Drag racing, parents coming, Midsommar and more

I haven't talked much about the crazy-long sun schedule over here in this part of the world (thanks Jennie!) so I'll give you a little taste of what it's been like living with days that have almost 20 hours (give or take) of sunlight. Right now, the sun is setting somewhere between 11:30- 11:45 pm and rising in the 3 am hours. It's definitely been my biggest adjustment. It never quite feels like bedtime at night and when you wake up to go to the bathroom during the "night", the sun is usually already on its way up. Throws you off completely. The blind and curtain situation in Sweden has also been an adjustment- mainly for the fact that they either don't have blinds or just have sheer curtains hanging from the windows. Not enough coverage, in my opinion, for days with seemingly endless sunlight. My window is currently covered with 2 sheets and a blanket, one because the boys who lived here before us probably broke the only coverage the window had and two, because the sheer curtains just weren't cutting it for the no blinds situation. I'm waiting for the curtain rod to give way during the night at some point.

11:30 pm

Saturday, a few teammates and myself had to work at the drag racing arena located here in Tierp. It's probably the nicest thing in Tierp. It has stadium seating, a portion that is going to be turned into a hotel at some point, and a place for the local catering company to set up and serve people food. It was an interesting experience to say the least. Since the roomie and I clearly don't speak Swedish, we were assigned to keep the tables clean, aka pick up trash and beer bottles, while the other girls sold ice cream, cinnamon buns, coke and popcorn. I'll just say it was 5 hours of non stop moving while also being hit on by drunk, but usually nice, Swedes. The arena was hosting a large event for drag racing this past weekend. Quite a few other countries had their racing teams here for the competition. I don't have an interest in any type of racing but it was an experience nonetheless and interesting to see how it works over here in Sweden. The crowd looked exactly like the type of crowd that would be at a NASCAR event back home. I think it's the NASCAR of Europe. Forgot my phone, so no pictures to show unfortunately.

Another game down in the books. We played against Gavle on Sunday, who is a team only 30 minutes away from Tierp. Some of the girls on the team live there but play for Tierp. Overall, it wasn't that great of a game, but we did finish really well and ended up beating them 6-0. Another team who were frustrated by the score and started playing dirty towards the end. Really not a fan of that. Good to get another 3 points and a high scoring game, though. We only have 4 more games until our 2 week break starting July 1. Our last 2 games are our most important because if we win them both, we will be first in the league. We play the current top team in the league (we are second) for our last 2 games, once at home and once at their home. I think it will be a good match up. Better teams make you play better, on most occasions.

I was talking to my parents the other day about how I am so happy/thankful to be here but that there are just certain things from the US that I really miss. Example number one: the food. Being in such a small town hinders the choices I have for things similar to those in the US, but even having more options in the bigger cities, I still really miss my favorite places to eat. I would say I ate sushi and Mexican food a few times out of the week. Every week. They do have sushi and Mexican food here, but it's just not the same. I will have to try them in other countries to see if they taste as good as they do back home. I also really miss Burrito Brothers, Chipotle, Yamato's and any bbq restaurant. Clearly I'm a typical American eater. The bakery and candy selection over here comes pretty close to making up for not having all my favorite American meals though! I miss my family and friends of course and my sweet doggie. I'm blessed to have such good people in my life.

It's really crazy to me that in 2 weeks I will have been here for 3 months- the half way point! It's like college: doesn't seem fast at the time but it's flying by. It'll be over before I know it, which is even harder to believe. I still have a hard time believing I'm here, living in Sweden, doing what I love on a daily basis. I guess I just never pictured this actually happening. I'm enjoying all the new experiences and doing my best to make the most out my time here. Hasn't been hard to do so far. Sweet little Donnie d and Lisa will be arriving in Sweden in just 6 days. I'm so excited for them to get here and just a week after they do, we're going to Ireland. Good times ahead :)

This weekend is a national holiday here in Sweden, called Midsummer's (Midsommar) Day. It's a huge deal, as big a deal as fourth of July is to us Americans. It's celebrated the Friday after the summer solstice. It's a big enough deal that we have no games scheduled this weekend. It's pretty much a day of partying, drinking and of course, the word invented here in Sweden, smorgasbord- buffet meals of salads, meats, cheese, chips, and any other hors d'oeuvre type of meal you can think of. It sounds like a great time and I'm really excited to experience such a celebrated day while being in another country. Getting to experience these types of situations is one of the main reason I want to travel. It's so fun to see how other countries celebrate traditions they cherish so much while also getting more of an appreciation for your own traditions and celebrations back home. Best of both worlds.

