Busy and longer days

Hej alihopa!

Jag är i min tredje vecka SFI!

I think that's correct, but my grammar could be off. For those of you who don't know Swedish, I attempted to say "Hi everyon! I am in my third week of SFI!" Class is going quite well. Today we had a "mini test" since the intro course is only three weeks. Once they review the test, then they place you in either SFI course A, B or C. A being lowest/easiest and C being the most difficult/advanced. Not to toot my own horn or anything, but I think I'll be placed in C. The teacher I met with first, back in November, told me I would most likely end up in group C since I have so much education already. Also, so far Swedish has been coming relatively easily to me. So we shall see!

On another note, back in November/December the sun clearly started its descent around 2:30pm. Yesterday, I realized at 4pm that the sun was still up and shining! Although most definitely setting. But even closer to 5 there was still a tiny bit of light left in the sky. Maybe all of you in the States are thinking "Why is she so happy to have the sun setting at 5pm? That's so early." Well, come and live in a Nordic country for a while, and you'll see why! The changes are so drastic here, in Sweden. The summers don't get so hot and muggy like in Ohio, but it still gets relatively warm. Last summer it had been in the mid 80s Fahrenheit for a while here, and yet the winters are quite long and super cold and snowy. But I think the most noticeable thing for me is the sun. To have it completely dark around 3 or 3:30 in the midst of winter, and yet in the midst of summer it stays light until 11pm? It's a pretty neat thing. Yes, I am rambling about something that seems insignificant, but it has a huge impact on me, at least. I am rejoicing in the return of the sun!

Yesterday I had the pleasure of driving to the nearby town of Lidköping. I enjoy driving through the Swedish countryside. It really doesn't look all too different from the Ohio landscape, but still, you can tell you're somewhere else. There are so many trees, and I happen to find them enchanting, perhaps because nearly all of them are pine. We don't have hardly any pine in Ohio. Also, rather than having straight flat roads, Sweden likes to wind in and out of the woods, it's not nearly so boring to drive an hour here in mid-southern Sweden than an hour in most of Ohio. Southern Ohio is pretty, yes, with the hills and all. But that's just a small bit.

Anyway, it takes about 45 minutes or so to drive to Lidköping. I had a meeting with a coworker (yay employment) about my job. Things are moving! I am a busy bee. It's nice to feel, as I said to J yesterday, "like a person" again. I have a purpose. And truly I love learning again. Learning yet another language has made me realize that I missed learning Spanish, or maybe just learning a language in general. The time of day that I don't have class, I'm either working or cleaning around the apartment, or perhaps food shopping. Tomorrow I have booked laundry from 7am - noon! Yes, call me grandma if you wish. I'd rather get that chore done and out of the way so I can enjoy the rest of my free day! It'll be the first entirely free day I've had in weeks. Besides weekends of course.

Randomly, you might ask, "Why does she never mention being homesick?" Yes, I miss home in the States/Ohio. The people, the place I was raised, the American-ness and culture. But now, Sweden is becoming my home, too. I'm quickly creating ties and bonds here. At first it was simply being here because J is here. I had moved to J's home. However, interacting with the people, the place, and feeling a purpose and involvement in the happenings around me has really contributed to Sweden now being my home, too. I am happy. =)

Life IS getting busier!

It's been a bit since I've posted, so I thought I'd update you all.

This week has been drastically busy for me, at least compared to "what I've gotten used to" in the three months since I arrived here. SFI started this week on Monday (Thursdays are no classes, yay!). It's such an experience simply in having class with all other immigrants. First of all, it's so nice to be in a room with others who are in my same position - from a different country and haven't yet learned the language. Also, it's such an experience because of all the nationalities represented in my classroom. Sixteen students represent four continents, the countries I recall represented are the United States (me, obviously), England, Poland, Latvia, Monte Negro, Switzerland, Somalia, Iran, Iraq, Thailand, Philippines, and Spain. Just as many different languages are the mother tongues of everyone. I just think it's really cool to be learning a language together, even though very few of us can actually speak to each other outside of Swedish.

