I'm taking a semester in Sweden..

[skyline142]

And I am a bit nervous. People always make out the European silence as rude, but me as an American, working at a gas station, I cant help but to crave that silence, because I really dont care about how much your dog made a mess while you were bathing him..

Regardless, in two years I am taking a semester in Vaxjo, Sweden! And I am so frickin nervous. Anyone take a trip to Sweden? I need to know what it is going to be like, so I can prepare myself a bit. I only just turned 20, and this will be the first time going any further than a state away. This is many countries away! Gah! I know I am going to experience a lot of culture shock... But Sweden just seems like quite an elegant place. Society seems to be much more mature and independant. But I really have no idea, this is just from random reading.

I need to know things NOT to do. Aha. And well, to do as well. I am just nervous I am going to go up to a stranger and ask for directions or something, and they are gonna either whoop my ass for being rude, or something of the sort.

Thanks

[c.nash]

Snus it up man! lol

Have fun. Wish I could go. :P

[snusjus]

A good amount of Swedes speak English, but I know anti-Americanism is rampant in Europe. My advice: if someone asks which country you're from, say Canada. This white lie has helped a few of my friends avoid conflict when they were touring in Europe.

[visiON]

Resist the urge to steal the bikes. They're without locks and stacked in hundreds...
If Sweden is similar to Estonia(not far away), then the silence won't be a problem. Well Estonians at least well, almost never small talk.

[Opie]

always cheers your drink
be polite

Just attempt the swedish languarge and you'll be fine

[Fredrik_Northerner]

I have to ask, why Växjö?:-) If you're coming to Gothenburg while you're here, let us know and you'll get the grand tour;-)

Haha, and I wouldn't worry too much about asking for directions. This isn't France, Swedes normally love americans. I bet if you play your cards right and tell some white lies about knowing some celebs and stuff it could even get you laid;-) But yeah, I guess we are a bit on the shy side as a people.

[justintempler]

Skyline,
Unless you're trying to reenact John Belushi's character in Animal House, you'll be fine, Växjö seems like they have lots of exchange students.

VIS
VIS stands for Växjö International Students. It is a non-profit organisation, and a local section of ESN Sweden.
Our goal is to make your time here in Växjö something to remember.
The board and its community consist of students that use their own spare time to create activities for you and all the other exchange students

http://visvxu.se/

[GENERAL BILLY]

A good amount of Swedes speak English, but I know anti-Americanism is rampant in Europe. My advice: if someone asks which country you're from, say Canada. This white lie has helped a few of my friends avoid conflict when they were touring in Europe.

For Christs sake it is Sweden not Beruit. If you can't handle a European being snotty please do claim another country as your own.

Edit: obviously not directed at original poster. Have a great time I am sure it will be an experience of a lifetime. I reacted a little strongly to the concept of denying your homeland as a 'white lie' anyone who has traveled knows that it is important to keep in mind you represent your country to some extent and behave in a way that reflects well on it not lie about it so some French busker will think you're cool.

[Mr. Snuffleupagus]

Let me know when you get there and I'll give you the list of stuff to send me

[KarlvB]

Sweden is great. I spent a month there (Gothenburg and Stockholm) and have been back since on business.

I think the comment regarding anti-Americanism is a bit overblown. Yes, there are many people in Europe who disagree with US foreign policy and some of the more conservative US viewpoints but this does not translate into a rampant hate of all Americans. Also, as long as you are willing to engage in a civil conversation on issues such as politics you should be fine - however I doubt that anyone will actually question you or discuss these issues as most Europeans are simply interested to hear more about the US and how a visitor is experiencing their country.

Overall though it is an awesome country. The people I met were super friendly and all of them spoke perfect English - this applies to most of Scandinavia / the Nordics. The only place where people did not speak perfect English was in some parts of Finland - Helsinki was fine though.

Do yourself a favour though and explore the rest of the country and the neighbouring countries. I started in Copenhagen and then travelled by train to Gothenburg and then across to Norway and Bergen. Then I jumped on a plane to Helsinki and went to visit friends in Jyväskylä. From there I went to Turku and took the ferry to Stockholm. Stockholm is still one of my favourite cities in the world.

Ps: Sweden, and Stockholm in particular, is filled with some of the most beautiful women you would ever see. Let's just say I am glad I went there when I was single.

[Roo]

For Christs sake it is Sweden not Beruit. If you can't handle a European being snotty please do claim another country as your own.

Edit: obviously not directed at original poster. Have a great time I am sure it will be an experience of a lifetime. I reacted a little strongly to the concept of denying your homeland as a 'white lie' anyone who has traveled knows that it is important to keep in mind you represent your country to some extent and behave in a way that reflects well on it not lie about it so some French busker will think you're cool.

Word!!

[chadizzy1]

Sweden is great. Everyone I met was very nice and pretty much EVERYONE speaks English. I didn't run into anyone who didn't.

[f. bandersnatch]

I heard that in sweden they take Americans as prisoners and replace them with pod people. True story. Goddamn commies.

[Roo]

Pickled American Testicles -- watch out for that. If you see P. A. T. on a menu, run for your life. They also like Pickled Canadian Testicles, so you better bone up on your Deutsch.