DIS is (Stock)HOME

A long-time favorite song of mine has been “Bucket List” by Mitchell Tenpenny. The 2021 hit from the rising country artist stands out to me because of its catchy melody and lyrical meaning of living life to its fullest and appreciating the beauty of the world and those around you. Not only was “Bucket List” a song that I listened to on my commute to class every day but more importantly was one in which its message resonated with me and best represented my semester abroad in Stockholm.

A view of Södermalm, a southern area of Stockholm. Does this view look familiar? (Hint: scroll up!)

There were many reasons why I decided to study abroad, from the desire to explore a new city and experience different cultures to meeting other students from different universities. I loved my home university but was ready to leave its bubble and the monotonous routine I had developed and challenge myself to live and study halfway around the world. Back in January as time got closer to actually leaving for Sweden, I made an agenda of things I wanted to do and accomplish during my time abroad, my personal study abroad “bucket list” if you will, and I am happy to say that I was able to do just that.

Left to right: Hulan, Alex, me, Meghan, and Mikael in Gamla Stan.

Establishing and growing meaningful friendships was at the top of my bucket list. Perhaps the biggest reason why I asked to switch from the Copenhagen program to Stockholm was that I wanted the smaller student population and to not know anyone in the program prior to coming. While studying abroad with friends and classmates from home sounded like fun, I wanted to have a break from my home university and be fully present in Scandinavia. However, not knowing anyone in an entire program came with the anxiety of having to make new friends and arriving in Sweden not knowing anybody. I knew deep down that I was going to make friends, but I couldn’t help but feel nervous about being alone in Stockholm and thousands of miles away from everyone I knew. The day I arrived in Stockholm, I ended up at Paddy’s Pub with a group of DIS students from my student housing. I was nervous and still overwhelmed by all the traveling and moving in but figured that it would be good to socialize with the kids I would be living with for the next four months. That first night at Paddy’s was so much fun and I distinctly remember thinking to myself that this was going to be ok and that I made the right decision to go to Stockholm.

Left to right: Me, Hulan, Alex, Mikael, Meghan, and Brooke at Paddy’s Pub celebrating the last day of the program.

Since that first night, my friendships with those DIS students, as well as other friends I have made along the way, have only grown and truly made my study abroad experience so much more fun. It is cool to think that we all came from the United States, but it took being in Stockholm at the same time for us to meet and become as close as we did. Like me, because a lot of us came in not knowing anyone, all we knew about and how we perceived each other were what we were like right then and there in Stockholm and how we treated others, which I actually really enjoyed because it allowed us to be ourselves. It was special living next to your best friends abroad and people who you share so many fun and unique memories with. From riding the pendeltåg to DIS together to dancing all night together in the clubs on the weekend to the weekday nights in the common room when we all said we would be productive and do homework together but ended up just talking and laughing together for hours, time with these special people is what I will always first think about when reflecting on my time abroad. I met some of the most down-to-earth, adventurous, and genuine people, and I am so glad that DIS brought us together.

Top row, left to right: Mikael, Adam, Hulan, and me. Bottom row, left to right: Addie, Liz, Maya, and Maddie.

Taking challenging and interesting classes was the next item on my bucket list. The study tour trips to Gothenburg and Athens for my Positive Psychology core course were my favorite academic memories. From performing forum theatre in Gothenburg to Greek dancing in Athens at the foot of The Acropolis all while growing closer with my core course, our study tour trips consisted of memorable moments that I will remember for a very long time.

Sam, Reese, and me on our Long Study Tour to Athens, Greece.

My other classes were Swedish Language & Culture, Power of the Mind: Psychology of Performance, Psychology of Emerging Adulthood, and Public Health Emergencies and Health Crisis Management (DIS sure likes to make their course names as long as possible!). These classes not only challenged me to think critically about topics I had not learned about before but also piqued new academic and potential career interests. My favorite aspect of the classes I took at DIS was the professors and how personable they were. Not only were they truly accomplished teachers and individuals in their fields, but they were also super enthusiastic about our learning and genuinely cared about our well-being both as students and as individuals. I got to know all my professors really well this semester, and I enjoyed being able to talk to them about not just the course material but also their career paths and personal lives. They were a big reason why I enjoyed coming to class every day.

