Finding North

«Door number two, I've already gone through.  I wanna see what's behind door number three...» Spring is upon us, much like anywhere else on the top half of the world. Here, that means the sun is getting warmer, but not nearly there yet. All the ice and snow are melting away ( although the fields are still almost completely white ), creating little streams of water in the most inconvenient places. But they're also not melting fast enough, which means the ground is still slippery, muddy and wetter than ever! Some days are amazingly sunny, the sky of a pure, deep blue, which makes me ache for proper spring to come: being able to go outside and enjoy the sun on my skin ( without wearing a massive jacket, which is currently how I can attempt to do that ) and feeling the green grass under my feet. But other days are cloudy and grey ( it even snowed a little yesterday ) and the setting around me looks incredibly brown, dirty and dreary. It's hard to define which season...

Frustration is a tricky thing to deal with, isn't it? Well if you ever plan on moving to Sweden, you'll be well acquainted with that concept - lots and lots of it. Today was a difficult day ( I know, my blog posts haven't exactly been bubbly so far... ), but I had actually been doing so much better lately. I've been taking it easier and trying to enjoy life as much as I can. I haven't been fighting my situation at all, the only thing I've been battling with these last few days is just my anxiety really ( leftovers of my struggled February, don't worry! ). Before I start my angsty rant, I would like to say that I really like Sweden and I think it's a great country. I believe it has several great qualities and that I will be able to make a comfortable living here, once things start going my way. That being said, I wanted to write this because lately I have been seeing a lot of posts related to the idea that Sweden might be the perfect country or that ...

Last week my boyfriend took me to a place called Vitberget, right in the middle of Skellefteå. Even though we are currently living outside of the city, he used to live there, so it was astonishing to me that I had never visited it before. From there you can see the entire city, the view so amazing that I had to catch my breath. It was lovely up there, with what felt like the world at your feet. We could hear the faint traffic noise, which from afar almost sounded like a calming lullaby to me. In a way, I guess it reminded me of my own previous city life ( it is, however, a very different place ). But not only that, it gave the city a new outlook in my mind. When we're down there, in the midst of it all, we can't see the big picture. See all of it at once, for what it truly is. When we are immersed in our lives, walking around on the streets, going from place to place, it's impossible to see how majestic it is - even if it is a small town. I really loved standing th...

Note: From this point on, I'm going to be referring to the place where I live (in the north) with the general term "Sweden" for the sake of simplicity. Please bear in mind that this is a big country and things vary a lot between the north and the south, so a lot of what I post might only apply or make sense in regards to the north. I'd also like to point out that I'll be sharing things I personally experience and the impressions I get from specific situations and people. I don't want to step on anyone's toes or make anyone upset by thinking that I'm generalizing in any way.   I arrived to my destination late at night on the 24th of January. I had planned to take the first week off to relax and enjoy some free time with my boyfriend and his family. But I couldn't do it...a mere three days in and I let my anxiety roam free - I became restless. Suddenly I had no time to lose and certainly shouldn't throw away those first few days away. The al...