As one of my friends say: "People is the thing."

As I was looking at my Swedish corner in my room, I found the inspiration to write this post. And, the truth is that my corner is not an ordinary one: there, I have photos of the cities I've visited in Sweden, a small flag of those from Ikea, photos of the Swedish nature that so much gets me crazy, stamps and, to me, the most important thing: photos of those people who help and have helped me with Swedish and gets me the motivation and inspiration to go on everyday. However, there are much more than just these.

Stockholm. Winter. By Ana Ramírez

The first person who started helping me was Martin, who you may know as The Swedish Lad, if you follow him on Youtube. When I first thought of learning Swedish, I went to Youtube and found his vocabulary and culture videos there. I've known him for three years or so and earlier this year was the first time that I got to meet him. Martin is one of the persons who inspires me the most everyday with all his positive energy and his projects ideas.

The second person is my super friend Tommy. Not only did he help me with my first linguistic project on Swedish, and that's how I met him, by the way, but he has helped me practicing speaking in Swedish, he has shown me hundreds of cultural things, he brought me Swedish folk music closer and cooked the most delicious Swedish meals ever! But this relationship is very very enriching. We have grown together the time that we have spent together. 

In the third place I've got my Brasilian engineering friend, Bianor, whom my sister and I are secretly training in linguistics. I told him I never read "The Little Prince" before, so he had the awesome idea of giving it to me as a gift and in Swedish! But what I appreciate the most is the note that he wrote to me. Whenever I feel doubtful of what I am doing, I read it and get the energy and determination to go on  with it.

Then I have Maria and Martin. Maria is a very sweet girl with whom I write e-mails with in Swedish and she does it in Spanish. And that I like a lot because I really enjoy writing e-mails and she has helped me to improve my writing skills and also my speaking ones.

Martin is a guy that I've gotten to meet through a very good language app at the beginning of the summer, approximately. In him I've found myself, in the sense that we have a lot of things in common that I've never had with anyone before. Also, not only he helps me with my Swedish, I help him with his Spanish, as well. I found it very enriching, to be honest. He is the first swede I meet who wants to learn Spanish. So, sometimes I get the terrible feeling of wanting to meet him just to listen to him speaking Spanish with his melodic Swedish accent. Because, who doesn't want to listen to an adorable Swedish double-accent? Moreover, I've got the feeling that we are gonna be very good friends and  I admire him because he has been learning Spanish for very few months and is so good at it!

Malmö. Winter. By Ana Ramírez

But this is no the whole list of all the people who have helped me. There are much more with whom I've just shared small talks or e-mails or anything. And most probably, it is that I've been nothing without them! Tack så mycket. 

~ Love, Ana ~

After our trip to Stockholm, we took a train to Malmö to continue the adventure! We arrived at around 15:00 to Malmö Central station, where a friend, that I was meeting for the very first time, was waiting for us. We took a bus to our hostel and then we headed to Expresso House to have a proper Swedish fika. There, we hang out for more than two hours having fun and recording videos. After that, we went for a walk around the city enjoying the snow and the quietness of the city.

Malmö. Winter. By Ana R.

On the second and last day, - cause we only stayed for a weekend - we walked to the public library and Kungsparken until Malmöslottshus. That park was really beautiful to see since it was really full of snow. There were a lot of people walking and enjoying the sun rays and a lot of kids playing in the snow.

Malmö. Winter. By Ana R.

From there, we walked to Scaniabadet to see and enjoy the calmness of the sea and Öresundsbron. Then we walked to the centre to see Carolina church and Ebba's house to finish the day.

See you soon,

~ Love, Ana ~

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 ☁Después de nuestro viaje a Estocolmo, ¡cogimos un tren a Malmö para seguir con nuestra aventura! Llegamos sobre las 15:00 a la estación central de Malmö, donde un amigo, que iba a conocer por primera vez, nos estaba esperando. Allí cogimos un autobús hasta nuestro hostal y después nos fuimos a Expresso House a disfrutar de un buen fika sueco. Allí, estuvimos más de dos horas pasando un buen rato y grabando videos. Después de eso, nos fuimos a dar una vuelta por la ciudad para disfrutar de la nieve y la tranquilidad de la ciudad.

 ☁ En el segundo y último día, - por solo nos quedamos un fin de semana - fuimos andando a la biblioteca pública y a Kungsparken hasta Malmöslottshus. Era un parque precioso para visitar, ya que estaba todo cubierto de nieve. Había muchísima gente caminando y disfrutando los rayos de sol, y muchos niños jugando con la nieve.

 ☁Desde allí, caminamos hasta Scaniabadet para ver y disfrutar de la tranquilidad del mar y Öresundsbron. Después fuimos andando hasta el centro para ver la iglesia de Carolina y la casa de Ebba para acabar el día.

Nos vemos pronto, 

                                                                  ~ Con amor, Ana ~

I've been to Stockholm, I've been to Stockholm, I've been to Stockholm!

