopes of learning it better.
And I have two more that it's not letting me post for some reason; maybe i'll try again later.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Hello!
I've been trying to enjoy the nice weather while it still lasts (last week was exceptionally nice), but of course the nicest weather mostly comes out when I'm in class. Last Thursday was especially sunny, so after I got out of class around 5, a few of my roommates and I went explore a nearby park we hadn't been to yet. It was really nice and we walked a bit through some trails along the water and then settled in a sunny spot of grass with a bottle of wine and a soccer ball. Saturday was also nice, so I packed a sandwich, apple, and tomato, grabbed a book, and headed out to find somewhere nice to picnic and read that I hadn't been. I first went to a nice square called Karlaplan, sat around its big fountain, and people watched for a few minutes. Then I headed to a park nearby in search of some nice grass, and sure enough, I found the perfect spot! I ate my picnic lunch and read (laying in the grass under the sun = the ideal reading conditions) for an hour or so . Then the sun went away and I started to get a bit chilly, so I moved over to a little open cafe in the park and cozied up in one of their complementary blankets to continue my reading with a coffee and kanelbulle (famous Swedish cinnamon roll)...perfect Saturday afternoon!
Friday night a big group went out to celebrate the 21st birthday of one of the students in my building, Adam from Seattle. We went to a club, which was my first time here in Stockholm because they usually charge a pretty hefty cover to get in. After the cover charge (~$18 USD) and 3 beers (~$24 USD), my wallet was not very happy, but we had a great time dancing so at least the money was well spent!
On Sunday I went with one of my roommates, Daniel, to an amusement park in Stockholm called Grona Lund. It was the last day open for the season, so it was pretty packed with cute little blonde children. It's right on the water, and so there are great views of the city from on top of the rides (if I wasn't so chicken I would have tried to take some pictures while I was up there). The weather wasn't very nice, and we got rained on a bit, but it was still fun...I don't think I'd been on a roller coaster in at least 5 years! We followed the day with a yummy dinner at...can you believe it...a restaurant! Because restaurants here are so expensive (but food at the grocery store is pretty equivalent to US prices), I usually cook at home; after almost 4 weeks in Stockholm, I actually hadn't eaten a real meal at a real restaurant. So I treated myself to a beer and a classic Swedish dish, pytt i panna (a hash of meat, onions, and potatoes)...cost me approx. $30 USD but it was pretty tasty!
CLASSES: I ended up dropping one of my courses, which freed up my schedule a bit. It was the equivalent of a class I took at UT last year, and so I decided that since I was getting no credit and learning nothing new, it wasn't worth the time. I took great pleasure in crossing out 6 hours of lecture a week from my class schedule...hooray! Last night I had my second Swedish language course. It's been good so far, it just stinks that it's from 5-9PM every Monday evening, so it's a bit hard to stay focused for 4 whole hours (especially during dinner time). Writing and reading Swedish is really not too difficult because there aren't very many grammar rules and many of the words are similar to either English or German. However, pronunciation is a whole different story! You would never guess that what is written is the same as what you hear because they drop the ends of a bunch of words so it all runs together, have a very specific intonations and rhythm when speaking, etc. In general, it is also difficult for English speakers to say a couple of the vowel sounds (I can hear the subtle difference if my teacher says them, but I can't make them myself). So all in all, it's great to finally be learning some Swedish vocabulary, but I don't have any expectations of being able to have an actual conversation with a native Swede on the street (also EVERY Swede speaks perfect English, and I've heard they will immediately switch to English so it's not so easy to practice conversation). Oh yeah, and I still haven't met a single Swedish person (everyone I interact with in my classes and in my building are international students), so that also makes it more difficult! Therefore,
SLEEP: My sleep schedule here is really screwed up. And the fact that my class schedule changes every day/week, is making it even more difficult to get into a normal sleep routine. But the real root of the problem is that on any given night, at least one of my 8 roommates will be in the mood to drink, and I just don't have the self control to not join in on the fun. I've spent more than one school night up until 6AM, then will go to bed at 9PM on the next night, etc. So...
I've been trying to enjoy the nice weather while it still lasts (last week was exceptionally nice), but of course the nicest weather mostly comes out when I'm in class. Last Thursday was especially sunny, so after I got out of class around 5, a few of my roommates and I went explore a nearby park we hadn't been to yet. It was really nice and we walked a bit through some trails along the water and then settled in a sunny spot of grass with a bottle of wine and a soccer ball. Saturday was also nice, so I packed a sandwich, apple, and tomato, grabbed a book, and headed out to find somewhere nice to picnic and read that I hadn't been. I first went to a nice square called Karlaplan, sat around its big fountain, and people watched for a few minutes. Then I headed to a park nearby in search of some nice grass, and sure enough, I found the perfect spot! I ate my picnic lunch and read (laying in the grass under the sun = the ideal reading conditions) for an hour or so . Then the sun went away and I started to get a bit chilly, so I moved over to a little open cafe in the park and cozied up in one of their complementary blankets to continue my reading with a coffee and kanelbulle (famous Swedish cinnamon roll)...perfect Saturday afternoon!
