Holy Roly, Me Oh My

Alright, guys. I'm heading home two weeks from tomorrow and I feel disappointingly apathetic. I love Sweden, so shouldn't I be a little more upset about leaving? Right now...I feel good. Fulfilled, is probably a good word. There are a few things I will have absolutely no problem integrating back into my life. Here is a list.
1) Sarcasm. Or maybe it's just my really bizarre sense of humor. Ok, there are hilarious Europeans, don't get me wrong. But it's impossible to count how many times I've tried to joke with someone (usually complete strangers), found that I was failing horribly, and then tried to backtrack by saying things like "Not that I'm a lesbian or anything" or "I promise I'm not really addicted to hard drugs". Again, I'm not saying Swedes aren't funny. I'm just saying I don't understand their humor...at all.
2) Frosting. Get this--Sweden doesn't have premade frosting. I first noticed this within days of arriving and have been mourning the loss since. I've had a pretty emotional month, and where was my jar of congealed sugary goo? Riddle me this, Sweden. How am I supposed to crush my emotions with calories if you refuse to sell my beloved diabetes-in-a-tub? They have this weird "make if yourself" shit. Do I look like I have the attention span to make my own frosting? Do you KNOW what happened the last time I tried to cook?
3) My dogs. Let's get real for a second...they're the greatest dogs in the world and I just want to lay on their stomachs and share intimate details of my life with them. If that's wrong, then I don't want to be right.
4) The spectrum of Oreo flavors. Double Stuf. The weird mint flavor. Different colors for Easter. Uh-Oh Oreos (which I'm not even sure they still make, but bear with me). Remember the Oreo DQ Blizzard Creme Oreo? The result of Dairy Queen making Oreos Blizzards, and then Oreo making an Oreo Blizzard Oreo. It's like inception, but with cookies.
5) My mom. I'm sure we all have "really cool moms", but you better check yourself before you wreck yourself if you think yours is "the best".
6) T-Shirts. I mean, I still wear them because I'm a slob, but I'm pretty excited to be around you t-shirt wearing bastards again. And flip flops. God bless flip flops. Swedes are way too well-dressed. I can't imagine waking up in the morning and not putting comfort as my number one clothing priority.
7) Everyone knowing the words to "Natalie's Rap". I'm convinced the entire United States knows and appreciates this musical masterpiece. Don't correct this misconception.

There's more. But it's really sunny and I can't concentrate and I have that new One Direction song stuck in my head, so my intellect is not really in peak performance mode. Stay classy, South Bend. See you in 15 days.

Also, here's a photo of my beautiful abroad friends. Representing Australia, Czech Republic, Belgium, France, Turkey, USA, Finland, Germany, Austria, Brazil, and Canada. I really do love these guys. Taken by Janna Lipiäinen!

In Finnish, "Anna" Means "To Give"

This past week, I went to Latvia and Finland. The former was on a student cruise, which means the entire boat was filled with college students from all of Sweden. Everyone drank a lot, danced a lot, and...oh, right. We also saw Riga, Latvia for a few hours. Such a beautiful little city. The sun wasn't out and it was bone-chillingly cold, but the amount of attention and care that went into the details of the city were visible on every building. Pieces of the architecture reflected the changing culture of Latvia as it shifted from the Middle Ages, through various regimes, into Soviet power, and then liberated itself during the fall of the USSR. The architecture was, in all honesty, the most beautiful I've ever seen. Every building had a story behind it, every tucked away side-street had some fairytale legend to explain its importance. For example, there was a thick wall in the heart of the city that was called the "Swedish wall". It was said that, when the city was divided, two lovers that lived on opposite sides of the wall would meet at this spot and whisper through the wall. Sadly, the story ends with the maiden being built INTO the wall while she's still alive as punishment for falling in love with the boy on the other side of the wall. Disney won't be picking up on this plot anytime soon

It was cold, and almost everyone was hungover, but I really enjoyed it. We ended up eating in a New Zealand themed restaurant as well, so I felt very well-traveled after those few days.

After only about 24 hours back in Sweden, me and a few friends (Mimmi and Lindsey) boarded a boat to Turku, Finland, where Mimmi's university if located. We spent the first night in Finland playing beer pong and taking shots of true Finnish drinks: Mintu (mint flavored) and Salmiakki (salty licorice flavored). When we first arrived, people seemed a little weary of the very obvious American girls in the corner of the room. But as the night wore on, the Finns we met proved to be welcoming, open, and very friendly. It was April 20th, so Lindsey and I encouraged everyone to smoke a cigarette at 1:20am (4:20pm Colorado time). We tried to explain why to a few people, but I really don't think we were making a lot of sense.