I am back in Ireland now and I can't still believe that I've been to the Swedish capital (or how they say it "huvudstad")! It's been more than a week and I miss it terribly. It's so beautiful: colorful Gamla Stan, all the islands, the snow, etc.

Day 1

My sister and I took an early flight from Málaga Airport to Arlanda Airport which took about four hours and a half. For a Sweden lover, it feels like forever! When we arrived at the airport, we bought the bus tickets to City terminalen, which is a bus station, and from there we walked to the T-Centralen subway station, which is connected with the bus one. We went to our hostel, which was located in Gamla Stan and wandered around with our friend. He recommended us a cosy coffee place to go, which is the one located in the yellow building of the photo. We didn't have time to visit it, but if he recommended it, it must be good!

Stockholm. Winter. By Ana R.

Day 2

We woke up to -15 degrees this day! It was freezing, but Stockholm was absolutely stunning! Our hostel was close to Skeppsholmsbron, so we decided to walk there and see the famous crown located on this bridge! We ended up walking to Skeppsholmen and we saw the National Museum building, which is currently at restoration. From there, we walked to Södermalm to see the beautiful views from Katarinahissen and Södra teatern. We walked back Slussen and we bought our travel cards for the subway. We went back to Gamla Stan to visit the Nobel Museum, which is at Stortoget.

By 15:00 we were on our way to Kungsträdgården, where we saw the Opera House, the Great Synagogue, China teatern, and these beautiful reindeers, which are part of the Christmas decoration.

Stockholm. Winter. By Ana R.

Day 3

We started the day by taking the subway to Rådhuset to see the city hall. It was absolutely beautiful what we saw there: the sun was rising and its rays going through the doors of the city hall, all covered in snow. The water flowing with a lot of fog, accompanied by two beautiful statutes by the city hall. From there you can also see Norrmalm. We went back to the subway: direction Slussen!. This time, we were going to the port area to take a ferry to Djurgården, the island where most of the museums are. There, we saw the famous amusing park Grona Lund, and from there we walked to the ABBA museum. If you haven't been there yet, you MUST! You will learn a lot about ABBA and have fun! My sister and me did some quizzes, made our own music video with the Dancing queen melody and recorded our own versions of Mamma mia and Waterloo.

After this museum, we walked to Vasamuseet (the Vasa museum), which is a museum about the Vasa ship, which drowned back in the 1691 when Sweden and Poland were dealing with the question of who rules over the Baltic Sea. The history and the massive size of the Vasa will absolutely freak you out. Now, if you love Sweden and its history and traditions, you should go and visit the Nordiska museum, which it's full of thousands of stories about Sweden, its traditions, such as Midsommar, and much more!

Stockholm. Winter. By Ana R.

After this intensive day of museums, we walked along Strandvägen and took the subway back to beautiful Södermalm, because that evening we were tasting some typical Swedish food from our friend: stuvade makaroner och falukorv, which was delicious! We also tried Janssons frestelse, which is a creamy potato and fish gratin meal.

I will definitely come back to Stockholm and Sweden soon. I can't wait for it.

~ Love, Ana ~

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¡He ido a Estocolmo, he ido a Estocolmo, he ido a Estocolmo!

 ☁Ya estoy de vuelta en Irlanda y ¡aún no me puedo creer que haya estado en la capital sueca ( o como ellos dicen "huvudstad")! Ha pasado más de una semana y la echo de menos muchísimo. Es tan bonita: la colorida Gamla Stan, todas las islas, la nieve, etc.

Día 1

 ☁ Mi hermana y yo cogimos un vuelo por la mañana temprano desde el aeropuerto de Málaga hasta el aeropuerto de Arlanda, que duró como cuatro horas y media. Para un amante de Suecia, ¡eso es eterno! Cuando llegamos al aeropuerto, compramos los billetes de autobús hasta City terminalen, que es una estación de autobuses, y desde ahí fuimos hasta la estación de metro T-Centralen, que estaba conectada con la de autobuses. Fuimos a nuestro hostal, que estaba situado en Gamla Stan, y dimos una vuelta con nuestro amigo. Él nos recomendó un café muy acogedor para visitar, que es el que está en el edificio amarillo de la foto. No llegamos a ir, pero si él lo recomendó, ¡tiene que ser bueno!

Día 2

 ☁¡Este día nos despertamos con -15 grados! Hacía muchísimo frío, pero ¡Estocolmo estaba increíblemente precioso! Nuestro hostal estaba cerca de Skeppsholmsbron, así que decidimos ir andando hasta allí y ver la famosa corona que hay en el puente. Acabamos caminando hasta Skeppsholmen y vimos el edificio del museo nacional, que ahora lo están restaurando. Desde allí, fuimos andando hasta Södermalm para ver las preciosas vistas desde Katarinahissen y también vimos Södra teatern. Luego volvimos andando a Slussen y compramos nuestras tarjetas de metro de 72 horas. Volvimos a Gamla Stan para visitar el museo Nobel, que está en Stortoget.

