We Moved to Sweden!

If you have any questions you want answered by me, PM me on my YT channel and I’ll get back to you! 

From Richmond, Va

The best part is this picture.

Melodifestivalen = The melody festival.

So, we just had daylight savings time last Sunday, so now it’s getting even darker. We decided to compare daylight in Stockholm vs Daytona Beach, Florida.

Charts!

Stockholm

Florida

Table!

Due to the low arc of the sun in the higher latitudes, some of those times don’t give justice to how weird the light really is here. The latest sunset may be at 10:10 PM, but it doesn’t truly get dark until at least 11:30 or midnight. Same with the sunrise. It’s listed as 8:47 AM, but I won’t really see any light until around 9:30 AM.

So, now we're living the real Swedish life. I got a Visa bank card which means I can actually buy stuff online, and I now have access to online banking so I can pay bills and transfer money without going out of my way to the bank.

We have real internet now, too. That's been the most amazing. There's so much we've been waiting to download, and so much Netflix to watch. 

I got a library card.

I got an awesome new Swedish ID. 

Lol. Anders Andersson.

I can register for Swedish For Immigrants (SFI).

We are now on the housing queue.

It's helped make everything just a bit more comfortable.

I'm not registered as a permanent resident, and that's reflected in registration here. Audrey can't get her number through me since I'm not a permanent resident, and I can't get a motorcycle license here either. So, there are some things that are still frustrating. It's just a step at a time. 

I'm off to buy more stuff online now.

Hey thanks for the message.

It takes a really long time to find jobs and a place to live so I would start with that. On the side you should download Rosetta Stone or try livemocha.com to start learning the language. Also watch some swedish movies (there are some good ones on netflix) to get used to hearing the language. 

Swedish transportation is great, but Audrey and I picked up some bikes so we could tour the city in a different way. Stockholm is really bike friendly. There are tons of bike paths, cars give the right of way, and it's small enough that you could get from the top to the bottom in about 40 minutes. 

Compared to our last city, this is a blast. We used biking as a main form of transportation back in Virginia, but it felt like a rush against cars and a matter of when, not if, you would get hit by an open car door or stray pedestrian. 

Hopping on our bikes is an easy way to get from here to there, but you also don't realize how much you're missing when you're taking the metro to and from everywhere. It's been a great way to really get to know the city.

I've even been using my bike to commute to work. In fact, on the way to work one day, people from the city were passing out little bags while thanking people for biking. I wound up with a bike cover, water bottle, and a few magazines and pamphlets about biking in the city.

Who could ask for more?

If you're interested in picking up a bike, check out Blocket to find a deal on some used bikes.

Audrey posing at Slussen.

Right after picking up the bikes.

On the way home.

Free stuff!

So, as you know, Audrey had been planning on getting her dog, Wiley, here from the moment we first got to Stockholm. We finally picked her up at the end of March! It was a long eight months without her. Here's a video of the reunion!