The Wandering Swede

2007-04-01T02:03:00.000+02:00

Glad Pask Everyone! Easter break is coming up this week and we have been blessed with beautiful weather here in Uppsala. We had temperatures in the upper sixties which meant we headed for the roof of our building with the BBQ and football. Duncan, Jim, and I even threw on our shorts and flip flops.

A lot has been happening in the last month. I've been bar tending several nights a week and had a pretty intense Viking History course. But now the final has been written and I've got the weekend off to relax and finally update the old blog. For the month of April I'm taking a really uplifting course titled, "Genocide and Mass Violence in the modern world." Should be...fun, but I know a lot of people in the course, so at least we can all be miserable together! But there is no final exam, just a paper! So I guess that means I've taken my last test here!

We get a week off for Easter and we haven't quite figured out what to do with ourselves. Jim is heading to Italy to visit some friends from last term, so Duncan and I thought we might take the train to Oslo for a couple of days. Planning for the European invasion is coming along, though slower than we've all expected. Whew, I'm beat! Busy night at the bar! More to come soon.

2007-03-06T18:14:00.000+01:00

Hey Everybody! Well the time has come. You've waited for it and heard rumors for the last couple of months and HERE IT IS: European invasion 2007. The plan is all coming together and the most key element, the plane ticket home, has been purchased out of Madrid on the 28th of June. The above map shows our route along with a black X for the cities we will be stopping in. So that is 21 days to see Copenhagen, Berlin, Munich, Vienna, Venice, Rome, Nice, Barcelona, and Madrid. We've begun the itinerary with the help of Fromer's guide to Europe and a couple of Lonely Planets. Speaking of which if any of you readers have ever been to any of these cities and know of any "must sees" please let me know. I'm really looking foreword to a whole list of things...and here is that list:

1. Attempting German, a language I haven't spoken since my junior year in high school.
2. It has been decided that our football will be accompanying us on the trip, so train football should be interesting to watch...and play.
3. Sauerkraut.
4. Beer. "Ich heter gerne ein bier, danke"
5. According to Duncan, Austrian women are the most beautiful in all of europe.
6. Neuchwanstein Castle
7. Saying "ciao" so much that everyone wants to punch me by the time we get to france.
8. Gelato "Gradirei il gelato, grazie."
9. Watching Jim squirm because we have forbidden him from calling the french "cheese eating surrender monkeys."
10. French wine. "je voudrais votre vin plus fin, merci."
11. The South of France in late June. Oh, I'm going to be so pale.
12. Bullfight. (Yes yes, cruel to animals, i know. But I've been reading Hemingway and it seems like a really important cultural experience. Not to mention we'll be in Spain during the siesta!) "uno cervesa, por favor."
13. The four days of straight sleep as soon as I get home. "A beer please."

We've got a huge list of things left to do such as obtain our train passes, read up on the travel literature, set up the itinerary, train Jim to not insult the french, throw my bike off of the roof, and the list goes on.

To be honest not much has been happening here in Uppsala since I last updated. I'm taking a course on Swedish history during the Viking period, which I find quite fascinating and I've been working at the pub a couple of days every week. We've still got a lot of snow on the ground but the temperature is slowly starting to rise, which is nice to be honest. I think the worst of the Swedish winter is over and now we wait for the thaw. Jim and I had a great conversation about how nice it will be to hang out on the balcony and grill steaks when it gets warm...so that's about one week before we leave on our trip. Ah well.

2007-02-10T18:59:00.000+01:00

We made scones. I lost control of the whipped cream.

2007-02-06T17:52:00.000+01:00

Witness you nonbelievers! An actual entire meal being eaten by college students! I know, I was a little taken aback as well. Well, because Duncan and I had woken up around 2 in the afternoon due to the fact that we stayed up until 7 in the morning watching the Superbowl, we decided around 9 in the evening to make dinner. Half because we were hungry but also because we were bored out of our minds. So this picture provides proof that we cooked up some chicken tika masala with rice, fresh bread and brie, and the crowning achievement: we baked home made naan bread! That's right. I baked.

To be completely honest there is not much else to report. A cold front has come in so we're hovering just above zero these days and we have a fresh layer of snow. So Wednesday night sledding will probably continue unabated. Well, Jim is cooking dinner tonight, so I'm off! I hope everything is well at home!

2007-01-29T16:56:00.000+01:00

Hello Everyone! I'm back in Sverige and we have SNOW! I had about 3 hours of dry pavement and ungraveled streets, then BAM! It now snows every couple of days so at least it is always white and beautiful. My bike is still locked up at the train station downtown because it is under a foot and a half of snow and I'm pretty sure the lock is frozen solid. So I've been doing a lot of walking.

This term begins with a class on political theory, which to be honest I find very intriguing! The professor is very knowledgeable and I can tell that he cares about what he is teaching. Unfortunately I don't have a whole lot of background in political science so I'm going to have to do a bit of extra work to keep up with everyone, but hey whats new?

