Dalby Stenbrott Adventures

Ah! Today was such a fantastic day I'm having a hard time putting it into words (hence the tons of pictures). After class today (oops, yes my ILP-Intensive Language Program started a few days ago, but I'll play catch up another time!) a few of the students in the UC program decided to venture to Dalby, the town just outside of Lund. It's even smaller than Lund, but the best part of Dalby was the hour and a half bike ride to get there! Dad, this is totally reminded me of you; can I suggest Sweden as your next century ride location? I'll come support. Okay. Thanks. ;)

We rode through the most stunning countryside I've ever seen. It was picture perfect (and trust me I stopped to take many!) It reminded me a bit of the farm land outside of Philadelphia, except it was a perfect 70 degrees out with a slight breeze and no humidity. The ride was basically flat along side a main road. Naturally, we got lost quite a few times but that just adds to the adventure, right? Eventually we made it to Dalby:

The reason a bunch of us decided to make the excursion out of town was to take advantage of this weird Swedish heat in Dalby's small lake (uhhmmm...its hotter than L.A. quickly running out of non-sweater clothes!) When we finally ended up just outside of town this is what I saw:

The lake is surrounded by about 50 ft cliffs all full of Swedes launching themselves into the water. Sorry, guys heights just aren't my favorite but that didn't stop me from getting in the strangely clean tasting, perfect temperatured water. I swam from cliff to cliff (because my legs really needed another work out?) and waded around with the other 20 UC students. 

Rebecca and I at the end of the ride! Were pooped. 

The small gathering of trees on the side of one of the cliffs reminded me of Big Sur and once I got to thinking about it, I really haven't gotten the chance to enjoy the serenity and beauty of God's nature since then. As you all know, I absolutely love spending my time outdoors, but no where more than places like this.  I can't believe I am going to have to return to LA after this. Can I stay longer?!

This is the 60 cliff a few Swedes were brave enough to try out. They were all rewarded with an overwhelming American applause as they surfaced the water haha

Yes, I even found sheep... 

This is one of my favorite pictures from the ride. I couldn't get over this scene! Where in California can I see something like this?! You could definitely say I was in my happy place. 

My friend Nick snapped this picture on the way back to Lund. Hungry, thirsty and sunburnt (um hello Rick Steves, you didn't say I'd need sunscreen for Sweden, just thermals) the ride back wasn't quite as enthusiastic, but the scenery never once lost its charm. As soon as my body recovers, I'm headed back to this trail. Lets just say, I will be walking to class instead of riding for a few days! Oh, now that I mention it, the trails. Sweden takes pride in its nature and nearly every living community I've seen also has a HUGE paved trail park along side. Its amazing! But also very easy to get lost in...oops. I mean if I get lost running in Bel Air, I'm pretty much guaranteed to get lost anywhere. 

Of course, I had to venture into a wheat field for a photo op. Another plus to the day, I finallllly got internet so posts will be much more frequent! Family and friends, contact me on facebook to get my new Swedish phone number or just skype me. Miss you all tons. Thanks for reading! (:

Until next time,
Xo

Hej hej fran Sverige!

Hey everyone!

I've been having some major internet malfunctions in my apartment so I'm posted at one of the many cafes with free wifi. Its my 5th day in Sweden and its already flown by. If this is any indication of how the rest of my semester will go I'll be home before I even know it :/ Here's a recap of what I've been up to!

July 31^st consisted of me doing what I do best…sleeping. So since that is relatively boring I’m skipping ahead to ARRIVAL DAY! I flew SAS into Copenhagen, Denmark August 1^st at 1:30 PM.  The country is so small I swore we were going to descend right into the water.  I managed to find my way through the airport to baggage claim where I picked up my over packed luggage, which felt like just about 10,000 lbs. I literally broke a sweat dragging all of it to the train station one level below. Please, take a second to picture me with one rolling suitcase, one huge duffle bag, one hiking 50 liter backpack, and one normal backpack, juggling dollars, krona, euro, trying not to leave my phone and remember which bag I last put my passport in…needless to say I was a hot mess.

At the train station I met my friend Rebecca (also a UCLA student)! Together, we figured out the tickets (biljet); it really helps that she knows a bit of Swedish and is familiar with a lot of the culture and people here! The money is a little disorientating here; the conversion rate is about .67 so the trip from Copenhagen to Lund was 107:- which is equivalent of about $16. So its not as bad as it looks, but don’t be fooled Sweden is definitely going to make a dent in my wallet.

With a little help from the locals Rebecca and I got off at Lund Central where we asked for directions to Lund Accommodations office to get our keys to our apartment/dorms. I thought the treck from baggage claim to the train station was painstaking…I definitely had another thing coming with this walk. Although it was supposed to take 5 minutes, Rebecca and I literally had to stop and rest every ½ block. Once we got there we ditched the cobblestoned street walking for a nice expensive taxi to our respective dorms.