The teachers in SFI also do a great job of making sure everyone understands! I couldn't imagine being an SFI teacher - they teach the course 95% in Swedish only, meaning even though we don't know the language, they somehow convey it to make sure we understand practically everything. I think I have a head start on many people simply because English is from the same background/root language as Swedish. Even though I may have "complained" in the past about Swedish being difficult, I've found that I actually pick it up quite quickly and find it much easier than others in my class, like those from Thailand and Iran. For them to learn Swedish, maybe that would be like me trying to learn Chinese! I also have realized that in the three months I've been here, I have picked up so much Swedish that I can always understand what the teacher is saying. Even if I can't really produce much Swedish of my own yet, I can understand a lot!

In other news, today I had a meeting with J's boss. I mentioned the job possibility in my last post. Well, it looks like J's boss wants to move forward with his idea, so I will be working part time for him! To put it in a nutshell, basically I will be a recruiter for engineers to come to Sweden and work for his company, since Sweden seems to have a shortage of engineers. Maybe it'll work out well, maybe not, but I think it has great potential.

So this week I've had class each day except today, but I had to drive about 45 min away for the meeting and back. Talk about busy! Sure all of this only takes up part of my days, but I think it's been a great way to get back into the busy-ness (business?) of life. After being unemployed and adjusting to a new country for three months, being thrown back into the mix of things is like a shock to the system! A welcome one, don't get me wrong. I love the feeling of being a part of this place. It's coming to feel more and more like home, not my only home, but a second home at that.

Tonight we have a hockey game to go to! We haven't been to one since the beginning of December, so I'm excited to get out of the house yet again, see some friends, and enjoy some good sport watching. =)

And tomorrow J's parents are dropping off Elvis (that little Jack Russell) for the weekend, since they're taking a trip to Gothenburg. We'll see how keeping a dog here in our apartment goes, at least for the weekend. Whew, as I said, busy!

Perhaps I will post more later, but these are the thoughts that came to mind for now.

Since I haven't posted many pictures lately, here is a picture I took earlier this week of the sunrise. Nothing too special (the camera simply cannot capture the beauty!) In the distance is what J calls a "heat plant." It's where the city's garbage goes to be incinerated, and in turn to create heat for the inhabitants. A much more useful way to dispose of garbage than the landfills we have in Ohio, eh?

I think life will be getting busier!

As the title of this post suggests, I believe life will be getting busy fairly shortly!

Two weeks from today begin my SFI classes. That is for sure. Tomorrow I'm going to pick up my class schedule to see exactly how my first three weeks will be going. After the first three week intro course, they have students take a placement test to see whether they place more in the beginner, intermediate, or high level classes for Swedish.

On another note, J's parents are "trying out" a Jack Russell terrier! A friend of J and I notified us that his boss sadly needed to be rid of his 2.5 year old Jack Russell named Elvis. The boss apparently decided to get two amstaffs, which then didn't mix too well with the Jack Russell. Long story short, J's parents had been thinking about getting a dog for a while, so we posed them with the story. The owners brought the dog up on Saturday and J and I went to visit. From the few hours we spent there, Elvis is a great little dog! Great temperament and very sweet/cuddly. I look forward to being his babysitter whenever J's parents are busy or out of town. :-) Speaking of which, tomorrow I'll be going over to take care of him for a bit while J's parents are at work. I look forward to having a pseudo pet!


Not the best picture of me or Elvis, but at least you can get an idea. :-)

On yet another note, I may have a job prospect in the near future. I won't go into too much detail as things are not at all close to being concrete, but J mentioned to his boss that I am in the market for work. His boss has some ideas for me to help him out with, so I may have a job in the future there. I also contacted the director of a local, I suppose company, called English House. They basically have Swedes in (mainly teen/pre-teens it sounds like) who would like extra practice at English. The point is to make Swedes comfortable with English. The director got back to me saying that they don't have any open vacancies for employment, however, he would be interested in offering me something like an internship (unpaid). It would be like being a lesson/teacher assistant. If anything, it could be a great chance to network and get used to really interacting with Swedes. Also, maybe in time it could turn into a real job.

The sense of getting a start/having things move truly improves my mood. It's not as if I go around in a bad mood, but after a while of doing "nothing" I often get a feeling of uselessness; though I do nearly everything around the house in order to make up for my current unemployment. I simply hope things work out and I can get a sense of "normalcy" to my life here in Sweden.