The Super bowl is this coming weekend so my friends and I have a table reserved at O'learys pub. I'm going to wear my Seahawks jersey to spite the Stupid bears being there in our place. Other than that I don't have much news for everyone. I'd love to hear from anyone if you've got a free moment! karlpete@u.washington.edu

2007-01-05T04:46:00.000+01:00

Hej alla! I hope the holidays went well for everyone! It was very nice to have the family visit in Sweden. We had a really great time both in Uppsala and Stockholm. Instead of coming back to Yakima right away like a good son would, I went immediately from the airport to the U district to see friends and celebrate the new year. Granted, I was not very coherent once we hit about 11 that evening, but hey, it was worth it.

I'm home now in Yakima hanging out with mom and dad which has been very nice. They keep saying that I'm bored but I'm really not. I've been doing a bit of reading, watching (beautiful) football, and (as you can see from the picture) I went skiing today by myself up at White Pass. It was great because all of the kids were in school and all of the people my age were working so it was Karl and the pensioners up on the trails this morning.

I'm going to be heading for Seattle over the weekend to visit with my advisor in the Scandinavian department and watch the Seahawks game with Seth. Its nice to be back, even for only a few days.

2006-12-27T17:55:00.000+01:00

We're having a good time as a reunited family! Can you tell?!? Just wanted to let everyone know that we've migrated down to Stockholm and are really enjoying ourselves. I've been trying to add new photos every day for people to see in my photobucket album. Check them out if you have time.

Yesterday we drove south for three hours to Ukna, a small town outside of Vastervick, to visit some (very) distant family members. It is quite humorous actually because both sides of my dad's family live within roughly two kilometers of one another. short trip. Unfortunately I was forced into using my Swedish in front of my family but I think it helped to convince my parents that their tuition money isn't going down the drain.

We're heading for the Vasa ship museum tomorrow morning and the national art museum in the afternoon. We head back to the states at 3am on Sunday and should be back in the afternoon. Seasons greetings to everyone at home!

2006-12-24T17:46:00.000+01:00

Hej!
This is a guest blog by Karl's dad, Scott Peterson.
We are visiting Karl from Yakima and are having a great time as I write this on Christmas Eve. We have visited the old city, Gamla Uppsala, lit a candle for my mother at the old cathedral, went to the downtown area of Uppsala including the main Cathedral which you can see in the photo above. What a magnificent building! We plan to go to Christmas Eve services there tonight if we can get in. They were rehearsing Handel's Messiah there yesterday in Swedish. What a hoot!
It is cold here, about 20 degrees F, with a little wind but no snow which is nice for us and traveling but the Swedes are disappointed to not have a white Christmas. Going to Stockholm tomorrow and hope to visit relatives in Ukna on Tuesday, the day after Christmas.
God Jul to you all!

2006-12-18T11:18:00.000+01:00

Seasons greetings! Happy Christmas, Merry Hanukkah, Yay Quanza, and Fantastic Festivus! Three days until the family arrives on Friday and the temperature is dropping in accordance. For the past two months it has snowed only once on the first of November, and it has pretty much been hovering around 40 degrees Fahrenheit for the rest of the time. I've finished one of my novels and started the next, but yesterday I had an epiphany: I really should read a book in Swedish *especially* while I am at home because I won't hear the language for nearly a month. So I picked up a book by Jonas Gardell yesterday who is, according to hearsay, the funniest author in Sweden. We shall see.

Everyone has gone home except for Myself and Mike. Most of my room mates are still around, however a large number of them are moving out at the end of the term. Seven of the twelve people in the corridor are leaving so three Swedes and two exchange students shall remain. It will be nice to have a few new faces around.

I'm off to the gym and perhaps a cup of coffee at the Linnea (they have excellent luciabullar). Hope to hear from you all this Christmas and give me a ring after I'm home on the first of January, I've got lots of catching up to do before I head back for Spring term! God Jul!

2006-12-14T05:04:00.000+01:00

Done! Done is what I am, and I am the one who is done! Classes ended on Tuesday night around 8pm for me, so Caley, Jim, Jessie, Duncan, and I headed out to the nations to celebrate. I slept in today (it was great) and headed into town on a Christmas mission. For the past couple of years I've always picked up a book from the "Karl wants to read" list, as opposed to the "Karl is required by his classes to read" list, to read over Christmas break. So I picked up The sun also rises by Hemingway AND Tortilla Flat by Steinbeck. It might not be enough however because I'm already about a quarter of the way through The sun and I've only had it for about 6 hours. I think I subconsciously picked two American authors on purpose.

Even though classes are done I've got to figure out what to do with my extra time now. Tomorrow I'm going to head to the gym and take my book to a nice quiet cafe in town. Several of my friends are leaving tomorrow and more will be gone by the end of the week. Jim is heading back to California to see his family and Duncan is taking Caley with him for Christmas in Britain. Its rather sad to see some of the people go who are only signed up for autumn term but on the other hand we'll have a whole new set of people to "indoctrinate" as Caley calls it.

