Adapting in Sweden

The experience of arriving in a new country or a place always amazed me. Especially from trying to collect the details of information for your trips from scratch to prepare the stuff that you want to bring with you to that place. Definitely, you will prepare anything that you could think will help but sometimes we will miss other aspects. I was preparing myself to live in Sweden for three months before I went there but still after I took a look behind, I was still facing every seasonal obstacle to getting used to the new environment that I never even heard about it when I try to collect the information, so I will part my experience into four seasonal sections from the first time I arrive till I return home:

1. Spring

        In spring 2021 I was facing getting illness in Sweden for the very first time. I didn't understand at first what cause me to be ill till I found out when my host parents in Sweden told me that they have pollen allergies. I started to think what is that? and how to handling with allergies caused by Pollen, which is the type of allergy that I never experienced in my home country because it's not common in tropical countries to have pollen in the same period. I do have allergies and I wasn't preparing myself with my medicine because I was worried my medicine will count as an illegal drug in Sweden so I just bring the safe one which did not help much hahaha. The pollen that causes allergic reactions comes from trees, grasses, and weeds. These plants make small, light, and dry pollen grains that travel by the wind. They then can find their way into your eyes, nose, and lungs, causing allergy symptoms if you have a pollen allergy. The pollen allergies mostly relapse during spring and many other people get the symptoms because the plant starts to bloom so I hope that you can consider this experience into your survival information hehe. Then after my host family got sick of it. I started to feel the same symptoms after them and have to fight for the past two weeks from Birch and Oaktree pollen in specific that released tiny grains of pollen and spreading in the air and makes me stuck during that lovely quiet warm breeze seasons haha.

2. Summer

        The best seasons above all, these are the seasons when everything feels alive and there are many options to explore even this wasn't my favorite seasons because it just my common things in my home country haha. but I like when the surround becomes so colorful and alive, especially when everybody's face is so friendly :) This season only reminds me about my happy times and my holiday season that I spend mostly going to another country like Germany, Holland, and Belgium. So I was so familiar with these vibes above the other seasons hehe.

3. Autumn

        My favorite seasons! Autumn was my thing because my birthday also is in this season and the color palette of this season was always never failed my sense of art. Also could captivate my eyes so deeply. Hence, there is no other reason for me to didn't fall in love with this season unless haha my experience having Magsjuka or Stomach flu was haunt me during this season. I got this experience because my host kids got the contact from someone whose having stomach flu at their school. So they spread it at home. I was got sick for 3 days and lost 5 kg which is insane and I never know there is kind of a type of illness like that, that can spread so easily through food, water, and physical contact. Magsjuka (Swedish) or Stomach Flu is an intestinal infection marked by diarrhea, cramps, nausea, vomiting, and fever. Then no wonder I was losing 5 kg at that time HAHA.

4. Winter

        The sad seasons above all, haha. But I feel so grateful for seeing these magical seasons in Sweden. Especially when the snowflakes fall and give me such a cold yet beautiful feeling at the same time, the kind of experience that I never experienced before. For example like when you start to move your hand because it was too cold and your hand was bloody cracking because of it haha also the experience when I have to pull my suitcase among the thick snow pile oh god haha it was suck lol. However, getting used to the cold winter in Sweden is not easy at all. Even I never feel homesick, nor have a problem with the weather or the dark time but this is still something that turns me into finally experiencing what depression is. I got flu from this season because I don't have proper shoes for winter, so my feet were absorbing the cold from the snow under my shoes, and have to face living nomad before my flight, moving from one place to the other place and have to hear someone telling me that I have to leave their house because they feel I just bothering them (Almost become homeless). Well, many shit things happen in here. Also, there are many goodbyes involved. I don't know how to close this part but haha I hope you can understand that sometimes even you try already to make something planned, life was always surprising you with the story that you never even understand why it is happening. The experience to live in Swedia was still the best thing that I ever had. I wished I can stay there in the future.