Mimmi is from the most southern town in Finland, Hanko/Hangö. It's a little city of about 10,000 that probably has as many beaches as people. Even in chilly April, it was gorgeous. The sun setting over the Baltic Sea, driving past lines of multi-colored cottages and thick forests, going to the only local bar opened during the winter/spring, showed me a side of Finland I probably would never have seen, had I not known Mimmi. But I was pretty damn glad to have Lindsey there...I probably met about a hundred people that weekend and I would have been intimidated out of my mind if I didn't have my trusty co-foreigner at my side.

It was SO AWESOME to get spend some time in a real house. The first night, Mimmi's parents cooked us elk meatballs and mashed potatoes, along with some chocolate mousse that we glad spent the following couple days eating. And there were animals galore. And her cat had just had KITTENS. Cutest things alive, a vast majority of the photos I took that weekend are of cats.

I think the thing I found the weirdest was how everyone I met spoke Swedish, not Finnish, as their first language. This particular region of the country is filled with a small part of the population that speaks Swedish as their native language. This American was, frankly, pretty impressed by the fact that everyone in this region is trilingual; Swedish, Finnish, and English were standard languages. Someone explained that there's tension between the Swedish Finns and the rest of the Finns and that some Finns are annoyed that they must cater to the Swedish speaking population of Finland. I guess some people believe that they aren't truly Finnish unless that speak Finnish as their first language. Maybe a little like Mexican immigrants that live in the United States? Except instead of this being an immigration issue, the Swedish speaking Finns have had their roots planted in Southern Finland for a while now.
Anyways, I think I heard more Swedish during that week than I have the entire time I've been in Sweden. I only heard a little Finnish, though. Swedish and Finnish are as different as two languages can possibly be, so I truly wouldn't have understood a single word of Finnish even if I had heard more of it.

I have an exam on Saturday that I'd give a body part to be able to skip. And next week is Valborg, which is like the biggest party week in all of Sweden. Champagne for breakfast, boat races, sunshine, and WARM WEATHER!!

Amsterdam!

Ok, so...Dutch people eat a lot of carbs. Don't get me wrong, it's incredible. Every time I moved, I saw signs for waffles. Sandwiches (lots of bread with the occasional piece of lettuce somewhere in there). French fries with mayonnaise. Pancakes. Cheese (oh my god, so much cheese). Cakes. Donuts. Fried cheese filled pastries (called kaasoufflés). And it's ALL delicious. I was there for 4 days and easily walked about 10km per day and still probably gained weight. And they have incredibly cheap peanut butter. Finding that stuff for about 2 euro a jar was like seeing the heavens open up and a higher being smiling down on me via a ray of sunshine. Unfortunately, I've recently learned that you can make a bomb from the oils found in peanut butter, making it unacceptable in my carry-on (and I never check bags. Because I always am that kid that gets the bags left in the previous city. It doesn't matter the departure or arrival cities. It's always me.)
But seriously...find me someone that can make an explosive from peanuts and oil. That's a skill I wouldn't mind learning.

Something else I found a little strange was that water in restaurants costs the same as a soda. My American mentality was like, why would I spend that money on water when I can spend it on soda? Needless to say, I didn't make brilliant health decisions over that weekend.

Amsterdam is a lot like New York. Which, fun fact, was originally called New Amsterdam. It's wild, it's busy...and it's kind of tiny. It only takes about 45 minutes to walk across the entire metro area (or, at least, from the top of our city map to the bottom. I'm assuming anything off the map is just windmills and tulips.) Another fun fact, I finally realized why Holland, MI is called Holland. It's the tulips, right? They both have a lot of tulips? At one point I actually said "I don't need to see the tulips, I've been to Michigan in the springtime". And then there was that moment when I hated myself a little bit for saying it.

