A brief note about my exchange in Sweden

Those of you who know me well are aware of the fact that I'm not a big fan of change. I don't normally like moving to new places (unless my current hometown is awful) and the thought of having to enroll at a new university/school sends me running to the hills. It's not irrational behavior either – change is equivalent to uncertainty and thus a lack of security. Taking my phobia -- if you can call it that -- into consideration, you can only imagine what state I was in last summer as the moving date to Växjö got closer and closer. I was very hesitant and pessimistic about leaving the security of my hometown in Finland, but at the same time I didn't even have any sound reasons for wanting to stay there. Sure, it was a nice city and my university was there, but I never felt emotionally connected to it as most of my friends lived elsewhere. I should have been thrilled about the idea of going to Sweden, having the possibility to meet new people and get to know another country, but the pessimist in me was telling me to be skeptical. It turned out the pessimist was wrong as so many times before.


I would guess that the things most students enjoy about going on an exchange is the chance to meet new people (who can turn into lifelong friends if things go well), to get to know a new culture and its language and of course to attend a lot of parties. Being Norwegian, I can't really claim that I came because of the exotic culture and language, but rather to meet new people and make some friends along the way. Unfortunately my studies here in Sweden haven't been that easy, which means I was unable to attend to as many parties as I would have liked to, especially during the first semester. Some exchange students had the luxury of doing “simpler” courses (I’m just envious) with a lesser workload, which naturally allowed for a more social lifestyle. I came here to do some minors, however, so the workload turned out to be quite high. That being said, I do feel that I have learned a lot here, and learning is always a good thing, right?


So what did Sweden give me? Well, as I already mentioned, I have acquired a lot of knowledge due to the fact that I had to spend so many hours in front of my school books. That's great, but it doesn't sound very exciting, does it? Luckily I have met a lot of great people as well and hadn't it been for those people, I wouldn't have enjoyed my exchange nearly as much as I have. Unsurprisingly, the social aspect is the greatest thing about going on an exchange, and I think this is something that applies to most students. With two weeks left in sweet Sweden, it's difficult not to feel slightly blue about leaving. Memories have been made, people have been befriended, beer has been drunk and dance floors have been violated. Even though the people are leaving, the memories still remain. At least until we get diagnosed with dementia somewhere ages and ages hence. I know I'll be looking at my photos from Sweden every now and then and relive those great moments and I hope everyone else can say the same thing.


To those contemplating about going on an exchange: stop thinking about it, just do it already!


"Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened."