American Imports

I was walking down Kungsgatan, one of the main roads in Uppsala, with my friend Megan today and we saw a bright yellow Hummer drive by.

It's quite a shock to the system when since the last days of December you've only been exposed to cars the size of a golf cart and trucks no bigger than the standard bakery trucks in the US. Paris and Rome had the smallest cars, Brussels had vehicles closer in size to American sedans and vans, but Sweden has probably got the highest number of large cars (read: size in relation to American cars is just about the same) though this Hummer was the first SUV I'd seen in a while.

Why is it that I feel Sweden is importing all the worst parts of the US?

While traveling in Lappland, we made friends with a guy from Kiruna who knew what marshmallow fluff was (something I've actually never tasted and do not ever have any intention of allowing into my digestive tract) and watched that ridiculous show Anna Nicole Smith was the star of up until she kicked the bucket. Perhaps the only non-negative import (I can't say positive because I honestly don't know) he had was a super old Cadillac that had been in his family for a while.

Swedes also for some reason like to watch those mindless, neuron-killing, intelligence-sapping shows on VH1, like The Hills. I actually have no clue what that show is about, nor do I want to know.

What kind of image do Swedes have of us?

I asked someone this question once and they said if they hadn't actually gotten the chance to meet and befriend Americans, they'd have had a very different image of us...and then came a long pause. I suggested something along the lines of fat, ignorant...and fat. Another pause. Then a laugh and the reply, "Yeah, something like that I guess."

I'd love to say that Swedes fit our stereotype of them since all of it seems to be good (tall, good looking, predominately blond and blue-eyed), and it's true that the majority of the people I've met fulfill these characteristics, but it's not like this country holds a homogeneous population of perfect Aryan models.

Swedes are worldly people and they often travel or work for a year or two after graduating from high school. The government gives the students money for traveling abroad and also gives them money for going to college. Something is wrong with the American educational system, don't you think? This has become abundantly clear to me while living in Europe.

I suppose one of the biggest surprises (pun not intended) I've had while living here though is the number of overweight people in Sweden. All of my friends love working out or have a sport they enjoy or are just naturally fit in any case, but there are people I pass by on the street that really surprise me with their...size. They're like the Hummers of the Swedish population. I don't know if I could call them obese, but they are most definitely overweight. The fact that Swedish fashion emphasizes pants so tight they could be leggings (which they do sell by the way-- leggings that are patterned like jeans) just makes the situation worse.

Another is that Swedish men are not, in a large part, as manly as I had imagined. Megan said she read an article that said Swedish men are the least manly in the world. I have to vehemently disagree and say that Chinese men (in mainland China) are the least manly in the world. However I can see where the author of the article is coming from. Some Swedish guys are so slim (as emphasized by their tight pants) I wonder whether they are male or female from the back. This isn't something I saw very much of in the rest of Europe, but here it seems I encounter a male vacuum packed into his clothes at least once every few days.

There is this style, we call it being a hipster in the US, that is quite popular but there is another on the opposite end of the spectrum where men dress so well that you can't quite tell what it is they're trying to prove. My Swedish friends call them "brats." They're the guys who hang out at Stockholm Nation (the nation you belong to if you're from Stockholm or have tons of money), wear bow ties or neckties, and slick their hair back with copious amounts of hair product. It's interesting to see at first, especially at a party, but by the end of the evening the sight becomes nauseating.

To all my single friends out there who are reading this and had their glorious images of handsome Swedish men dashed to pieces, I say fear not! The vast majority of guys here are more than good enough to fulfill those dreams ;)

Luckily for me, my flatmates are completely chill and very awesome.

Wishing luck to Elin on her 30 km x-country race and to her boyfriend, Alex, on his 90 km race!

Here's a little history: the 90 km race is called Vasaloppet and it takes place in Dalarna, Sweden. It started in 1922 and was inspired by the story of King Gustav Vasa as he fled from the invading troops of Christian II, King of Denmark, in 1520. Apparently this legend is historically false, but that's how it goes!

Celsius and...that other scale...Fa----something

YES. It hit 0 degrees Celsius this week in Uppsala!

This wave of warmth is very much welcome, but sadly the hard packed snow is starting to melt and it's getting increasingly difficult to bike to class without the wheels slipping and sliding in the slush.

I've noticed that not only am I starting to lose my Chinese skills (I fumbled for words when I skyped with my family and talked to my grandmother last week) but I seem to be losing the ability to use Fahrenheit as well. I can tell what is considered cold in Celsius, and to a certain extent what is comfortable and what is warm. However, when someone says a temperature in Fahrenheit to me, I have to sit and think about whether or not it was considered cold back in Ithaca and turn a mental clock backwards to remember.

What's weird is that I can now use Celsius but am only familiar with it in the lower temperatures, whereas I am more comfortable using Fahrenheit for higher temperatures.