As an update, the Harry Potter adventure is going well! I'm well into the fourth book currently. I simply eat up books. I'm quite enjoying it, but I'm glad it's going quickly because I paused on another series to bust out HP. I figured I might as well be in on the craze like everyone else. ;-)

The weather here has been warmer lately. The temperature has been hovering around freezing or slightly above...causing things to melt and refreeze. The roads have been quite dangerous due to ice. For once I wish it would stay cold! Who would have thought I would ask for that? Besides, I like my winter wonderland of all white. It becomes ugly and marred with the rain and melting.

It now seems as if I'm rambling, but the purpose of a blog is for its writer to air feelings and happenings, yes?

Holidays and a New Year

It's been quite a little while since the last post, at least in comparison to normally one or two posts a week. I'll use the holiday season as an excuse. =)

Where did I leave off? Experiencing Christmas in Sweden, I will say, was quite a treat. I always thought America went pretty crazy about Christmas, but Sweden has its own way, too. Whereas in America you get tons of neighborhoods being lit up at night from lights decorating the outsides of houses, in Sweden you get an all over decoration. People only generally put candles in their windows, but they decorate their public spaces a ton. They also (from an American's eyes) get a little over anxious by celebrating Christmas not on Christmas Day, but Christmas Eve.

J and I went to his parents' house on December 23rd to decorate their tree. I will admit, Sweden has very different pine trees than America's. This one (sadly or not?) reminded me a lot of the Charlie Brown Christmas tree. Not in that it was sad, their trees here are simply much more bare. I've shown J some American pine trees, and he calls them "bushes," since they're so solid (and not see through, ahem). J's parents' tree still turned out to be charming the way all Christmas trees are; here's the only shot I got of it.



On Christmas Eve we arrived at J's parents' house around 9am, and ended up staying all day until around 10pm. It's quite a family affair. In the morning we had a (what I consider) heavy breakfast. One special thing about Christmas in Sweden is the julbord. There are several traditional dishes that always make an appearance: pickled herring, ham, Janssons frestelse, prinskorv, and rice porridge, all for example.





So the day was full of food and family. Santa (or Tomte, in Swedish) made an appearance in between breakfast and lunch. I really enjoy J's family, and find myself often thankful for it. I couldn't imagine moving to a new country and starting a new life and finding out that my only support system would be the one person I moved across the world to be with. It's comforting to know I feel quite welcomed and part of my Swedish family. J's parents' live farther out into the country, and the snow is even more impressive and beautiful out there.







Christmas Day J and I hosted a party for many of our friends. We had our own julbord and spent the rest of the evening in good company. Christmas Day, apparently, here in Sweden is a huge day for people to "go out," ie. to the bars and clubs to celebrate. I've been told often to be able to get into a place on Christmas Day you have to book tickets in advance. Talk about serious party-ers!

The following week for New Years Eve J and I played hosts again for a New Years Eve party. This time we had help from another couple, who were our co-hosts here at our apartment. We decided to prepare a nice pork, potatoes and salad dinner. It was a hit also! I really have enjoyed being a hostess for parties. Back in the states I never much enjoyed entertaining guests in my own home. I don't know what about Sweden might have made me change those feelings, other than maybe our apartment here is much better at hosting than my tiny apartment I had at home! J and I have both agreed, though, that we're done hosting parties for quite some time. It can be pretty taxing.

On a different note, yesterday I had a meeting with my caseworker at Arbetsförmedlingen. I just had some questions about different programs I had come across for newly arrived immigrants looking for work, etc. He basically told me what I already decided I should be doing, but it was nice to get some confirmation from (or what should be) a more knowledgeable and authoritative source. He said his plan was to take SFI (I begin January 24th), and look for jobs on my own time. I seriously will start thinking/poking about getting a part time job (as I will be taking Swedish lessons, I don't think I want to work full time, not at least right away). A start is a start.

J has been sick the past couple days. He hasn't been in to work, his throat is bothering him quite a lot and he's been feeling pretty weak. Let's hope he can get to feeling better soon, no one likes to feel poorly! It seems as if we're taking turns on the sickness wagon. Since arriving, every few weeks it's been one of us who's had something. Any well wishings are appreciated!

