Part of being here on exchange is about being an ambassador for Canada and telling the Swedes a little bit about Canada so I have been giving presentations to English classes and a French class about Canada and to history classes about WWI and WWII and to Rotary clubs. I started at the end of October having one or two presentations every 2 weeks but now that it's getting close to Christmas, the teachers want me to present before the new year so I have had 2 or 3 presentations a week. But that's ok because I like giving presentations and have been seeking out classes and Rotary clubs to give presentations to.
**********On December 3rd, I gave a presentation to the Thursday Rotary Club about an introduction about me and Canada. It was the first presentation I gave all in Swedish!! It was about 20 minutes long and I talked mainly about me and my hobbies and where I live and I had lots of pictures and I talked very slowly. But the main thing is that it was all in Swedish and everyone thought I sounded very cute with my beginner's Swedish!
***********Since November, I have been giving WWI and WWII presentations to the middle school down the street, to share what I learned during the Vimy Foundation Scholarship that I won in 2008. It was a very interesting challenge because Swedish grade 8 and 9 students learn about the wars from a very neutral and detached angle because Sweden wasn't involved in the wars. They don't know anything about Canadian history, they aren't fluent in English and so I had to use simple words and explanations to express my passion for the subject and make them understand my Canadian point of view without being too patriotic because to keep their interest I had to try to explain the big picture of how the wars changed the world whether your country was involved or not. So giving these presentations to Canadians is easier but giving them to Swedes is more interesting.
************December 7th, I had two presentations to give but previously that day at school, I was working on my power points and left my USB stick in the computer so when I got to my Rotary Club, I didn't have my presentation! Luckily, Hakan had a car and drove me home because I knew the computer room would be locked at school. I ran in the house and grabbed my computer and an other stick and in the car I was able to make a copy of my presentations. We got back to the club in time to give my WWI presentation there, then 2 hours later I was able to give a WWII presentation to the middle school. Now I carry both USB sticks with me everywhere in my purse just in case.
************That "just in case" happened on December 17th, even though it was a Thurseday, it was the last day of school before the Christmas break because Friday was an optional school day. I had just walked in the door and was going up the stairs when my cell phone rang; it was Tommy and history teacher at the middle school and he was wondering when I was coming. I said "right away", turned around, put my boots back on and was at the school in two minutes! I had completely forgotten about this presentation but because I had my purse, I was all ready!
************I got a 150 poppies that my parents mailed me from the Canadian Legions to talk about Remembrance Day with. I've given all but a few a way now during my WWI presentations and at school for Remembrance Day. It's been quite popular because Sweden doesn't have a Remembrance Day and it's a pretty flower.
Tuesday December 1st is Jarryd's birthday and he had invited Anna, Stefano, me and some close friends over to watch a movie and have a nice low-key birthday, but his host family had other plans... When he came home from school he found several relatives and family friends had come over to throw him a surprise party! Anna and I joined the party later and I tried glögg(mulled wine with nuts and raisins drunk at Christmas time) and smörgås torta(sandwich cake, a Swedish specialty) for the first time. They both taste really good! We sat, chatted, sang, ate cake, played with a relative's golden retriever, watched TV, played with Jarryd's 3 year old host brother and had ping pong tournaments. Even though he didn't ask for anything, I gave him a chain mail necklace that I made using copper rings in the inverted round mail pattern. It matched his red hair! It was a good party and now Jarryd is 17!!
On the last weekend in November, Jarryd, Stefano and I went to Sunsvall(the city on hour north of Hudiksvall) to get together with some other exchange kids. There were 11 of us; Rachael, Jarryd, Jack, Lucy from Australia, Corrine, Meg, Georgie, and Emma from New Zealand, Stefano from Brazil, Morgane from France and me from Canada. I'm writing down their names so I remember them because it was probably the last time I will see them all in the same place, for most of them are from the southern hemisphere and will be going home in December or January. We tried not the think of it as our last get together and just concentrated on having a good time! :D
******** Friday night, we met at MacDonald's, since I got to Sweden, I have sworn not to eat at MacDonald's so I was happy that I had eaten supper before hand. Then we rented a movie(Harry Potter) and went to Rachael's house to watch it. Over night, Lucy, Georgie, Emma and I stayed at a Rotarian's house. Maria is a very nice lady who is a priest and gets a nice, big, old house from the church/government. She is super generous and easy-going and has a 9 year old daughter and husband and on Sunday which was the first day of advent, the whole house was completely transformed with Christmas decorations!
*********Saturday, we went shopping, did laser tag, go carting, bull riding and out to a nice restaurant for supper. Laser tag was a lot of fun; we all got Star Wars names I was Darth Vader. We ran around in a big room with lots of walls, passages, little rooms, crazy lights and music. I kept on getting shot so I found a button that turns on strobe lights and danced across the floor in plain view-I lost!! Go carting was even more fun because I won!! The goal was to make as many laps of the course as we could in 7 minutes so I floored it! I was passing people by getting on the inside of corners, skidding around them and pushing them into the wall. My max speed was 32Km/hr and the only one to beat that was Stefano with 34km/hr. I was nick-named The Crazy Canadian after that!! What a rush!!:D Bull riding was fun too, it was an electric on and most of us fell off after 16 seconds but Rachael and I hung on for 18 seconds!
********Sunday was the first Sunday of advent and that's a big thing in Sweden. It's when everything gets decorated with candles and lights and everything red and Christmas shopping starts. There was a Christmas market with many stands selling crafts, decorations, food, candy, toys, presents and balloons. We were having so much fun there that Jarryd and I missed our bus home at 1pm and the next one didn't come until 6pm so we suddenly had more tome to hang out with the others.
********Saying good bye wasn't as hard as you would think it would be. Being exchange students, we learn to live in the moment, have fun with the people you're with now, make the best of your situation and it's never good bye, it's see you later! :D
Last weekend, November 13th-15th, Jarryd, Stefano and I went to Boda Borg in the town of Torpshammar, which is about 2 and a half hours north west from Hudiksvall. Boda Borg is a house that used to be a mental hospital but has now been made into a a place with many different quests and challenges and team building activities. Each quest has a series of rooms that are like different levels; when you successfully pass one room you can go to the next but if you fail you have to go back to the first one and each quest has a different theme. My favourite quest was called Rats and crawled through passages and climbed in a giant pantry looking for food boxes and there was a giant kitchen where we had to stay away from the cats. There are rooms with motion sensors to crawl under or you can't touch the floor. There aren't any instructions so you have to go in the room and figure it out, find a button or a pulley or solve a puzzle. In one room we rode across the floor in a bathtub on wheels with a pulley system! It was so much fun, we spent the whole day there from 9 to 5 and my knees were sore from crawling though so many small passages! Check out the web site to find out more about the place; www.bodaborg.com
***********During the weekend we stayed a big house near by that was also part of the mental hospital but is now a hostel. There were 12 of us from Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, France, Germany and me from Canada. We practically had the whole hostel to ourselves so we stayed up late hanging out in the sauna or watching TV. On Saturday night, the hostel staff set up a haunted house quest for us in the attic where, supposedly a crazy lady died. It was dark and we could only use the flashlights they gave us to look for 4 number codes to open the locks that were keeping a big chest closed. It wasn't very scary so I added to the atmosphere by playing a terribly out of tune organ.