The way the dorms are set up is similar to residence halls at UCLA. Except, each corridor only has 10 rooms each single occupancy and instead of a communal lounge there is a communal patio, kitchen, and eating area. Only two people are currently living on my floor (Delphi F11). 

Anyway I spent the rest of the day walking around the quaint town with Rebecca. 

Lund is very much so a college town so its in “hibernation” until about August 20^th. Its relatively small so we allowed ourselves to just get lost going in circles and familiarizing ourself with the area. From my dorm its about a 30 minute (flat—thank god!) walk to the city center and about an additional 10 to the central train station. 

In the city there are countless hole in the wall boutiques and cafés. The center part of the university has a beautiful fountain and shadey lawn, which will most definitely become my new “Janss Steps”. Shout out to Anya, I’m going to miss nap time “at grass” with you!

August 2

RISE N SHINE…Good thing I brought more than practically 3x my weight in sweaters and scarves becauseeeee, it was 82 degrees today!! 

Today, I ventured around the outskirts of town; Rebecca and I found ourselves at a mall called Nova. To get bus fare you have to purchase a “JoJo” (pronounced yo-yo..all the j’s sound like y’s in Swedish) card which you reload with krona. 

We walked through a parking lot full of Volvos (cliché, but im not even kidding) and got a feel for Swedish fashion, food, and prices (ouch). We purchased some essentials such as hangers, sheets, and of course the world's largest post it pad.

We came back for orientation where we met about 60 other UC students. As for classes I’m taking Evolutionary Psychology, Viking Scandinavia and Gastronomy: Sustainable Eating. Class schedules here are strange; most are rotating meaning they don’t meet at the same times, days, or even places every week. So that should be interesting…lets see how many I will actually find! Also the UC system is very structured with classes all beginning and ending on one day. Not so much at Lund. My Viking Scandinavia class starts Sep 4 and ends Oct 29^th. Others start as late as Novmeber and run until Dec 22 and some take the entire duration. Pretty strange but I’m hoping this works out to my advantage with my travel plans!

Why Sweden...

...is the most frequent question I get asked when telling friends and family I am leaving the country for nearly half a year. Well, in all honesty, why not Sweden?! (Okay, so it may be a bit chilly... but hey I always have sunny SoCal to come home to in December!) Here's the real answer to that burning WHY question:

1. I actually chose Sweden because I'm looking for a completely new adventure, something I can only find in uncharted areas of Europe. Since I was lucky enough to spend time abroad with my family in the past years, I knew for this next chapter of my life I wanted to go somewhere completely foreign. And because I have a tendency to migrate to familiar things and places, being located north of the Baltic Sea really pushes me to explore Scandinavia. (Don't worry Italy, I will return one day!)
2. My options were narrowed down because, of course, I will be studying while abroad and only a few countries I haven't visited offer psychology classes in English. Through UCEAP, I found that one of Europe's universities, Lund University, lectures in English and transfer credits directly to the University of California. After tons of research, Lund seriously seemed like such a perfect fit! The town is rooted in history (the university itself is 347 years old). It's a small college town on the outskirts of larger cities such as Malmo and Copenhagen (which is right across the water). I've already talked with quite a few students who have studied at Lund in the past and they all have nothing but great things to say about the university, town, and really Sweden as a whole. 
3. I'm not a big snow person. So, why study in a place where the lows can dip into the 30s and sun sets occur at 3PM, you ask? Well, when else are you going to experience something totally new but have the reassurance of being home in a few months. If you know me at all, you know I'm the kind of person that needs a little extra umph to get out of my comfort zone. Even though I hate the thought of exiting that little comfy bubble moments before the plunge, I have NEVER regretted leaving that safety net behind. It's all or nothing Sweden, bring on the snow! 
4. Shout out to my UCLA friends for fueling my desire to go dogsledding (AKA "mushing Balto" for those of you familiar with my recent Disney obsession hehe). Of course, this isn't the reason I chose Sweden but I am looking forward to taking advantage of all the activities Scandinavia has to offer. After reading books, blogs, and websites, I am already convinced that this part of Europe is truly an often overlooked gem of the world. Between hiking breathtaking fjords, visiting glass country, Christmas shopping at Stortorget in Stockholm, and experiencing night life in Copenhagen, who knows if I will even have time to go to school (just kidding Mom and Dad)!

Ahh! Just writing all of that got me even more pumped for the coming school year! Only 17 more days until I fly out of LAX to Copenhagen!! 

Thanks for reading! Love you all, 

Xo