Visiting Etiquette – Sweden Edition
Meeting new people can be challenging when coming to Sweden. However, when you finally have found friends, you want to keep a good relationship with them. Knowing the Swedish etiquette...
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Meeting new people can be challenging when coming to Sweden. However, when you finally have found friends, you want to keep a good relationship with them. Knowing the Swedish etiquette...
As the little sister of Sweden’s most precious and indeed quite breathtaking capital, Gothenburg is somehow left behind. Compared to the magnetic impact of Stockholm, it seems almost forgotten. Although...
The ‘American Dream’ has come to an end but the ‘Swedish Dream’ just started. As the story ‘from rags to riches’ stepped back, Sweden’s countryside (and also its cities) burst...
Have you celebrated Walpurgis Night in Sweden yet? Or Valborg, as it is known in Swedish? Each year on the 30th April, crowds gather in many Swedish cities to celebrate...
Have you had a this is Sweden moment? That moment of realisation that reminds you that you are living in Sweden and this is the way it is here.
Expat grief for children is a serious thing. I recently did an article on top tips to help children moving abroad. That post was designed to help them settle in...
Fika is much more than just a cup of coffee and a piece of cake. At work, fika is a social event, in which one gets not only to relax...
Allemansrätten in Sweden is a unique and lovely concept. Is is the right of public access to roam freely almost anywhere in the countryside.
Being a parent in Sweden comes with more support and benefits than you may be used to. Sweden has one of the highest number of parental leave days in the...
An American friend landed at Arlanda airport in Stockholm and jumped into a taxi towards the city. On the road, he looked out of the window and watched the Swedish...
Don’t speak a single word of Swedish yet? No problem! Everyone speaks English (but all the signs are in Swedish) ‘Is this a cucumber or a zucchini??’ I wondered, as...
Living in Sweden, my experience. We have lived in Sweden for 1 year now, and throughout that year I have been on a very steep (but happy) learning curve. I...
Sweden is a truly beautiful country, and exploring the Swedish outdoors is made so easy for people, and yet it remains unspoilt, wild, and rugged. One of the reasons we...
“So, what are you doing in Sweden?” As a Canadian who has been in the country for less than a month, I get asked this by nearly everyone I meet....
I‘ve always had a fascination with Stockholm, Sweden. I remember taking a book out of my small town the library when I was little and soaking in all the details....
Sweden, a country somewhere in the far north, often and easily confused with Switzerland, is not a place people know much about. My knowledge about Sweden improved before coming here...
Getting used to living in another country can be quite difficult and you might be making some mistakes. Swedes have some “rules” that no one tells you about, but can...
Gender Equality in Sweden – what are your thoughts? Hej, Välkommna! I was greeted by a feminine voice as I swiped my SL card at the entrance of the buss...
Free time is very important in the Swedish way of living.. but it can also be a bit boring from time to time. What productive things can you do in...
I am a book lover and undeniably a library lover as well. There is something cosy about the rows of shelves full of stories, the air filled with imagination and...
Before you move to another country, it is good if you have some understanding of the language, at least to a certain extent. We are so lucky that we have...
Have you figured out your Swedish pension yet? In the next few weeks, 6.7 million people in Sweden will receive their “orange envelope” – which is your pension statement. Every...
Learning Swedish through Jazz? Yes why not:-) A year has passed since I came to this northern hemisphere, and I have to admit it took nearly one year for me...
Odra is from Guatemala and came to Sweden as she had fallen in love with Tomas, an amazing Swedish guy.We started by asking her what she found hard to adjust...
Sriram is a post-doctoral researcher from India who arrived in Sweden in 2016. After completing his PhD in Taiwan his interest to learn new things brought him to Sweden.
Did you know that Sweden is the world’s biggest exporter of pop music? When I have tweeted this on several occasions for sayitinswedish.com people have responded with ‘no, that’s definitely...
While I was walking down the street and felt the millionth small stone stuck in my shoe (these small little annoying stones seriously end up everywhere!), I realised that actually...
For me, a concept that helped me adapt to life and life in winter in Sweden almost as much as “fika” was the “utflykt”, or outing. As you may have...
If you’re planning on moving to Sweden, you have to start learning Swedish. Yes, Swedes are very good at English, but you really have to know Swedish for many small...
Jävlar! Fan! Helvete! Sitting around a table of fellow Newbies the topic of Swedish curse words came up. Not everyone shared my opinion that this set of Swedish words can...
The end of the year is here and we yearn for the white winter. It is almost like the way they celebrate Christmas Eve and New Year in every other...
With the winter solstice around the corner and the streets waiting for snow glisten like Christmas cards, the Swedes are turning inwards, in space and time. Knowing there is no...
How do you bake lussebullar in Sweden? And why should you want to? Well, lussebullar in Sweden are just a staple of Christmas. One of the most fun parts of...
Every language has its very own way to stall a conversation. When the speaker suddenly comes to a halt because the brain can’t keep up, there is this short buffer...
Even before we put our foot on Swedish soil we know that we have to acquaint ourselves with the Swedish language. The Swedish for immigrants, SFI courses are the most...