The first week in November was the first week back from the fall break and I went to school Monday morning, as I normally do, for my piano lesson. After the lesson my teacher informed me that I won't be able to find the rest of my class at school because they are getting work experience out in the community this week.(Way to give me advanced notice!!) So I had no regular classes but I still went to school for my Swedish lessons and my friend's English class just because I could. On Wednesday, I figured I could join my class getting work experience so I helped out my neighbor and family friend, Agnetha, at her hotel. I had the morning shift, 6:30 till when ever, helping put out the breakfast then clear it away and clean the rooms. I also helped set up the big room upstairs for a fashion show on Wednesday and a dinner party on Friday. I enjoyed working there, getting everything ready and making it look pretty for the guests, and the early morning gave me the rest of the day to do whatever I felt like. And thus passed a rather relaxing week.
Today started out like any other Wednesday, I was in the music rooms with my music class preparing for a concert next week. It is Remembrance Day today so I ran around to the different groups playing music and handed out poppies and explaining what they meant. I also found time to join my group and practice with them but I wasn't much help because I had left my music at home. I didn't know it at the time, but our afternoon classes were cancelled to give us more time to practice. So after a quick lunch, we were back at it.
***********Now I had heard something about H1N1 vaccines and noon, so at 12 I asked about it. Turns out everyone in my class had already got it, so they pointed me in the right direction and I wondered out of the building. At this point Jarryd calls my cell and it's a good thing because I had wondered out the wrong door and he directed me to the building where the vaccinations were being given out. The reason why he called was to get me a train ticket to BodaBorg, where we're going this weekend, he's such a nice guy.
************In the vaccination building, I got got help filling out a form in Swedish but I confused the administrative nurse because I don't have a person number. She told me to come back tomorrow at 9 when there will be an English speaking nurse there and more time to figure things out. There was I long line up so I didn't want to wait around anyway.
************Back in the music rooms, my class is still practicing and I'm wondering when the grade 2 music class is going to practice. I've been trying to track them down all week because they are having a concert tomorrow and would like me to join them in one song. I find out that they are practicing in the Aula downstairs so I grab my trumpet and head down there.
************Every time I go out in to the hall way, I meet people I know and I hand out poppies. Soon all over the school people are wearing them and talking about them. I should have brought more because it's such a novel idea to the Swedes. This is the most unusual Remembrance Day I've ever had!
************In the Aula, I find the grade 2 music class having a rehearsal. While I wait for my song, Blame it on the Boogie, to come up, Jarryd calls again. He managed to got tickets for the way there but the machine wouldn't let him get me tickets for the way home. I'll figure out how to get home when I get there. It looks like we're going to have a very fun and interesting time in BodaBorg. Back in the Aula, we practice my song and it goes well. I find out the times for the concert tomorrow; 10,12 and 7pm. For the morning concert, the teacher wants us to practice before at 8am. So it looks like I'll be going to school early tomorrow.
*************Back up stairs, I'm putting my trumpet away and my class is still practicing. My group had been looking for me but I couldn't hang around to find out why because I had to rush off and give a presentation to a French class. In the French class I gave a power point presentation about Canada, me, the Canadian school system and stuff. The presentation went well but it made me realise how much learning Swedish is affecting my French; I found myself saying min instead of ma and vi instead of nous and I struggled with 14, after a pause all I could come up with was fjorton! But besides that, I had no trouble talking over my 45 minutes. We didn't have time for questions but the teacher invited me back any time to talk to her class again.
***************At 3pm, there was a meeting for grade 3 students to try on and apply for graduation hats. I also had a cooking class at 3 but several of my cooking class mates were there so I don't know who was left to cook today. You can see a picture of the studentmössa as it's called. I never knew there were so many choices to make while ordering it; what colour trim, what colour embroidery, what do you want embroidered, what type of flower in the front what colour gem in the flower, what type of liner, which style, which package (with a champagne glass or not) what should be engraved on the champagne glass and what size of hat? There were so many things to decide that I was the last one to hand in my form and the whole thing is going to cost me about $100!! I got a ride into town from one of my friends because it's as dark as night at 4 o'clock these days.
***************Now I'm at home and can relax after my rather hectic day.
Friday October 16th was the gymnasiet fest(G-fest which translates to high school dance but is so much more fun!) All that day at school, the cafeteria was decorated for Halloween, there were displays and costume competitions and everyone was excited. After school, Anna had a bunch of friends over for the pre-party. There were about 8 girls and Stephano and Jarryd. We had alot of fun playing Swedish music really loudly and dancing. At about 11:30, we made our way to the G-fest which was in town, not in the school gym. When I came through the door, I was handed something in a colourful little package and I got 2 before they told me what they were; condoms. The dance was a lot of fun, everyone was dancing mosh pit style around the DJ so it didn't matter if you knew how to dance or not. There were crazy lights, a bar upstairs, some people in Halloween costumes but most just wearing black. It was quite the party and there's one every month! ************ The next day, it was the Youth Blues and Jazz Festival so my band, Blaspopperna, played some songs. It was our first performance and I was a bit nervous but it went well. The rest of the evening we listened to some really good music. Just about everyone from my music class was there and a lot of the bands playing had classmate of mine in them. ************** I've been baking, or trying to, it's hard converting cups to deci liters and the ingredients taste different and 175C seems to be a good temperature for the oven. I tried chocolate chip cookies but I can't find chocolate chips so they are chocolate chunk cookies in stead. They turned out harder than I would have liked but people still liked them. I made Halloween Hoot Owl cookies and my family found them to be very unusual but very good. *************** In the mail I got Halloween decorations; window stickers, scary sound effects and feather masks. The house has never been so decorated for fall before. I also got a package of Halloween candy from home. I was thrilled to bits! Now I can sit on the couch watching tv and eating candy like I would be doing this time of year at home. My parents also sent some mustard and maple syrup. Now I can eat pancakes the way they are meant to be eaten; for breakfast with real maple syrup. The food I miss the most from home was mustard because sausages and hot dogs are common here but I don't like their mustard because it is too sweet for me. Now I can really enjoy them! *************** I've been making a few presentations this month because that's what I like to do. I talked in one of the English classes and it was like an interview; the kids asked me questions about Canada and the way I live. The teacher made an example of me to show the class that swearing in English is bad. Can you imagine a teacher saying "Fuck yes!" to one of your innocent comments?! I was shocked! I ave a presentation to a different English class and this time I was given the hour to show a power point and talk about whatever I wanted to. So I talked about Canada in general and a little about my life there and answered questions. It was fun, I could have talked longer but they wanted to go to lunch. The next day, jarryd and I went to an elementary school to talk to the grade 5 and 6 about Australia and Canada. We had 45 minutes and jarryd had to stop me after a half an hour so he could have time to make his presentation. It was fun and the classes want us to come back when they have come up with more questions for us. The strangest question I got was; are Canadians scared of the