Here's an interesting update for you all on the love life front: I asked a very nice German girl named Melanie to coffee on Saturday. I had class with her and finally got up the courage to ask her out on the last day of lectures. Unfortunately she is heading home for Christmas soon as well, so I'll only have a chance to talk to her once before I leave the country for a month. Bah! Good things don't come to those who wait, the go back to Germany for Christmas. Alright, more to come as things progress. God Jul!

2006-12-10T03:32:00.000+01:00

God Jul Allesammans! (Merry Christmas Everybody!) This is a fun picture of me and the roommates getting ready for Christmas time. You can see our gingerbread house at the end of the table and everyone is enjoying a piping hot glass of glogg which is mulled wine with almonds and raisins. Yum! Pictures from left to right is Charlie (Swedish), Lisa (Swedish), Katerina (Swedish), Goofball (U,S, and A), Bruno (french), Jenny (Swedish), Angelica (Swedish), and Peter (English). It took nearly all afternoon to bake saffron buns and gingerbread for cookies and the house but it was well worth it for the camaraderie...and the great food. This country may make me fat. Check out the pictures!

I have one examination left before my Christmas break begins. Unfortunately most of my friends are heading home at some point during the next week so I will have a few solitary days before the twenty second when Mom, Dad, and Kristina arrive. My plan is to get a good book that I've always wanted to read, a hot cup of tea, and a nice window seat in a cafe...when there is light. Today the sun went down at about two in the afternoon, but there are only ten days left until the winter solstice.

I'm also going to head to IKEA after Tuesday and get some Christmas lights to lighten the room up a bit. Hopefully the temperature will stay where it has been for the last three weeks so that I can keep riding my bike around town. I did pretty well when it snowed at the beginning of November, but I'm a little worried about the months between January and April. I've actually noticed that my thighs are bigger due to the fact that my bike has only two gears and the wind here tends to always blow in the opposite direction I am trying to ride.

Last week Duncan and I began writing a musical to chronicle our time here in Sweden. We've got several options for titles, my favorite being "I love the smell of Europe in the morning!" We've got a few ideas for songs chronicling a few adventures we've had here thus far including our boat trip to Finland and a crazy evening in Stockholm that shall remain vague for several reasons. (ha ha, nervous laughter...) Anyway, hope everything is going well with folks at home. Be sure to hug those closest to you in the next few weeks, you never know when they'll move to Sweden and miss hugs.

2006-12-03T19:27:00.000+01:00

Happy Tacksgiving...even though it is a week late! (That's a fun combination of the Swedish word for "thank you" and the best holiday ever!) It was a big success this year to spite the obvious absence of mom's green jello salad. Jim managed to order two twelve pound turkeys from a specialty meat shop in town. We did everything from scratch, which i thought was really amazing. Duncan and I ripped up bread, chopped onion, sage, and parsley, and threw it all together for some really great stuffing. We also made way too many potatoes, just for future reference don't buy ten kilograms of potatoes when twelve guests only eat 2 kilograms. My fridge is bursting with left over potatoes, I think I'm going to have to throw them out. I've uploaded some pictures of the evening for everyone to see!

Three more tests to go and then I am done next Tuesday! I can't wait for Christmas, all of the stores around town have trees in their windows and decorations up. I'm rather conflicted because I would like snow for Christmas, but you know what? I'm okay without it too. It is pretty, but makes life very difficult if your primary mode of transportation is a bike.

It is quite strange to think that the term is almost over and I am nearly half way through the year! It seems like yesterday when I got off the plane and was scarred out of my mind. Oh well! More to come this week, Happy December everyone!

2006-11-24T20:23:00.000+01:00

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone at home! Be thankful for your mother's turkey, because you don't know what you've lost until it is gone. I learned that the hard way this year when I had the same old thing for dinner on Thursday night. I did however feel pretty good about myself because I at least knew that Thursday was my favorite holiday. Jim was quite distraught when he realized he'd missed it.

Not much to report at this time to be honest, I've been cooped up in my room reading my book and trying madly to figure out five pages-worth of Swedish by Tuesday. And speaking of Tuesdays, the next three are going to prove quite interesting because I have a "tentamen" (final exam) on each of the next three. A speaking test this coming, a written the following, and who knows what the third is going to be like! Anyway, I taking it one day at a time and I'm starting to really feel confident with the language though my professor tells me I need to adopt Swedish colloquialisms, but those can wait. I need to get down a workable vocabulary first.

For everyone at home here is a fun list of things to say in Swedish:

Swedish
Phonetic
Meaning in English

Hej!
Hey!
Hello!

Hur ar dig?
Hure air dey?
How are you?

Vad ar klockan?
Vad air clock an?
What is the time?

Var ligger mina underbyxor?
Var leeger meena under beeyxer?
Where are my underpants?

Jag har tre ben.
Ya har tre ben.
I have three legs.

Har du sett ostfabriken?
Har dew set oost fabric en?
Have you seen the cheese factory?

and lastly...