Liseberg!

This past Sunday J and I decided to make a day trip to Göteborg (or Gothenburg in English) to visit his sister's family and to see Liseberg at Christmas time! It's an amusement-theme park in the middle of the city. It's not something to miss at Christmas time, they decorate it with so many lights and have many little shop-stands. They sell anything from glögg to little straw julbocks to freshly made fudge or hot candied almonds. It was quite a delight!

Here are some pictures starting with the drive there followed by the park itself.

Christmas Tree, Hockey & Meetings

Last weekend J so kindly allowed me to get a Christmas tree (alas, a fake one). I don't think it occurred to him to get a tree at all, so we compromised on getting a fake one. I haven't had a real one since I was a smaller child, and would have liked to have one, but as J so logically pointed out - they make more of a mess and don't last nearly as long as fake ones. We were both excited to buy everything new - it had been so long since either of us had new decorations to put on a tree. One thing I'm sad about - they don't seem to have stars for the tops of trees that light up. Take what you can get, I suppose.


After we went shopping last Saturday for the tree and its decorations, we were in somewhat of a hurry to get moving and pick up a friend in Tibro, then drive down to Jönköping to pick up another friend and go to dinner/a hockey game for HV71. We were starving, however, before we ever got on the road, so J suggested going to a local gatukök - to look at the link you'll probably need Google translate, or use Google chrome to read what it has to say. Directly translated, the word means "street kitchen." They're kind of like a larger hot dog stand, where some of them you can go inside. They also offer things like burgers and fries. We both got a french hot dog. So good! This is one thing I think America misses out on - the street kitchens. They're great for a quick bite to eat.

Dinner and the hockey game followed by a pub after was a fun night - we had dinner at a Lebanese restaurant. I must say, I really do enjoy middle eastern food. There is so much flavor, in exactly a good kind of way! The three guys left it up to me where we should eat so I asked what was around and chose the Lebanese. We all enjoyed it very much! The hockey game right afterward was much more entertaining than the first hockey game I went to the day I arrived here back in November. A lot more happened and kept you on your toes, but alas, HV71 lost. Let's hope next time we go they win! The local pub was called Pipes of Scotland and the atmosphere there is great. It's a good imitation of what I would imagine walking into a Scottish pub would be like. I was the designated driver for the night, by the time we finally got home around 12:45am I was tired! The trip there is nearly an hour and a half, so I had driven there and back in one day. It's a good thing I enjoy driving so much!

Tuesday I had a meeting with the head teacher of SFI (Swedish for Immigrants). She basically filled me in on how the class works and when I would start - which is January 24th. The initial class is only three weeks long which is the basic intro. After three weeks they give a test and decide where to place you after that. There are three different levels, and she told me that since I have so much education already I would most likely be put into the most advanced class. Let's hope I catch on quick! Also, another sweet deal with SFI is that if I pass the course within 12 months of beginning it, I could apply for the SFI bonus which would be 12,000:- (which is SEK, Swedish crowns, approximately $1700). It would be lesser amounts if I would be placed in the middle class or the lowest class. She told me, however, that I should talk to Arbetsförmedlingen because they often place those with higher educations into Swedish classes at the university here in town. J and I went later in the day to speak with them, and I am currently waiting on my specific case handler to contact us. So we will see about that avenue.

This weekend we may travel to Göteborg to visit J's sister and her family, as well as visit Liseberg. They decorate it each year with Christmas stuff, so I hear, and is a real delight to see. I kind of get the idea of the zoo lights at home in the Columbus Zoo. We're just trying to figure out if we would go by train or car, and also whether we would go Saturday or Sunday. It's looking like Sunday may be the better choice since Saturday there is snow in the forecast. We will see!

It's December!

As of yesterday, I have officially been living in Sweden for one month!

What with all the getting adjusted to living in a new country, I've not thought much about the holidays. Now that it's December, I'm finally starting to realize Christmas is around the corner! J was talking to his mother on the phone the other day and she asked what we wanted for Christmas, and my face went blank because I haven't even thought about it. The decorations are going up everywhere (especially in everyone's windows they have these candelabras). The snow and wintry atmosphere really helps, too. The Christmas spirit is quite alive in Sweden. It's quite beautiful.