dark? Apparently that came from the show; How I Met Your Mother. I think I should watch it. **************** It's interesting, while I'm away, I'm learning more about Canada and what it means to be Canadian. Did you know that Canada eats the most macaroni and cheese in the world? I knew Canada is the second largest country in the world but being in Europe makes me start to realise just how huge it is. It is interesting to learn what other people think of Canadians. Most Swedes think we all say aboot instead of about. That's because they learn about Canada from American tv shows. I never really thought about what Americans think about us before. Some days I can think of a lot of differences between Canadians and Americans and some days I can't think of any. *************** Friday October the 23rd, Hakan came back from Shanghai after being away for over a week and he brought back 4 times more lugage than he left with. We helped him unpack and he had brought presents for us, it was like an early Christmas! Anna and I each got to choice a leather hand bag, a cashmire scarf, a komono, and a jacket! It was so exciting and I was so pleased that I didn't know what to say! *************** The next day, Anna went to the school to take a big all day test for getting in to University. Hakan and I went to Ljusdal, a town an hour away to see his sister participate in a fasion show. We then visited his mother and went to a restaurant. *************** October 24th to November 1st was the fall break, so I slept in a lot and was very lazy. Sunday the 25th, we went to a concert to remember Billy Holiday. We listened to some of her fun jazz songs. *************** Wednesday the 28th was a big party night for us 18 year olds because the bar had some special cheap drinks. Anna and I went to the pre-party at her friend Nico's house. It was full of people and I met a lot of new people and some I recognised from school. Then we all made our way to the bar and waited in line to get in because it was packed. Anna and I had a lot of fun on the dance floor because there was smoke and lots of cool lights. We left early(at 2am) because we had to get up and go to Stockholm the next day. :D ************* Stockholm: Oct. 29th to 31st. Anna, Marita and I drove there and had fun following the GPS to our hotel. Well I didn't have fun, I needed to pee and we had a tour of down town, passing the hotel several times and waiting behind a parked car wondering what the hold up was! That night, we got all dressed up and met Hakan who was just back from Brussels, in the Grand Hotel(fanciest hotel in Stockholm) for dinner. He was having a business meeting with 7 Taiwanese men who liked his energy business for their companies. We ate a Swedish smorgasbord with lots a delicious types of fish and many other fine meats and vegetables...oh and desserts! I ate way too much!! The men were very nice to talk to and they were very pleased and surprised to see women at a business meeting! ************** Friday, Anna and I had the day to ourselves in Stockholm because Marita and Hakan were looking at new kitchen appliances, so we went shopping. I bought gloves, a tuque and a shirt. Then I met up my friend Claire from New York and Marian from Mexico whom I haven't seen since language camp in August. It was good to see them again, we wondered around the old part of town and caught up with news. Claire joined Anna and I for supper which we had alone because Hakan and Marita went to their friend's 50th birthday. That night, while watching tv, I figured out how to braid my hair in something like an inverted french braid. It was a very exciting discovery! *************** Saturday, Halloween, on our way driving back home, we stop in Uppsala, a city an hour north of Stockholm, to visit a family friend. Bert and Ivonne and very nice people, and we had a delightful fika before continuing home. Before leaving Uppsala, we visited Sweden's church, which is comparitive to Notre Dame de Paris in it's size and grandeur. It is simply magnificent and full of history. I saw the grave of King Vasa, who united Sweden in the 1500s! I was incredible! ************* Back home, Anna, Marita, Jarryd and I went to a concert called Sirqus Alfon. It was crazy fun!! The group played music and acted like they were in a video game, having fun and doing all kinds of random stunts. We got 3D glasses and it looked really cool with all the smoke and lights and glowing stick man suits! You have to check out the youtube clip to get the idea of what I'm trying to describe. It was the craziest and coolest concert I have ever seen!! So that was my Halloween!
Speaking of Halloween, it's not officially celebrated here like it is back home. Kids just use it as an excuse to party and dress up but there's not trick-or-treating. The 31st is officially All Saints' Day, a day to remember and morn dead relatives. churches have special services where they read the names of those who died that year and light a candle for each of them. It is very beautiful and the cemeteries and all lit with hundreds of candles. Traditional Swedes are mad at Halloween for corrupting this special day with it's commercialism and parties. As for me, I had fun decorating the house for Halloween and having Jarryd over to carve a jack-o-lantern.*************** All is well here and congradulations for read this complete blog post!!
Early morning, Monday October 12th, I got picked up by Lars, the husband of a Rotarian, to go moose hunting. At 6:45am, we got to the hunting lodge in the middle of the forest and met the 10 other hunters on the team. By 7:30, the hunters were at their posts and Lars and I were in the forest with his dog Rocky. She had a GPS on her collar so we could keep track of her while she looked for moose. She started barking and we knew she had found one. It ran past us but was too far away to shoot, so Lars radioed the hunter posted nearby to tell him to get ready for it. There was a shoot but Rocky kept running so we got back in the car to check it out.
We stopped on the road where it looked like Rocky would run across and waited. It was so exciting; Rocky's barks were getting louder and then we could hear something big coming through the forest. It appeared on the road, took 2 shots and was down-a big bull moose! Rocky ran around it pulling it's fur out. The other hunter had shot him in the leg. I helped Lars by holding the moose on his back while he split the stomach and took the guts out. It was fascinating to see the organs come out and I didn't feel sick, but he was heavy to hold on to. But 9:30, we were all back in the lodge having fika to celebrate the kills, an other hunter had shot a moose as well. They were the first kills of the season.
We went out again that morning, this time Lars and I were posted on a rock to wait for a moose to pass by, one did but we didn't get it. Then after lunch we went into the forest with Rocky again but she ran of on an old trail and didn't see an other moose. It was still a lot of fun walking through the forest with it's beautiful fall colours.
Back at the lodge, the hunters were getting out this motorized winch on treads so they can use it to drag the moose out of the forest. It was quite the contraption but it was having mechanical difficulties so I got a ride home with Johan before I could see it in action. It was the most exciting Thanks Giving I have every had!!
October 9-11 was my Rotary District's conference for 2009 which was held in Åre, Sweden's nicest ski resort. The conference was for all the clubs and people involved in the district to get together and dicuse the projects and plans for this year. It was also the first time that all the exchange students in the district would get together. It was very exciting, only thing is that no one informed us students what our role there was going to be, what activities we would be doing, who was in charge and where we would be staying. All we knew was that Rotary would provide for us and we brought enough clothes for hiking up a mountain, swimming and playing in 40 cm. of snow.
Friday morning, I woke up early and got picked up at 6:30am. There were 3 rotarians, Jarryd and I in the car so it was a pretty squishy ride, with the 3 of us in the back, for the 5 hours until we got there. We got to the Holiday Club skiing resort hotel, the biggest building in Åre, which doubles or triples its population in the skiing season. There we met Rod, the American student who is staying in Åre this year, and even though he has helped out setting up for this conference all morning, we still don't know what we are doing. A little later we are joined by Julieta from Argentina, Tua who went to the States and Matts who went to South Africa. The 6 of us join in on the Rotary lunch and listen to the very boring guest speaker. The afternoon we spend hanging out, exploring the resort and playing cards. A train arrives and Judith from Germany, Emma from New Zealand and Kate from Australia join us.