OK I CAN'T CONTAIN IT ANYMORE.
I'M IN LOVE WITH THE HAGUE.
Undoubtably the most incredible little city on the planet. It's about an hour train ride from Amsterdam and is the capital of the Netherlands, so it is the center of a lot of political activity. Half of the city is consumed by skyscrapers. A metal and glass jungle. But the other half is a tiny Dutch town. It's a beautiful area of shops, squares with statues in the middle, winding little streets. The sun was shining bright and the canals were lined with daffodils and daisies. It has museums, palaces, a little castle/fortress thing, and cobblestone streets galore. I could spend the days changing the world in the skyscraper part and then come home to the cobblestone part and buy a baguette and head home to my successful, attractive, adoring husband and prodigy children (that would have incredible lives because they would grow up in the cutest town ever, but be really politically aware and little badasses because they'd sneak off to Amsterdam once and a while to go clubbing or smoke weed or something.)
I'm so aware of how creepy it is that I was thinking about that. The Hague changes people.

The first night I was there, I was waiting for a bus to come. It's like 11pm in the middle of this really sketchy station and this hooded girl walks over to look at the bus schedule. Here's what really got me--as she was looking over the maps and times, she pulled out a joint and lit it. Right there. In the middle of the train station. As you probably know, weed is legal in Amsterdam. But nothing really could prepare me for the shock of someone just smoking IN PUBLIC. I don't know. It was completely normal, and I just stared at the smoke billowing from the hallowed substance between her thumb and index finger. She took a drag, nodded, then walked away. I stared at her in awe. How rebellious. How progressive. It hit me like a wave. This is normal. I have no idea why this was such a culture shock for me...it was kind of like the first time you have a drink when you turn 21.

The sun is coming out in Sweden a little more and I'm trying to take full advantage of it.

Going Dutch

Can we talk for a second about how Boulder's Marine Apartments threw down so hard that 2000 CU students partied in their courtyard last night? This was also the night we got knocked out of March Madness. Sweet Sixteen spots are fleeting; Boulder pride is forever.

Since I've arrived in Sweden, I've realized my endurance for late-night partying has pretty much disappeared. Parties start as early as 17:00 around here, so I feel like you're asking a lot when you expect to still be having a good time until 2 or 3 in the morning. About half my nights end before midnight...and I love it.
I've never been a great night person in the first place (but I'm a BOMB morning person. I'm almost always naturally wide awake by 8am) and I turn into a real bitch when tired. Sweden's early start/early end thing is my kind of night...but the return to American parties might actually kill me.

There's this thing here called "Eurovision". It's this singing contest between 42 European nations (and a couple random Middle Eastern ones too). Each country sends a national sensation to Azerbaijan (last year's winner) and the contest airs internationally in the end of May (think of a mix of American Idol and the Miss America Pageant). This tradition is on its 57th year. It seems as though every European kid knows exactly what this gigantic pop celebration is, including past winners and current entries, but it would probably be a struggle to hunt down Americans that have even heard of it. So weird. Anyways, all the songs are pretty catchy.
Here's Sweden's 2012 entry:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4PMQB5zmAU

Obsessed.

I'm heading to Amsterdam at the end of the week! I'm just mildly terrified, as I'm going with another CU student and neither of us have ever been to the Netherlands. It's going to be a sinfully high adventure, full of red light scandal and Anne Frank museums. It feels so sacrilegious to keep mentioning Anne Frank in the same sentence as a world famous sex district and "coffee" shops. This will also be my first experience in a European hostel, so I'm all around thrilled. It might be a disaster. We shall see.

The whole city is warming up and people are planning big for the spring and summer. A plan to tour around Spain in mid-May is in the works. We're thinking about catching super cheap flights, then renting some beat up old car and just roadtripping around the country. Sleeping in the car, living on Barcelona street food and Sevilla sunshine, and embracing the sweet feeling of the Spanish wind in your hair.
Anyways, it's amazing to see Uppsala bloom. A lot of us joked about how the only way you can see the sun in Uppsala is if you check out Google Maps, but the vision of a glorious little warm weather haven is starting to materialize. I've always liked Uppsala, but I'm starting to like it a lot more now that it's not covered in ice.

And March 24th marks the halfway point between when I left America and when I'm coming home. It's going to be bittersweet.

Hej, Vänner!

It probably comes at no surprise to most of you that I am currently recovering from, undoubtably, the worst flu of my life. My habit of collecting diseases, head injuries, and broken bones while traveling is as reliable as the sunrise. In fact, I realized yesterday that the chance of me living somewhere for five months and NOT breaking a bone is slim to none. And I'm thinking about monetizing this opportunity and taking bets. My money's on an arm.

