Priyanka's Exchange to Lund University | Sweden
After being on Exchange, the hardest thing to answer is the one question every single person you meet asks you: “How was it?”. It is difficult to answer because I have no idea where to even begin. To put it simply though, it was incredible. I was lucky to do my Exchange at Lund University in Sweden which is in Southern Sweden and only forty-five minutes away from Copenhagen. It is a small and very old town with cobblestone ground and remains from the 10th century. It is beautiful and colourful with bright coloured houses and greenery everywhere. The people are friendly and helpful and the best part was that everyone speaks fluent English. The only downside to that is that I never felt the need to learn any Swedish and have only come back knowing two phrases.
I always wanted to go on Exchange somewhere Nordic or Scandinavian and was lucky enough to get to do so. I loved learning and immersing myself in the culture and surroundings and now being able to say that I lived in Sweden for five months. Being on Exchange taught me so many valuable life lessons and helped me grow as a person. I loved studying in a new environment and education system, meeting new people from all over the world and travelling around Europe easily and often. Coming from a very routine life with studying full-time, working and interning part-time and trying to maintain a social life in between is difficult and gets tedious after doing it continuously for years. Studying and living abroad is so refreshing and very much needed to give yourself perspective on everything you do. Not only did being in Lund help me take a break from my usual, mundane routine, it also at the same time made me appreciate everything I have at home and to be grateful to live and study in such a beautiful country and university.
Living in Sweden made me experience the coldest temperatures and climate I have ever been in, allowed me to eat way too many Swedish meatballs and cinnamon buns and gave me lifelong friends from various countries. I loved travelling to Copenhagen, Amsterdam, Prague, Vienna and Budapest and eating all their traditional foods and seeing all the iconic sights. The Christmas Markets in these countries were amazing and experiencing a cold Christmas was really exciting and felt like being in a movie.
One of my favourite experiences and memories from Exchange was the culture of ‘fika’. It is a very Swedish custom of taking time out of your day to spend with friends or even by yourself to have coffee and a cinnamon bun and simply relax and enjoy the social moment. It’s a very important part of Swedish culture to maintain a healthy work/life balance and to increase happiness and positive energy among people. St Jakob’s bakery in Lund is one of the most well-known fika spots and it did not disappoint!
Going on Exchange broadened my horizons in the best way possible and I am so beyond glad that I pushed myself out of my comfort zone to go and experience what I did over the last six months. There were times where I really missed my family and being home (especially in the depth of winter when the sun comes out for four hours in a day!) but then I quickly remembered that I had to make the most of every second that I was there and got over the homesickness. I made sure I spent time with a lot of my new friends but also learnt how to enjoy being by myself sometimes.
I cannot express how much anyone thinking of going on Exchange or even if you’re not thinking about, should really go. It is one of the best experiences you will have and was certainly my favourite part of 2017. I loved every moment of my time away and I already miss living in Sweden! Plan and think about everything you need and what you have to do to go on Exchange, but don’t worry about thinking about whether you should actually go or not – just go!
- Priyanka studied at Lund University in Sweden
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