Farewell Dinner

Caution* Selfies Ahead...Fair Warning.

It's bittersweet having a farewell dinner. On one hand our studying abroad experience has come to an end and on the other, it's our last night all together as a group and we ought to make the most of it. The night was ours and those memories are ours. What we take away will be something I unfortunately can't show you in a picture. But what I can show you, are some pictures with the wonderful people I have had the pleasure of spending my summer with. 

Tomorrow is a jam-packed day filled with packing, cleaning and airport traveling to my final destinations before I head home. Thankfully I haven't had to say goodbye to everyone just yet. 

Cliff Jumping and Summer Bar Nights

I tend to be a chicken when it comes to cliff jumping. Scratch that... I tend to be a chicken when it comes to a lot of things, which include heights and cliff jumping. Unfortunately, I'm not the most adventurous girl out there. Wish I were, but hey, not all of us can be daredevils. However, being abroad means trying new things and this was something I convinced myself I could do. 

A group of us decided that with the gorgeous weather and need for some sun, we would go after class to a place our classmate had recommended (thank you Steven). It turned out to be this watering hole of teeny boppers looking for some fun and adults looking for a relaxing weekend. Think Huntington Beach but less crowded and more peaceful. 
       With the exception of a few battle scars and an ear ache, I had an amazing time jumping cliffs with my friends. They helped me climb up and encouraged me to jump off, which if I think about it, sounds worse than it actually is. They helped me conquer my fears and I had a blast trying something new. 


One thing our group had in common is that we all love to go out and have fun. Which of course included many bar nights and wine bottles. Seeing as we are of age in Europe, I know most of us took advantage of it while we could. But hey, when in Europe right?

Some point in the night I lost my phone to too many selfies and funny pictures that are too precious to post on the internet, so I'll leave the few good ones that I can share. I enjoyed every moment of these nights where we all gathered together to share food and drinks and many laughs. I wouldn't have wanted it any other way. 

I Took a Trip to Stockholm

Naomi, Jay, Dan, Nate, Kitty, Tinho, Edyth and I decided to go on a very last minute trip to Stockholm this past weekend. I mean, who goes to Sweden and does not visit its own capital?

Stockholm is a gorgeous place let me tell you. Now I can't say I like it more than Lund, because Lund has become my temporary home and I love the coziness of living there. However, it was great being able to see more of the city life style over there while being mischievous with all of my friends. 

Now for story time, cause whats an adventure without a story. Due to last minute planning, we all had to buy first class sleeper train tickets. Sounds fancy huh? You're thinking first class fanciness and no need to take the night train sleeping on chairs cause that would be uncomfortable. Instead we get beds and luxury right? Wrong...

Tinho and Nate were placed in different carriages and the rest of us were thankfully placed in carriage four. However, Edyth and I were assigned to sleep in separate rooms from the other four and with complete strangers. I had to make my way in this small, dark space with five random strangers. Not to mention it smelled so bad inside that I held my breath. Since Edyth had my ticket, we all met outside in the small hallway to check in our tickets. This gave us time to figure out how we could all be together in one room. With a bit of luck we managed to figure out a way where we could share bunks and be together. It all seemed too good to be true because it turns one of us tends to snore. By snore I mean loud. But in the aftermath of lack of sleep, there was laughter and I look back now and think about how funny that night was. 

Since we had arrived at 6 am, the streets were practically empty. This meant that our pictures weren't at risk of being photobombed by strangers at least!

I couldn't tell you what this piece is called or what it is supposed to resemble. I tried eavesdropping on a group tour nearby to see if I could hear what it was but I failed epically. All I know is that they through coins through the hole in hopes of making it into the water. So..naturally I did the same. I made a wish and through in my coin (which was 10x harder than I thought it would be). Three times the charm right? 

From the Island of Ven With Love.

Studying abroad in Sweden means having this amazing opportunity to take field trips with your classmates. Today was the Island of Ven. In order to get to Ven, we had to take a ferry from the nearby city and college students on a boat is equivalent to giddy children who want ice cream. Speaking of ice cream, we were recommended to grab some homemade ice cream on the harbor at Ven, which apparently they make fresh there. I forgot to take a picture of it, because I devoured it in basically 2 seconds. Oops!

Our first stop was our pit stop where the bus would leave us and pick us up. Seeing as we had time to spare, the group of us decided to walk around the city for a little while. I love the way Sweden looks. I have never seen anything like it before. 

And at last we made it! Look at how cute this place is!! When I get old and I'm retired, I'm going to live here. I'm gonna buy a small boat and name it Lily and basically sail the ocean and eat ice cream all day everyday. (A girl can dream right?)

Ven is known for having two observatories built by Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe, so naturally we took a tour to learn more about the history behind it. We were even able to go into the Stjerneborg, which is the underground observatory that plays a multimedia show. It was small, dark and claustrophobic if you ask me, but nonetheless quite the experience. 

Can you guess what it is? No its not a quiche...or a pizza. Its a pie.