My head is still filled with that dreamy lightheadedness that makes everything involving brain power take twice as long, but I'm doing a lot better. Yesterday, I woke up with a headache that legitimately made me wonder if I was dying. I finally lifted my head long enough to take a sip of water and, no exaggeration, I've never been in so much pain.

I've also been dealing with a lot of friend problems this week as well. Which is pretty annoying in any situation, but the fact that I was sleeping for 20 hours a day made it a million times harder to deal with the real world.

And I missed a handful of really big parties here in Uppsala. And there are pictures all over Facebook and I'm crazy jealous of all my healthy, gorgeous friends and their huge, happy smiles together. The fear-of-missing-out is a constant demon.

But there WAS this boy that skyped me like twice a day while I was gasping out my last will and testament. At one point, he talked me to sleep while I was in a feverish delirium and coughing up some kind of vital bodily organ. I'm not about to get all gooey about it, but give the kid some props. When the entire world was falling apart, inside and out, it was massively nice to have someone that wasn't horrified by my devolving existence.

In other news, I'm going to Helsinki in two weeks! The first time fell through (going to Finland over one of the coldest weekends in a decade didn't seem like the smartest use of time), but Viking Line (the cruise company of Scandinavia) is having a deal of free (literally, seriously, truly) Stockholm-->Helsinki-->Stockholm trips. I'm catching one of those freebies in March, and another in April for a huge rager at my friend's college, Åbo Akademi University (that may or may not involve beer pong and a lot of dancing).

I just thoroughly abused my right to parentheses.

There are a lot of other parties coming up, such as the Kroppkakegasque. Everyone gets really dressed up and eats a lot of these knish/dumpling things (Kroppkakor) and gets drunk and dances. And tomorrow I'm supposed to be going to a mixtape circle, where everyone just sits around and shares music. Isn't that such a cool idea? It's an entire club here. They have meetings like one a month. My nation also hosts a whiskey tasting club. Very sophisticated, much different from my habit of throwing it to the back of my throat as fast as possible and swallowing with a gulp of soda.

My new class, Political Theory, is REALLY cool. In Sweden, you take classes in blocks and I only have to take one at a time to keep up with my Boulder credits. Anyways, theory has always been really interesting to me and I get to make a presentation on Tuesday about Marxism and Utilitarianism. It's only supposed to be about 3 minutes long, but I started typing and now I'm about three times the limit on the paper version...so that's an issue. I fucking love Marx, though. You have nothing to lose but your chains! Workers of the world, unite! Stand together and demand your piece of the pie, you know? Mmm, Karl. Preach it, boy.

Hope everyone had a healthy week!

Here Comes The Sun

Well, I guess I'm going to Latvia. For $65 roundtrip with a buffet dinner included, I'd probably go just about anywhere. Just one of the many reasons my thought process resembles that of cattle.
The sun has graced this beautiful little town today. And the temperature peaked above freezing. I swear, stepping outside and not being consumed by bone-chilling wind made me giddy with excitement. The wide smile on my face from being able to feel my fingertips as I walked to class is probably one of those things you can't truly understand unless you've lived in Sweden...
I just got back from Paris. It's incredible how one city has the ability to take your breath away with its beauty and history, and then disappoint you with its rude shopkeepers and filthy Metro stations. I know about four words of French (seeing as I took Spanish in high school and currently live in Sweden, I'm not feeling too guilty about this ignorance), but I was terrified to ask someone to speak English (make no mistake: everyone knows the language, they simply don't like speaking it). This incredibly offensive question was met with disgusted looks and passive aggressive comments under their breath. I know, Americans suck, we're egocentric capitalists with gun holsters and rolls of fat adorning our hips. But if you could politely speak to me in English while I purchase something from your establishment, I'd be a lot more inclined to throw down some cash to help support the economy of your far superior nation.
Coming from Sweden, the nation of sharing and gentle, warm people, any city would feel cold. And, granted, French is one of the most beautiful languages I've ever heard. I'd probably like it a lot more if half of every word wasn't silent, simply because looking like a damn fool every time I attempted to speak French got old really fast. I mean, "Les Halles" is pronounced "lay all". Riddle me this, France.
Ok, so, back on track: Paris is gorgeous. I would wake up and wander around past Notre Dame, down along the Seine to the Louvre. I'd just glance to my left and see the Eiffel Tower. On my right were rows of shops selling barking pets, savory crepes, bouquets of flowers, and colorful pastries. My friend's apartment was in the heart of the city (Rue de Rivoli), so it was always alive with people, sounds, and smells. I ate baguettes. I wore femme fatale lipstick on a daily basis. And for a week, I had my finger on the pulse of international fashion, history, and culture. Honestly, I don't think I could have handled much more than a week. Love it or hate it, there is no city on the planet like Paris.