Friday night a big group went out to celebrate the 21st birthday of one of the students in my building, Adam from Seattle. We went to a club, which was my first time here in Stockholm because they usually charge a pretty hefty cover to get in. After the cover charge (~$18 USD) and 3 beers (~$24 USD), my wallet was not very happy, but we had a great time dancing so at least the money was well spent!
On Sunday I went with one of my roommates, Daniel, to an amusement park in Stockholm called Grona Lund. It was the last day open for the season, so it was pretty packed with cute little blonde children. It's right on the water, and so there are great views of the city from on top of the rides (if I wasn't so chicken I would have tried to take some pictures while I was up there). The weather wasn't very nice, and we got rained on a bit, but it was still fun...I don't think I'd been on a roller coaster in at least 5 years! We followed the day with a yummy dinner at...can you believe it...a restaurant! Because restaurants here are so expensive (but food at the grocery store is pretty equivalent to US prices), I usually cook at home; after almost 4 weeks in Stockholm, I actually hadn't eaten a real meal at a real restaurant. So I treated myself to a beer and a classic Swedish dish, pytt i panna (a hash of meat, onions, and potatoes)...cost me approx. $30 USD but it was pretty tasty!
CLASSES: I ended up dropping one of my courses, which freed up my schedule a bit. It was the equivalent of a class I took at UT last year, and so I decided that since I was getting no credit and learning nothing new, it wasn't worth the time. I took great pleasure in crossing out 6 hours of lecture a week from my class schedule...hooray! Last night I had my second Swedish language course. It's been good so far, it just stinks that it's from 5-9PM every Monday evening, so it's a bit hard to stay focused for 4 whole hours (especially during dinner time). Writing and reading Swedish is really not too difficult because there aren't very many grammar rules and many of the words are similar to either English or German. However, pronunciation is a whole different story! You would never guess that what is written is the same as what you hear because they drop the ends of a bunch of words so it all runs together, have a very specific intonations and rhythm when speaking, etc. In general, it is also difficult for English speakers to say a couple of the vowel sounds (I can hear the subtle difference if my teacher says them, but I can't make them myself). So all in all, it's great to finally be learning some Swedish vocabulary, but I don't have any expectations of being able to have an actual conversation with a native Swede on the street (also EVERY Swede speaks perfect English, and I've heard they will immediately switch to English so it's not so easy to practice conversation). Oh yeah, and I still haven't met a single Swedish person (everyone I interact with in my classes and in my building are international students), so that also makes it more difficult! Therefore,
semester goal #1: befriend a real Swedish person (but frankly, I'd settle for even meet/have a conversation with)
SLEEP: My sleep schedule here is really screwed up. And the fact that my class schedule changes every day/week, is making it even more difficult to get into a normal sleep routine. But the real root of the problem is that on any given night, at least one of my 8 roommates will be in the mood to drink, and I just don't have the self control to not join in on the fun. I've spent more than one school night up until 6AM, then will go to bed at 9PM on the next night, etc. So...
semester goal #2: stop drinking and go to bed at a reasonable time (on school nights)!
Well that's enough goal setting for now, and I'm sure you'd rather just view my new pictures (#217-251). And for a special treat, here are some videos from Friday night, complete with singing Germans and Portugese!
Sunday, September 6, 2009
a Hell-uva-Sinki good time!
I got back from Helsinki this morning...fun trip. Helsinki itself is no Stockholm (much smaller and less beautiful), but I suppose any European city is nice to see compared to a U.S. city. We mostly just walked around and explored, ate lunch, went to an open air market for some delish homeade dessert, and ended the day at a beautiful park overlooking the city. I must say that Helsinki was eerily quiet...it was a beautiful Saturday afternoon, and there were almost no people walking around except for on the main street...very strange! View my pictures of Helsinki here
The ship ride was an experience in itself (I've never been on a cruise or anything), and we had a pretty good time partying the first night with the many other KTH students that also went on the trip. We ended up drinking a bottle of wine each, and singing karaoke (even funnier with a bunch of international students that speak a variety of languages). A big reason people go on these things is to shop at the tax-free store on the ship, where you can get things significantly cheaper than in Stockholm (Sweden has a 25% sales tax). Alcohol is especially cheap, because it can only be sold in Systembologet stores in Sweden (the Swedish government's alcohol monopoly); only beer with very low alcohol content (< 3.5%) can be bought in normal stores. So, as you can imagine, most students walked off the ship with the maximum allowed alcohol per person...1 liter of liquor, two 24-packs of (real) beer, and 6 bottles of wine...hopefully it lasts awhile!
Unfortunately, I think I'm getting sick - I've had a bit of a sore throat the last couple of days, and this morning when I woke up it was much worse. Something has been spreading through my apartment (6 of my roommates are/have been sick, and several others in the complex) for the last week or so, and it looks like it's finally my turn. One of my roommates went to the hospital yesterday to see what it was/get medicine, and it seems he has a sinus infection. I'm fixing to run to the store to get some soup, pudding, fluids, etc...hopefully it doesn't last too long, and hopefully it's not the swine flu!