As I type this there is a man on our balcony glassing it in. Our balcony has just been a normal open balcony, but other random balconies in our three building complex have giant sliding glass windows. It kind of makes it more like a patio. I think it will really help keep the cold out, and maybe we can even enjoy the balcony in the winter. We'll see! It's quite a loud process.

Last Saturday was a blast and a hit! My Thanksgiving dinner was a success and quite tasty. The concert over in Vara by The Soundtrack of Our Lives was really enjoyable! They are a great live band. I felt bad for one of the guitarists, he is so energetic, and he stood partially up on one of the monitors (or whatever you call them) and ended up falling down on his backside off the stage! I was embarrassed for him, but he got up in good grace smiling, although holding his rear end ;-).

Tomorrow we're going to a hockey game with some friends. J's team is HV71. Don't ask me how they name their teams. I guess Sweden is always logical and not whimsical like Americans and our Minnesota Vikings ;-) or anything like that.

Earlier this week we got a call from the head teacher for SFI (Swedish for Immigrants). I have a meeting with her on Tuesday about the course. She informed J over the phone that the next classes don't start until mid-late January. I'm happy that is moving along though, at least. I feel that learning the language is key to really being able to participate in society here to my fullest. Hopefully that meeting will be informative and prepare me for learning Swedish.

Speaking of speaking and participating in society - for some reason I hate having to make Swedes speak English to me! I feel like it's a handicap. Yesterday the gas light came on in the car right after I dropped J off at work and I was on my way straight from there to the next town over because a friend had invited me to come spend some time with her. I asked him via Google talk what all I had to do to get gas here. I hadn't done it yet - maybe they have a crazy system for all I knew! So he told me I had to go to a pump labled "Kassa" (cash) and not "Kort" (card) since all I had on me was some cash. I automatically went into the cashier to prepay for the gas, as it is my habit since in the States practically everywhere is prepaid for gas. Too many people ruined it for others by pumping and driving without paying. The lady looked at me and asked in Swedish if I had already filled up my tank. Of course I didn't understand, so I said "I'm sorry.." and she translated it into English for me immediately. I thanked her for her help and ran out to fill up the tank and came back in to pay when finished. I thanked her again and she was really warm and smiled and said bye bye and everything! I'm so used to J speaking English to me, but it still comes as such a pleasant surprise whenever I'm out and about (or J is with me) and the Swedes hear us speaking English so they automatically switch over. They have such a good grasp on it, but sometimes it's like I almost forget it since I normally only hear Swedish.

I've never been a Harry Potter fan, or rather I was never one of those who read the books and couldn't wait for the movies to be released, etc. I enjoyed the movies for what they are whenever I could get around to them. That being said, I'd only watched four, and now there are seven out. So J downloaded the remaining movies and we watched them, and this past Monday we went to see the latest one. Talk about dark and creepy! I always thought Harry Potter was for kids or pre-teens, but apparently I'm mistaken. J's got me started on reading them now, so alas, I suppose I have finally fallen into the Harry Potter fad.

On Tuesday I had a horrible sickness, I think it was some 24-hour stomach flu or such. I won't go into details, but I can say I was utterly immobilized and I couldn't keep any food or liquids in whatsoever. Wednesday I was feeling almost mostly normal, and yesterday I felt fixed. All I can say is I'm glad it didn't last any longer! That was the sickest I've been in years.

As I mentioned above, yesterday I drove to Tibro (the next town east of here, where J grew up and where his parents still live) to visit a new friend. I had so much fun! It was one on one girl time, we went out into the super cold wintry landscape walking her dog. We didn't do much at all, but I really enjoyed it. I'm so glad I've been invited on "dates" by some of the Swedes. It makes me feel accepted and that I belong. I don't say that as if I never felt accepted and belonged, because I always have, I'm just thankful that I do have the pleasure of feeling that way.

I believe my rambling shall come to an end now. And here I thought this post wouldn't be very long because I didn't have much to say! Here are some pictures of the drive between Skövde and Tibro. Don't worry, I focused on the road always, I just snapped a ton of shots randomly from my phone hoping to find some that might turn out okay.