After supper, we are in charge of games; mini golf, simulated golf and bowling, to get the rotarians to play. Afterwards, we get driven to a hostel (finally we know where we will be staying!). A rotarian owns the place and opened it for us because it usually doesn't open until the skiing season. I found a sauna in the basement and that was our night's activity.
Saturday, we went back to the resort for breakfast then hung around till we were told what to do. This turn out to be doing some advertising for the Rotary exchange program, by wearing our jackets and handing out brochures to other guests at the resort. Rotary had other displays set up as well; one for fighting Polio, auction items, the shelter box project, clean water in Africa, and the disabled person's ski cart. This last one is particularly interesting because the Rotary club at Åre, sponsors this ski cart which give quadriplegics and paraplegics the equal opportunity to ski with no extra cost.
In the afternoon, we helped out with the auction, bringing things up on to the stage to be auctioned off. When that was over, we finally got to do a fun activity and we ran to the resort's swimming pool before anyone else could tell us to help out with something! It was really nice, different pools connected by water paths surrounded by plants and bridges. there was a pool outside, a water slide and Sauna World which had several saunas, hot and cold pools, a snow room and a freezing water well to jump into. It was alot of fun.
That night we had a very fancy supper that went from 7pm to 11:30pm. There was a champain starter (we got bright turquoise coloured spite), a smoked salmon and salad appetizer, reindeer entree, ice cream then tea/coffee. There were guest speakers and presentations between each course and at one point all of us exchange students went on stage and Jarryd said thanks you for having us here and Emma sang the New Zealand National Anthem (she is very good). After dessert, a Swedish singer came and performed for us and we had our own little dance party in the back of the room. That night half of us went to bed while Jarryd, Rod, Kate and I stayed up late talking and hanging out in the sauna. I went to bed at quarter to 5 and was up all packed and ready to go by 9 the next morning.
Sunday, we hung out at the resort until we all had to leave. After lunch, Jarryd and I were back in the car heading home. It was a fantastic weekend even though there was no snow or mountain hiking!
So I went back to school on Wednesday and I gave a presentation about the Rotary exchange program with the other exchange students, Jarryd, Stephano and Jacob, a Swede who went to New Zealand and came back. We set up a power point projector and showed some pictures and web sites. We wore our Rotary jackets, handed out brochures and talked to students passing by. 2 newspaper reporters came by and took some pictures and notes about what we were doing and on Saturday, there was a picture of Jarryd and I in the newspaper!
Thursday I got rid of my cold enough to play at Blaspopperna. Friday I went to a church youth group meeting at a Pentecostal church. It was a small group of nice people and we discussed the different ways to pray to God. It was very different from the youth group meetings I'm used to but it was still fun.
Saturday was a relaxing day, the most interesting thing we did was wash all the sheets and linen in the house then flatten it in the pressing machine. This machine has a big roller in it that wraps the sheets around it and they come out flat, with no heat or steam.
Sunday, I went to church, a Lutheran church this time. It was a more interesting servive than the lat tome I went there which was 2 weeks previous, because they christened a baby and children were involved in the service; the singing and story time. Afterwards, we had fika and I made some new acquaintances, one of them was the young lady who played the piano in the church, Karin. Later, I met her again at the Big Band concert that night. She's the singer in the black dress. I went to the concert the string bass player, Anders, who I met at a Rotary meeting. We left at 3pm to get to Soderham, a town 45min. south of Hudiksvall, and set up for the concert and have time for a practice. They are very good!! And the concert was all Glenn Miller's music so I recognised some of the songs and I really like jazz!! I tried recording some songs but the sound quality on my camera doesn't do them justice, you have to be there to really appreciate their music. It was a good time!
I can't believe how luck I was! I got to go to Stockholm with Marita to see Glada Hudik teatern's musical, Elvis!! Marita is friends with the theater group's administrative coordinator, Ewa, who got us two VIP tickets to the Monday night's show! So on Monday, I went to school for my piano lesson, Swedish class and lunch then caught the 1pm train. Marita got on the train at Gavle and together we arrived in Stockholm and checked into our hotel. Marita had a business meeting the next day so her company payed for the hotel. After a quick supper, we caught the bus to Stockholm's Cirkus, where Elvis was playing. We met up with Ewa and found our seats in the 6th row with other VIP guests! The play was fantastic!! It was about Elvis as a young man before he became famous, trying to fit in at school, keep his girlfriend and make his first recording. There was a lot of joke and funny parts that I missed because it was in Swedish but I could appreciate the acting and the music. They had a live band accompanying the singers and the trumpet player was amazing. I was very impressed with the play, especially since some of the actors have the mentality of 4 year olds, it was very professionally done! Toralf, playing Elvis, acted all cool and relaxed on stage, Teresia sang beautifully, the dancing girls were very talented in a variety of different dancing styles and the actor of "Joe the man", head of the Memphis Mafia, is an incredible actor even though he rarely speaks in his real life. We got a backstage pass with all the other VIPs, after the show, so I could compliment all the actors myself. When Toralf saw me, he stumbled over his words trying to decide which language to speak in. Finally he got a message out that he was sad that I wasn't his girlfriend. I said he was a good actor and it was a great show. Luckily, there were enough people there wanting to talk to him that i was able to slip away. I also met Teresia and she was ecstatic to see me, she missed since the last time we met at the book release party 2 week previous. It was great to see her so happy and excited after a successful performance. She is planning on recording her own album and I think it's a fantastic idea, she's so talented.
Here are some pictures of some of the other VIPs I met. During the intermission, we were invited for a snack and a drink with Per, the organiser and leader of the theater group. And I met Barbra who the Royal Governor of the aria and lives in a castle!
It was a fantastic night! Tuesday morning, Marita left for her meeting so I was left to wonder around Stockholm until I caught my train at 12:30. It was very nice to just walk around at leisure in the big beautiful city. I bought some clothes then caught my train home with no problem.
This has been a low key week because I still have this cold that gives me a sore throat and stuffed up nose. I went to school on Monday and Tuesday but on Wednesday, I stayed home and tried to get better. I had a cooking class that day but I missed is because I felt was better if I didn't cough all over the food. Thursday I was feeling a bit better, which was good because I went to Johanna's house after school. She went on exchange last year to Canada and right now her family is hosting Stephano, but after Christmas, went he goes back to Brazil, I will be living with Johanna's family. Hakan was on a business trip in the States and Marita and Anna were in Gotenberg at an international book fare to meet their favorite authors. So it was nice to visit Johanna instead of staying home alone.
Friday after school, I hopped on a bus and went to visit Lena, Hakan's sister, and her husband Kennit, out in the country side. They have a very nice house and I got my own little guest house to sleep in.
