erikagoesnortheast-blog

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day was made with snail mail from my swedish sister, T-minus 26 days till she’s back <3 

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had way too much fun this past weekend. friday night me and my girlfriends made pizza then went to the big international rez for a party. THEN my friend invited me to a "secret" party where we met hundreds of people at 1am at a certain intersection and then were led through the streets of lund to finally end up at some abandoned building where there was a big dance party and all sorts of insane shenanigans. people were lighting off fire extinguishers, playing giant drums in hallways, there was a big pillow fight, i danced on top of an empty van.. let's just say europeans know how to party 100x more than any canadian. i've been getting used to staying up past 5am which i realize i can only get away with as a crazy 20 year old with next to no responsibilities.. 

saturday we had a nice little intimate preparty at my friends' flat and then headed to a nation i'd never been to for some danish DJ set. there was an afterparty in the apartments above the nation and the Djs set up and continued to play up there which was really cool. saw the sunrise that morning.. 

the past couple days have just been a very relaxed blur of sleep, some paper writing, running outside, watching tv, planning france. tomorrow for art class we are getting a guided tour of the modern art museum here in Lund so hopefully after that i will get a little more inspiration for my paper and will finish that before karneval this weekend...! 

3 weeks left in sweden. got natt! xo

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One. Do not promise when you’re happy. Two. When you are angry, do not respond. Three. Do not decide when you’re sad.

(via hemped)

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She did not need much, wanted very little. A kind word, sincerity, fresh air, clean water, a garden, kisses, books to read, sheltering arms, a cozy bed, and to love and be loved in return.

Starra Neely Blade  (via awelltraveledwoman)

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it's amazing peoples' stories.. one friend of mine here is friends with everyone, the nicest guy, always invited to every party, always joking around. one night he told me his father had recently left him and his mom, who has brain cancer. we always hear that we should never judge what people are going through, but i thought i would remind everyone. 

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in this weird sort of balance where i'm getting so used to my life here that my life at home seems like the unknown. however, there is 32 days until i land in canada and i seem to just be getting more and more mixed up 

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also the ocean on 35mm steals my heart (even more than it usually does)

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gray wolf by Aiko Fukawa

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netherlands

wow. amsterdam was by far one of my favourite cities. one of those places that aren't necessarily terribly exotic per se, but one i could see myself living in. having a lot of dutch friends, i know they're general attitude is more upfront with what they want and how they feel, something that contrasts with the passive aggressiveness of swedes (and canadians)! 

my general impressions of the city was that it's clean and beautiful, european trendy without being pretentious or uppity, and with a laid-back feel that could be partly due to its openness towards weed and sex. it's very tourist friendly as you can walk from neighbourhood to neighbourhood easily. it was a really full trip but i will try to keep it short:

FRIDAY: arrive in amsterdam in the a.m.- saw some major sites such as the sex museum, the rijkmuseum (giant art gallery with Van Gogh originals), the anne frank house (amazing), a quick stop in the cheese museum (it was free..) and of course a visit to a typical "coffeeshop". we ended the evening with some joints and peppermint tea and hung out with a stoner kitty named Reefer. that night we took the train to our Dutch friend Marc's house in Utrecht, a student city 30 mins away. we had met Marc as he was leaving Lund as an exchange student 1st semester and got decently close in the few weeks we knew him. it was awesome for him to put us up; he lived in a reallly cool place in the attic of this old grand house with 11 other people! that night he took us to this crazy rave and we stayed up till 5am :)

SATURDAY: brunch and then took the ferry to the amsterdam coffee festival for something fun! was awesome- so many free samples. did some shopping in the city, got dinner and headed back into Utrecht. that night we drank with Marc and some of his roommates which turned into a jam session and then a "spiritual journey" which i won't go into but was basically a circle of deep conversation and joint passing. 

SUNDAY: brunch and touring around Utrecht, checked into a hostel in amsterdam, walked down to a big market, ate dinner. we met up with our friend Trent (who's also in Lund) and his frat friends from his school in the states (UVA) also on exchange in Europe. we had a crazy night out in the red light district which ended with dominos pizza and singing bob marley in the streets with some Jamaicans. 

MONDAY: freedom festival in a park. was a gorgeous day and we lounged around listening to bands and eating food. got some mexican for dinner (cinco de mayo) and  headed out to Noordwijk to stay at a beach hostel for our last night, not without several roadblocks along the way. this place was super relaxed and full of other world travellers all eager to share stories. we drank at the beach bar there and played cards and went down to the water to see if there were any of the rumoured phosphorescent plankton that people had talked about (unfortunately there were none). had a super deep sleep.

TUESDAY: rented bikes and tooled around the sand dunes and fields and little neighbourhoods around the Dutch coast. then headed home!

such a fun trip, and fit so much in!! unfortunately i always greatly underestimate how much money travelling costs (not to mention living in sweden...) so i think that it will have been my last trip until france with mi madre. that's okay with me i think as sweden is lovely in spring and i want to spend time with my friends here anyways. 

have a lovely week people! xx

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Amsterdam

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wednesday evening

-porch with my dutch&austrian girlfriends, cigarettes and red wine

-eating homemade quiche while watching keeping up with the kardashians because it's what's on in the kitchen; my friends have never watched it (refreshing!)

-biking home with the sunset and birds chirping and low light on the blooming trees

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If a hostel has free breakfast, cheap food, gives you your own towels and has outlets right beside your bed then I am a happy happy traveller.

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Siste April celebrations in Lund.. Some of the most fun I've ever had :)

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i think one of the main things i have realized from exchange is that you go to these new cities and immediately search for everything happening: activities to do, events going on, sights to see.. and yet we don't seem to have this sort of attitude where we live! why am i so much more inclined to go to an art exhibit if it's in london, or jump in the water if it's an ocean? of course it's exotic and exciting while i'm here in europe- but i'm going to try to do better in terms of doing new things at home. even in lund i've been so good at trying to do new things and seeing different stuff.. time to bring that home! (time as in 6.5 weeks..)

living in kingston this summer i want to make sure i don't miss out on anything happening- events, exhibits, outdoor adventures, music... how did i pass one summer by without doing any movie thursdays in the square, any paddleboarding sessions by the lake, or any camping trips? 

this is my vow- it's my last summer of being a carefree undergrad and i wanna live it up :) 

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I am the sea and nobody owns me.

Pippi Longstocking (1997)

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Most awesome day biking to the beach and spending the day there. Must do this again!!