Tag: the newbie guide

A News from Duluth

Last month, I was contacted by Sarah Brown, a student from University of Minnesota who asked me if I’d be interested in sharing my experience about writing in Sweden, especially writing for The Newbie Guide to Sweden. It was for her class project and as someone who was once a journalism student as well, I understand how it feels to be able to contact a source for an interview, so I said yes. She sent me her article the other day and I think it’s a good work with a nice balance of primary and secondary sources. No wonder she got 100% for this work.

By the way, there’s actually a funny story behind this “encounter”. I’ve been watching Fargo TV series lately, and one of the settings for the story is in Duluth, where University of Minnesota is located. So when I first read her email signature:

“University of Minnesota Duluth| 2023
College of Liberal Arts”

I felt like it was an amusing coincidence or maybe a sign that I should visit the place one day 😀

Anyway, I decided to share her work here for archival purposes, after having her consent of course. Sarah Brown has the full right of the article so any question and acknowledgment regarding the article should be addressed to the author. Happy reading! I hope you enjoy it as much as I do 🙂

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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 Hamemayu5 Comments

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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Get to Know Swedish Children’s Book Icons*

If you had just moved to Sweden, with small kids, it’s just a matter of time until your kids gushing about the character in Swedish children’s books relentlessly. Like me, three years back, you may never have heard some of them before. So here I compile the list of Swedish children’s books icons you may need to know to keep up with your kids ☺

Pippi Longstocking (Pippi Långstrump)

Created by Astrid Lindgren in 1945, Pippi Longstocking is probably the most famous and the most celebrated fictional character in Sweden. She is a red-haired, freckled, unconventional and superhumanly strong girl who lives in VillaVillekulla, with her monkey whose name is Mr. Nilsson and her horse.

This character draws a long debate among adults due to its strong and unusual personalities, challenging the conventional ideas about how kids should behave. Nevertheless, many people consider Pippi as the symbol of girl power and gender equality.

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Hayu HamemayuLeave a comment

Basic Everyday Info for Recently Moved Newbie*

Lately, I’ve been receiving questions from some people who are going to move to Sweden, either for work or study in my website and Instagram. And some of the questions are actually really simple, about everyday info, which I didn’t consider important before. At least I used to take it for granted.

But I think that was just because I’m lucky. My husband moved to Sweden eight months earlier than I did so he’s kind of paves the path for me. But not all people have the same experience. So here I compile the basic information of everyday life in Sweden for recently moved newbie. Continue reading “Basic Everyday Info for Recently Moved Newbie*” →

Hayu Hamemayu6 Comments
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