Dream Life

It would almost be rude if I didn't start this blog off by talking about how I met Pia Sundhage yesterday when I was in Stockholm watching a professional team called Tyreso play!! I still can't believe it. It was so casual... she was literally just walking with a media person and we went right up to her to introduce ourselves. She was really friendly and didn't seem bothered at all by the many fans who kept walking up to her to have their pictures taken. Strangely, no one was around her when we went to introduce ourselves, so we actually got to have a 5 minute conversation. Surreal. She was there for a press conference to talk about the Euro Cup, which is taking place in Sweden next month.

We were able to go to the game because my friend Jackie got Carrie and I and another of her friends free tickets to the game because she works for Tyreso's club. It was awesome to get to watch such a high level of women's soccer. Marta just so happens to play for that team and I can't even describe how cool it was to watch her play in person. She's highly regarded here... her own cheering section and all. I got a feeling that section was her family, but I'm not positive. They were beating drums and singing songs in Spanish for her all game long. Christen Press also plays for Tyreso. She's an American and plays on the National team. Watched her score 3 sick goals. They also have a girl named Veronica Boquete on the team, who is from Spain. She is unreal. Raw talent for sure. She is so crafty and light on her feet. Not sure I've ever watched a person play soccer and make it look that easy. She seemed so humble too. She created a lot of their chances and didn't seem bothered that she didn't get a goal herself. I'm terrible when it comes to watching soccer and following players, but I definitely would like to watch her play more and see more of her career. The team was talented as a whole and with those three, it was just amazing to watch.

I had my first experience on a subway in Stockholm on Sunday! I didn't even realize I'd never been on a subway until I was riding one. I guess subways are known for being gross, at least in the US, and the one in Sweden was no different. Made me appreciate the train systems even more. Prior to coming to Sweden, I couldn't tell you a thing about trains or the subway systems. The train has been pretty straight forward (with the help of a Swedish friend) but the subway was a different story. It was really confusing because there were two different subways and they were different colors than each other, obviously taking you different places. We got on the wrong subway and rode in the opposite direction of where we needed to go, so eventually we just asked random strangers to help some sisters out. All of that aside, we made it to our destination. Safe to say, I hope I don't live in a city where I have to commute via subway to work! Side note: I swear the subway was like 500ft below ground. It seriously looked and felt like a cave. Rather creepy.

Saturday's game was a good one. We beat Taby FK 2-1, a team that Tierp lost to twice last year. Hands down the most physical team we've played all season. But also one of the better teams as well. We scored on them early and they later tied it up after they got a pk. Second half we continued playing well and got another goal on them and held the lead for the rest of the game. It was nice to see the team and coaches happy to have beaten them.

Things at the restaurant are going well still. It's a huge learning experience for me. I tend to stay away from the kitchen. My brain just doesn't think clearly in there for some reason. I am the girl who messes up rice krispie treats and grilled cheese. Don't ask how. I think I've peeled maybe one potato in my day and I've definitely never cut any vegetables... doing both now. Whether I learn anything or not, I'm glad to be getting the experience. Since we work Monday and Tuesday and get Wednesday's off of soccer, it helps the week go by quicker. Not as many days with unlimited free time. I'm enjoying it- never thought I'd say that.

Slowly figuring out how to add pictures to the blog and hoping I can get better at it. I'm sure it's rather boring just reading words with no pictures to give you a real idea of what I'm rambling on about!

