Goodbye Stockholm :(

Last weekend I went to Kiruna, the northernmost city in Sweden, located 145 km ABOVE the Arctic Circle. It's really a must for all exchange students that come to Sweden. The highlight of the trip was definitely dogsledding. We spent 2 hours on a dog sled (I think around 14 huskies pulling it), and I even got to help drive it! We even stopped halfway at a teepee like thing (the Sami people are the indigenous people that live up there) for coffee and sandwiches. We also went cross-country skiing, which was fun. It was my first time and it was quite a bit more difficult that I thought it would be (considering I know how to normal ski)...your heels aren't attached and you feel like you have no control! It was a nice weekend filled with lots and lots of snow and it was a great last trip. Sorry I don't have pictures of it posted...I ran out of space on Picasa. I even tried to make another gmail account to get more free space, but Google is too smart and disabled my account! I'll have to figure some other way to post them, so check back later.

We came back from Kiruna and had a final exam two days later and then another exam a few days after that, so most of my last days here were filled with studying indoors. I did take a few breaks and hit up two of the big christmas markets here in Stockholm, which really got me in the christmas mood! And I've had 2 whole days after I finishing exams to enjoy my last bit of Stockholm. And perfect timing because the Christmas weather just arrived! On Monday it started snowing and it hasn't stopped! It must have snowed 10 inches or so...it's so beautiful outside! It's really amazing how much brighter the city is covered with snow. In November when it got dark it was just so dark and rainy and gloomy, but white snow goes a long way at reflecting light and making the city still feel bright and cheery even though its dark by 3 pm! I've done a good bit of playing in the snow. Unfortunately I missed the big snow ball fight my complex had, but I did get a small taste of it when I came home and one of my roommates surprised me with a snowball shoved in my face in the middle of our kitchen. Last night we went to this really cool bar that had a really fun 'big band' playing a mix of christmas music and other fun stuff. It turned into a very fun last night out in the city! And as soon as we left, snowballs started getting thrown and it was basically an ongoing snowball fight our whole way home. And let me tell you, Germans take snowball fights very seriously! I had my face shoved in the snow and then was cornered and literally picked up and thrown in the snow, apparently being a girl does not give you in any take it easy points!

Two nights ago I cooked a huge Tex-Mex meal for my roommates and some others...there were 15 people so it was quite the cooking ordeal. I made guacamole, pineapple salsa, chicken tortilla soup, and a black bean/spinach/mushroom/veggie with green chili sauce enchilada casserole type thing...all the dishes were a hit! I spent my last day today having lunch at an adorable cafe in Sodermalm, walking around Gamla Stan, and then ended with a winter wonderland walk along the water of Djurgarden and Ladugardsgardet. It was my favorite place to run here, and it looked so beautiful covered in a thick layer of snow!

I leave Stockholm tomorrow, I really can't believe it. Then I'll spend about a day in half in Amsterdam and then fly home. Will be a long journey...4 flights in about 2 days, so hopefully I make it back!