Saturday, we went out into the woods to help Kennit set up a moose hunting post which consisted of making a pile of fire wood and marking out a path to it. He is in a hunting club and how they hunt moose is by waiting at different posts set up in an aria frequently visited by moose and hoping one will walk by. We also set up some salt licks for them. while hiking up a path, we came across some yellow kanterell mushrooms and picked them. We stopped for a rest in the beautiful view of a lake.
Afterwards, we grabbed some food and towels and set out to their homemade sauna in the middle of the woods. It is beautifully made, almost hanging over a small steam of really cold spring water. Lena taught me how to sauna like a Swede: Sit in the hot, humid sauna at 70 degrees Celsius then run into the steam. Even their dog, Bullet, joined us! We had supper out there, a chicken stir fry on the fire. After supper, we went for a walk and I found brown kanterell mushrooms. They were everywhere and we filled my hood with them! It was a very good day!
Sunday was a more relaxing day; Lena and Kennit had two friends come over for lunch. We had a moose roast and the kanterells. After a walk in the woods with their dog Alice, and Bullet, the friends gave me a ride home because they were on their way home to Stockholm and it was easy to pass through Hudiksvall first. Sunday night, everyone came home so we had alot of catching up to do. Marita and Anna brought back a poster for me of all the best edible mushrooms in the forest and Hakan brought back some Skittles and chocolate bars from the States. It was a really fun week, but the excitement wasn't over...
Monday, September 21, 2009
Last weekend was a relaxing weekend and I really felt I needed one because I feel like I'm getting a cold and I'm really tired. So Saturday, we went to the seaside to buy some fresh salmon which is the best salmon I've ever tasted; baked with creamy feta cheese and yogurt sauce and lemon and fresh herbs. I was so tired that I fell asleep on the pier. Then we went to a store to buy some plants and I took a nap on a pile lawn furniture coushins. That night, Anna's friends, Sofia, Karin, Matilda, Elin, Sandra, came over for an early supper then we went to a movie called 'Flickan som lekte med elden'(The Girl who played with fire). It was a good movie but very hard to follow(since it was all in Swedish) and not as good as the first movie The Man who hates Woman. It was a good night but I was dead-tired afterwards.
Sunday, I felt better, so I went to church. It is a Lutheran Church and quite different from my United Church, for one thing, it was built in 1672! The building is magnificent and it's having its steeple worked on so I couldn't go up there to check out the bells, which ring automatically ever 30 minutes. The interior is all beautifully paint right up to the vaulted ceiling. The service was pretty boring, to tell the truth, even if I could understand what the priest was saying, she talked in a monotone voice. We had communion; after blessing the bread and the wine, we knelt by the alter and got a cracker to dip in the wine(it was real wine-not grape juice). After the service, I talked to some of the priests and deacons and got invited to go across the street to a building where some of the congregation was having fika(coffee). A lot of the people there wanted to talk to me-the exchange student, which was nice. I spent the rest of the day organising my things, learning Swedish, reading a book and enjoying one of the last summer-like days.
Monday, I gave a presentation to my Rotary club at noon so I slept in and prepared it.(I missed my piano lesson...Oops) The presentation went very well, I wore my Rotary jacket and had a power point presentation showing pictures of me and Canada. Here's a picture of it. They were very impressed when I included a few sentences in Swedish. In the afternoon, I biked to school to find that my music teacher was home sick, so I didn't have any classes that day. So I went to Jarryd's house instead, he's the Australian boy, then we went to an aerobics class at the gym and met Anna and some friends there. I am terrible at aerobics, stumbling around all uncoordinated and all the instructions were given in Swedish so I didn't know what I was supposed to be doing! I decided then that my goal for this week would be to find out when the swimming pool is open.
Wednesday, I joined the grade 2's(gr. 11) music class because I felt they needed a wind instrument to help them play Blame it on the Boogie. The group welcomed me in and the teacher transposed some music for me. I had the song stuck in my head for the rest of the week! In my cooking class that day, we made pancakes and apple pie with vanilla sauce. I was stuck making the vanilla sauce and I don't even like vanilla! But I still got to eat everybody else's food.
Besides that, it was a pretty normal week until Friday night; Anna, Jarryd and I made pizza, sang and danced to Abba, watched a movie and ate Skittles which I got in the mail from home. My Skittles were very popular because they don't have them here. It was a fun night!
Early morning, Saturday September 12th, we, Marita, Anna and I, caught the train to Stockholm. Our first class seats came with a breakfast of a sandwich, yogurt and tea, which I was really glad because I was barely awake when I got on the train. It was a 2 and a half hour trip so we arrived in Stockholm by mid morning.The train station is enormous and I was grateful to have someone experienced, Marita, with us who knew how to get out of the station then find a taxi and get to our hotel.
Our hotel was really nice, right in down town with a beautiful view of the ocean. once we got rid of our luggage, we hit the town shopping right away! I bought 2 pairs of jeans and some really nice leather boots. My credit card doesn't work here which was nuisance because I had to borrow money. We met up with Anna's friend, Edit, who is a lot of fun to shop with.
That night, we got all dressed up and went to Kungliga Dramatiskateatern(the Royal Drama theater) to see Rikard Wolff singing tango. He is an amazing singer, he fills the room with his voice and makes it look easy and natural, he is a good actor and dominates the stage. I got to tell him so, after the show while he singed my program. He spoke and sang all in Swedish except for one French song, but even though I could understand most of what he was saying, he was fascinating!
Afterwards we went for a late diner at a very nice restaurant. I had chicken and scalloped potatoes. Under the restaurant is a bar with the longest bar table in Sweden. It wasn't very impressive but here's a picture of Anna and I standing in front of it. While in the restaurant, Marita got a call from her sister, Inger, who was in bar just down the street from where we were, so we joined her. She was there with a friend, her son Erik and his friends. Erik had just gotten back from Florida to start university in Stockholm. He is very nice and easy to talk with. here's a picture of us.
Sunday, we discovered the old part of town. It reminds me of Veux Quebec with all the fancy old buildings with cute little shops all squished together to make narrow, crowed streets. We saw the changing of the guards ceremony at the castle, which was complete with marching band, flag party, rifle drill cannons,and lots of marching around, looking impressive and calling commands. The guards there are much more interactive than the ones at Buckingham Palace(and not as funny looking).
It's not mush to look at, but inside, the castle is magnificent and lavishly decorated like you just stepped into the middle ages! I wanted to open every closed door and check behind every tapasty for hidden passage ways but even the walls look to expensive and elaborately decorated to touch and the crystal on display is too exquisite and delicate to stare at too long else it might shatter. The castle is enormous but only a small part was open to the public and I would love to spent days discovering the rest of it(the royal family doesn't live there any more so I wouldn't have to worry about running into them).
We caught the train back home that afternoon so that Anna and I could go to school the next day. 2 days isn't long enough the fully experience this beautiful city and I can't wait to go back to Stockholm!