Graduations and Celebrations

It's graduation time over here in Sweden and I thought it would be interesting to write a little about the differences of a Swedish graduation compared to an American one. While ours back home are a big deal, Sweden definitely knows how to throw a good graduation party for its graduates. I have gotten to see some of the celebrations that take place while I was in Stockholm this past Friday and I must admit, I was really impressed. First of all, these are graduations for the equivalence of our high school students, so the fact that they celebrate them the way they do is awesome. The family and friends wait outside of the high school, or what Swedes call Gynasium, and the graduates literally come running outside and start screaming and shouting and all that fun stuff while the crowd of people there for them cheer wildly as well. It's pretty fun to watch, actually. After that celebration, the graduates load busses with their friends and celebrate any teenager knows how. These busses, I must add, have no roofs, so it's a pretty nice little celebration set up. The coolest part about their graduation is the hats they wear. They are sailor hats... huge step up from the disgustingly ugly hats we are forced to wear over in the US! (can't stand those things). It's been fun getting to see their traditions first hand. I enjoy getting to see different cultures and how they are all so varied.

I would just like to let it be known that spiders in Sweden are huge. Well, the ones I saw. And I am not okay with this. One just casually crawled by my foot as if it owned the place the other day while I was in the bathroom (comical looking back) and another was scurrying far too close to my bed a few days before that. I don't think I've had a restful nights sleep since the bathroom incident. Can't handle spiders of any size, but especially not when they are big and confident, and when they make me a prisoner in my own home! Really don't see their point on this planet, actually.

Friday, Carrie, Anna and I went to Stockholm on our day off. It was Carrie's first time and I was so excited to go back. We met up with a fellow American who is also playing in Sweden and a few of her friends. Funny how it worked out- Anna and one of Jackie's friends were the only Swedes with us, the rest of us were American. I think there was five Americans and two Swedes. I don't think I will ever get tired of visiting Stockholm. It is so beautiful and exactly what I picture when I think of European countries: narrow alleyways of old, colorful buildings with cafe's placed on every corner and cobblestone streets. There is just something so quaint about it. Probably the fact that it's such an ideal dream life: beautiful city, walking the cobblestone streets daily, while sipping your coffee of  choice from a favorite local cafe. Or maybe that's just my own perfect picture. I think I could only live the big city life for a little while though, because I've grown up with a backyard and in a quiet area. City life might be a bit too loud for me. We each bought a new dress and shirt and I'm excited to own my first article of Swedish clothing. Feeling all cultured and whatnot. We ended up staying there for most of the day, didn't get home until almost 8, after starting the journey there at 9. Anna's step counter said we walked something crazy like 10,000 steps. You definitely feel all those steps once you get home.

Saturday was game day as usual. Another 6 hour journey North at 6:45 in the morning. This is going to sound terrible, but since our cell phones only work when we have wifi, we can't use them on these long journeys. I am far too dependent on that thing and it gets a little boring at times when I can't use it for basically a full day. I bring a book but sometimes its nice just to be in contact with the world. Krokom is about 25 minutes farther north than Ostersund, the other town we played in that was 6 hours away. It is so beatiful up there. Lakes and mountains are just about everywhere you look. The first half was an absolute disaster. We didn't really do much and couldn't seem to get a rhythm going for more than a few passes at a time. We were down 2-1 at half. The second half we seemed like a new team. We played some pretty soccer and ended up beating them 4-2. Love when soccer is pretty. Shows just how beautiful the game really is. Their teams was really aggressive, especially when we started to win. They had an American player as well and she was so mad they were losing. She elbowed Anna in the throat and got a red card for it! Crazy lady. They were a good team though, for the most part. They strung passes together pretty well.

The u20 US national team happened to be playing a game against Sweden in Gavle on Sunday. Carrie, Frida, Mickan and me went up there to watch it. It was definitely nice to have a little taste of home all the way over here in Sweden. The US ended up winning 1-0, but Sweden definitely should have won that game. They created a lot more chances than we did and were just unlucky with their finishing. One of the US girls is a player for PSG's club (David Beckham and Zlatan Ibrahimovic's club). She's only 19 years old..making 6 figs, or so I heard. And living in Paris. Tough life.

