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Published: August 20th 2010
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So we arrived in Linkoping yesterday and wasted no time! We went right to campus where I got the key to my apartment and instructions on how to get things started here. There is a lot to know! The good news is the building I live in is incredibly close to the grocery store and convenience store and place I can pay bills. Thank goodness for that! Also a bus stop is right out front
We unpacked everything in my room and got things sorted out right away. I stayed over at the hotel last night with Aunt G because I didnt have proper bedding and it's actually quite cold here already!
Lessons I've Learned.....
-I ordered panzerrotti for dinner at a restaurant and we learned that it is much different here. Their version is actually a Ravioli with a pesto sauce. I'm not one for pesto but it was good!
-Swedish people really like cold meats, cheeses and meatballs for breakfast. I want to experience the culture but I just can't do it that way.
-a 'Nordic Sundae' consists of meringue nests, whip cream (unsweetened), melon ice cream and fruit on the bottom. It
is so yummy you wouldnt even believe it!!!
Today we dragged our butts out of bed early to go to Ikea!! It was pretty fabulous. Some of their stuff is slightly different but much of it is the same. The difficult part was converting Kronas to Canadian Dollars- YIKES! I ended up with a really decent amount of stuff (bedding, floor mats, mugs, garbage can, containers, cutlery etc) for like 130$ canadian. We also stopped for a coffee afterward (Swedish people make the best coffee!) and found out for $1.25 canadian you get a coffee and free cinnamon roll. For such an expensive country we were pretty proud of our deals. We also saw these people at Ikea who looked quite different...everyone was staring at them wondering who they were. The lady's outfit was insane- it was a really sparkly long-sleeve shirt and then a skirt that went right to the floor and looked like it had one of those things underneath to make your hips look bigger. We couldnt believe how big it was! Aunt G thought they might be gypsies. All they bought was a frying pan and left.
In other news, I had
some trouble with setting up my computer here because I tried to use my hair straightener on the converter and am pretty sure I ruined it. I ended up breaking down and buying a whole new straightener after enduring a whole day with curly, frizzy hair. How awful!
On the way home from major shopping we got lost and spent an hour on the bus just riding the loop. School let out so like 500 kids got on the bus (they dont have like elementary school buses) and we thought we might go crazy. The driver didn't speak English very well but was kind enough to sort of gesture us in the right direction.
Tonight we went downtown Linkoping to do some exploring. The language thing became a bit of a barrier when we tried to go into a pizza shop and order but the woman spoke no English. She had to yell out in the shop for anyone who understood us and could translate. Their vegetarian pizza came with bananas on it...that was interesting...not even horrible. While we ate dinner we watched the town square. Some students are doing frosh week and got pretty wild in their
main fountain area. They were dancing and swimming in it and blowing whistles and singing. Everyone was laughing and crowding around watching.
Later on we heard music and found our way to a fair and music festival. The music wasn't half bad! All in all an exhausting and amazing day. Tonight I spend my first night in my new room in Linkoping. Tomorrow Aunt Gerrie leaves on the train to the airport where she'll head to England. That will be weird- officially on my own!! I have lots to do in the coming week and hope to be able to meet my roommates...so far I've barely seen anyone so I had to leave a note! I'm thinking of signing up for a program with a host family here to make friends so I can truly experience it all and make even more friends.
Phew time for bed- lots more to do tomorrow!
-R
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sandra
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Your day in Linkoping
I hope you'll have a great time in Linköping, it´s a really nice city. What are you going to study here? //Sandra