Markus i Sverige

Wednesday was the coldest day so far. During the whole day we did not have more than -6 degrees. In the morning it were even -11. But it began to snow during last night when the temperatures became near 0. Now we have a nice pouder-snow everywhere. This night Stefan and I went by car to Sidsjön for sledging down the skislope. It was so fun. After days in office and room at home this was an awesome joke at night.

The week was not so interesting. On monday I've been a little bit sick and did not go to badminton. The preperations for our Kårhuset party went well until we heard that Kåren is unhappy about our topic. That was an accident. For attracting at least some Swedish for our party we announced our erasmus-party as a Black&White party which accidentely is also the topic of an incredible huge and famous Kårhuset-party in spring. Announcing a small Black&White-party in Kårhuset would violate the reputation of the big party in spring, so Kåren. I guess, all of you, who have been in Kåren in the last 10 months how big partys are. Esspecially those in spring. I remember "huge and famous" Apre Ski party, Reeperbahn party and Pyjama-party. But maybe this party is really huge. But however, it is too late anyway. We tried to fix the advertisments on Wednesday. So cool that some of the "old" students attend "in mind". In the evening was a goodbye-party for our...

On 5th of December 2007 Kåren has been so kind to offer us a place to party in Kårhuset. The initial idea was to play our own music there. Jens will be the DJ, so we can be sure to have a good collection of songs beyong the usual club-stuff. Since the party is so late in the semester it turned out that this will also be a kind of Goodbye-Party for the exchange students. Of course, we can have fun among ourselves, but with more (Swedish) people its more fun, so we spread the news. To give the party some style we decided to anounce it as a black&white party. This has nothing to do with the famous (???) Black&White party from Kårhuset. We never heard about it before otherwise we would have skipped that topic for avoiding confusion. The single drawback: the party takes place on a Wednesday.

Thursday has everybody been busy. The whole day. Except of me. For not starring at the walls I spent the evening in the wood and starred at the sauna-walls afterwards. Friday was a quite successful workday. The evening happend a cool sit-in-party at our flat and it last until 4am. Saturday itself has been therefore very relaxing. Jens and I went two hours through the wood and around Sidsjön. In the evening has been the vodka-party. Cool thing. The common 4 of us went to Kårhuset at 11 for joining the 60-70's party. But due to the soccer-match between Spain and Sweden which Sweden lost heroical with 0:3 the Swedes had left the place after the match. We were almost the only people in the house. But that did not matter. We had the dance floor for our own and got not tired to use it. Definitely a cool evening. Sunday morning Christian made breakfast at our flat. So tasty and climax of a weekend which I felt like eating all the time. Preparing tomorrows lesson bridged the time between l...

It is constantly cold here. Actually -5 degress at 8am. Sometimes it snows a little bit, but usually it is not worth to mention. Snow on the sidewalks is by now that compressed that you might be able to skate to university without a problem. Looking back at the past three days nothing specific has happened. From monday I remember badminton and sauna. Tuesday was a staying-home day. Yesterday I got my first feedback about my thesis. In 3 months. But it seems things are rolling now. The thesis is "method vodoo" but not a hopeless case. That's more than I have expected. Todays tasks: writing CV, writing applications , and writing thesis, of course. At the weekend there is a vodka-party announced at Norrmalms. We all shall share vodka. To "get wasted like one big family". Yeah, right... seems like I've been to long away from home. Yesterday the skiweek has also been booked. We are one week too late for getting the accomodation I prefered. Damnit. But at least w...

Short week. Last salsa evenings. Finally. Although it was fun, I am looking forward to two free evenings in the week. What else... haircut and Glühwein on Friday, swimming on saturday and finishing the day with an ABBA party as classic as weird. Definitely an experience. I do not know what was in that Polish bowl, but my slight headache and the sickness of several guests tell their own story. Pictures by Marta and Maritha . Sunday was relaxed. Long sleep and a long walk through the wood. Over the night and during the morning we got real good snow.

Old sins always come back, they say. One of them caught me now. My own course. Today started the new quarter for me with a new course: decision analysis 1, a course that I visited myself last year. At least from time to time. I remember the laborations were pretty cool, because I worked with Basti. But the lessons I can hardly remember. I think, I remember slides I did not really understand, but the satisfaction always followed during the laborations when a given problem brought sense to theories. But now I have to hold those lessons by myself. Hardly content to tell. As far as I remember, the first 10 minutes in the last year courses (not only decision analysis) were necessary for getting a projector working with a laptop. Because I am annoyed by wasting time with computer problems, I am using the whiteboard since the first lecture. The students have to suffer from my handwriting, but at least they only get what's necessary - I think. So today started a power-course with 3 student...