A few days a week Carrie and I are going to help out in the kitchen and catering company for a local restaurant here in town. We asked to help to have something to do a few days out of the week but also to meet new people and get more time in for learning the language. Everyone is so nice- and it doens't seem like it's a forced thing. People are just genuinely kind here and don't hesitate to show it. Big positive for living in such a small town. They are really patient with our slow learning of their language and seem to enjoy that we are actually trying. I heard when you visit other countries it is respectful to first try speaking their language to them and they will then be more willing to speak English with you. The restaurant thing has been a fun thing to do. It's not a huge restaurant so its not an intimidating or stressful environment, which makes going there fun. The staff is awesome. Some of the nicest people I've met. We worked a catering event for the high school graduation on Monday. Catering is hard work, but I enjoy it. I like getting to go to all different types of events and such. And it's a pretty good work out, lifting and carrying plates, trays, etc for a few hours a day.

Carrie and I decided to give up all sweets for 25 days... aka until my parents get here. Not going to lie, it's been really difficult. I let it become a really bad habit of eating some type of cookie or bakery item on a daily basis and now having absolutely nothing... sucks. Its only been 4 days but I think I'll manage. I'm hoping my body feels cleansed afterwards, which will make it worth it. Time shall tell.

I've noticed recently that I am forgetting some basic English words when I am talking to other people. I think it's because I'm actually living in a different culture and not just learning it at school, so it's sinking in a bit better (kinda). My brain is getting confused. It's kinda funny.

Good times in the neighborhood

Hello friends and family. Another week has passed by over here and I still can't believe how fast things are going. In two weeks I will have been here for two months. Sounds crazy writing it and even crazier believing it. It makes me realize more and more just how much I need to appreciate this experience and get as much out of it as I can because it will be over before I will have even realized it.

One thing has gone on this past week: fika- outside of soccer, of course. There is a cute little cafe in the middle of Tierp that Carrie and I have been visiting on a daily basis. I was trying to cut back on how much sweets I had been eating because I did not inherit a flawless skin gene and mine hates me right now, but it was Carrie's first two weeks here and getting fika everyday because we can was just too hard to turn down. Sounds bratty, but fika really is a big part of this culture, so I'm reassuring myself that it's fine to be partaking in it as much as the typical Swede. Also, there is just something cute and European about going to sit at a little cafe, with a coffee, a sweet treat and a good book/journal. I think that is one of the things I will miss most when my time here is over. I don't think I want to make that a habit back home because I will no longer be walking and riding my bike for transportation anymore and I really think that's why most Europeans aren't fat. Biking and walking make such a difference. When I visited Stockholm, my friend Anna has a step counter on her phone and she told me we walked 10,00 steps that day. And we were only there for a half a day. Imagine doing that everyday!

The cafe we've been frequenting is called Konditori Royal and they  have some of the best creations of bakery items I've ever tasted. A few of their treats are there on a daily basis, like the princesstarta cake, the napolean cake (cake, whipped filling, and raspberry icing), and their different flavors of snurra (translates to spin), which is similar to a cinnamon bun. Hard to explain that one. But they also have new treats in there everyday, which is good because we get to try all different types of Swedish customs.

We discovered a few more bike trails around Tierp. There are so many here, it's awesome. They are good workouts because a lot of them have good size hills throughout them. It's so peaceful out in the woods here. Kind of eery, actually. I enjoy a good bike ride with beautiful views and it's nice that I'm also getting a good workout in.

Saturday was game day. We played a team named Vasalunds IF. Apparently they are one of the worst teams in the league, but we still went out with the mindset that they were a good team. We ended up beating them 7-0. It's hard beating teams that bad. Kinda wish there was a mercy rule sometimes. I had a hat trick. I don't even remember the last time that happened. Maybe club or high school soccer. Despite that, it was not one of my better games. I'm my toughest critic and scoring 3 goals and saying you played bad sounds weird but I know the way I can play and I didn't accomplish that on Saturday. I recently saw a cool quote from a national team member, who also happens to currently play in Sweden, Christen Press, who said, "one thing I love about sports: every game day you are reborn". Couldn't be more true. Definitely going to hang on to that one for the rest of my soccer playing days.