 ☁ A las 15:00 estábamos de camino a Kungsträdgården, donde vimos la Opera, la Gran Sinagoga, China teatern, y estos preciosos renos, que son parte de la decoración de Navidad.


Día 3

 ☁ Empezamos el día cogiendo el metro hasta Rådhuset para ver el ayuntamiento. Era súper bonito lo que vimos allí: el sol saliendo y los rayos atravesando las puertas del ayuntamiento, todo cubierto de nieve. El agua pasaba con un montón de niebla, acompañada de dos preciosas estatuas a los pies del ayuntamiento. Desde allí se puede ver Norrmalm. Volvimos al metro: ¡dirección Slussen! Esta vez íbamos a la zona del puerto para coger un ferry hasta Djurgården, la isla donde están la mayoría de los museos. Allí, vimos el famoso parque de atracciones Grona Lund, y desde allí fuimos andando hasta el museo de ABBA. Si no has estado allí, ¡TIENES que ir! ¡Aprenderás un montón sobre ABBA y te divertirás muchísimo! Mi hermana y yo hicimos algunas juegos de preguntas, hicimos nuestro propio videoclip con la melodía de Dancing queen y grabamos nuestras propias versiones de Mamma mia y Waterloo, que son nuestras canciones favoritas de ABBA.

 ☁ Después de este museo, fuimos andando hasta Vasamuseet (el museo del Vasa), que es un museo sobre el barco Vasa, que se hundió allá en el 1691 cuando Suecia y Polonia estaban discutiendo sobre quien se quedaría con el Mar Báltico. La historia y el enorme tamaño del Vasa te dejarán alucinando. Si te gusta Suecia y su historia y tradiciones, deberías visitar el museo Nordiska, que está lleno de miles de historias sobre Suecia, sus tradiciones, como Midsommar, y ¡mucho más!

 ☁ Después de este día intenso de museos, fuimos andando por Strandvägen y cogimos el metro de vuelta al precioso Södermalm, porque esa tarde íbamos a probar comida típica sueca de nuestro amigo: stuvade makaroner ocho falukorv, ¡que estaba delicioso! También probamos Janssons frestelse, que es una comida con patatas, que tiene una textura un tanto cremosa, y pescado gratinados.

Definitivamente volveré a Estocolmo y a Suecia pronto. Tengo muchísimas ganas.

                                                                 ~ Con amor, Ana ~

Hello people!

I am back! Hopefully, for a longer while this time. Last year I was deciding whether to study in Sweden with the Erasmus scholarship or not. I decided to go to Limerick (Ireland) instead since I planned a little something for Sweden for the future. Anyway, four months ago I moved to Ireland to study and I absolutely love it there. Although I know I would love it much more in Sweden. 

In Ireland I met a couple of Scandinavian people. One of them was a boy from South Sweden who has helped me a lot with Swedish and taught me many things about Sweden and the Swedish culture. Specially, he has been as an inspiration to me, that constantly reminded me of my dream and helped me reach it. 

When it comes to Sweden, I have big news! I am traveling with my sister to Stockholm in three days! We will also visit Malmö and Copenhagen. I am so excited to go back to Sweden, specially now that there is snow and every city will be covered in white.

Stockholm. Autumn. By Marta Vargas

P.S.: This trip means that I will have more photos to show about Sweden so there will be more entries here!

~ Love, Ana ~

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      ¡Hola a todos!

☁ ¡He vuelto! Espero que por una temporada algo más larga. El año pasado tuve que decidir si ir a estudiar a Suecia con la beca Erasmus o no. Sin embargo, decidí ir a Limerick (Irlanda), ya que tengo una pequeña cosa preparada en Suecia para el futuro. De todos modos, hace cuatro meses me mudé a Irlanda para estudiar y me encanta todo allí. Aunque sé que me encantaría mucho más en Suecia.

☁ En Irlanda, conocí a un par de personas de Escandinavia. Uno de ellos era un chico del sur de Suecia que me ha ayudado mucho con el sueco y me ha enseñado muchas cosas sobre Suecia y la cultura sueca. Más que nada, él me ha servido de inspiración, que constantemente me recordaba mi sueño y me ayudaba a alcanzarlo. 

☁ Hablando de Suecia, ¡tengo un súper notición! ¡Dentro de  tres días viajo con mi hermana a Estocolmo! También visitaremos Malmö y Copenhague. Tengo tantas ganas de volver a Suecia, especialmente ahora que hay nieve y están todas las ciudades cubiertas de blanco. 

P.D.: Este viaje significa que tendré más fotos para enseñar de Suecia, ¡por lo que habrán más entradas en el blog!

  ~ Con amor, Ana ~