Copenhagen: Land of culture and hippies

After Sweden, I had to say goodbye to friends and continue the travels on my own. My next stop: Copenhagen. I went there not knowing much about the city, and left thinking it is one of the coolest cities I have ever been to, but hard to say why. Just the feeling I guess.

I had good timing and happened to be there on the one night of the year when the city has its "Culture Night": an annual event with various activities throughout the city. All of the museums and churches are open until late at night, there are various outdoor concerts, sampling of local foods, art exhibits, hands-on crafts and activities booths, and so much more. The whole city comes alive and all of the locals come out to enjoy the festivities. The streets were packed all night! It was a great way to see the city, and I had made friends with some locals that were my guides for the night, showing me all the best that the city has to offer.

In Copenhagen, I also had to make a visit to the infamous Christiana. This is a neighborhood or commune/community in Copenhagen that is a self-proclaimed free town. They do not follow any of Copenhagen's laws, only their own as established by the 800 some residents that live there. In fact, when you enter the area there is a sign that says "You are now leaving the EU." Basically, it's one big hippie community. The people freely sell weed on the streets in the neighborhood, and the local authorities seem to look the other way. It was bizarre, but really cool at the same time. The place almost looks like a slum: shanty houses, random things hanging from trees, artwork plastered everywhere, painted trees, colored picnic tables everywhere, and people that are dressed like homeless people sitting around everywhere. You would think by the looks of it that it was a dangerous place to be, but it was just the opposite. As I walked through the community, it felt so peaceful and full of life. The people make their own "laws", some of which were written on the sides of the houses: no hard drugs, no war, no fighting, share with others, live simply (I think all of the residents share a communal pot of money as well). Yes, they are total hippies in every way, and the place is considered to be pretty controversial, but it was one of the coolest places I've ever seen.

So far, I'm loving traveling on my own. It's nice to go at my own pace, see what I want to see, turn when I want to turn, and to just explore. It has also been a good experience to push myself out of my comfort zone, making friends with other travelers and meeting some awesome locals as well. It makes traveling on my own not so lonely, and much more exciting. I have met so many new people with different perspectives than me, living totally different lives than me. It just makes me believe more and more every day that people are so extraordinary and our differences are beautiful. Maybe that's just my inner-hippie talking now. But one thing I can tell you is you've got to be free. Peace and love people, that's all you need.

Sweden: Land of "Lagom": Just Right.

It's not that I thought I wouldn't like Sweden, it's just that I didn't know how much I would love Sweden! I think staying with friends in each of the 3 cities I visited definitely helped contribute to that feeling a lot. Either way, there is so much I loved about my stay in Sweden.

I stayed in 3 different cities in Sweden: the beautiful capital of Stockholm, the quaint and cozy small town of Jönköping, and the always exciting Gothenburg. In each city, I stayed with and meet up with various friends that showed me around the city and took me to all the great local places. 

Sweden has so much beauty to offer: beautiful nature (so many parks, rocky islands, colors on the trees, even sightings of moose and deer...), beautiful cities (old architecture, eclectic shops, and the cutest cafes), and beautiful people. I mostly love that there is so much green everywhere in the cities! And fika (coffee and treat time with friends) and godis (bulk candy bought by the kilo) need to be  more regular events in my life :) I feasted on traditional Swedish foods (meatballs, lingon berry, boiled potatoes, pancakes, salmon, shrimp salad, and even kebab pizza) and spent a lot of time catching up with old friends and making new ones. 

During my stay, I learned a few Swedish words, but my favorite is the word lagom. It doesn't have a direct English translation, but it basically means: just enough, just right, in moderation, or in balance. This is a word that definitely describes the Swedish culture, and also defines my stay in Sweden. The Swedish people do everything in moderation and seem to have a real balance in life. Whether it's eating just the right amount of food, having just the right amount of coffee, spending just the right amount of time with friends, or having a balance between work and pleasure, the philosophy infiltrates the culture in so many different ways. And it describes my visit as well: it was just right. A pleasant stay that was balanced between fun and relaxation that left me feeling balanced, rested, and energized. I want to I have more lagom in my everyday life. And although it was "just right", maybe my stay in Sweden still feels just a little too short. I know I will return someday, but maybe next time it will be in the summer; I could go for a little warmer weather....but still... lagom!

Finland: On Being Untraditional and Being Human

After spending a day in the cute little town of Gdansk, Poland, I boarded the ferry to Finland and spent the majority of the 22 hours on the ship laying on the sundeck and catching up on rest. I arrived in Helsinki early in the morning and didn't waste any time. I immediately headed to the shoreline and walked around the old market square. The market booths contained a lot of fresh seafood (some people selling it right from their docked boat!), reindeer meat, wool scarves, hats, and sweaters, freshly baked breads, and of course the tacky souvenirs. I continued along the shoreline and walked past the harbor to find a huge leafy green park sprawling on the southern end of Helsinki, right along the shore. It was a beautiful sunny day, and I was so excited to see some trees with colored leaves! Even though there were only a few, it made me so happy that I'm not entirely missing the great Midwest autumn colors from back home. I relaxed in the park before walking farther along the shoreline and then back through the city, passing by tons of designer and antique shops. Then I met my friend Silja back at the train station, and the rest of the time in Helsinki was spent being not-so-traditional Finnish and very untouristy. It is so nice to stay with a friend who is a local, because you see an entirely different side of the city (not to mention you don't have to worry too much about navigating and getting lost!). Yes, she pointed out some major landmarks and we had a great traditional Finnish meal, but I also saw the other side of the city. Silja lives just outside the main city center on a small island. It was so quiet and peaceful, and we were just steps away from the rocky beach and a beautiful nature preserve area. We spent a lot of time just hanging out with her friends, having fika (Swedish tradition of getting together for coffee and treats), and going out for coffee or drinks. On the first night, Silja invited a bunch of people over for a tapas and sangria party (hmm...are we still in Barcelona?) and I had the chance to meet a lot of her awesome friends. I found that the stereotype about Scandinavians being cold and unfriendly was very untrue, at least among these ones. They were so kind to me, always speaking in English and immediately treating me like a friend. They said the stereotype is true, but I didn't sense it at all, except for maybe with strangers. We also went to see some of her friends perform capoeira (a Brazilian martial arts dance), which was incredible to watch. Maybe we didn't see everything Finnish, but I loved just seeing what they do on a daily basis and having the chance to just relax and hang out with friends rather than be sightseeing all the time. It was a nice change of pace and I had an awesome time. One of Silja's friends asked me if Europe was really different from the U.S. or what differences I noticed. While it's hard to compare all of Europe to all of the U.S., in general I think it's not so different. Well, maybe the language, customs, food and buildings are all very different (ok that's a lot), but when it comes to the way people interact with each other, we are all really very much the same. I can see how culture affects people, but in the end we are still all human beings with the same basic needs and the same desires to have love, community, and a high quality of life. I know that seems so obvious and I always knew it, but at the time it was a striking realization to me and I have never believed it to be so completely true until now. We are so different and yet really all very much the same, and that is beautiful.   Tonight, I will board another ferry, and in the morning I will be in Sweden! I'm excited to be staying in Scandinavia for a while more, since I really love it here (despite the rain and the cold), and I'm especially excited to visit more friends while I'm there.