After the game on Saturday we went to our friend Frida's house for a smorgasbord and party type of thing. Frida is on the team, so everyone on the team was invited. She had so many different foods prepared for us, which is what a smorgasbord is, and a few different types of drinks that I had never tried. So nice of her to do that. They also introduced us to the Swedish game kubbe (cube), which is what you do on a nice day here in Sweden. You break into 2 teams and set up 5 blocks on both sides-about 10ft away from each other, with the blocks about a foot apart from each other, and a king block in the middle. Each team tries to knock over all the blocks (by throwing blocks at them) before the other team and who ever does it first then has to knock over the king block to officially win. When you are trying to knock over the king block, you have to throw the block with your head between your legs facing the opposite way. It was a fun game to learn, I enjoyed it! We went out to a club in Gavle after that. It was so fun! The dj played all electronic dance music. I was so excited to finally get to experience the nightlife over here! Loved it and love getting to experience all of this.

Growing in the experience

First of all, I had to get a new blog website because word press decided to not function the right way all of a sudden. Quite strange. Not really sure how I feel about this one yet, but we shall see if it does the job.

Anyways, things are still going well for me over here and I become more and more thankful for this opportunity everyday. The more I get to experience, the more it makes me realize how truly incredible this opportunity really is. With that, I am also becoming more aware of how much this opportunity is going to help me grow not only as a player but also as a person, and for that, I am forever thankful. Having come over here not knowing a soul and having to get comfortable in a situation like that, I think will be my biggest benefit towards my growth as a person.

If I learned one thing from my parents while I was growing up, it has been to learn and grow as much as you can from all the different experiences life brings your way. And what a valuable lesson that is for them to teach their children- to not take the experiences in your life for granted and to learn and grow from them in anyway you can, whether they were good or bad. It's easy, at least for me, to let yourself take advantage of good experiences and not realize their worth until after the fact and even easier to let yourself overlook that there is something to learn from the bad experiences. It's fairly easy to bash a negative situation and not realize that there may actually be some good to take away from it. Who doesn't want to write off a terrible experience and push it to the back of your head for as long as possible? I am forever indebted to my parents for opening my eyes to these concepts while I was growing up, whether I acted on them then or not. (I will be the first to say, I did not). It took me all 23 years to really grasp what they were teaching me.

I was in a situation last summer where things weren't going anywhere near the way I would have liked and looking back now, it was one of the biggest learning experiences I've had to date. Just because things weren't smooth sailing didn't mean I should have looked at it, overall, as a negative experience. Despite making new friends, I never realized there was anything else to take away from it. I have grown so much from then and I never thought I would be sitting here saying that that situation played such a key role in preparing me for my current situation. I now feel like I can appreciate this opportunity for all it's worth, and the list of what I will take away from this is endless.

On the other end of the spectrum, this experience is definitely testing me in ways I knew it would before I got here. If you asked me a year ago if I thought I'd be able to partake in such an adventure as this one, I would have said absolutely not. I am reserved, shy and comfortable in familiar situations, so this has been a huge step outside my comfort zone. However, you are always stronger than you think. As I said before, this is hands down one of the best experiences I will probably have in my entire life and I try hard in not allowing myself to forget that. But I am human and I do have days where I question whether I can really stick it out for 6 full months. I think those thoughts mostly creep in because I have so much free time on my hands, but they are rare and I'm thankful for that. My parents just so happen to be visiting right at the halfway point of my journey over here (last few days of June and the first week of July) and that couldn't have been timed more perfectly if we tried. It will be so refreshing to see some familiar faces and having those familiar faces be my parents makes it that much better. I already know they will come over here and remind me of how awesome this experience is and keep me thinking positively- just what I will need at the halfway point.