So this book release party was for a book about the story of a very special theater group that started here in Hudiksvall, called Glada Hudik-Teatern. What makes this group so special is that all the actors are mentally handicapped, most with Down Syndrome. They are playing a musical called Elvis and it's a great hit. Ever since their first performance, all their shows have been sold out! The audience loves them because they always do something random and unexpected on stage and it's hilarious!
On the left is a picture of me and Per Sonerud who is the music manager for many bands and he owns a record company. On the right is one of his musicians, Sigge Hill who plays old time Rock and Roll, and lives in Hong Kong half the year and is a great entertainer.
Toralf Nilsson is the actor who plays Elvis and he is 42 but still acts like a kid, saying the most random and unexpected things whatever pops in to his mind. He really likes girls, and it was a good thing I was warned about this ahead of time because when he saw me... "Julia, you are beautiful. Your eyes, they are beautiful. I am crazy...to you!" And when his broken English failed him, he complimented my beauty in an endless stream of Swedish. All night he followed me around or pointed me out to groups of people saying "Det ar Julia, Hon ar snygg. (that's Julia, she's beuatiful.)" or peeking around people to wave at me and when I looked at him, he hid his face in his hands or under his shirt. His behaviour was so cute and rather embarassing but anyone who know him would know this was normal for him. He even acted this way for the Crown Princess of Sweden! Here's a picture of Toralf and I.
Another actor I met is Theresia Widarsson who is a really nice person and an amazing singer but she developped scizoferenia after a hard childhood. She has the potential to be world famous singer and wish luck.
It was a nice night with alot of famous Swedish people to meet, a live band playing, several speaches and praises for the accomplishments of the theater group and compliments about their new book. We each receive a book and i got mine signed by Toralf and Theresia. We went home around midnoght because Anna, Marita and I had to pack for a weekend in Stockholm then wake up early to catch a train at 7am!
So I’ve been in school for three weeks so for and I guess my schedule is pretty much decided. I only have 2 or 3 classes per day but I’ll be put in more once I understand the language more. So my days at school are blurring together. Tuesday, in jazz class at school we practised improvising. I was given a key and told to play for 8 measures. So I did, I didn’t know what I was doing but I played something that went along with the chords and jazz beat that was being played in the background. Everyone had a turn improvising and it was fun. During my trumpet lesson that day, I got some more practice and instruction in improving. That night, I was invited for supper to Tomas’ house, my Rotary counsellor, where I met his wife and his sons Magnus and Kristofer who are 8 and 9. They are a very nice family and assured me that I am always welcome to come back and drop by for a visit.
Wednesday at school, I had my first cooking class. It actually wasn’t at school, it was with a group from my school but at a special restaurant school downtown. The 9 of us get this kitchen with stainless steal appliances and wear colourful aprons (the big floppy hats are only for the full time chef students). We made mayonnaise and then used it in shrimp sandwiches. I didn’t even know you could make mayonnaise and I was quite amazed as I beat the egg yokes with oil and watched it turn white and then it actually tasted like mayo! It was a lot of fun, too bad we only have cooking once a week.
Thursday, after school we had a Blaspopperna practice and they are very happy to have an other trumpet player in the band because the are bringing in older trumpet players to play with me. They are in their 20s and are very good. That night, Elin's friend, Gustav, came over for a visit. He is very nice. We had fika, watched TV and chatted. I got help with my Swedish homework. Friday, Anna and Elin's old babysitter came over with her husband, Magnus. She was here so often babysitting, that she's like part of the family and now she's expecting a kid of her own! That night, Hakan came back from Finland and we all went to a VIP book release party. It was such a unique and unusual experience that it needs it's own blog entry...
Last weekend was a very relaxing weekend after Friday night. The Autumn Market was in town which is an annual event that dates back hundreds of years. A street in town is blocked off and people set up stands along it selling all kinds of things. People from all over the aria com to buy things are just walk through it. There is a park set up with games, rides, candy, food, toys and entertainment. Saturday afternoon,(I slept all morning) I went to the market and met some friends and we wondered through the crowds of people. I bought some candy, some earrings, a bear sausage, and a blue leather purse which was a bargain; for only around $15! That night, Anna`s grandma came over so we had a nice dinner of a slow baked roast of moose meat. It was delicious, it tasted like no other meat I`ve tried, not even chicken!
Sunday, I woke early enough to go mushroom picking with Hakan before lunch. We were looking for the prized brown kanterelle mushrooms which are hard to see because they look like brown leaves but when you find one, you find a cluster. I really love wondering through the forest and found lots of mushrooms. Right now they`re lying on the garage floor dehydrating so we can use them in soups and stews later. That afternoon, I went to the market again, with Anna and Hakan. I bought an alpaca wool sweater from Peru, it purple and black with little alpaca patterns across it. Here`s a picture of Anna and I in the Market. I tried the traditional kolbular which, directly translated says coal bun but is really a pancake with pork bits fried over a flame and served with lingon berry jam. Here`s a picture of me and the meal. I like lingon berries but I can`t say I`m fond of the whole thing.
I have survived the second week of school but the Monday almost killed me. As I mentioned in my previous entry, on Monday August 31, I was exhausted from a not so busy day. I only had two classes at school that day, one at 8:00am and the other at 3:00pm so I had 6 hours in between with nothing to do but go to a Rotary lunch at noon. It was probable the waiting that exhausted me, which I spent walking around town and reading a book.
Tuesday was better because my first class didn`t start until 12:30 so I had some time to sleep in and recuperate. After school I had my first trumpet lesson. It went well, I have a new teacher in Blaspopperna, Lars, who is very good with a lot of brass instruments. He really knows what he`s talking about but he hasn`t spoken English in 6 years so he kept things simple. Anna has him as a tuba teacher and she says that sometimes his instructions get to technical and she dosen`t know what he`s talking about.
Wednesday, Hakan was in Finland and Marita was somewhere else in Sweden so it was just Anna and I at home for supper that day. I didn`t stay long because Stina, a lady I met at the Rotary lunch on Monday, picked me up for a visit at 6:30. She is very nice and has two daughters; Maya and Hanna, and a son; Kale, with whom I got along very well. We went to the stables so Hanna could ride her pony, Humla(bumblebee), and I had a ride too. Here`s a picture of me riding Humla next to Hanna. Afterwards, we went to their house for fika(coffee or tea break) which is where I met Kale who was very interested in where I come from. Since he learned everything he knows about North America from movies, TV and computer games, I didn`t mind setting him straight on a few things. So all in all, it was a very good evening.
Thursday, I had a Swedish class, and Stephano from Brazil was there too. Jarryd from Australia was supposed to be there too but he didn`t show up. The boys have been here since January but still need to learn Swedish so I`m glad they`re in my class. After school, Anna and I had a Blaspopperna practice from 4:30-6:00 and we got some fun new music to play like The Pink Panther and a Congo dance piece. That night, Hakan came home so we went to a Thai food place for supper to celebrate. After supper, Anna and I went down town to see a concert being put on by young people. One of the bands playing had a lead singer who was a friend from my class, Cajsa, and there was a lot of other people from my class there to cheer her on. She was incredible! Singing to heavy metal, she had a lot of energy and performed very professionally! After the performances, I talked to a band from out of town. They were all my age or younger and already touring around Sweden doing performances, they were very good!
