My First Day

The view from my room!

I have officially arrived in Pitea, Sweden! The plane trip was excruciatingly long, but completely worth it. Even along the trip, I have managed to pick up new friends who have also come to Sweden on exchange. Overall, I spent over 30 hours travelling here, taking 3 separate flights to Bangkok, Stockholm and finally Lulea, which is a town approximately a 1 hour drive away from Pitea.

As I arrived, I was greeted by my Swedish counsellor, Eva, and my second host mum, Mari. They are absolutely lovely and I'm excited to get to know them better during my exchange! As we headed off to the car for our drive to Pitea, they told me to sit in the passenger seat. Being a true Australian, I head off to the left side of the car and open the door, ready to jump in. Whoops. Turns out that in Sweden, the driver sits there. The others had a bit of a laugh with me, and I don't think I will ever forget that the Swedes drive on the right hand side now.

Check out the cute smiley
 faces she added - I think it's an
awesome adjustment to the flag!

Anyway, we travelled to Pitea, and arrived at my first host family's home. Gunilla and Henrik. Their grandchildren were also here, and had been kind enough to draw a picture of the Australian flag! I don't know how much sweeter you can get! Henrik and Gunilla had also made a delicious meal of vegetarian lasagne (in case I was vegetarian) and then gave me a small tour around the house. They have a sauna and jacuzzi! How cool is that? I'm looking forward to my stay here. From my room, I also have a very pretty view where the trees have been decorated with fallen snow, and the ground seems to replicate clouds. It really does look like a fairytale.



Now I am just settling in and unpacking everything! I will make sure to post as often as possible to keep everyone updated on my Swedish experience. Until then, I wish everyone the best! Talk later

Lannie