So I just spent the past like 2 hours writing this and watching a Netflix movie and ordering books online and eating. I'm going to go try to be a productive member of society now. At 23:00. On a Friday. Internet: 1, Anna's Social Life: 0. But I'm supposed to go this party in Stockholm tomorrow so can we call it a tie?

Trip Developments

I don't really know what to write about and I have a pile of homework as tall as the Eiffel Tower (what's up, flying to Paris TOMORROW MORNING)...so, logically, I'm writing a blog entry.

A handful of people here are planning a trip to Kiruna, which is a small town in Lapland that a lot of people visit in the winter to see the Northern Lights, dog sledding, a hotel made of ice (which, surprisingly, is named the "ice hotel"), and get a little taste of the Arctic Circle. As I'll be just getting back from the city of lights, I thought I'd take a couple days and recover before I jumped on a 14 hour train right to the top of the world. So I will not be a part of this trip (though it sounds phenomenal).

A trip to the Czech Republic is in the works as well. One of my American friends knows someone studying in Prague (or Praha--I'm working on calling places and people by their native language names) and figured the roundtrip would cost under $200. A European world capital for a couple hundred? Pretty tempting. The "downside" is that we'd be crashing on a floor. But, I have to admit, I'd crash on floors every night of my life if it meant I could explore the world every day of my life. But I've been reading a lot of travel books lately, just compilations of travel tips and short stories, and Prague seems to be a pretty frequent destination for adventure-seekers.

Amsterdam is, obviously, also on our short list. I have a friend from Colorado studying there at the moment, and she's generously offered another crashable floor for a couple nights. Only an idiot would turn that down. Come July, Amsterdam is changing their laws to ban foreigners from accessing their more...herbal...commodities. I think a couple of us were talking about experiencing the Netherlands before this very unique capability is stripped away. Sooo...I might get into a bit of trouble for this paragraph.

Copenhagen would be so beautiful in early spring! Denmark is another very popular vacation destination for Swedes, and everything I've seen and heard leads me to believe that it's a charming, gorgeous, friendly place to visit. I have a friend from home currently studying around there, so the Danish capital is definitely someplace I'd want to see in the future. I'm also kinda hoping to see Elsinore and nerd out a little.

In the back of my mind, I'm thinking about pushing London in sometime between Prague and Amsterdam. One of my really good friends from Colorado was thinking about coming to visit Great Britain over his break and I wouldn't miss the chance to see the Tower of London, Abbey Road, and Big Ben. And him...I guess I'd also like to see him. We had joked about "meeting in the middle", but I guess he's getting the short end of the stick with his 7 hour transatlantic flight versus my 2 hour jump over to England. London is also generally considered the cheapest and easiest city to fly to and from the United States, so if anyone out there was hoping to wander around Europe and didn't know where to start...might I suggest London?

I'm slowly realizing that this is probably going to be one of the greatest years of my entire life. Traveling on a dime, seeing unbelievable places with people that are equally excited about that street sign in Dutch or the little kid in the supermarket that's speaking rapid Swedish. I know it's one of the cheesiest, most vague things ever spoken, but I think I'm falling in love with the world.

Thank you for reading!

Chocolate

Happy birthday to one of my best friends, Hannah! Baby girl just turned 22. Bring on the tears.

Let me make one thing clear: I have never been a big chocolate fan. From the aftertaste to the guilty feeling that a single bite of candy might forever make you fat and alone (Kate is so going to call me out on that), I've never really seen the big appeal.

I am a converted woman.

Chocolate covered marzipan was something I stumbled upon on accident. In front of one of the many colorful aisles of every chocolate imaginable, I saw something that looked a lot like one of those little pieces of chocolate with sprinkles that inexplicably tastes a little minty, you know? I grabbed a few and threw them into my bag and kept moving. Perhaps the greatest mistake I've ever made. The familiarity of the chocolate as you first bite in, followed by the overly sweet almond flavor of the marzipan, all culminating in the marriage of two of the most incredible flavors known to man...it's impossible to explain. Get your hands on some as soon as possible.