On another, less deep note, Carson and I went with Anna and her boyfriend's house after practice Monday night to have a picnic on the coast and watch the sun go down! Her boyfriend made us a salad and brought some beers and sodas, it was such a relaxing night. So thankful for Anna and how friendly she is and willing to help complete strangers, says so much about who she is as a person. Anyway, she lives about 25 minutes northeast of Tierp and another 5 minutes from the coast. The sunset was amazing; I love a good sunset/sunrise. The coolest thing about the Baltic Sea is that there are no sharks, eels, barracudas or anything remotely dangerous swimming in it! I can't wait till it's warm enough to swim in and not have to worry about anything swimming by to take me as their meal. Huge for the girl coming from the most popular shark attack place in the US! The sea was so calm too, I noticed. So peaceful. Loved getting that experience.

Tuesday night was our first game for the Svenska (Swedish) Cup. I only heard we had a game on Tuesday when we were coming home from our game last Sunday. Even now, I'm not entirely sure what the significance of the Swedish Cup is, really. All I've really gathered is that you keep advancing if you keep winning, per usual. You play teams from all different divisions in Sweden and eventually it will come down to a championship game, which is in a year. Tierp hasn't qualified to play in the cup for a few years, so they are obviously looking to change that this year. It's a one and done type of situation, so hopefully we can keep advancing and they end up going far this year. Anyway, the team we played was Avesta AIK. We traveled to Avesta, which is about an hour and half north of Sweden. We ended up beating them 7-0. I felt kinda bad. It's always tough to lose that badly. Now, we are just waiting to hear who we play next and when.

Thursday, Tierp had a little farmers market going on! There were unlimited amounts of candy, chocolates, jams, honey, breads, clothes, jewelry and purses. Everything you can think of, someone was sellling it. And for so cheap! I bought a pair of earrings for 10 crowns ($1.50)- can't beat that! I love little markets like that so I was in heaven. It was fun to just stroll around and learn about all the different types of traditional Swedish customs and foods. I loveee their jam selection. They have so many more choices than we do in the US- blueberry, lignonberry, mixedberry, raspberry, and so on. Some we have, but for the most part, there are more choices here. Except grape. Which is funny, since that is one of the main choices back home. It was a perfect day for a market- so sunny, not too hot and a light breeze. Most of the stands had samples available for whatever they were selling, so I was able to taste all the different kinds of jams, honey, candies, chocolates, and breads. Heaven. It was a nice day and I enjoyed getting to learn a little bit more about Swedish culture.

I also learned about a typical Swedish meal, made famous by a King who lived in a castle 2 minutes from Tierp. He loved eating pancakes and pea soup- sounds odd, but it's delicious. Unfortuantely for him, his soup was poisoned with arsenic and he died as a result, but went down making the combo a traditional meal in Sweden. Apparently the pea soup is quite dangerous: you cannot save it for later in the day and reheat it or it will kill you. It happened at a retirement home a few years ago. The peas aren't the typical green pea you are imagining and I'm not sure what kind they even are. I assumed this is what the soup would be based off, but it was more of a lentil type of soup, which I was happy about. I love lentil soup and I knew I wouldn't have enjoyed a green pea based soup (but I was still willing to give it a shot- no one likes a picky eater).

Saturday, we had our regular season game against Krosnas IF. We were on the road again for this game and it was another 2 hour trip. I should mention that we travel the same day as the games. Prior to knowing that this is what we have to do, I would have thought I couldn't get off a bus and go play a game, especially when it's a 6 hour journey. Even 2 hours doesn't sound appealing. But I've actually had no problems with it. We beat the team 3-0 and we are now tied for 2nd in the league!

This has turned into quite the extensive post, but sometimes once I get going, I can't stop. I think some of what I wrote was sitting heavy on me and I needed to get it out. In some ways writing this blog is soothing for me, which I learned prior to coming here. I read on a study abroad blog that journaling and blogging are really beneficial in helping to adjust to new cultures and coping with being so far from home- I do both and I definitely agree.

Family Size

Funny story. I posted my last blog in the morning on Monday, talking about how we hadn’t fully been able to move into the new apartment yet because the Internet wast properly set up. We were told it would take 1-3 days, starting on Monday. After practice we came back to the new apartment to eat and shower to then head over to the first apartment and low and behold… The Internet was working! Now I can officially say we are completely moved in and everything is going great.