Oh and I'm also not looking forward to this week because I have a report and presentation due to tomorrow and I also start my language class...Monday through Thursday is packed with 30 hours of lectures alone (tomorrow I have classes straight from 10 am to 9 pm, with just an hour break for lunch).
The ship ride was an experience in itself (I've never been on a cruise or anything), and we had a pretty good time partying the first night with the many other KTH students that also went on the trip. We ended up drinking a bottle of wine each, and singing karaoke (even funnier with a bunch of international students that speak a variety of languages). A big reason people go on these things is to shop at the tax-free store on the ship, where you can get things significantly cheaper than in Stockholm (Sweden has a 25% sales tax). Alcohol is especially cheap, because it can only be sold in Systembologet stores in Sweden (the Swedish government's alcohol monopoly); only beer with very low alcohol content (< 3.5%) can be bought in normal stores. So, as you can imagine, most students walked off the ship with the maximum allowed alcohol per person...1 liter of liquor, two 24-packs of (real) beer, and 6 bottles of wine...hopefully it lasts awhile!
Unfortunately, I think I'm getting sick - I've had a bit of a sore throat the last couple of days, and this morning when I woke up it was much worse. Something has been spreading through my apartment (6 of my roommates are/have been sick, and several others in the complex) for the last week or so, and it looks like it's finally my turn. One of my roommates went to the hospital yesterday to see what it was/get medicine, and it seems he has a sinus infection. I'm fixing to run to the store to get some soup, pudding, fluids, etc...hopefully it doesn't last too long, and hopefully it's not the swine flu!
Oh and I'm also not looking forward to this week because I have a report and presentation due to tomorrow and I also start my language class...Monday through Thursday is packed with 30 hours of lectures alone (tomorrow I have classes straight from 10 am to 9 pm, with just an hour break for lunch).
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Bike trip
Hello, it's me again!
On Sunday a big group of us took a ferry out to an island south of Stockholm, called Utö. There we rented bikes and spent a wonderful 8 hours on the island. The weather was nice, and it was such a beautiful ride along the water, through trees, past cute little houses, and we even saw some sheep! We packed a picnic and hiked up a hill for lunch and then ended at beach where 3 people were actually brave enough to jump in the freezing water. On the ride back, my bike broke, and after putting the chain back on 3 times in less than 5 minutes, we ended up calling the bike rental place and they drove me out a new one. The delay was going to cause us to miss the ferry we had planned to take back, so most of the group left but 5 of us stayed behind and waited 2 more hours for the next one. But in the end it turned out better, because we ended up at a cafe on the water, enjoying an after biking beer and snack and just sitting and talking in the sun. What a perfect Sunday!
On Friday afternoon, I'll leave on overnight ferry to Helsinki, Finland. We'll arrive on Saturday morning and then leave Saturday evening to be back in Stockholm by Sunday morning, so it will be a short trip, but I'm looking forward to it (AND the ferry is only costing me 180 kronor ~= $25!).
In other news, marathon training hadn't been going so well (i.e. I hadn't been able to get back into training mode and actually train). But I decided to turn it all around September 1st and ran 8 miles yesterday and 10 miles today (very slowly, but 10 nonetheless), so I'm back on track I hope! We're planning on going to Dublin for a long weekend in late September...so far the itinerary includes a half-marathon on the 26th and a tour the Guiness brewery (in that order, I hope).
New pictures: 187-216
On Sunday a big group of us took a ferry out to an island south of Stockholm, called Utö. There we rented bikes and spent a wonderful 8 hours on the island. The weather was nice, and it was such a beautiful ride along the water, through trees, past cute little houses, and we even saw some sheep! We packed a picnic and hiked up a hill for lunch and then ended at beach where 3 people were actually brave enough to jump in the freezing water. On the ride back, my bike broke, and after putting the chain back on 3 times in less than 5 minutes, we ended up calling the bike rental place and they drove me out a new one. The delay was going to cause us to miss the ferry we had planned to take back, so most of the group left but 5 of us stayed behind and waited 2 more hours for the next one. But in the end it turned out better, because we ended up at a cafe on the water, enjoying an after biking beer and snack and just sitting and talking in the sun. What a perfect Sunday!
On Friday afternoon, I'll leave on overnight ferry to Helsinki, Finland. We'll arrive on Saturday morning and then leave Saturday evening to be back in Stockholm by Sunday morning, so it will be a short trip, but I'm looking forward to it (AND the ferry is only costing me 180 kronor ~= $25!).
In other news, marathon training hadn't been going so well (i.e. I hadn't been able to get back into training mode and actually train). But I decided to turn it all around September 1st and ran 8 miles yesterday and 10 miles today (very slowly, but 10 nonetheless), so I'm back on track I hope! We're planning on going to Dublin for a long weekend in late September...so far the itinerary includes a half-marathon on the 26th and a tour the Guiness brewery (in that order, I hope).
New pictures: 187-216
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