Jag langtar valdigt mycket efter min familj.
Ya laangtar vaaldit mewket effter meen family.
I miss my family very much.

2006-11-19T17:11:00.000+01:00

Hello everyone! Sorry I haven't updated in a while, I've been very busy with school work preparing for my exams coming up over the next two weeks. I do however have some news of interest! Last night I attended a real Swedish smorgasbord for the first time. A few weeks ago my roommate Katarina invited me to come to a smorgasbord hosted by a group on campus called inter pol, a club for political science students. I didn't know anyone else who would be attending, but hey, when in Rome...

Upon arrival we had champagne and time for mingling, so I put on my friendly face and met several very nice Swedes. I even spoke Swedish for the better part of the evening which was a real confidence booster. It also helped me feel like I should have been there because it was probably even more lucrative for my studies than simply sitting in my room with a dictionary.

The food and song were wonderful. We had meatballs, sausages, herring (as pictured above), potatismos (kind of like potatoes au gratin), smorgaskaka (the most interesting part of the meal, a kind of cake but with salmon paste and mayonnaise), and chokoladbular (chocolate balls). There was probably more, but I was so stuffed I can't really remember.

This coming week is going to be very busy for me but once I get past Tuesday it should lighten up a bit. The worst part of the week is that I won't get to celebrate thanksgiving with my family at home. Several of my American acquaintances are planning on getting together for a dinner. But nothing compares to mom's turkey, stuffing, crescent rolls, and (my favorite) green jello salad. Okay, I can't keep writing about that or it will make me homesick...mostly for mom's cooking.

Lastly, I woke up incredibly befuddled due to the score of the apple cup. Washington...won? Now wait just a minute. We managed to win with a backup quarterback and on top of that we just plain aren't good? Yeah, that sounds like the apple cup. Congratulations to everyone back at home and I hope you're all partying because that was our bowl game (and the best part is, it was the cougs bowl game too because we won).

2006-11-12T23:50:00.000+01:00

Life in Uppsala is chugging along normally. I had a nice relaxed weekend of studying and...relaxing. I get to read a Swedish novel for one of my classes so I've chosen "Nils Holgerssons Underbara Resa" which is "The Wonderful Adventures of Nils" in English. It is a very famous Swedish book by Selma Lagerlof. So famous in fact that she is on one side of the twenty crown note and a depiction of the story is on the other. It's slow going but I'm picking up a good amount of vocab from it. For example "luft" means "air". I had no idea.

Tonight I ventured across the street to building 10 with Peter, Angelica, and Ulrika to have dinner. Normally this wouldn't be newsworthy, however the dinner did include moose so I thought it was worth reporting. I thought it would be gamey but it was quite delicious and evidently good for you as well. I asked where they got it thinking that it had to be procured through a butcher or some specialty shop but you can in fact buy it at the local ICA.

Jim informed me today that the ICA downtown has an "American Food" section. He listed off a number of items that didn't really jump out at me but I'm going to be in town tomorrow so I might as well see if I can find two things I genuinely do miss: Ranch dressing and refried beans. What I wouldn't give for a burito.

The next few weeks are going to be a bit hectic so I'm apologizing in advance if there is a lack of updates, but I'm going to try to keep them up every few days. Today marks exactly 1 month left of fall term for me which is showing me that time is really starting to fly by. I better get studying. From Sweden with love:

Karl

2006-11-09T16:22:00.000+01:00

Well, I've just returned from a trip to Helsinki with Duncan, Ryan, and Mike. We had a great time on the "ferry" and Helsinki is a very beautiful city. Come to think of it we spent more time on the ship in transit between Sweden and Finland than we did in Finland. But that wasn't really a problem due to the fact that it was basically a cruise ship with a club, several restaurants, duty free store, and a latvian acrobatics show (Duncan and I went twice). We did however not spring for the deluxe cabin on the same level as the casino and instead were in the bowels of the ship under both car decks in the very bow of the ship. Duncan felt that it was important to note that if the ship hit anything we would be the first to die.

We arrived in Helsinki at ten in the morning and spent about six hours running around looking at all kinds of things. I kept the streak up of nearly being hit by a tram, so that makes Goteburg, Amsterdam, and Helsinki. I need to make sure that the next city I visit doesn't have them. We visited several churches as well as a very impressive monument to a Russian emperor which we couldn't figure out why it was still there since the Finns don't really care for the Russians. We also hit the Helsinki historical museum which had a really neat exhibit on maps and cartography. For a few pictures from the trip click here!

Sitting here I find myself swaying a bit. Hopefully that will go away in the next few hours. I don't see any big plans on the horizon to speak of yet but I'm sure something will come up. The roads are now all clear of snow which means that it is supposed to snow this weekend, but I'm staying optimistic! At least now we have a sled and not trays from McDonalds.

