A little bird told me spring flowers are the best.
Read about Swedes craze for tulips here. Not to be mixed with a tulip craze.
Tag Archives: trailing / accompanying spouse
#2 Embrace the cold! #blogg100
A visual reminder to embrace living in a different climate – it´s a lot easier if you dress accordingly! “There´s no bad weather, only bad clothing” is one of the proverbs we grow up with in Sweden. I know expats who hate this saying, but truth is I guess we need it to survive! 🙂 Swedes are usually outdoorsy people; we need good and proper clothes for snowy, cold, rainy, windy, wet days. The first winter I spent back in Sweden after several years abroad I was constantly freezing. I had a winter jacket, right? The following winter I bought a new winter jacket – a Swedish one! Thick, fluffy and a fake fur lined hood. What a difference it made! I had failed to see the climate from the right cultural perspective.
One of the ladies in my expat network told me it is so easy to spot Swedish people in the alps – it´s the ones with the most appropriate winter wear! And not only in the slopes.
100 challenges #blogg100
#1 Saturday Jan 26
What have I done?! 😉
#1 Decided to join the challenge #blogg100
#2 Decided to go to an outlet center on a Saturday. An outdoor mall mind you. Freezing cold and a strong icy wind.
Well, the second decision of the day – check! Safely returned home in time for a late lunch. I like the concept of outdoor malls. Just not in combination with the Swedish west coast winter wind. There was a small outdoor mall where I lived in the US when I was an expat in Michigan. Loved it. Starbucks, GAP and Bodyworks. A grocery store and some restaurants. A small green area with a tiny playground and a fountain with a bench next to it to enjoy an occasional ice cream. Perhaps 20 stores all in all. The outdoor concept with a “main street” gave it a European feeling. I believe it was called The Village. Only missed one of my favorite stores; Target. Come to think of it it wouldn´t really have been a “village” with a Target in it.
Decision No.1 I´ll have to live with for the next 100 days. Good for me! Love the idea! Found the challenge only this morning, so starting 3 days late. Just need to finish 3 days later. Since we´re on twitter, my business and I, and Facebook, Instagram as well as on Google+ and Youtube, the project should be perfect for providing my different media channels with content. And vice versa. Want to join?
Let´s go!
The headaches of an expat
The headaches of an expat can be surprisingly heavy
My head felt heavy as I woke up. For once it wasn´t the tck baby but a throbbing headache that was calling for my attention. Bright light found its way through the a bit uneven blinds in our American apartment, giving away that it was already morning. I felt as if I hadn´t slept at all.
It was really something else that had forced me out of my sleep. The smell. A heavy odor that shouldn´t have been there. It was all over our new expat home. Like sulfur; gas; a bit like rubber. For an instant I was tossed back to Swedish high school where the boys constantly opened the gas taps in chemistry class to upset the girls. Or should I say to impress them, speaking boys’ language.
The apartment was on ground level and raising the blinds I was welcomed by the sight of the lush green foliage outside our master bedroom, and – immediately to the left – the natural gas cabinet. It didn´t take long to make the connection smell and gas leak. Impressively fast, considering the condition my head was in.
I called the natural gas company and explained – a little bit cautious as Swedes tend to, not wanting to be such a hassle in case there was nothing to it. Apparently the smell was not good at all. Someone was to be sent over immediately. “Gas leaks are not to be taken lightly. Right, and that´s why I made the call in the first place.
Before long there was a service minded maintenance worker on the patio. He wore sturdy shoes and had a dark blue overall on, as well as a concerned look. It didn´t take long though before he burst out into laughter.
“Seriously??” he said. ”Have you never ever smelled a skunk before??”
What? No, I hadn´t. His reaction left me feeling relieved yet a bit wronged. There are no skunks in Sweden.
I thanked the highly amused man and made a mental note. My list of new experiences, ever growing from living in another country and being exposed to cultural differences, had been added to. Again.
Share your story! I know there are many situations out there that deserve to be shared! We all have problems and headaches as an expat. Surviving expatriate life is a lot easier if we´re able to laugh at ourselves. And believe me; it´s not as if there’s a lack of situations where things can be misunderstood …
This post has also been published in Swedish, go here if you´d like to read that version and the comments!
Online Swedish language-tutoring
Online Swedish language training
Language is part of a culture. When you learn a language you also learn the culture connected to it and vice versa. It’s fun and valuable to know different languages. Now Swedish isn’t exactly one of the most influential languages in the universe but it might still be important to you.
I have studied and learnt several languages in my life. The methods and situations have been different, depending on the teaching institute and the teachers, as well as me and my current situation. Looking back, the most valuable and rewarding classes have been the ones where I constantly practiced speaking. It goes without saying that this was easier when I had private tutoring, or was in a smaller group of students.
As an expat, language studies have often proved to be the first social networking for me, and a routine in making a new life for me and my family. Yes, it involved breaks for diaper-changes and preparing a bottle. Sometimes we took the tutoring outside, to enjoy the weather and to accommodate the needs of a toddler longing for the garden swing.
Talking, talking, talking!
To really learn how to speak a language I think it is important to have enough opportunities. And to seize them, of course. The more you speak the easier it gets.
In order to make it interesting and motivational the learning should also relate to topics of the students interests or learning needs. Perhaps reading poems is not on the immediate priority list.
Learning a new language should be fun and without stress! For many it is hard to fit in language training in a busy schedule. Online tutoring can often solve that problem. The Swedish classes I offer are usually half hour conversations and it works well. I am flexible when it comes to timing and recurrence, and my students can choose if and how much work they want to do in between our sessions.
Taking the first step can sometimes seem hard. But guess what, that first step is just an e-mail or a phone call!
Why not make this year the year of learning or improving your Swedish!? In the comfort of your own home.
contact charlotta@globatris.se
Har du nånsin luktat skunk eller?
Jag vaknade med en tyngande huvudvärk. Persiennerna framför fönstren i vår amerikanska lägenhet släppte in ljus och avslöjade att det redan var morgon. Huvudet kändes som att jag inte sovit alls. Men det var något annat som egentligen väckt mig. Stanken. En tung lukt som inte borde vara där. Lite svavel, lite gas, nästan gummi. Som när killarna i 8:an öppnade gaskranarna på kemilektionerna. Lägenheten låg i bottenplanet och när jag drog upp persiennerna möttes jag av buskaget i rabatten utanför, och – i kanten av det gröna – en gasbehållare. Det tog inte många sekunder att göra kopplingen till gasläcka. Imponerande snabbt med tanke på tyngden i skallen.
Jag ringde gasbolaget och förklarade. Och undrade försiktigt, som svenskar gör. Det lät inte alls bra tyckte man, och lovade skicka över någon omgående. Gasläckor var inte att leka med.
Det dröjde inte länge förrän jag hade en serviceminded amerikansk maintenance guy på terassen. Men det dröjde inte heller länge förrän han skrattade hjärtligt.
“Seriously??” sa han. “Have you never ever smelled a skunk before??”
Nej, tänkte jag lättat men aningen förorättat. Vi har inga skunkar i Sverige.
Jag tackade mannen och fyllde på listan med nya erfarenheter man skaffar sig som boende i ett annat land.
Du som utlandsvensk har säkerligen varit med om något oväntat – på grund av olika kulturer, referensramar och normer. Berätta!! Lämna en kommentar! Minst lika kul om du som är inflyttad till Sverige berättar din historia om tokiga svenskheter.
trailing spouse and identity – coaching workshop
This week´s workshop covered the trailing spouse and identity loss.We focused on identity GAINS, and created our own personal mood improvers! Just working on it made us all smile, and even LOL!