Our Public Health Emergencies and Health Crisis Management class on the last day of class. We met again the next week for a celebratory class lunch.

Immersing myself in Swedish culture was an item on my bucket list I wasn’t quite sure how to go about accomplishing. Because DIS is only made up of students from the United States, I was afraid that I wouldn’t meet any Swedes and just be stuck in an American bubble the entire time. However, DIS provided many opportunities for students to get involved around Stockholm, including being an English Language Mentor at Jensen Gymnasium, a local charter secondary school. Being an English Language Mentor was a lot of fun, and I really valued my time spent with the students and seeing first-hand what a school in Sweden looked like. I truly got to know these students through conversations about their school and their hopes and dreams after they graduate from secondary school. I also enjoyed answering their questions about American culture and what living in the United States was like. It was fun being able to compare our respective experiences and upbringing.

Me and Mr. Ioannou, the teacher for the class that I was an English Language Mentor for at Jensen Gymnasium.

I also immersed myself in Swedish culture through navigating Stockholm’s metro system and can confidently say that I can get to anywhere in the Stockholm area by public transportation. I feel comfortable in my ability to get around Stockholm, and it is neat seeing how things that seemed so foreign in the beginning have become such a consistent and natural part of my daily routine.

Left to right: Addie, Maddie, me, Hulan, and Liz in Stockholm.

Cherishing the little things was the last thing on my bucket list. There are so many parts of my study abroad experience that are not seen on social media or even on this blog but are what I will miss the most. All those mornings when I walked to SATS gym in the cold bundled up in layers asking myself why I chose to study abroad in Stockholm when I could have literally gone anywhere else in a warmer climate. Running into other DIS friends at SATS gym. The pendeltåg rides to class every day and having to run through Stockholm City Station from the pendeltåg to T-Centralen to not miss the next train and avoid being late for class. The time between my Swedish class and Power of the Mind class when I would hang out in the DIS kitchen warming up my leftovers for lunch in the microwave while socializing with friends. My afternoon walks around Sollentuna when it got nicer out enjoying the fresh air and catching up with friends. The night after going to Gröna Lund (Stockholm’s amusement park) when a group of us ate dinner at MAX at 11 pm and just sat and talked. Jumping into Edsviken, the body of water in Sollentuna at sunset on our last day. All the time spent in hostels, planes, and trains on weekend trips. The sushi restaurant on the first floor of my student housing that I ate at so often that when I walked in, they immediately knew my order. My daily snack of the ICA blueberry or chocolate muffins. All these memories are things not captured by photos and on social media but are the little things unique to my time in Stockholm and the people around me.

Edsviken, the body of water in Sollentuna in which we ran into on the last day of the program.

My time in Stockholm was nothing short of special. I am so grateful for the opportunity to study abroad and to have found a new community of people in Sweden. As sad as I am to be leaving, in a way I am happy that I feel this way because it is indicative of how special my time in Stockholm was and how much of an impact it had on me and my growth as an individual. Taking out everyone’s Swedish phone number from my contacts and replacing it with their American number shows that it’s not hejdå but vi ses. To my friends and all the special people I met through DIS, thank you for making the past few months a bucket list semester and Stockholm my new home. Until next time.

– Chris

Being honest

A few weeks ago, I had an assignment for my Psychology of Emerging Adulthood class in which we put together a PowerPoint presentation highlighting our study abroad experience thus far. The goal of the assignment was to allow us to share how our time in Stockholm has impacted us as both students and individuals. I really enjoyed creating and presenting this presentation, as I was able to truly reflect on my abroad experience and evaluate the positives and negatives of navigating a new school, new city, new country, and new people. This assignment was also right around the halfway point of the study abroad semester, so I used that as an opportunity to assess how I was doing and think of how I wanted to spend my second half in Sweden. Because this assignment has had such a profound impact on me, I wanted to share what I told the class with all of you.

A view of Stockholm with the sunset in the background from Skinnarviksberget, a lookout rock in Södermalm.

