Birthday Celebration in Two Countries.

I know that if I put off writing any longer I'll never get it done because I am easily distracted and I have a ton of homework to finish. I have decided that I am not going to tell every single detail of the trip or else I won't have anything to talk about when I come home! There is nothing worse then a talkative girl who tells the same stories over and over again.

My trip to Sweden went wonderfully. We didn't have any major troubles with traveling or with our accommodations. Stockholm is a very unique city. A European flavor of Chicago (minus the sky skyscrapers) with a coastal feel and covered in brick. Vastly different from Reykjavik but I did not feel like I was a world away from Iceland either. I find energy and a passion for life coming to a new place and Stockholm did not disappoint. I would have liked to stay there longer, at least a month, to soak in their culture. But that kind of time is not at my disposal, so I will gladly accept the time I had there. We spent about 26 hours in Stockholm wandering around the city, seeing the Royal Palace, the Vasa Museum, beautiful churches, walking along the harbors, and through a dog park, eating amazing candy, shopping, and sleeping. Stockholm was a short trip because our final destination was Jönköping Sweden, which is a smaller town (but bigger than Reykjavik I thought) right on the end of the Vättern lake. On the bus ride there I started to wonder if I was really in Sweden because it reminded me of Minnesota. There were so many fall trees showing off their gift of change and farms scattered about. I'm glad I got to enjoy a little bit of fall because Iceland doesn't have many trees for it to feel like fall.

Jönköping was adorable and so were my friends there. Traveling to places that you have friends in is the best way to travel because they know where to go and can give you the history behind it. It was great to trade stories about cultural differences between Sweden and Iceland. We did some touristy stuff and some local activities like Fika (in Sweden they take an hour or so out of their day where they go out with friends to eat a pastry and have coffee/tea - I believe we should bring that back to the states). On the last night Anna, Abi, Tor, and I went to the Sauna and when we got back Alyssa had made me a birthday cake. They (The north park and Swedish students) sang happy birthday to me in English and Swedish.

My Birthday was very enjoyable even though I spent most of it traveling. We got up at 5am walked to the bus, road the bus till 11, walked around Stockholm one last time (I got some coffee), and took a plane back to Iceland. By five Iceland time we were back in our dorm and my door was covered in news paper cutouts saying happy 20th birthday and a cutout of Iceland. My friends here (who would like me to refer to them as my Icelandic Birthday Elves because it was my day and not a day to talk about all of the sweet things they did for me) put together a pizza party for me. Maxine had the brilliant idea everyone should sing to me in their first language. Well no one wanted to sing alone so they compromised and sang together in their own language. So I have now been sung Happy Birthday in: English, Swedish, Icelandic, Danish, German, and Chines. I have been blessed with amazing friends everywhere I go. Thank you Jesus! That is defiantly a birthday I will never forget.

My birthday fun has continued because the mail is so slow here. On Monday I got a card from Kayla filled with confetti and decorated my floor nicely and today I got a package from my tea time girls that contained MINI WHEATS!! I have already eaten a bowl.

Other then that I have been busy studying for a midterm, took that midterm, took a quiz, read lots of British history and literature, and played some Wii Mario Kart and Super Smash Bros. :] It is good to be back in my dorm and settling back into "normal" life again. Although the travel bug has bitten me hard and I have started to talk about visiting some other cities in Iceland before the weather becomes impossible to drive anywhere. I don't have anything brilliant to close with or rant about I just wanted to fill you in on my life and it is time for me to get back to life (which consists of reading more British Literature. wahoo?). Until next time friends.