So that was it. Halloween. After a preparty at Norrmalms all started similar to last year with snow, a huge queue in front of Kårhuset and Swedes who are already unable to walk straight before entering the party. After we entered they closed the doors, because Kårhuset was already full. With 200 hundred people as I heard. 200? On bartömmning they have usually 500 to 600. Why closing when the queue is still so long? But it got even worse. Instead of having opened the big dancing room at the upper floor they had just three small dancing rooms: the usual dancefloor that was owned by awful electro beats, the smoker room almost playing the same crap and the billiard room playing the same crap sometimes mixed with garbled classics from Offspring and Green Day. Stefan and I left the disappointment 15 minutes before its official end for avoiding at least the final queue at the wardrobe. On the way back we met a funny Swed. He asked us for the Ibiz-hotel. We could not really help him further ev...

Just found something funny on WebCT (webplatform of Miun): For all non-Swedish speakers: Finska = finnish Spara alla = save all One of those words does not fit ;)

Work goes quite well these days. Every day my thesis gets more text. I start now every morning at 9. Effectively at 10 or later, because before I do everything else than working: getting tea, checking mails, reading news and stuff like that. On Tuesday my students wrote my exam. Pretty cool thing. Yesterday I corrected it. Strange to see them in my situation from one year ago. These days are more serious than the days before. Not only because of workload. Since my future in Sweden depends on the result of my thesis there is a uncertain timespan after February. Even if they accept me as PhD I cannot imagine that bureaucracy (even in Sweden) can let me start immediately in March. Therefore I should check for some B-plans. I already canceled my room at Nacksta, because in case I stay here it is no problem to take the cancellation back. May thoughts about plans in spring are quite vague. There is still the master thesis that needs to be written. I could bridge the time between diploma thes...

On Friday we had a party at Norrmalms. And because the party room looses power at 12pm everybody had to bring candles. Cool idea. In the morning I felt a little bit dizzy. I guess, due to Matt's Whiskey-Coke. At a Whiskey-Cola by Matt Coke is only used for giving the Whiskey a slightly darker color. On Saturday we have been to Kårhuset the first time since weeks, because Marcolino, Thomas and Jens were working there for the first time all together on one evening. And surprisingly the party it was very good. First we conquered a private party at the upper floor. It was meant for some Swedish students, but they were already drunk and not caring about who enters the dinner room. And they had a cool Live-band who played only good rock. They stopped at half past 1 and the last two hours we sticked to the usual dance floor who did not have the usual annoying Swedish chart music. I cannot recall what they were playing, because most songs I did not know, but it was funny. Somehow, this se...

Again Wednesday. Again thesis, again salsa. Tomorrow again Thursday, again salsa. Afterwards again Friday, again weekend. And all the time those moments "Damn, is it already one week ago?" Everything feels like yesterday. And if it does not feel like yesterday, it feels like eternity. But in all the routine are always specialties. Saturday to Sunday was Christians birthday party . The longest party so far and I even made it until the end (6am). Yesterday I was eating at the pizzeria since a long long time (I guess, last time was with Phil and Ulrich when they had their last day at university beginning of June). On Friday Ella and I will try to have lunch. Surprisingly, by now there are no plans for the weekend. Well, next weeks are exams' weeks. Last week I set up a schedule for my thesis. And it is already not valid anymore. Yesterday I was only busy with my lesson and language learning (I am looking forward to the next Non-English post on this blog). Another restraint f...

It is Monday morning, short before 11am. The view from my desk is directed to the window to a clear blue sky. The first snow from Thursday is gone since days. Most trees have lost their leves now. The remaining leaves lost their colors and present a palette of ocher-variances. In Sunsdvall most of the time seems to shine the sun. From Friday evening until Sunday night the Erasmus students (and me) went to Stockholm. We started with the Ybuss Friday evening. I do not know how long the ride finally lasted. Something over 4 hours. Having arrived at the City Terminalen we bought tickets for the metro. With almost 40 people that can take quite a while. Our hotel was somewhere in an industry-area, it seems. Until that point I planned to split off from the main group as soon as possible to manage things by myself. But it was not necessary. The hotel was good. And already at the first night we started into town. I appreciate the metro ticket. In May Philipp and I did not buy one. But the inve...