This pie was cheesy chicken goodness that I was very excited to put into my belly. I think I've definitely gained a fair share of weight being here cause I just want to eat everything. It's ok though because unfortunately I can't stay here forever and I won't be able to get my hands on things like this back in the states. So I'll just eat away and live a happy life. 

(*Cough Cough)... my future house. 

Edyth and I like to take selfies apparently. Seeing as now that I'm looking back, we have plenty to share and laugh at. 

Ven was absolutely lovely and all of us had an amazing time. The group rode bikes throughout the island and we had the chance to learn about astronomy and eat the best ice cream I've had so far. The sun was out and the sky was blue, flawlessly Sweden. 
So From the Island of Ven with love, until next time. 

I Don't Hike.

When I say I don't hike, that would be an understatement. Not only do I not ever hike, but I am clearly uncoordinated, my feet are a size 6 and get caught in holes & ditches, and my legs are half the size of a normal person. But let me just make note that I hiked for 7 & 1/2 hours for a total of about 12.5 miles. I know, I can't believe it either. 

This is where it all began and those mountains were the next stop of what none of could anticipate being one of the most ridiculous things I have ever done.

I climbed both up and down this crazy thing. Don't ask me why, I couldn't tell you what went through our minds when we thought to ourselves "Yeah, we should risk our lives cause we are only in Sweden for a short amount of time, but risk getting hurt in the process." Good thing we didn't! I have to thank Edyth for getting me up and down this thing. Without her, I don't think I could have done it. She talked me through going both up and down and I am so glad she did. The view was just incredible. 

We met a goat. I wanted to name him Billy naturally. Billy the goat most definitely did not want us to continue on our trek. He had a family and horns so he won that game of "You Shall Not Pass" and our group had to just wait patiently utill they made their way. The boys were also very intimated by these goats (although I'm not sure if they'd ever admit to that).

 

And at last we made it to this thing. By thing I mean art. This dangerous contraption that people trek to and like to climb is made out of 75 tons of driftwood nailed together. It sits on the very edge of the coast. It was pretty amazing, but I'm a chicken and I hate heights. Unlike the crazy Tinho (the little figure at the top of this thing) who had monkeyed his way up like a crazy person with nine lives.  No way I was about to climb that like it was a basic jungle gym. This artwork is called Nimis and was made by a Dr. Lars Vilks.

The journey did not end here. With no water or nearby places, half of our group decided to split up (I know...always a bad idea). But it ended up working out so amazingly. Edyth, Chelsie, Dawkins, Kitty, Dan and I trekked back up and back down looking for a way out of this forestland because our guide, known as Andres, was a part of the other group. We made our way to some horses and farmland in the middle of nowhere. Perfect scene for a horror movie, but it was weirdly the most beautiful, serene and freeing experience. We became true backpackers that contemplated staying at the only bed and breakfast we could spot in this town. That is, until we found a bus stop (thank goodness). But of course it wouldn't come for another two hours which turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Across the street was an an amazing oven made pizza resturaunt. Needless to say, we were underdressed, dehydrated, starving college students that stood out and devoured those pizzas like there was no tomorrow. It dawned on us that our day was insane and quite the adventure. These are the stories I can retell in the future. I loved every minute of it. 

I Eat Glass?

The Starbucks of Sweden is known as Espresso House. Not sure if anyone here would admit to it or not, but these shops are conveniently located everywhere. I'm not complaining at all though. I heated this bad boy of a muffin here and got an iced latte to accompany it on rainy Sunday morning and it was delicious. That being said, not a lot was done because Sunday is my rest day/homework day. As much fun as I am having here, I still have school which I am loving.

On Monday, Katelyn, Edyth and I decided to go for a little walk around town to see if we came across any souvenirs we would like to bring home. Can I just say that these little troll-like dolls are seriously the cutest things ever. If you've seen Frozen, then you'll know what I am talking about. I was waiting for them to pop out singing and throwing me into the air (potentially at Sven?)

Now, I'm a big fan of bright colors. Something about the pinks, lilacs, corals and mint blues make me happy. However, this flower didn't just draw me in, but the three of us saw it and snapped pictures. I couldn't capture how dark and beautiful it was. In contrast to the other flowers, this one stood out wonderfully.

Besides the fact that my nails are horribly unpainted, we stopped by for Glass. Glass in Swedish is ice cream in case some of you didn't know. I sure thought that glass simply meant glass and I never understood why there was a line outside the shops. Obviously I am very observant. Look mom & dad! I'm blending in already. I know one of the most important words out there clearly. Glass is delicious (insert me chuckling at myself cause I laugh at my own jokes).

I have to rep my Kappa sweatshirt all the way from Sweden. Sending love to all of my sisters who are both abroad and back home enjoying all of their adventures.

The answer is yes. Everywhere in Sweden looks like this. It's not just the certain monuments or cathedrals that have such beautiful architecture and display character, it's every little house, every little shop, and every cobblestoned sidewalk. Rain or shine, this place radiates. I can't explain it because no picture could compare to seeing it with your own eyes.