In other news, I've made some pretty amazing friends here. The collision of cultures allows me the excuse of "I'm American" when my true, bizarre personality shines through. So far, I think I've given the false impression that ALL Americans love to yell and hug a lot when they drink, talk openly about their personal life, and constantly complain about how hungry they are. The atmosphere is very inclusive, very open-minded, and very relaxed. I don't want to say too much because I'm sure some of my friends from Sweden will probably read this and it feels awkward to talk about them in the third person. But they're (you're) really awesome people, I got pretty lucky.

I'm currently preparing for trips to Helsinki (this weekend) and Paris (February 8th) and I am EXCITED. Finland is probably one of those places I'd never see if I weren't living right next to it, so I'm so ready to tread the path less traveled. My Paris trip means I get to see my lovely old roommate, Miss Emy Kane, in about a week. Which inevitably means insane clubbing, outrageous conversations, and pasta for every meal. I'm also (kinda) starting to plan a trip to London for the end of March, but it's in the just-a-dream stage right now.

In addition to these unreal adventures, I want to (read: huge difference between "want to" and "am able to") hit up Copenhagen, Berlin, Riga, Amsterdam, Oslo, Palermo, Vienna, Athens, Dublin, and somewhere beachy in Croatia (clearly, I've done my research). I know for a fact that my mom read that list, snorted, and said to herself "keep dreaming, sweetheart". So it goes. CAN YOU BELIEVE I LIVE IN EUROPE RIGHT NOW?!

Oh, and classes are good too.

I've gotten a lot more tolerant of the cold. Partially because I've succumbed to the Michelin Man look, but I'll wear virtually anything if it means warmth when walking to class. It's taken me a weirdly long time to realize that layering pants is actually a good idea. For a girl that's lived in a seasonal climate her entire life, I'm not completely sure why it's taken me this long to not only layer shirts, but also leggings and jeans. Anyways, the weather isn't really a big deal anymore.

Also, I've only talked to a handful of people from Boulder and South Bend since I've been here and I'd really love to change that. Get at me with some personal updates, guys!

Politics

My address here is:

Anna LoSecco

Rackarbergsgatan 34-433

752 32 Uppsala

Sweden

DIE-HARD CAPITALISTS, STOP HERE. You will not like this entry and I'll probably offend you.

After two nights consisting solely of conversations with strangers, I'm a different person. I've discussed Capitalism with Swedes, World War II with Germans, drinking with Australians, and had the pleasure of explaining what "grinding" is to a group of Europeans. I've learned bits of history that have been completely glossed over in American classrooms. And, as dramatic as it may sound, it's like I'm finally emerging from a life underwater and breathing in my first breath of air. Swedes don't love the label "socialists" (and it does seem a little...harsh. Sweden practices more of a soft socialism, if that makes any sense), but this American feels like falling to her knees and crying for joy after learning a little more about the Swedish economy and government. Taxes are high, but so is everything else. Education, healthcare, and safety are among the best in the world, and Swedes are placed as some of the most trusting people in the world. While Americans see a bleak humankind, full of inescapable corruption and greed (perhaps a generalization, but I'm sure you can see the grain of truth in there), Swedes have grown accustomed to...believing in the best. Upon arriving, I asked my roommate whether they wanted me to label my food or keep it in my room. He looked at me and laughed.

"You don't need to label it, we trust each other."

Religion plays almost no role in their politics. In fact, the one party that has the word "Christian" in their name has made a point to explain that their affiliation doesn't extend past the name, and that they are not associated with any specific religion. In contrast to the I-go-to-church-every-Sunday politicians in my own country, it's refreshing. I feel like a lot of Americans base their vote on religious affiliation, which annoys me more than I can possible fit into this paragraph. Politicians here are elected based on merit, and you are often voting more for the party than the specific leader. Proportional representation allows even the tiniest voice to be heard, which allows for a greater variety of views in the government.

I know that I'm representing my country here, and I'm trying to keep an open mind and keep my disdain towards my home country in check. But part of the reason I wanted to study abroad was to escape the American mindsets and experience political views from another point of view (a TRUE other point of view. Not the hypothetical or condescending examples my American classes have provided.)

And I'm in love with Swedish politics. Every time I learn something more about the government, I feel like jumping up and screaming "Yes! THIS is what works! THIS is right!" Everyone is entitled to an opinion, and anyone is welcome to challenge mine. But I can almost assure you that, after 15 years in American public schools, after 21 years as a Jew living in a Christian nation, after the frustration of arguing day in and day out with my conservative high school history class about whether or not bloodshed was a necessary step of progress ("There is no other way, Anna. Think about it."), I'm seeing a new way of looking at things. And, despite the fearful, weak American claims, capitalism is A way of doing things. Not THE way.

