reference
Learning Swedish – SFI Course B
This is a laypersons guide to what is covered by the Swedish For Immigrants (“Svenska för invandrare” – SFI) course that is provided for free by the Swedish government to help immigrants ingrate. SFI has 4 levels, lettered from A to D. I want to describe the course to people that don’t study Swedish and […]
Finances: Supporting Sweden and Europe
We’re tried to alter our habits to try to send more of our income towards goods and services that result in a healthier Sweden or a healthier EU. To do this we make small changes to avoid investing in aggressive regimes, and unethical companies, or unethical persons. The goal isn’t to try to be perfect […]
Winter Mental Health
Our latitude is about 63N which is about another length of the UK north from the UK. This makes the summer days long to the point of having a bright sky at midnight, but it also makes the winter nights especially long and dark. The weather gets overcast here in September and October with the […]
What is it Like Learning Swedish?
The Swedish sometimes ask me what it is like as a foreigner learning Swedish, and if it is difficult. The Swedish and English language share a common north Germanic origin and learning Swedish from English is easier than learning other languages but it still takes time. It’s possible to learn in many different ways but […]
A Small Northern Town
A short overview of our town in northern Sweden. I’ll try to improve this article over time. In summary our town is about one thousand people which is large enough to have some facilities but small enough the the residents know of the major happenings in the town and can support each other. Landscape The […]
A quick tour of Swedish chart music
This list is mainstream Swedish artists that have been fun to listen to while learning Swedish. It doesn’t include some good bands that sing fully in English – for example I hadn’t realised until a Swedish teacher mentioned them that Millencolin were Swedish. There’s probably some fantastic niche bands but I don’t yet know how […]
Phone and Internet in Northern Sweden
This article is aimed at friends and family in the UK wondering about the mechanics of moving to Sweden. It covers some learning points that might help someone emigrating. Swedish SIM When living in Sweden, it is a great idea to get a Swedish SIM as soon as you are able because it is going […]
Post in Northern Sweden
This describes the postal experience in northern Sweden for the major post companies and compares to experiences in the UK. The information is intended for people in the UK wondering how everything works in Sweden. General Rules Typically there is a standalone postbox outside the property and the postbox should have the name on it […]
Gardening in Northern Sweden
This article is for people wondering what it is like growing vegetables in northern Sweden, compared to places like the UK. Specifically for location and climate, we’re a little south of Umeå and near the sea. We aren’t experts, we’re just having fun learning as we go. The Seasons Not much happens prior to April […]
Driving in Northern Sweden
If you’re used to driving in another country, like the UK, and you haven’t done lots of driving in other countries then you might have some questions, which I’ll try and cover below: As an immigrant, is it hard driving on the other side of the road? No, as long as you are not distracted […]
Domestic Solar and other Generation in Northern Sweden
There are some weird opinions on the internet, and one common one regarding solar is that it’s not a good idea in places like northern Sweden. As someone living in with a solar installation in northern Sweden, this is always an odd belief to read; it’s not that dark, panels are cheap, and there’s good […]
Swedish Domestic Electric
Here’s everything you might have wondered about the domestic electric supply in Sweden. This is mainly aimed at people that have never been to Sweden. How is electric provided? As a domestic home owner, you will have an electric supplier, and a electric network operator. They might be the same company, but you would otherwise […]