A Farewell Note*

It was all started in one of those dark and gloomy days in November 2017. During a regular browse on the Internet, I came across this announcement in The Newbie Guide to Sweden website where they’re looking for a volunteer blogger. It was naturally interesting for me because writing was the thing I wanted to invest myself in ever since I moved to Sweden, so I thought that could be a good opportunity.

But I hesitated at first

“What should I write? What’s so special about my experiences? Why would people read my stories?”

Then I realised that the idea of the blog section in the Newbie Guide website is to share stories of living in Sweden. Any story. It doesn’t have to be inspirational; it’s enough with being informational or even just personal.

Besides, living abroad is not always easy. Just like living elsewhere, it has its ups and downs. So if we can read other people experiences, it may not give you an instant solution but at least, it makes you feel that you’re not alone. I think that’s quite important when you’re living far from home.

So I decided to join the blogger team.

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Hayu Hamemayu2 Comments

Autumn Best Spots in Lund*

Every season has its own charm but for me there’s something about autumn that enchanting like no other seasons.

The crisp breeze. The sweetness in the air. The amazing colours when every leaf is a flower as Albert Camus puts it.

Maybe that’s just because I’m a hopeless romantic by nature. But regardless of your personality type, autumn is definitely one of the most beautiful times in Lund. It is when the old buildings in the city are covered in red vines and every lane turns into a yellow carpet.

So, if you’re new in Lund and wondering where to get instagrammable autumn pictures, here are my suggestions:

Lund University Library

This building at Helgonabacken has been the main library for Lund University (LU) since 1907 and is one of the most iconic buildings in Lund. When the season changes, it changes its appearance too due to the vines that cover most part of it. The look of it becomes brown or sometimes white on winter, green on spring and summer, and red in autumn.

The famous university library building. Photo by Hayu Hamemayu

With such a beauty, the picture of this building is probably the most used picture in every LU student’s desktop wallpaper 

The area around the library also offers a beautiful view of autumn as shady trees surround the building; some of them even create canopies above the streets.

Oh that yellow carpet. Photo by Hayu Hamemayu
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Hayu Hamemayu4 Comments

Jangan Menulis di Majalah Kartini

Keinginan untuk menuliskan hal ini sebenarnya sudah ada sejak lama. Sengaja saya tunda-tunda dengan beberapa pertimbangan. Salah satunya adalah menunggu itikad baik dari salah satu majalah wanita paling tersohor di Indonesia itu.

Tapi setelah menunggu tiga tahun lebih (iya tiga tahun, Anda tidak salah baca 🙂 ), dan tak kunjung ada respon ataupun tindak lanjut dari pihak mereka, saya rasa saya tak perlu menunda-nunda lagi.

Jadi ceritanya, tahun 2017 silam, saya mengirim cerita pendek (cerpen) saya yang berjudul “Usai Kopi Ketiga Puluh” ke Majalah Kartini. Pihak redaksi membalas email saya dan menyampaikan bahwa cerpen saya akan dimuat tapi meminta ending-nya diubah sedikit. Saya menuruti permintaan tersebut dan jadilah cerpen saya dimuat di Majalah Kartini Edisi 2446 yang terbit awal April 2017.

Setahun kemudian, di bulan April juga, cerpen saya yang lain, “Salju Turun Sedikit Terlambat”, kembali dimuat di Majalah Kartini Edisi 2471. Lalu di bulan November 2018, giliran cerita bersambung (cerber) saya “Klub LDR” yang dimuat di Majalah Kartini (empat edisi berturut-turut).

Sayangnya, dari tiga karya tersebut, tidak satupun yang sudah dibayarkan honornya sampai sekarang.

Continue reading “Jangan Menulis di Majalah Kartini” →

Hayu Hamemayu6 Comments

Swedish Pastry Calendar*

As someone with many sweet teeth, one thing I love about Sweden is its “excuses” to always have something sweet between meals. Thanks to its most celebrated tradition, Fika. It seems to me that despite the lagom value, Swedes are quite into cake and pastry; they even have special days to celebrate almost all of them. Here is the timeline for those sweet days.

January

The period between Christmas and Easter is the time for semla. This wheat flour bun, flavoured with cardamom and filled with almond paste and whipped cream, was originally eaten only on Shrove Tuesday (the day before Ash Wednesday) as the last festive food before Lent. However, as the Swedes stopped observing a strict fasting for Lent, semlor are now available in shops and bakeries every day from shortly after Christmas until Easter.

Photo by Hayu Hamemayu

February

You can still easily find semla on February because Shrove Tuesday usually falls either on February or March, but this month also has another special day. February 3 is the day of carrot cake.

March

On March, you have at least two special threats: Punschrullens Dag (punch roll day) on 7th of March and Våffledagen (waffle day) on March 25. Punschrulle is also called dammsugare, which means vacuum cleaner due to its resembling shape of a vacuum cleaner that was common in the 1920s. This pastry is easy to find in any confectionery and is traditionally colored green with chocolate coating in both ends.

For the Waffle Day, it is believed that it comes from a mispronunciation of spring day that has religious roots. Instead of “spring day”, a linguistic mix took place and people began to say “waffle day”. Thus, the tradition of eating waffles with cream and jam arose on March 25.

April

Sadly, there is no cake related day on this month. Or do you know any?

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Hemester Idea in Skåne*

Summer is the time when most people in Sweden (if not all) take a break and travel to their favourite summer destinations: Thailand, Greece, Spain and so on. But that was the time before Covid-19. This summer, as traveling overseas is still not recommended, Sweden embraces summer holiday within the country or locals call it: hemester. Here are some ideas on where to spend it in Skåne based on my experience as a Lundensian.

Lomma

Lomma is the coastal area in which the closest beach from Lund is located. It is accessible by bus number 139 from Lund Central station and is therefore very popular for sunbathing and swimming. The shallow water also makes it a sough-after spot among windsurfers.

During sunny warm days, it might be difficult for social distancing as the beach is packed with locals, tourists, and boat owners. If you feel uneasy to be in a crowd, just go there to try their local ice-cream seller: Lomma glassfabrik, which sells the best ice cream in town. The place is not far from the harbour area where some cafés, restaurants, and boatyard services are located. It opens until 18.00 or longer when the weather is nice ☺

Bjärred

Not too far from Lomma, there is another beach famous for its long jetty. The 574-meter long bathing jetty is claimed to be one of the longest bathing jetties in Sweden and Skåne’s longest. At the far end of the jetty, there is a bathhouse and a restaurant. The shallow water around the jetty makes it popular for youth and family to swim on the warm summer days. For those who don’t drive, this place is accessible by bus number 137 from Lund C, departs from the same bus stop with the bus to Lomma.

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