Friday was a very good day. At school I had my first art textiles class. It was a lot of fun, we are designing fabrics and patterns and experimenting with colour schemes. After school, Anna and I went shopping for the dance that night. I bought two dresses, a party one and a casual one but my credit card didn`t work so I had to borrow some money(I think I have it all sorted out now). After supper, Anna`s friend Fanny came over and we got ready to go out. Here`s a picture of us right before we left the house to go to a friend`s house, Nico`s. There was a whole bunch of us and we crashed at Nico`s house for a while with drinks, snacks and music. Then we went to a bar where there was a dance. On the way there, the autumn market had arrived so there was a lot of people still out and we met a couple of friends. Anton is a nice guy, or maybe it was the alcohol talking but he wanted to show me off to everyone he recognised:`Hey guys, this is my Canadian friend!`It was fun. The dance was fun too and the bar was crowded. Anna accidentally dropped her glass on the dance floor and it shattered. When we got tired of dancing, we went back to Nico`s. Anna and I stumbled back home at 2:30am. It`s a good thing everything is so close in a small town, I like being able to walk everywhere.
This week was full of new experiences and first impressions of my new life here, which Monday will prove because I was totally exhausted. It wasn't a busy day, in fact it was a very slow and relaxing day, so my exhaustion can only be explained by me finally realising that I had completely immersed myself in this strange school, new community, different way of life and country far, far away! I've been in a dream here, for the past month, and now I'm realising and waking up and it's utterly exhausting and a bit overwhelming.
My life is starting to organise its self and I'm doing less floating around in a dreamlike state. I have piano lessons scheduled for Monday, trumpet lessons on Tuesday, Swedish cooking classes on Wednesday, Blaspopperna band practices on Thursday, Swedish lessons on Thursday and Friday and art classes on Tuesday and Friday. At school, I have the classes and lessons listed above and at least one other music course such as rock/popular music, jazz music, music theory and choir. I can attend other classes like Swedish and social studies if I feel like it. This is like the best school schedule I could hope for and it will be even better when I can understand what people are saying!
The people here are very nice and friendly and I am meeting several new people each day. I'm having a very hard time remembering their names, especially those with strange names like Per, Lars, Cornilia, Nicolina and Anton. And there's Pelle, but I can remember that name because he's my music teacher. I've noticed that Swedish people are shy and don't talk to me much because they are embarrassed of their English. To tell you the truth, I haven't talked to someone in English and not understood what they were saying (unless the subject matter is unfamiliar to me). There might be a word missing here and there that they don't know, but I always understand what they're trying to say. I even had a conservation with a 9 year old and we understood each other.
I like living in a small town. Anywhere I want to go in town is within walking distance. When I'm with a group of people, we always come across other people we know. It's such a nice community, hence the nick name for this town; Glada Hudik (Happy Hudik).
The social life here is not much different from in Canada. We like to get together and hang out at some one's house, or wonder around town, or go to a concert. Hudiksvall has alot of musical talent so there's quite a few live bands playing or free musical entertainment. When we turn 18, it's a big this to go to the bar, parties and dances. I went to one of these parties and dances at the bar on Friday night, and I can tell you that it's much more fun a lame school dance, (which they don't have here)! An other thing I've noticed is they don't have such a big problem with drugs here and kids definitely don't come to school high. So I guess as a result, more kids smoke and there's something like chewing tobacco which is unique to Sweden and very popular at school. It's a little pouch that sits under the lip and releases the drug straight into the blood steam so its more healthy than chewing tobacco but it's still addicting.
So I'm establishing a new life for myself here and reaching some of the goals I set out for this year: I'm getting a grasp on the language, I'm becoming involved in my interests and improving my musical talents, making myself known in the community, fitting in to the Swedish way of life and making new friends. Now that I've been here a month, I'm getting a grip on things and it's like my year has really begun!!
Last weekend, August 29th and 30th, I had a lot of fun outside because it had been raining a lot the previous days. On Saturday, Per invited me to go fishing with him and some of his friends at the same place we were last weekend. There were 7 of us including David, a university student from France, a university student from China, Sara, a fellow trumpet player and her brother and sister. We fished from the raft you can see in the picture where David is getting off and Sara and her sister are in the background. The raft is fully equipped with patio furniture, port-a-potty, anchor and steering wheel connected to the boat engine. It's an ingenious little craft perfect for fishing from. I caught 3 fish but the first of which was too small and I threw it back. Together we caught 20 or so fish which we brought to the island to cook. We cooked them on a grill or on sticks and had them with salt, potato salad, hot dogs and pop. Then we headed back to Per's house on the main land.
At Per's house, we had the option to go swimming in the lake but his mom was setting out cake, pie and cookies so only me, Per and Sara's brother opted for a swim. The water was freezing so it didn't take long for us to get cold and wet and head back to the house. When we got there, we found everyone in a little gazebo sitting around a table full of food and it all looked so cut that I had to take a picture! You can see in the middle of the table there is a sandwich cake, a most delicious invention; layers of flat bread with tuna past filling and cottage cheese on top with marinated fish, shrimp, caviar, fruits and vegetables. It was a very nice day indeed!
That evening, as the last Saturday in August, it was the Evening of Lights where we recognise the end of summer and the coming of winter by putting candles along the shore, around islands and lakes and outside houses. We took a drive around town to see all the flickering little lights in the night.
Sunday we went mushrooms picking, which is something my family here do this time every year. We were looking for the yellow kanterell mushrooms that look like little yellow trumpets, and even though they are brightly coloured, they're not that easy to find. We were also looking for mushrooms that had pores under the cap instead of gills and a fungus that looks like little yellow fingers. The forest is full of mushrooms and I had a lot of fun tramping through bushed with a basket of mushrooms and a book on identifying them. The biggest mushroom I picked had a cap the size of my hand span and a stem 8 inches tall. The look almost surreal, like from a fantasy land, but the most interesting ones are poisonous. This is a picture of a red fly-mushroom which is very poisonous but the vikings used to eat it in small amounts to get high! By the end of the day we had enough mushrooms that, when fried, shrunk down to fill 2 large frying pans. Here's a picture of me in the forest with my basket of mushrooms, holding a large kanterell mushroom. That nigh, we had a very nice dinner of baked ribs and mushrooms.
The week of August 24th to 28th was my first full week of school. My school is so different from any other school I've been to that there is still a lot to get used to. It's so big that I don't know much beyond the second floor where I have my music classes, the cafeteria on the first floor and on the third floor I'm lost. It's hard to find someone unless they're in your class because there are no common breaks, for everyone has their own schedule. The cafeteria is open for lunch between 10:15 and 12:45 when you can come and go and eat as much as you want.