Let me just get right to the part about the meaning behind the title of this post. I’ve lived in Canada for a short time and now also Sweden and it has brought to my attention how us good eating (fortunate is the best word) Americans love to have everything available in a family size portion. Whether it be milk, chips, cereal, meat, bread, or even veggies, our portion sizes almost double that of other countries. I’m not trying to knock any other country and their (smart) choice of having smaller portion sizes, more of saying its been hard to get used to. However, I would like to say how good of a thing this is and how I think the US should rethink how much food they make available to its citizens! There is a reason why there is such a high obesity rate there. A lot of America’s problem too is that unless you live in a small town with a short commute, you don’t really have the option to ride your bike or walk everywhere like just about everyone over here seems to do. The negative side to having smaller portion sizes when buying things is they run out quicker and it seems like you spend quite a bit every week on the same things, coupled with it already being more expensive over here. That’s where the US is ahead of the game. Hmmm. Makes ya think.

Friday, Carson and I went on a bike ride to explore Tierp and get a little exercise in on our day off before the game. It ended up being so fun! We found a horse farm and saw a few pretty horses. Loved it. There was a rocky path big enough for bikes and 4 wheelers (saw one) behind the farm, so we decided to see where it went. It ended up being a really nice trail for a bike ride and a really good work out. It was hilly and windy, more of a workout than we were expecting. We came across a sign that had a head sitting in a body of water and decided to follow it, not having a clue of how far it was, where it was, or what the sign really even meant. All of this took place on a path in the woods that was of course foreign to us, so it was kind of eery. It ended up leading to what I would call a quarry but I have no idea what it’s called here. There were rocks to jump off and a staircase that led up from the water, so it looked like that’s what it’s purpose was. Soo excited for that when it gets warm! We thought it was located kinda far away from Tierp itself because we rode through the woods and fields to find it…Turns out its an actual place to go and its about a minute down the road from our home field haha. Good to know, though. On our way back, we saw a few people running and walking the path, so it wasn’t as exclusive as we thought it was, which was relieving to know in case we got lost haha.
Saturday we traveled to play Roslagsbro IF in Roslagsbro, which was about an hour and a half away by bus. No idea of the direction. I love getting to see Sweden when we take these bus trips. It’s so beautiful here; winter, spring or summer, doesn’t matter. I noticed that a lot of the homes here have made parts of their yards into soccer fields. Some big, some small. It’s awesome. Blahhhh, it feels very weird for me to write something about myself, but seeing that soccer is the main reason I am here, I suppose I should include these things in here. We beat the team 5-2, 2 of the goals being mine. I also got an assist. It was a rebound type of game.. They scored, we scored, they scored, etc. Not our best game, but a win is a win. They had a crazy Russian on their team and she literally went after a girl on my team. Took her out twice from behind. So dirty. Hate that nonsense.

Fun fact: bunnies are the size of small dogs over here. Not like Yorkie small, like 6 month old lab puppy small. Aka massive for a bunny. Carson said she saw one crossing the road at our game yesterday.. Can’t wait to see one of those bad boys. We really haven’t seen much wild life out here. Like at all. I pictured bears, moose, reindeers, and all that to be roaming around, but Tierp has slim to none.

