Swedish Cultural Exchange Posted by Marcus Cederström on May 18, 2011 in Culture
I’ve been back in the US now for almost a year. It’s strange that the time has gone so quickly but here I am. Here I am still realizing how much Swedish culture I have soaked up and taken back with me.
Like immediately taking my shoes off when I enter someone’s home. It has become second nature. So much so that even if it just a quick stop, my shoes come off. I have friends who think this is ridiculous. They stand around mumbling to themselves while I put my shoes back on. But their floors have never been cleaner when I stop by. Considering the wall to wall carpeting that seems so ubiquitous in the US, I’m pretty sure this is a good thing. No one likes muddy shoes traipsing through their carpet.
Like sitting in silence on public transportation. For so long I complained about the silence in Sweden. It drove me nuts. But I acquiesced. I told myself I was just being culturally sensitive. Turns out, over the course of those few years, I grew to enjoy my silence. Now, every day on the bus, I pop my iPod in and check out completely.
Like staring at the sun. It’s been a long winter here. And so, every time that sun came out, my eyes closed. My head turned to the sun. I stood in silence and soaked it up. It was amazing. And ridiculous. And if you’ve ever spent a winter in Sweden, you know exactly what I’m talking about. Sunlight is like gold.
Like yearning for the kölapp. I made fun of this thing. The little red machine that spit out a number in businesses throughout Sweden just made me laugh. Now I yearn for them. The simplicity of just grabbing a number and sitting anywhere, it appeals to the laziness in me. I don’t even have to stand in line. I can grab a chair. It’s amazing. It’s orderly, and no one can argue with the number. I was here first. And I’ve got proof.
Clearly, the grass is always greener.
What have you brought with you from your travels abroad?
Build vocabulary, practice pronunciation, and more with Transparent Language Online. Available anytime, anywhere, on any device.
About the Author: Marcus Cederström
Marcus Cederström has been writing for the Transparent Swedish Blog since 2009. He has a Bachelor's Degree in Scandinavian Studies from the University of Oregon, a Master's Degree in Scandinavian Studies from the University of Wisconsin–Madison, and a PhD in Scandinavian Studies and Folklore from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. He has taught Swedish for several years and still spells things wrong. So, if you see something, say something.
Comments:
Jacki Page:
I have Swedish friends, & we visit every other year. We speak some Swedish, & love the country, the way of life, & the gentle, earnest people.
I miss
*the lamps in all the windows..often left burning all night.
*Simple, pretty uncluttered interiors.
*The Dagens Rait ~ a sort of workers meal, inexpensive, plentiful & simple, always with salad & a Loka or lattol ~ The low alhohol beer…and eaten by workmen in muddy boots, & posh folk ahving Fika with friends
* Fika…that indefinable snack, taken at any time, to share coffee & food with friends
* salt lakrits icecream!
* my lovely friends, who are visiting here this year!!!
Helena:
Haha, I live in Austria, and here they introduced the kölapp in the 70s. But people would just take a number and wander off, then come back long after their number was gone, and demand to be served because after all their number was before everyone else so they thought they should be served first, then the customers whose number was still valid would be upset, and then they’d be fighting and screaming, so they had cancel the system. No more kölappar for Austria!
Bilitis:
What a nice post! It makes me want to live there even more! 🙂
Christina Pearce:
Very thoughtful post, Marcus…
I moved to Sweden last August (from the UK) so “sunlight is like gold” – especially after my first winter up here in Jämtland!
Up here people do say “hej” as they pass – walking, cycling or, like the other day, with a horse and cart 🙂 And coming from a large city in the UK, the reverse was true – mostly people went about their own business in a very insular way surrounded by the masses… Now living in a small population I feel part of a community. This could be the difference between city life or life “på landet” as much as a change of country perhaps? Or maybe it is different living in the north versus the south? Either way I am often around a neighbour’s for fika – with my shoes off 😉
Anyway, the sun is shining, time to step out… Christina
Lisell:
A very sweet post 🙂 Unfortunately I don’t have time to contribute my own thoughts at the moment. But coming from a rather cold country as well, I also get the “sun is like gold” thought 🙂 And gotta love the queue-ticket machines 😛
hardeep:
Hej Marcus,
With gratitude and thanks,du ar duktig..Jag ar studerar i goteborg, det ar mycket hjalpsam..vanligen du ockso ladda pa facebook..hardeep4748@yahoo.co.in
Marcus Cederström:
glad everyone enjoyed it