One of those days that turn everything around. The thesis is not as bad as I thought this morning, I had my last lecture today, surprsingly I will go to Kiruna in December (thanks to a personal hero), the first snow fall (three weeks earlier than last year !), I got postmail for the first time since weeks (and most lovely) and salsa was the an awesome lesson today. Almost everything went well. And somehow I was able to speak Swedish most of the time. And tomorrow we will go to Stockholm with the International Committee. So amazing. After Kiruna I did everything I missed the last year: Hiking, Norway, Stockholm, Kiruna. Only the Helsinki/Talin-Tour is missing by now. Small things like (cross-country-)skiing in Sundsvall and Hassalar are missing, too. But since the first snow fall today, we should be able to fix that before christmas.

One of those days when you fight alone. One of those days when you think that nobody listens. One of those days when all enthusiasm is blown away. One of those days when you are tired to motivate yourself again. One of those days when you think "Why didn't I learn something useful?". One of those days when thesis just sucks. One of those days when the intersection of wish and rationality is an empty set. Maybe I can hand in the thesis at the media&communictation department. Right at the moment a parody is the best thing that it can become. I wanted to write books in earlier days anyway. Reminds me of something. Has somebody seen L'Auberge Espagnole?

After the amazing party on Tuesday had this week a second event to offer: Jens' birthday party. Because of the birthday surprise for Maritha two weeks before we were in need to make something special. We made pudding-shots with liquer 43 for him which he had to eat when he did not recognize a song in the "Bad-Taste Music Quiz". I feel so for the neighbours, but the party was really good. Prooves so far from Christian and Ward . After just 5 hours sleep I woke up. I cleaned the flat and sorted pictures out from the Norway trip of last weekend. From around 1300 pictures are now 700 left. Still a lot, but I have difficulties to sort more out, because for me I can remember a lot with every picture. This evening we will go to Norrmalms for a preparty. Afterwards we go to Kåren. Today will be the first shift for some of the Erasmus-employees there. Tomorrow will be study-day.

After the great weekend returning to ordinary life - as far as you can call erasmus ordinary life - can be quite hard. Tuesday I had a lesson. Afterwards I saw my thesis starting at zero. Everything I planned so far based on the assumptions that users exist who I can interview. But there are none. That I know now. After almost two months. I was quite fed up with work. At 4pm was a Swedish movie in L-Huset. Ella is in Poland for two weeks, so she asked me, if I could help out, because I have keys and access to the same rooms. We watched "Jalla, Jalla". I did not understand everything, but much more than last year during the EILC. In the evening was an international dinner. Something like the pot-look-party from last November where everybody brings food. It was a great party. Pictures by Annika , Maritha , Marta , Ward . At the next morning I had the deserved headache. But also an idea for my thesis. I think, I can please every supervisor with the new solution and I still do n...

For not being stucked all alone in Sundsvall I joined the trip to Norway with Stefan, Sandra, Maritha, Ole, Hauke, Christian and Jens. And I do not regret a second. We stayed over the nights on a camping site in Trondheim and made day-tours from there. Saturday to the north hiking, Sunday to the South on an island. Monday to Trondheim itself, but it is not that pretty. The rest is undescribable. I have a few pictures, but I am looking forward to those of the others. 2007-10-01 , Weekend in Norway

Unbelievable. Anna is already since 10 days gone. Or is it only 10 days? I lost my feeling for time. Everyday is full of experiences and activities. I cannot recall everything what I have done in the past two weeks. Many things are just small things which I appreciate a lot. But the last weekend was a highlight. We went with 12 people in three cars to a place called Vallbo near Åre. We started at half past 6 in the morning on Saturday. Although some of us did not sleep at all during the fromer night we walked almost 8 hours. And it was awesome. We walked through so many different landscapes. Wood, swamp, high gras, Tundra, stone desert, climbed up a mountain, walked crosswards through the wood, on a dead river... Overwhelming. I remembered pictures of New Zealand while we wandered through that panorama. The view was breathtaking. The weather changed quickly a few times. One we had even an ice shower. In the end of the day we stayed for dinner at a pension where we got selfmade soup, b...