2006-11-05T13:57:00.000+01:00

Hooray snow! It arrived early this year in Uppsala according to the Swedes that I live with. We got about a foot of snow on the first of November and a bit more in past few days, which have been very exciting due to the high amount of sledding we have been doing. First we tried using the trays from the local McDonalds but they were quite flimsy and our hind parts are larger than we originally thought. So Jim and Duncan invested in a real sled the following day. It has been a lot of fun watching Jim because he is from California and this is the first time he has EVER gotten to play in the snow. I've got some pictures up if you would like to see them. I also put up a few videos for the folks with broadband connections.

Last night I attended the Mozart requiem at the Cathedral with some friends. The music was beautiful (though the french horn player needed a little more practice) and quite moving. I'm off to play basketball at the gym with Duncan and Caley this afternoon. More to come soon!

2006-11-01T14:56:00.000+01:00

Hej pÃ¥ dig! Well, compare this picture to the last one and you'll have an idea of the weather right now. The wind is also blowing pretty hard so the snow is starting to drift. Admittedly, I haven't actually gone out in it yet, unless you count the ride home last night after all hallows eve. It was snowing but none of it was sticking..andd then I woke up to this.

We had a pretty good time last night. I hung out with batman, superman, a ninja turtle, an eggplant, a pirate, a convict, and team zissou. Unfortunately for us the Swedes are much more serious concerning the holiday. Many of them were dressed as ghouls and zombies while we were just goofy. But hey! We had a great time, though come to think of it, I didn't get any candy. Shame really.

Next week on Tuesday I we're planning a trip toHelsinki, Finland aboard the Viking Line ferry. Mike, Ryan (from the UW Swedish club), Duncan, and myself have reserved a cabin for four. Ferry is not the right word to describe the ship, it is more like a cruise ship to be honest. The ship leaves port overnight and arrives the next morning, which will be great because we will have all day in Helsinki on Wednesday before we catch it back to Stockholm. I don't really know what is in Helsinki, but Ryan has been several times and should know where all of the best things to see are.

Well, I need to head to ICA (grocery store) so I suppose I should brave the storm. I should have realized that since it can rain here all day, for several days, it can probably do the same thing with snow. Wish me luck...

2006-10-26T16:46:00.000+02:00

Hej alla! Autumn has definitely arrived this week. The temperature has dropped to just above freezing and it has rained straight for the last few days. This is the view from my room and as you can see the leaves have turned. Charlie, my Swedish roommate, told me last night that this is when you have to be most careful on your bike. When the leaves fall they clump together and soak up water. If the temperature falls under freezing it can be very dangerous.

I can also tell that the days are getting shorter. As I'm writing this the sun is falling under the horizon and it is only 4:52 in the afternoon. The reality of classes and life here has soaked back in and its time to hit the books. I have a big final examination ("tentamen") tomorrow in my Swedish grammar class. Its been tough on the old self esteem but I'm going to do my best.

Mike is heading for Stockholm this weekend to visit some friends. He invited me along but I have to pass unfortunately because I only have $26 dollars left in my monthly budget. That should buy enough meatballs to get into November. No other pressing news comes to mind, so I'll talk to you all soon!

2006-10-24T15:35:00.000+02:00

Well it was a wonderful trip! The people that I traveled with were great, our hosts were very gracious, and it was one of the best experiences of my life. At the time my picture taking was probably very annoying, but now I'm very glad that I took so many. If you want to check them out click here. They are a combination of mine and Jessie's so the order is not perfect.

Ben (my friend from Seattle) met us on Wednesday when we arrived at Schipol Airport with Maurits Naaijkens who we stayed with during our trip. We started out the trip right by getting on the wrong train and ending up in Rotterdam. Maurits told us that the conductors hardly ever check tickets so we could just hope on the next train going the other way. Unfortunately he was wrong and Jim and I were the first to be asked for our tickets. We pleaded ignorance and he let us off with a warning which was very nice, seeing as how the punishment for not having a ticket is one hundred euros. We made it into Amsterdam (a bit late) and met Noor (Ben's girlfriend) for dinner, then went for a night walk through downtown.

Jessie, Jim, and I met Ben the next day in Dam square and headed for the Amsterdam Historical Museum. We spent nearly four hours there learning about Dutch history. Later on we walked through the red light district which, to be honest, was not that great. I was expecting something like Vegas with lights everywhere and hundreds of people, but it was just sleazy.

On Friday we slept in and went into the city alone to really get our bearings and explore. We found and English pub called "the three sisters" in Rembrandt square and had a hearty English breakfast. On our way to the Rembrandt house we came across an outdoor photo exhibit that entertained us for quite some time. We had coffee outside of the house and hopped on bus #22 to the "brouweij 't IJ" in West Amsterdam. It was a neat little microbrewery that served only the Amsterdam area. That night Noor and her housemates threw us a big party. We met a bunch of nice people but had an interesting time trying to get from her apartment in East Amsterdam to Maurits' in the West.

The next day we headed out into the countryside. The first stop was a clog making factory where was saw a clog made in under four minutes. The next stop was the Henry Willig cheese farm. We bought the "dynamite recipe" which is the secret recipe and ate in the back of the bus on the way to Volendam. When we were there it started to rain, but it was a beautiful little fishing village, so we didn't let the weather get to us.