Wedding parties are a great way to observe and learn about the culture of a country. From the multiple-day long weddings of India, to the all-you-can-eat banquets of Portugal, or...
English is the language my entire family speaks. Only English. I know a smidgeon of French from high school, but that is it. My husband speaks both his primary language...
“What food is traditionally Swedish?” is probably the most asked questions when I go abroad. I never know how to reply. I have asked other Newbies and even Swedish friends...
After exploring different universities and countries, I fell in love with Sweden; 1.5 months later I got on a train to a little town in the middle of Sweden.
These 5 strange habits in Sweden threw me when I first moved here. As an African newbie, the cultural shock might be the first thing that will dawn on you...
Pedestrians in Sweden have a LOT of rights. It’s my second day in Sweden, a relatively chilly morning, birds chirping, a calm breeze blowing across me, refreshing my tired soul...
Food is fascinating in many ways. Of course, eating it – I am a huge fan of this activity, but also as a manifestation of culture. Everyone who has been...
Learn Swedish and what I did. Learning an entirely new language is always an interesting and slightly daunting task. And let’s face it, for most of us Newbies, we didn’t...
Wemi swapped Nigeria for Sweden in 2014. She has a background in Engineering and is currently living in Umeå with her husband.
When I first arrived in Sweden, I noticed that there is so much greenery around, even in the city. Near my first apartment, there was a forest right behind my...
Natalia likes to say that she parachuted in to Sweden because everything was very fast, like ”3, 2, 1, jump!”
Sweden is infamous for shutting down during the summer months, and often earlier – and longer, than in most European countries. Why is that so, and what consequences does it...
Cristina is from Italy and came to Stockholm as an au pair in November 2015 and has experienced her first Swedish winter.
However much I have lived abroad and worked with people from all over the world, I am still painfully Swedish, especially when it comes to my relationship to weather. And...
The Swedish pension system is hard on newcomers. The requirement to obtain the maximum guaranteed pension (garantipension) is with some exception, that the person has lived in Sweden for 40...
Sweden is a system, like a machine. So many of the small every day annoyances are not an issue because the machine manages them
I was hopeful and exited about the new place. My father is a missionary and we used to move every year when I was little
The maternity healthcare is one of the best things in Sweden. I’m blessed to have my first baby here
Although you might see Swedish cities full of cafés and bars that are frequented all day and night, many Swedes would argue that the best place to meet and hang...
Katrina arrived in Stockholm in June 2009 when the summer had just begun, searching to explore the world
Rawa arrived in Sweden two years ago. Back in Syria, she was leading a happy life, working as an teacher and enjoying life with her family.
Living cheaply in Sweden is possible I promise! When I first moved to Sweden I saw that everything here is much more expensive than in my home country. But doesn’t...
Swedish pancakes on Thursdays, is that really a thing? Yes, indeed! In all cultures, there is an element of predictability. Some things that you can feel will always happen. Things...
Spring in Sweden is profoundly looked forward to every year! There is no fixed date for the first day of spring. Instead, SMHI (svenskt metrologiskt och hydrologiskt institut), who is...
Mulgeta came to Sweden after a journey that took him on the roads of Sudan and Libya and over the Mediterranean Sea in a small boat
One essential step in the process of getting hold of an apartment or room is to write an outstanding rental application.
Rental frauds have become increasingly common during the last years in Sweden. So how do you avoid them?
When asked about a national character, almost any newbie – or oldie, is likely to describe the typical Swede as shy, reserved and almost uninterested in human contact. Although everyone...
Fran is a computer science engineer and entrepreneur from Barcelona. He came to Sweden in 2008 and is one of the founders of Easy Rental….
“I enjoy not feeling as objectified as a woman when out in the streets as I do in the US, and I appreciate the balance of responsibility between mothers and...
Sanjoo is a 44 year old concept developer, event organizer, food teacher and tour guide to India, who’s lived in Sweden for 18 years
Alessandro is a freelance translator who studied Scandinavian Studies at the University and moved to Stockholm after his degree
Francisco is an associate professor at KTH and an avid lover of Melodifestivalen. He is from Spain and came to Sweden 8 years ago
Rona came to Sweden 12 years ago to do a PhD at Karolinska Institute and was then offered her dream job – so she decided to stay
Adrian has lived in Sweden for a long time and remembers finding it hilarious that Swedish people sometimes queue without a reason
Every country has its fair share of weird expressions and Sweden is no different. As a Newbie who speaks Swedish you will soon encounter Swedish expressions that will make you...
There is no good way to get Fired or lose your job in Sweden. But there are better and worse ways. In this article, we explain the difference between uppsagd...
As an EU citizen, you’re free to live, work, and study in Sweden—but there are still some practical steps to take. This article explains what you need to know about...
There is no legal obligation to sign up for insurance. However it is recommended to sign up for home insurance – hemförsäkring as this covers many cases of bad luck
Having a Swedish bank account will make your life in Sweden a lot easier as most things are paid for by credit/debit cards. Newbies often find it surprising and a...