I think it is important to acknowledge that studying abroad is not all happy and positive every single second of every single day. Don’t get me wrong, I have had a lot of fun in Sweden thus far and cherish all of my experiences and memories, but there is this ideology and belief that studying abroad is easy and full of crazy, fun experiences. Essentially like a non-stop party, to put it bluntly. Social media plays a key role, as every day on Instagram, Snapchat, or other platforms people document their time abroad and make it seem like they are having a perfect time (to clarify, there is nothing wrong with doing that and social media should be a fun place to share cool things you have done with others, and I admit that I have done this too). And while we all know that social media doesn’t paint the entire picture, it is impossible not to get caught up in that and feel that your study abroad experience has to be like theirs and just as fun, if not more than theirs.

It is important to understand that everybody’s semester abroad is different and unique to themselves. Listening to my classmates’ presentations was very refreshing for me, as I quickly learned that a lot of us could relate to each other and were going through similar challenges. I found refuge in this class to be vulnerable and share various personal struggles I have encountered during my time in Stockholm.

Me on a hotel rooftop overlooking Stockholm.

A big struggle for me has been finding a balance between experiencing the social scene in Stockholm while sticking to my routine and prioritizing the important aspects of my life. The first few weeks of being in Stockholm consisted of me going out and hanging out with people most nights of the week. As a fresh-faced kid in Sweden trying to get the “abroad experience”, I didn’t want to miss any social function or opportunity to go out and meet people. As fun as those nights were, it would affect the following day and throw off my schedule and routines. From lack of sleep to just getting my day started later than usual, I knew that this was not me and that I needed to adjust my priorities.

The turning point of this was after my week-long trip to Italy, Austria, and Hungary during the first long study tour week. As much fun as that week was, I don’t think I have ever treated my body worse than during that time. From the lack of sleep to terrible eating habits and schedules, I got off the plane in Stockholm after the trip knowing that I needed to change my lifestyle. I kept justifying my lifestyle habits that were just not what I was used to by saying that I was only abroad once and that just a week of poor lifestyle choices was worth the fun I would have on that trip. Over the past few weeks, I have made an effort to cook more meals, take nights in and be to myself, and stick closer to my routine of exercising, healthy eating, and prioritizing my mental and physical health, which I have genuinely enjoyed. This past week, I withstood the burning temptation to go out with a lot of other DIS kids because I knew that I needed to take the night to work on an assignment for my home institution that was due that night and just relax. I was proud of myself for that.

Balancing friendships and family back home with newfound friendships in Stockholm has been a challenge that I really struggled with at first but have been improving with as of late. It was very tough being fully present and making new friends abroad while trying to maintain friendships from my home university. One night, I texted in a group chat with some of my home friends in which they all responded by saying that it was about time that I said anything to them since they had not heard from me in weeks since arriving in Stockholm. From then on, I have made a substantial effort to keep in touch with home friends and family and check in on them as well as update them on all that I am doing abroad and the new friends I have made. Social media has been helpful for that. This blog has also been a nice way to keep those back home updated on my time in Sweden!

Religion is a very important part of my identity and daily life, but since coming abroad I have struggled to keep that as much a priority as I did at home. Sweden in general is known to not be a super religious country at all, so I have found it challenging to relate to others when it comes to my religion and be super motivated to incorporate it into my life when the religious scene is next-to-none. Earlier in the semester, I looked up churches near my housing that I could go to on Sundays. After finding a church where services were spoken in English, I decided to just go see what it looked like during the weekday one day. However, there was no church to be found, and I wound up at an outdoor square. After that, I decided to continue my church searching, but it was hard to actually find the time to go to church since I was traveling to a new city every weekend and spending my Sundays flying back to Stockholm on an airplane. Recently, I have been prioritizing incorporating religion back into my daily life and have found it to be very instrumental in my well-being.

Typical architecture in downtown Stockholm.

I hope that this blog post has shown you that studying abroad is not all the constant gleam that you think it is and that it is ok to go through personal challenges while abroad. As I mentioned earlier, there is this notion that because you are only abroad once, you need to move at a million miles an hour and do all these things and have that “abroad experience”. While that lifestyle could truly be for some people, which I applaud (and envy a little bit), I have learned that my abroad experience is finding a routine and being able to balance my priorities and personal goals in a new setting. I have learned things that span well past the walls of the DIS classrooms and am excited to put those new pieces of knowledge to use in my remaining time in Stockholm.

Fell asleep in Sweden, woke up in Finland

A view of Helsinki, Finland from the Helsinki Cathedral, also known as St. Nicholas’ Church.