On Sunday we went to the Rijks Museum and saw the Masterworks of Rembrandt, which were amazing. Words cannot describe how beautiful his works are. The "night watch" was breathtaking as well as an exhibit with his sketches. We had a picnic in Vondel park that afternoon and went to the Heineken brewery that afternoon. We treated ourselves to a steak dinner after eating fast food all weekend and it was really nice. We met Ben and Noor for a goodbye drink and headed back to Maurits' house.

The next morning we hopped a train and headed for the airport. We all agreed that it was a great trip. Give me a call or write me an email if you want to know more! Now back to the real world of class and tests...

2006-10-18T00:05:00.000+02:00

Today I'm off to Amsterdam in the Netherlands! The land of windmills, canals, and the infamous red light district. I will be accompanied by Jim (a loud and very friendly American from California) and Jessie (a Canadian with something to prove). Ben is planning on meeting us at the airport tomorrow evening and taking us to Noor's house.

We've got a few ideas of what we want to do, but haven't fully planned the trip. I think I like it that way. There are a few things that we've decided that we have to do: The Anne Frank house, the heineken brewery, and the Rembrandt museum. There have been rumblings about a windmill tour as well as a clog factory, we'll see how crazy we get!

I'm going to pick up something Swedish for Noor as a thank you gift for putting us up during our stay. We'll be back on Monday the 23rd and I will try to have an update with pictures as soon as I can. I have a presentation the following day, so it may be a bit until I can really sit down and do the blog properly. Wish me luck!

2006-10-14T17:29:00.000+02:00

Hello everyone! Sorry I haven't updated in several days. This is due to several reasons, first being that I don't really have anything newsworthy happening during the week. The second reason is the fact that my Swedish grammar class is winding to a close and I'm trying to put forth my best effort...did you believe me?

On Friday afternoon I got together with a few guys and played my first game of "aussie rules football." It was much fun and I'm not one to boast but I thought I was pretty good at it from the start. It combines soccer, American football, rugby, and ultimate Frisbee into one ridiculous game. You can tackle other players if they have the ball, you can kick the ball on the ground or if you want to pick it up that works too but you can only carry it fifteen steps before it has to come in contact with the ground again. I know that doesn't make a lot of sense, but it was very funny to watch Jim try to dribble an oval shaped ball! It was raining, we got covered in scratches and mud, and had a great time! We got some very funny looks when we walked into the Norrlands pub after the game covered in dirt and grass stains.

Tonight I attended "English cultural night" out at the eklundhoff international dorm. We played a few English games, such as "bulldog", and had an English dinner. The dishes included some interesting pies, "toad in the hole", and "spotted dick." afterwards we had a impromptu play which involved a bunch of very important English people in a hotair balloon, quite funny. And lastly we had a pub quiz about English topics. I had two Spanish and two French students on my team, whereas some of the other teams actually had Brits on their team. We didn't win.

Mike and I are attending a Mozart festival at the cathedral tomorrow night which should prove to be lots of fun! As I was walking home from class the other night I heard the Mozart requiem coming from the top floor of one of the buildings just next to the cathedral. I found out that they are putting that on in a month or so and I am really looking foreword to hearing my favorite piece of music in that setting. Its going to be great!

We leave for Amsterdam at noon on Wednesday next week, I'm really looking forward to seeing Ben and Noor. It will be nice to have a place to stay, as well as a real Amsterdam...ian to take us around the city. More to come soon!

2006-10-09T20:47:00.000+02:00

Here's a lovely photo of me in Stockholm during our shopping trip. I realized that I wore the exact same shirt the last time I went to Stockholm, but I swear this is a new picture.

Today I learned the true meaning of "cold snap." I mean I've heard the phrase many times, but never really experienced it. Today the temperature didn't get above 50 degrees, which was strange because they day before we had temperatures in the sixties. I went out without this knowledge wearing only a tshirt and a hooded sweatshirt and just about froze on my way to Mike's apartment. I can see that Autumn has arrived. Most people are wearing heavy coats and scarves around town and the leaves are starting to turn. Mike and I are planning on taking an afternoon for photos of the foliage here around Uppsala, hopefully those will be up in a few days time.

Mom has been very nice by sending me letters every week along with articles and pictures of the Husky football team from the paper. I've had a brilliant idea: I'm going to call the athletic department and tell them about the direct correlation between the number of wins that the huskies have and the number of miles I am from Seattle. I'm going to threaten coming home and ruining their season unless the athletic department will compensate me for my time in Sweden. I think maybe five hundred dollars per game sounds about right? And honestly! What is five hundred dollars per game to them? Nothing. It is literally a win/win situation.

My British friend Duncan is trying to organize an aussie rules football team here in Uppsala. This is like rugby, but with less tackling and dying. He wants me to play because of my vast knowledge of American football, oh how disappointed he will be. Hopefully if this comes through we'll have some interesting pictures to go with the bruises.

