Swedish Field Journal: 1st Edition

We have been living in Lund, Sweden, for a full month now. It feels longer to me. I feel fairly settled: I have made a couple friends, my Swedish is progressing quickly, and I can easily navigate around town. I have gathered important master's information and I will apply to both the Welfare Policies and Management program as well as the Swedish Social Work program. In the meantime I am applying to jobs. All is progressing well...

I can't fully speak for Daniel, but my impression is that he is really enjoying his job. He likes his co-workers (as do I!) and his project. He works hard and seems to be adjusting really well.

Life here isn't terribly different than in the US. Our lifestyle is a bit different, in that we almost always eat at home, and walk everywhere, but it feels quite familiar. But there are small funny things here and some subtle cultural differences that are interesting to discover.

In one month, here's what I can (confidently enough) report:

One of the things we've learned about in my Swedish class, and that I've noticed in my day-to-day life, is the Swedish desire for equality and parity in all regards. For example, we have always called our Swedish teacher by his first name. Once we students asked how to say Mr. and Mrs., and he (a 60+ y/o man) didn't even tell us, only explaining that it is old-fashioned and that such titles are no longer used. We asked about doctors, or professors, and apparently it's not fashionable to point-out hierarchy. He commented that he is glad Swedish society has lost the formal "you" and other titles, that he thought they were bad.

Along the same lines, Swedes don't want to seem different or better than other people. To be normal is good. I haven't had enough first-hand experience to fully compare this to the viral American individualism, but that's the first idea that comes to mind. I've also been told that on resumes, or during a job interview, one isn't supposed to brag about oneself. I can't imagine a job interview in which my task is anything other than to convince the potential boss that they can't live without me.

On a less serious note, the attitude towards fashion here is markedly European and of course, quite classy. It's very rare to see even a new mother in sweatpants. In the block surrounding the gym, perhaps you'll see some comfortable clothes, but still I see that rarely. In my opinion, most people here are fit and fairly good looking. Men are much more metrosexual than American men - there's a lot of gelled hair and ankle boots for men. (I like a man who can dress himself, but if he takes longer than me to get ready, that's ridiculous.)

My plan is to have more "editions" of cultural differences, as I experience them and learn more about it.