Two Weeks Later...

Hey Everyone,

So I've been getting some requests from my fan club to add another post to my blog. I wasn't really planning on posting much unless I went somewhere in particular, however there is much to say about Sweden so far, so I guess I'll start there.

Some interesting facts about Sweden.

Everyone here is blonde. The rumors are true, there is an overwhelming majority of blonde men and women here.

Everyone rides their bikes everywhere. The city is not very large, but things are spread out a little bit more than Kingston and because of that, bike riding is a necessity. The city does a great job promoting it as well as making it safe. The city encourages bike riding for environmental reasons, they even have a TV competition for the stupidest driving trip of the week or something. The winner wins a bike. Its also well planned, the sidewalks are always broken up into sides to bike on and sides to walk on, and when There's no room on the sidewalk then the bikers have a small lane on the road. Bikers also have their own crossing signal separate from pedestrians.

Doors that in Canada would be a push are now a pull (and vice versa). This is a HUGE problem, as I find it extremely frustrated an embarrassing when I run at speed into a door that doesn't open. (light switches are also upside down)

Everything is written in Swedish. This is only really a problem at the supermarket when I need to purchase food. The first week here I bought what I thought was tomato soup, after cooking it I learned that it wasn't tomato soup, it was some sort of lobster broth and it was awful. I finished it, but it will forever serve as a reminder to ask a local if I'm really unsure what I'm buying. Its not worth the risk. As well the cooking instructions are in Swedish, and as I'm sure most of you know, I am not the most competent cook. Those instructions are important. That has also led to some confusion.

The clubs are similar here, but the dancing is not. In Sweden (and the rest of Europe to a certain degree) it seems that girls are not allowed to dance with boys unless they planning on going home with those boys later in the night. Dancing with a boy is a big deal here and therefore it does not happen a lot, Which kinda makes the clubs here strangely like a grade 8 dance...

So those are really most of the differences that I've noticed so far. There are more I'm sure, but I don't really feel like racking my brain for them right now.

SCHOOL
School is good! I'm already a week and a half into classes, and they seem pretty manageable. I think I calculated around 17 hours of class each week, which is a walk in the park compared to what I'm used to. The classes are also smaller here, one of my classes has 8 people and on Thursday were hopping in the Prof's car and driving to Louisiana, Denmark to see an exhibit at a modern art museum. One problem with school is that in one course my professor seems to be under the strange illusion that it's alright for the handouts and reading material to be in Swedish, so long as he lectures in English. This is a false reality he is living in, and I will wake him out of it soon.

Because my course load is quite light, I find myself with plenty of free time and so I now go the gym. An great habit to get myself into, especially in preparation for the new PEC. So by the time I get back, I should look like the governator!

It sounds like everyone in Kingston is having a great time. Its kinda making me a little jealous that I'm not around to enjoy what sounds like a promising frosh week. A source has told me that 'Celebrity Goat Cheese' has made the FREC primer, and I believe that this is the beginning to a new type of cheer based marketing for frosh week funds. Or atleast beer funds.

I think that's all I really have to say for now. Feel free to call me whenever, my number from overseas (so if your calling from canada) is 011 46 70 466 5543, but remember that I'm 6 hours ahead of you, so no drunk dials before 4 am. You can usually talk to me on Skype as well, I'm on that all the time (if you dont have me, im 'andrewjbaron89'). Or you can also email my gmail account, I check it often.

Thanks for reading,
A.J.