Well, I've got to buckle down for the week and actually do some studying. I really can't be behind in my studies when the Amsterdam trip rolls around next week.

2006-10-06T19:32:00.000+02:00

Hello everybody! Don't worry, that isn't my bike (its too nice), I just wanted to show everyone some of the things that go on around my apartment complex. "Flogsta" is a very interesting place to live. There are twelve buildings in the complex of which 8 are student housing. The others are state owned apartments which are mostly given to immigrants coming into the country seeking political asylum.

The complex lies about six kilometers from the city which provides a lovely bike ride through forest and a couple of wheat fields. However, I just realized that it is going to be very cold come January! Good thing I bought new boots today in Stockholm.

An interesting tradition also exists here called the "flogsta scream." Each night at exactly 10 P.M. students who are still working on their homework lean out of their windows and let out a stress relieving scream. I think over the years the tradition has changed a bit so that everyone can scream whether homework is involved or not. I found a video of the scream for those of you who have broadband and would like to witness firsthand what it is like. The video was definitely taken in the springtime because it is light out. Also it is taken from the building I live in very close to where my room is! So if you would like to see my view be sure to check it out!

2006-10-04T17:10:00.000+02:00

This is my posse from left to right: Duncan, Caley, goofball, and Jim. On Friday night we decided to check out "Birgir Jarl's" (pronounced "burger yarls") a night spot just down the hill from Uppsala castle. I don't really think Duncan or Caley were ready for this picture to be taken.

I have the week off from one of my three classes and it has been wonderful! That class actually ends in three weeks and I am not ashamed to say that I am counting down the days.

I joined the student gym today before a rousing game of basketball (which I am still not good at). I thought maybe in the two years that have passed since the last time I tried to play basketball my skills may have improved dramatically, but alas, I was disappointed.

In other news, my corridor-mates informed me of a long standing tradition involving a wake up call at 7 in the morning coupled with calisthenics. As some of you are painfully aware: I am not a morning person, never have been. But I'm going to give this the good old college try, at least for a few weeks, haha!

Duncan informed me last night that there is a possible trip in the works to London in November. His sister lives there and could provide floor space for sleeping AND ryanair.com offers a round trip flight from Stockholm to London for under eighty dollars. I may not be able to pass up a deal this good. Possible London activities include: premier league football game, the premier of 077: Casino Royal, and all of that other touristy stuff that MUST be done. More to come as plans develop!

2006-10-01T13:34:00.000+02:00

Greetings from Gammla (old) Uppsala! North of what is Uppsala proper, lies a tiny but incredibly important historical site for Viking and Early monarchic Sweden. There are three large burial mounds at this site for several kings of the (lets see if I can spell this) yngling dynasty. It was a very rainy day but that didn't stop us from checking out the museum, burial mounds, and medieval church that exist on the site. Click here if you'd like to read more about the historic site. I also took a few pictures myself if you'd like to see them.

I can't believe it is already October! I can't decide if time has flown by or if it took forever to get here, but here we are no matter what. Classes are going...well, though there have been several bumps along the way. The European collegiate system is quite different from the one that I am used to. Instead of the university setting the term of study, the individual colleges do. Normally a student will have classes one after another, usually at monthly intervals. I have three classes right now all happening at the same time. However, one of my classes ends at the end of this month, so to be honest I am looking forward to that.

I am working on plans to take a trip to Amsterdam some time this month. I have a few friends who live there and have graciously allowed me to sleep on their couch. I've found a good price on airline tickets as well as a Canadian travel buddy who is willing to tag along. We haven't decided exactly what to see while we're there but we do know that there is a clog making factory somewhere. And who goes to Amsterdam and doesn't see a windmill? If any of you readers have been to Amsterdam and know of something that must be seen, let me know before I go! More to come as the trip gets closer!

2006-09-28T14:09:00.000+02:00

Hello everyone! Just wanted to let you know that I changed the settings on my blog so that you don't have to be a member to leave me comments. I had no idea that this was the setup until one of my friends let me know.

Life is chugging along here in Uppsala. I went downtown to check out a hotel for the family when they come to visit in December. Christmas time is very interesting in Sweden. Unlike the US, the big day is Christmas eve. There is nothing open on that day and some places, even hotels, will not be open. So it should be an interesting day when they come.

I'm currently writing a paper for my general Swedish class about "systembolaget" the government owned liquor monopoly here in Sweden. All wine, spirits, and beer over 3.5% alcohol value must be purchased at these stores. Very interesting stuff.

This weekend is going to be a bit more quiet than the last few. We may head up to Gammla Uppsala (Old Uppsala) to see the Viking burial mounds. It is starting to cool off here as well. I can see the leaves are starting to change and the temperature has been in the upper teens. That is the low sixties for you Fahrenheit users at home. Haha, don't worry. It isn't that cold...yet.

2006-09-24T23:40:00.000+02:00

UPDATE: Stockholm!!!