After the game our friend Anna, who is on the team, asked us if we wanted to go with her and her boyfriend to Gävle for an old American car show. Normally, that’s not my scene at all. I couldn’t tell you a thing about cars but since I’m in Sweden I felt I should go to get all the experiences possible! And it was all about old American cars, so getting a little bit of home was definitely nice. Before we went, all we knew was that you “drive there, have some drinks and hang out with friends”. After going, I have a better understanding. So basically, if you have an old American car, you drive through downtown Gävle and show it off to the people on the streets who are partying and watching. A lot of people were there to show off their old cars. Everyone is dressed up in leather and crazy 50s hair. There is even old American music playing. Older cars are crazy roomy and a lot of people can fit inside them, so most of the cars were packed with people having a good time. Inside the cars, you can slyly get away with drinking (not the driver, mom and dad). It ended up being really fun! Saw a lot of old cars that I know my father and brothers would have enjoyed seeing as well. Anna and her boyfriend took us to the Max, which is Sweden’s version of McDonald’s but its 10x better! The burgers are hugeeee and come with a really good dressing called Rhode Island. Not sure if thats sold in the US and I can’t think of what to compare it to, but I liked it. We ended up stopping there twice.. Had to get a late night milkshake and “strips” (fries) to go. Regretted that in the morning but I’m only in Sweden once right?
My parents shipped me a care package this week. It was like Christmas! Now I have little pieces of home. And hazelnut and blonde Starbucks coffee. Happy camper (although I do like the coffee over here, those are just my faves).

Oh and happy momma’s day to all the lovely momma’s out there and to my own, love youuu!

Almost Settled In

Saturday morning we were finally able to move into our new apartment!! It has 2 bedrooms, 1 and a half bathrooms, a kitchen, and a living room. There’s also a washer and dryer. It’s fully furnished and definitely a nice little place to call “home” for 5 more months. It’s about a 2 minute walk from the field we currently practice and play games on and a 5 minute walk from our home field. Can’t beat that. Unfortunately we haven’t been able to stay there yet because the Internet isn’t set up properly, so we’ve been going back and forth between the 2 apartments for the last few days. But unpacking was definitely the best part of it all!
Some more exciting news! My parents and I have officially planned a trip to Ireland for 4 days, on my 2 week break in July!! Can’t even explain my excitement. We are staying in Dublin, in an area called Temple Bar, where all the pubs and such are located. Cannot wait to visit our heritage country, just wish the brothers could join!

Saturday we played a team called IK Huge. Beyond suiting name. Everyone told us how aggressive of a team they were… I think there were 4 or 5 yellow cards. For some odd reason the ref was card happy on the things that needed to just be warnings. He missed a lot of the major tackles that should have been yellow and red cards. It was just the little things that they were in to, like being knocked down after you pass a ball or run by someone or you could just be standing there and they would intentionally run into you. Unnecessary things. That was pretty much the only tactic they had. We ran at them over and over and over again and they never changed their system. They just took it, which helped us win 4-0 pretty easily. I thought it was the best the team ever connected. Everything just clicked for us. Always a good feeling.

Sunday, Carson and I went to Gävle- another pretty Swedish town. It’s a 30 minute train ride north of Tierp. We wanted to go to a bigger city so we could eat at a Mexican restaurant and celebrate cinco de drinko. Because obviously we are like any American- we love any reason to celebrate with drinking and eating. It took us over an hour to get a Swede to tell us where a Mexican restaurant was located. I don’t think many of them had any idea what we were asking them. We looked at all the shopping options while trying to find a restaurant, so it worked out. Gävle also has good shopping. Lunch was an adventure in itself. The owners of the “texican” restaurant didn’t speak any English, so trying to figure out what to order was just comical. Eventually, one of the owners asked a girl who knew English who was eating with her family next to us to translate for him. Thank god for her. It was a good lunch. They had a buffet type of thing going on- Mexican food and a buffet.. yes please. After lunch we walked around the city, not really knowing what we were doing or what to look for, but it’s a pretty city so it didn’t really bother us. We stumbled across Gevalia’s coffee headquarters, which was pretty cool. They do tours and all that but since it was Sunday it was closed. The craziest thing about Gävle is when you walk towards the west side of the city, you can actually feel the temperature drop like 10° because you’re getting closer to the Baltic Sea. We were walking and literally just hit a wall of cold. It was the strangest thing. But also really cool.

Traveling by trains to all these different places lets you see all the different types of houses and buildings located in the towns along the way. The architecture here is beautiful. Can’t get enough of it. The biggest thing I’ve noticed is the colors of many of the houses and buildings. It’s this dehydrated pee type of color. Sounds odd but its pretty in its own way. There’s also a lot of deep red houses.

Next time I write, we will officially be all moved in! Can’t waittt