SUNday

It seems that I only update this when it is sunny! Well, I suppose the explanation is that I like to post photos and I only like to take photos when it is sunny...and today it was! Today was my first sunny day in a week, and I was so happy to see the sunshine when I woke up this morning. I instinctively grabbed for my shorts and t-shirt, but checked into reality when I remembered that it was 35 degrees outside. After dressing appropriately, I decided to go for a walk, which turned into a very, very long hike.

Finally able to sport my favorite accessory: SUNGLASSES

I found a neat trail to hike on today. It went though three or four smaller towns before ending in Bankeryd, our neighboring city. I found several forest spots to hike through and they reminded me so much of home, except for the massive amounts of moss!

Much prettier than this in reality, but the lighting was not working out well with my camera

The hike turned into quite the adventure when I realized that I had been gone for two and a half hours. Luckily, I was able to take a bus back to my house when I got to Bankeryd because there was definitely not enough daylight for me to walk back. Even though it was so sunny out, it was super chilly! I was absolutely frozen even though I was dressed very warmly. After two huge cups of tea and waiting an hour my fingers work properly again!

Other updates from the week:

I have to say that this week was not incredibly exciting, but it went by really quickly! The three conference calls that I had with people in the US in the very early hours of the morning probably helped a bit. I joined the gym in town and I have to say that I am in love with that place! It is very new and very nice (beats Buchanan...haha). It has a fantastic view of Lake Munksjön from the sauna, which I could pretty much live in, by the way. My other favorite part is the channel of choice that is almost always on in the gym: ice skating competitions!

Classes also started this week. I had two Swedish lessons but did not learn any Swedish. That was incredibly disappointing (how am I going to get fluent at this rate?), but I did have an interesting lesson on Swedish culture. Ever heard of an Easter witch? My other two classes seem like they are going to be incredibly easy. I have Economic Geography of Europe once a week with a bit of light reading in between. Guess what the final is for that class? An multi-essay exam, totaling ten pages. Okay, now guess how long I have to complete the exam? TWO WEEKS! I cannot even believe how beyond ridiculous that is. I am used to having a day for that type of work. My International Trade Theory class might be a little more challenging...that would be welcome! I have lectures for that class once a week and sometimes a problem session as well. I am really starting to understand how challenging the Block Plan is, and missing it too. Am I going to have to beg for homework?

Well, I need to go and retrieve my third load of laundry. I can only fit about five things in these washers and do not even get me started on the drying time! Other than that, all is well here! Thank you to everyone for the emails and updates...I love hearing about what you are up to!

PS - Another new Picasa album...link on the right.