Well, I finally made it to Stockholm after living in Sweden for more than a month. Mike and I took lots of pictures throughout the day. It was a beautiful day without a cloud in the sky. I'm afraid there won't be many days left like the one we had.

Mike and I bought our tickets out of Uppsala at 7 in the morning and we in TCentralen by 8. The great thing about Stockholm is the fact that all subway trains intersect right under the train station. We bought 24 hour passes, which was a really good idea because they paid for themselves after the third ride.

We headed for Gammalstan (Old Town) from the train station, which is an area rich in Swedish history. We saw stortorget (Big Square) which is where the Stockholm bloodbath occurred in 15...something. We also took a tour of Domkyrkan (Head Cathedral) and saw the statue of St. George and the Dragon, another important figure in Scandinavian history. The Riksdag (Swedish Parliament) was about three minutes walk from here as well as the palace where we saw the changing of the guard at noon.

Across the water is Stadshuset (City Hall) where the Nobel Prize banquet is held. We took the tour and got to see the city hall chamber as well as the golden hall. We met a few friends from the UW Swedish club for lunch and then headed out to Skansen in Djurgarden which lies east of downtown. We saw a moose, reindeer, a glass blowing shop, Swedish bakery, and a working windmill.

We headed back into town and caught the tunnelbahn into north Stockholm and had dinner at Ryan and Meaghan's house. Afterwards we caught the midnight train back to Uppsala. It was a big day and my feet are killing me but it was an experience I wouldn't trade for anything in the world!

2006-09-18T23:56:00.000+02:00

It's gasque time! A gasque is an Uppsala university tradition dating back hundreds of years. The members of each nation gather at their perspective houses in the afternoon and march to the university house steps. I was particularly proud of the fact that my nation was the only one with a marching band leading the march. The nations gathered inside of the main building and heard welcome speeches from many prominent university personnel. There were also a number of choirs and a big band. After this we headed back to the nation house for our own private festivities. I purchased our nations song book in preparation for the evening.

Before entering the nation house we gathered for champagne. The band played as we entered the house and I got paired up with a lovely girl from Stockholm by the name of Sandra. Mike, Peter, and I were all near each other at the same table. We had a great time during the dinner which included singing, the nation choir, the band (again), and standing on chairs...several times.

After the dinner we had a big party that lasted until the wee hours of the morning. All in all it was a great experience and evidently there are several of them throughout the year. I put up a bunch of photos for everyone. Hope you enjoy them!

2006-09-13T22:31:00.000+02:00

This is the bike I bought from a used bike shop on Kungsgatan. It has a basket, bell, dynamo engine that powers the two lights, and a suspiciously broken lock. I'm just going to pretend that I didn't buy a stolen bike. When I went to the bike shop to have the back tire replaced I asked the repair fellow how old the bike was. He told me that it was 35 years old! And here's the kicker, it is Norwegian. bah! Well, it gets me from point A to point B, though sometimes I wonder if the brakes will go out and I'll end up at point C. Anyway, every time I get on the bike it is an adventure, which is just the way I like it.

I put some new pictures up as well from around town, and I finally got some from inside the cathedral. Check them out if you have time!

2006-09-11T23:57:00.000+02:00

I can't believe it. The Swedes have managed to bottle it. Their bottling technology is lightyears ahead of ours! And don't just assume they have one kind of fun, there is grape fun, apple fun, cran/grape fun...the list goes on.

2006-09-09T17:04:00.000+02:00

Today I headed out to ICA which is the state owned and operated grocery store. I bought lots of Swedish food in an attempt to get more into the the culture. One of my flat-mates Angelina came with me and helped me learn all about Swedish cheese. Evidently the Americans can't really name cheese because she had no idea what Swiss cheese was.

We've got a pick up football (soccer, for those of you at home) game at the field behind my dorm. I'm not as good as the Europeans but I haven't been picked last yet.

Tonight there is a big multicultural festival in Uppsala. There are lots of foods from around the world as well as ethnic dancing and traditions. Mike and I are planning to go to the cathedral to hear the choir as well as an organ recital. I'm really looking forward to it!

2006-09-08T16:46:00.000+02:00

Hello to everyone at home in the good 'ol USA! This is going to be my blog for the next ten months while I’m living in Uppsala, Sweden. I’m going to be updating as much as possible about interesting people I meet, strange situations I get myself into, and general news. Feel free to post any questions if you have any or if you just want to leave a message that my help the initial homesickness.

I’ve met lots of people in the two weeks that I’ve been here. I think my parents are a bit disappointed because most of the friends I’ve made are other international students. My best “mate” is a lovely chap from Britain who lives across the hall from me. Peter arrived a few weeks before I did and really helped me get to know Uppsala. I just returned from a trip to göteborg yesterday with a few friends, all from around the world. If you would like to see some of the pictures I’ve taken thus far in my travels you can view them by clicking here.

Also if you’d like to read about my new university there is a quite thorough page on wikipedia, as well as this one about the town of Uppsala.

Feel free to email me even just to say hi karlpete@u.washington.edu