Leave Nothing but Footprints

I recently came across an article on Thought Catalog, This is the Painful Part About Being a Wanderer. Anyone who knows me well or at all will say that I don’t like to stay in one place for very long, that I move around like I’m being chased. 

This post perfectly captured the ache I feel when I leave a place and the people I love and care about but my subsequent longing to see and experience everything I can while I can. Even when I’m my happiest, there’s a part of me that longs to go somewhere new and another that wants to return to where I’ve been, not because it’s familiar but because I’ve left a small piece of myself there.

Stretching yourself and your love across time and space or across oceans and continents is exhausting because no matter how much you want to stay with a person or in a place, you want to go fulfill another perhaps. And at the of the day, your duty is to yourself so you leave, a piece of yourself remaining until you come back. Maybe this is why we can never truly be content with ourselves, because we want our full selves to be with us 100% of the time but that’s impossible because we’ve left footprints, pieces of ourselves, everywhere we’ve been, only to be picked up again when we return.

Is that what I get for constantly leaving? A life in the pursuit of something bigger and better only to realize that it won’t happen as long as I leave pieces of myself behind and opening myself to caring about others? Honestly, I am completely willing to leave pieces of myself in places I may never go again if I have the opportunity to experience something new with the possibility of filling those empty spaces with another person or place.

What keeps me moving to new places is the promise of something new. Whether it's a new language, food, acquaintance, experience, etc. Even though sometimes I don't know if I'm happy to be leaving again so I can go see new things or sad because it's hard, I am driven by the attraction of filling what I see as emptiness in experience or lack of knowledge. I miss places I've been, people I've met, and the comforts of the known but being able to fulfill my desire to see more and become self-aware distracts that. 

At the end of it all, the perhaps that us wanderers, us nomads, seek may never occur or it may occur with a greater consequence than we expected. If constantly leaving one place teaches me anything, it’s to keep an open mind and an even more open heart. There’s something special about returning to a place I visited or lived. It can make the goodbyes extremely difficult but it makes the hellos even sweeter. 

So Much Room for Activities!

I’ve officially been in Sweden for 8 days. On one hand it feels like I’ve been here forever since the days are so long and so much has happened but on the other hand, time has flown by because I’ve been so busy. I look around at the people I’ve met and can’t help but think to myself “I can’t believe that I’ve only known _____ for a week”

Everyone is in the same situation and it’s like freshman year all over again. Nobody knows anyone, unless you’re from DU and you know 30 other people, and everyone is looking for friends. The faces and names start to blur together until all you know is where someone is from. Eventually that becomes part of their name so Kristin becomes “Kristin from BC” or Dan becomes “Daniel from Perth”.

Meeting people from all over the world definitely makes this the most tiring orientation experience that I’ve been through. Don’t get me wrong, it’s incredible to think of all of the different places we’re from and quite educational to hear different perspectives but at the end of the day I’m excited to climb into my sheetless bed and sleep, especially since Europeans really know how to party and it's exhausting...

ALSO! If for some reason you really want to follow along, I’m using the hashtag #emilyinsweden on Instagram and Twitter so click the links to see my thoughts on Swedes and some more pictures!

Kristin from BC, Mari from Peru, Madelyn from CO, Katri from Helsinki, me, and Anna from France!
Hooray, friends!

The First 2 Days...

I know everyone has a different experience while studying abroad but I sincerely hope that not everyone's first day is as bad as mine was. This is an awful cliche but even though a lot went wrong in 24 hours, I actually learned a lot and realized facts that had been right in front of me.

My first day in Lund was a struggle. Struggle city was a thing and I was the not-so-proud mayor trudging my way through one minute at a time. Let’s just say that the only food I had to eat in 12 hours was an apple and a granola bar, I’m sleeping without sheets until I can make it to IKEA (sorry mom!), and that I scared my family and friends because I didn’t get in contact anyone for over 24 hours (once again, sorry!)

Thankfully, Wednesday went a lot better than Tuesday. I finally ate something besides the granola bars that are supposed to last me until October, reunited with the internet, and met up with friends from school. 

I was able to run before the welcome meeting that morning which allowed me to see at least part of the town but didn't prevent me from getting lost later that afternoon and again that evening. Lund has a small population but the town is sprawling and was founded before urban planning existed so it's easier for me to get lost than to actually know where I'm going. Without the mountains to the west or a grid system, I have no idea where I'm going so it makes for a very interesting time and me missing my unlimited data.

So raise your glass of Gevalia or Åbro for cheers to better days moving forward!

Em

Definitely not the best picture I've ever taken. But the only one so far...

AHHHHHH

Hello!!

I decided to create a blog about my adventures abroad (utomlands in Swedish). Facebook can be overrated and this way I can write longer excerpts about everything that I get to do.

I leave for over 4 months in about 8 hours and I'm super excited. I've been counting down to this day since February and it's surreal that August 17 is finally here and I'm on my way to Sweden! My mom's side of the family is from Norkoping and Vimmerby so I'll be studying in the homeland, which is something special for both my family over there and myself. Even though I've been there once before, studying abroad is completely different from a visit and I'm hoping that I'll get to learn a lot more about my culture.

My passport is ready, suitcase is 98% packed, and my family is kinda freaking out a little. Partially because I'll be an ocean and a couple thousand miles away and partially because they think I'll spend four months drinking beer, hiking, and watching hockey.

Me? I'm excited, nervous, stressed, and a million other things. Nervous because it's just soooo far; stressed because I'm not completely physically ready to go; and excited because I've waited to study abroad for years and the time has finally come.

Stay tuned for pictures and other posts about my adventures for the next few months!

Em