On Monday, We, my music class and I, had our little concert which we've been preparing since Thursday. It went well. I played the melody on trumpet in "Dihndi", the piano accompaniment in "Pride, (In the Name of Love)" and the piano and trumpet in "Stayn' Alive". The audience was the 2 classes in the younger grade of the music program. they were a dead audience, sitting there like stones the whole time. But we were having fun, rocking out on stage.
Tuesday was an activity day, so we can bond with our classmates, get to know the other kids in the music program and have some fun before the regular classes start. It was a hike along a skiing trail mapped out by the teachers with questions to answer along the way. It would have been more fun if it hadn't been so long, or so hot or had some sort of bathroom facility. But it wasn't all bad, I was in a nice group and the forest we were walking through was beautiful, I can't wait to ski along the trail. We hiked up a small mountain to the top where they gave us lunch and the view of the harbour, that we had up there, was breathtaking.
Wednesday was our first day of regular classes. Everyone, but me, got their schedules. I figured out which music classes I want to take, music, music theory, jazz, choir, trumpet and piano lessons, then I wrote down a request for the other random classes I want to take such as cooking, a computer course, traditional handicrafts, history and Swedish. Since I'm a special case, not taking the mandatory core classes, they are still fitting it together and I should get my schedule some time this week. In the mean time, I can go to which ever classes I want. So Wednesday, I followed my classmates to their classes and read a book because all the classes were in Swedish. All they really talked about in class was their schedules, the courses they need to take to graduate and what choices they have after high school, so I didn't miss much.
Thursday, was a more interesting day, I had some classes in the morning which I read my book during or slept, but then at 11 o'clock, I left the school to play in a low brass concert. The concert was made up of Anna and I both playing tuba, a trumpet, trombone and alto horn played by music instructors from the Blaspopperna band. We had the concert in an elementary school for some grade 3 kids. We played songs from kids' TV shows like Pippi Longstockings and the Flintstones, which had all the singing along. The point of the concert was raise kids' interest in playing low brass instruments. Later that day, we had our first Blaspopperna band practice and I met some of the kids from the previous weekend's camping trip. I met my new trumpet, Lars, teacher and we set up lessons for Tuesdays.
Friday, I had my first Swedish lesson at school. It's very nice, casual class, there's only one other student in the class, Jessica, a girl from Germany who is here for 6 months. We are at about the same level of Swedish so we don't have to go through the basics again. Afterwards, I had a choir lesson and besides sitting in the wrong place and starting at the wrong ques because the instructions were given in Swedish, it went well. The song we are practicing is in English, Early Autumn, so I was able to participate. After choir, my classmates dispersed to their separate courses so I didn't have any more classes that day. I went to the cafeteria and had lunch with 2 girls from the mechanics program. They were very interesting to talk to and gave me a tour of their machining lab and welding lab. Later they went home and I went into an interior design and textiles class that had several large wooden looms. I was curious to see how they worked so the teacher gave me a demonstration. When I get my schedule, I might see if I can fit in some time for weaving. That evening, Marita came back from a 2 day conference and Hakan came back from a 4 day meeting in Russia, so we had a nice family evening.
Last weekend, August 22 and 23, Anna and I went camping with a group from her band called the Blaspopparna. The weekend was organised by Per, an older member of the band, who was in town for the holidays. He rented some canoes and set up a camp on an island in a lake where he has a summer house.
Saturday morning, we, the 8 of us, met by his house, loaded up the canoes and paddled the 10 minutes to the island. It was raining but that didn't stop us from pegging down the tent, setting up the camp fire aria and building a lean-to (which we didn't use). We spent most of the afternoon in the bell tent which had a stove and chimney in the middle. We lit the stove and told jokes and stories. When the rain lessened, we took the canoes out fishing. Here is a picture of us, Jennifer, Anna, Oskar and Sara, fishing with the canoes lashed together. We caught 7 good sized fish between the 6 of us. I even caught a fish, though it was too small to bother killing. We cooked them as supper appetizers. The rest of supper was hot dogs and instant mashed potatoes. That evening, it had stopped raining so we went swimming. It wasn't very warm outside because the sun had already gone down but it was still fun and refreshing. We had a nice campfire that night and most of the kids spoke English so I could join in the conversations too. In the tent, nobody got much sleep, it was a fun day.
The next morning, after a breakfast of oatmeal and left over mashed potatoes, we packed up camp. Then we took the canoes out into the lake towards where it meets the ocean, then back again. It was a nice sunny day so I took a nap in the back of the canoe. The other picture is of us hanging around the camp ground playing frisby. Around lunch time, we all drifted back home again.
Part of being here on exchange is about being an ambassador for Canada and telling the Swedes a little bit about Canada so I have been giving presentations to English classes and a French class about Canada and to history classes about WWI and WWII and to Rotary clubs. I started at the end of October having one or two presentations every 2 weeks but now that it's getting close to Christmas, the teachers want me to present before the new year so I have had 2 or 3 presentations a week. But that's ok because I like giving presentations and have been seeking out classes and Rotary clubs to give presentations to.
**********On December 3rd, I gave a presentation to the Thursday Rotary Club about an introduction about me and Canada. It was the first presentation I gave all in Swedish!! It was about 20 minutes long and I talked mainly about me and my hobbies and where I live and I had lots of pictures and I talked very slowly. But the main thing is that it was all in Swedish and everyone thought I sounded very cute with my beginner's Swedish!
***********Since November, I have been giving WWI and WWII presentations to the middle school down the street, to share what I learned during the Vimy Foundation Scholarship that I won in 2008. It was a very interesting challenge because Swedish grade 8 and 9 students learn about the wars from a very neutral and detached angle because Sweden wasn't involved in the wars. They don't know anything about Canadian history, they aren't fluent in English and so I had to use simple words and explanations to express my passion for the subject and make them understand my Canadian point of view without being too patriotic because to keep their interest I had to try to explain the big picture of how the wars changed the world whether your country was involved or not. So giving these presentations to Canadians is easier but giving them to Swedes is more interesting.
************December 7th, I had two presentations to give but previously that day at school, I was working on my power points and left my USB stick in the computer so when I got to my Rotary Club, I didn't have my presentation! Luckily, Hakan had a car and drove me home because I knew the computer room would be locked at school. I ran in the house and grabbed my computer and an other stick and in the car I was able to make a copy of my presentations. We got back to the club in time to give my WWI presentation there, then 2 hours later I was able to give a WWII presentation to the middle school. Now I carry both USB sticks with me everywhere in my purse just in case.
************That "just in case" happened on December 17th, even though it was a Thurseday, it was the last day of school before the Christmas break because Friday was an optional school day. I had just walked in the door and was going up the stairs when my cell phone rang; it was Tommy and history teacher at the middle school and he was wondering when I was coming. I said "right away", turned around, put my boots back on and was at the school in two minutes! I had completely forgotten about this presentation but because I had my purse, I was all ready!
************I got a 150 poppies that my parents mailed me from the Canadian Legions to talk about Remembrance Day with. I've given all but a few a way now during my WWI presentations and at school for Remembrance Day. It's been quite popular because Sweden doesn't have a Remembrance Day and it's a pretty flower.
