Sweden has a unique culture to compared to the rest of Europe. The Swedish people are reserved but friendly when engaging in conversation. There are several lessons that I’ve learned about the Swedish language and culture during my time abroad. The first is that Swedish people love to stand in lines. Lines give a sense of order in their world. Lines can form anywhere at any time, and you must accept this. The Swedish language has some words that also appear in the English language, but mean something very, very different. (Just trust me.) Additionally, speaking Swedish is difficult. I tried to ask a member of my host family how old he was in Swedish, but instead I emphatically stated, “You are old!” While I felt proud of myself for speaking Swedish, everyone else in the room was laughing. Another lesson is that you should never talk above a whisper or make any eye contact with anyone on public transportation. This is a space for quiet reflection and “alone time.” The Swedish people, while modest, are welcoming and kind. My host family was generous, loving, and one of my favorite things about studying abroad. Every Swedish person I met left a positive, lasting impression on me.
Sweden has been a fantastic country to study abroad in. My classes in Stockholm included Human Trafficking and the Sex Trade, Transgender in Scandinavia, Swedish Language and Culture, and Gender, Sexuality, and Equality in Scandinavia. Most of these topics are not offered at the University of Arkansas, so I knew I was receiving a unique education abroad. As an institution, DIS Stockholm has its pros and cons like any other university. While the opportunity to live abroad in Sweden is unparalleled, the program itself is still young and learning how to coordinate with its sister institution in Copenhagen. This is one of the reasons that traveling within Sweden and to other countries became so important to me; while I did learn about women and gender studies in the classroom, my experiences outside of the classroom cultivated my studies more than my lectures in the classroom. The culture and language that I learned from my host family was rare and special, and not something you could get from a teacher. Living with a host family is truly living in the culture. I think DIS Stockholm is a great program that provides a lot of opportunities to its students. I recommend studying abroad in Sweden if you are interested in gender issues and feminism. Studying abroad in general is an experience that I could not recommend enough to all university students.
During my travels abroad, I managed to visit several countries; the United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, Iceland, and Spain all offered something different. I walked through the Spanish streets in Barcelona as they were protesting for Catalonian independence. I hiked a glacier in Iceland and walked up 500 stairs to sit at the top of a waterfall. I sang Irish folk songs in a bar after watching a rugby game in Ireland. I learned about the bloody history the Tower of London holds and discovered Queen Victoria’s memorial to her then-late husband, Albert, in London. These trips provided me an opportunity to educate myself about issues and cultures across the world. I saw how people in each country interacted with one another and went about their daily lives. Each city seemed to have its own magic that ignited me with wonder and curiosity. Even though I didn’t study in these countries, I lived in their culture, and sometimes that’s worth more than being another body in a classroom.
I feel that it’s important to mention that the DIS Stockholm semester tuition and these other excursions were not cheap. If I had not received funding from the Honors College and the Office of Study Abroad, I would not have been able to study abroad with DIS and travel outside of Sweden. The initial expenses of traveling may scare off students from studying abroad, but you can receive funding from the University of Arkansas, the study abroad program itself, and outside scholarships. I highly recommend applying to as many scholarships as you can. For this reason, both the Honors College and the Office of Study Abroad have been invaluable in my study abroad experience. Without their funding, I would not be writing this blog post.
Upon returning home, I plan on eating Chick-Fil-A and watching Hulu, neither of which exist in Sweden. I am excited to travel back home and be with my friends and family at the University of Arkansas. I cannot thank the university enough for working with me and making my time abroad possible.
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Public Health major & Gender Studies minor Evelyn Day is spending the spring 2018 semester in Stockholm, Sweden through DIS Study Abroad in Scandinavia with the help of our Office of Study Abroad Scholarship.
Public Health major & Gender Studies minor Evelyn Day is spending the spring 2018 semester in Stockholm, Sweden through DIS Study Abroad in Scandinavia with the help of our Office of Study Abroad Scholarship.
Learn more about Evelyn's DIS program.
Don't miss your opportunity to study or intern abroad! Start your search at http://studyabroad.uark.edu/search/