Sverige!

Hej!

While I'm abroad, I thought I'd jump on the bandwagon and keep a blog. Follow or don't follow...it doesn't matter to me and I'll never know either way. But I thought it would be a good way to both stay in touch with friends and assure my mother than I have not yet died on the mean streets of Sweden.

A little background...I'm studying this semester at Uppsala Universitet. It's about 40 minutes north of Stockholm and about twice as old as the USA. Everyone is blond, beautiful, and marvelously warm and welcoming. This is my fourth or fifth day here, and I stopped feeling lonely and homesick about 15 hours in (of course, 9 of those hours were spent sleeping and showering off the two days of planes, trains, and automobiles). I'm incredibly lucky, and I have no doubt that this entire semester is going to be filled with such sweet, incredible, gentle people.

My flight here was pretty dramatic, and the stress culminated in me standing in the train station of Uppsala, completely and utterly lost. I hadn't had internet since Philadelphia and pay phones haven't been used since the 90s. It was nearing midnight as I sat on my 65lb duffel bag in the dark station, waiting for someone to come meet me. I tried asking a couple people for their cell phones, but they were (understandably) weary of the homeless American girl. By the time I had figured everything out, my body was crashing and I had learned a new definition for the word "helpless".

There's a tradition here called "fika", which is a lot like the American version of going out for coffee. When someone invites you to fika, it simply is them trying to reach out and get to know you a little better. I've only had fika once so far, and it was in my roommate's (I have 6: 3 guys, 3 girls, all amazingly nice) bedroom with some tiny biscuits and cups of berry tea. Swedes are very busy, and fika is an easy, cheap, and quick way to meet up with friends, without the stress of having the make an awkward excuse about studying when you want to leave. If you're done socializing, you simply leave. It's excellent for someone as socially inept as me. As soon as there's a hint of an awkward silence, I just walk out of the room and avoid the awkward avoiding-eye-contact-as-you-try-to-laugh-at-someone's-uncomfortable-jokes. And no one is offended.

Sweden is, generally, very very cold. Even after spending every winter of my life knee-deep in snow, I'm unprepared for the biting, brutal temperatures. I've gotten lost twice already, and there is nothing fun about being stuck outside for two hours as the sun begins to set (at 2 or 3pm) and the cold starts to find its way between your 5 layers of clothing. My two-hour wanderings have been extended mostly due to pride, as I know any of the dozens of strangers on the street would be more than willing to help me find my destination...I just really want to find it on my own. On my last visit to the grocery store, I asked a woman to help translate the tea names for me. After explaining almost every tea in the aisle, she kept asking "Do you have any more questions? Can I help you find something else? Where are you from?"

In a way, it's not hard to find alone time...but it is hard to get lonely.

Sweden is also crazy expensive. 65kr (which is about $10) is a very reasonable price for a tiny salad. I found a McDonald's in a shopping center yesterday and a very small coffee was the equivalent to $5. Luckily, I've become addicted to little tea crackers and you can get a roll of 50 for like 5kr (which is under a dollar). The adjustment is shocking.

I'm currently living in the largest consumer of candy in the world, so get ready to see me blow up like a balloon this semester. Their chocolate, and I say this completely seriously, is addictive. I've never been a huge chocolate fan, but I am forever changed by the rows and rows of chocolate covered marshmallows, bananas, peanuts, rice krispies, graham crackers, almonds, and coconut that are found in every food shop in the city.

There's so much I want to say. I don't want to make this too long.

Alcohol is crazy expensive. It is monopolized by the government, which tries to limit drunkenness by pricing alcohol by the alcohol content. For example, wine and beer is cheaper than hard alcohol because it contains less actual alcohol. I'm not kidding when I say the government developed this program to prevent people from getting drunk. Scandinavian history, specifically the Vikings, have always made alcohol a huge part of their lifestyle. The government is trying to change this with the systembolaget (the alcohol monopolization). However, people still manage to drink like champions. I immediately fell in love with their alcoholic apple cider. I feel like they have this in America too, so I'm not going to pretend it's some big exotic drink. But it is delicious and only 35kr ($5) for a glass.

More posts to come. Thank you for reading!