Last week, a group of us decided to take an overnight cruise to Helsinki, Finland for the weekend. This was a pretty last-minute travel plan, as I did not know that taking a cruise to Finland was a possible travel option until that Wednesday. I was excited about the trip because this would be my first time traveling since arriving in Stockholm, and I only knew a few people in the 12-person group traveling, so this would be a good opportunity to get to know more people. This would also be my first time ever on a cruise, and how many people can say that they took a cruise in the Baltic Sea in the middle of the winter? So, following my class on Friday, I packed my bags (yes, I know I always procrastinate packing and need to fix that) and took the train down to the water to board the MS Viking Cinderella cruise ship bound for Helsinki, Finland.

After dropping our bags off in our room, which was fairly cramped I must add, the four guys on the trip, Adam, Mikael, Zach, and I, walked around and explored the ship. After a full-group dinner in which I admit we were quite rambunctious and annoying to all of the other passengers trying to enjoy a nice dinner, we headed to the three-story club. Because of Covid restrictions, we had to stay in a group and dance amongst ourselves and, because everyone else was sitting down, we essentially provided all of the entertainment. A main character moment for sure.

The MS Viking Cinderella cruise ship travels overnight from Stockholm to Helsinki Friday night and Helsinki to Stockholm on Saturday night.

We arrived in Helsinki the next day mid-morning and the first thing I noticed was that the city was blanketed in snow. Walking the city streets with our shoes crunching in the snow (I definitely should have worn boots instead) and heavy snowflakes falling on our faces was a great representation of what a Scandinavian winter is truly like.

Because we only had five hours in Finland, we had to quickly pick and choose where we wanted to go. Our first stop was the Helsinki Cathedral, also known as St. Nicholas’ Church, arguably the city’s most famous and iconic attraction. We were not able to go inside, so we just spent our time taking pictures of the cathedral and climbing up the stairs in which a picturesque view of Helsinki awaited us. The walk down the icy steps was probably funny to see.

Left to Right: Zach, Adam, Mikael, and I in front of the White Cathedral, also known as St. Nicholas’ Church.

We eventually made our way to an all-you-can-eat Chinese buffet nearby for lunch. We wanted to go to a Finnish restaurant, but you can’t beat a buffet at a very reasonable price. After lunch, we wandered the streets of Helsinki and walked in and out of cafes and shops. An embarrassing moment came when Adam and I asked a worker for some Finnish cookies since Adam’s host mother said it was a must-eat in Finland and the worker replied that those did not exist and proceeded to make fun of us Americans, rightfully so, with her co-workers in Finnish.

Ice sculptures of tigers on a side street in Helsinki in honor of the Chinese New Year, the year of the tiger.

Courtesy of Meghan’s (one of the girls on the trip), recommendation, we visited Ateneum, an art museum. Formerly the home of two art schools, Ateneum is now a renowned art museum in Finland and part of the Finnish National Gallery. My favorite painting was The Fighting Capercaillies by Ferdinand Von Wright. One of Finland’s most popular paintings, Von Wright contrasts the violent tension of two birds fighting with the serenity of nature in the background.

Ferdinand Von Wright’s The Fighting Capercaillies at the Ateneum Art Museum in Helsinki.

We capped off our time in Finland with a walk by the water and a quick stop at a cool dock that gave us a close-up view of the frozen harbor and another nice view of Helsinki. We were fortunate to have two passes for a buffet dinner and breakfast on the overnight trip back to Stockholm. After dinner and a trip back to the club, us four guys spent time at the arcade playing air hockey (I beat Mikael 7-5) and getting to know one another while watching the repetitive motion of waves crashing against the side of the boat and disappearing into the darkness of the Baltic Sea. The next morning, a beautiful view of Stockholm greeted us.

My weekend trip to Helsinki was a great first trip. I had a lot of fun exploring a new city while getting to know the other people in our group better. A shoutout to Belize’s host mother who bought us the tickets and buffet passes! Tack så mycket!

This week is Core Course Week, a week designated for workshops, field studies, and a trip to another Swedish city with my core course. I am excited for Gothenburg (Göteborg) and to announce that I will be taking over the DIS Stockholm Instagram (@disstockholm) this Friday, February 11^th to bring you along for the day! Please follow along and feel free to ask any questions that you have, and I will be happy to answer them!