A Day in the Life

The theme of this post concerns the little quirky things that go on as a part of life in Sweden.

• Apparently milk doesn't undergo the same extensive heat treatment that it gets in the US; it only lasts about a week after you buy it, which I suppose it why it is sold in such small amounts.
• Everyone here seems to cook at home a lot- from scratch. Part of this is because eating in restaurants is so expensive. There doesn't seem to be a lot of ready-made food here.
• Swedes in general are pretty quiet (in general, not always) but they're usually pretty nice once you get them talking.
• Post offices here are not the only places authorized to handle mail and sell stamps- there is a chain of convenience stores that will mail things for you, sell you stamps, and sell you tickets for the various modes of public transport.
• Most students here don't seem to own cars. People here rely heavily upon public transit and bicycles.
• Baked goods here don't seem to be made with as many preservatives so they mold a lot faster.
• Drivers in Uppsala are generally less aggressive and more courteous to pedestrians.

My First Trip to Stockholm

About a week ago, I took the train to Stockholm with my new friend, Pulan (nicknamed Plant). Our first destination was Drottningholm Palace, which was an additional subway and bus ride away from Stockholm's central station. I'm glad she already had the travel arrangements figured out because I think it would've given me a headache, haha. Anyway, we arrived by bus at Drottningholm around lunchtime. This was the first thing we saw after the bus pulled away:

It was so peaceful and calm. There was even a mated pair of swans swimming near the shore. This place could not have been more stately and picturesque.