It’s hard to believe I’ll be leaving Sweden so soon. This experience has been nothing but amazing. From the internship experience, to the wonderful people I have met, I wouldn’t wish it to be any other way. This week was very special to me because it was my 21st birthday. I was very lucky to spend it with all of my friends that I have made over the course of the program. My birthday was Monday and my good friend Sofia’s birthday was Friday, so we also had a combined celebration on Wednesday. That night was super fun because we had people from both the June and July programs. I was very happy to be surrounded and celebrate with all the new friends I had made. The rest of the nights, my roommate and I went on long walks and hosted movie nights with our friends. I wish we had started doing this sooner and not at the very end of the program, but it was still a lot of fun.
On Friday, I went off to London for the weekend. London is a city I had wanted to visit for a very long time, so being abroad felt like the perfect time to take the trip. I actually took this trip alone, and met up with my friend who lives there. I had met her during New York Fashion Week in February, so when I booked my trip to London I reached out to her. Saturday morning I spent alone. I went to King’s Cross, the Borough Market, and the Tower Bridge before meeting up with my friend. We met at a Greek frozen yogurt place. I never had Greek frozen yogurt. It was actually really cool, because in the states, frozen yogurt is usually sugary and eaten as a dessert. In London it was actually seen as a healthy food, and instead of the toppings being different types of candies, it was fruit, granola, and real natural peanut butter. This was probably one of my favorite things I ate while I was abroad. Afterwards, we walked around and did some shopping before getting on the tube to Notting Hill. She planned the entire afternoon for us, it was really cool being taken around the city by a local. We saw the house and then walked around the market and did some shopping. She also took me to this coffee shop that makes all their coffee and matcha with real chocolate instead of sugary syrups. It was some of the best coffee I’ve had. We later headed to dinner and I tried fish and chips for the first time. It wasn’t bad, but I don’t know if it’s something I would order repeatedly. As a tourist, she knew I wanted to see the big ben at night, so we then headed over to the Elizabeth Tower where we could also see the London Eye. I think this was the perfect time to see it because it was lit up and made for the perfect end of our day.
Sunday I had the day alone, so I spent the day seeing all the tourist attractions. I visited the national gallery, which was probably one of my favorite places I went to. I also went to the convent garden, got more Greek frozen yogurt, went back to the Elizabeth Tower, Westminster Abbey, St. Paul’s Cathedral, and Buckingham Palace. Traveling alone meant I could move at my own pace without having to wait for anyone, which I enjoyed immensely. Overall, it was the most amazing first solo trip, and I cannot wait to go back one day and see so much more.
Internship-wise, I helped out with a photoshoot for HUGO this week. I was less involved in this shoot than I was with others in the past, but it was still fun to assist with what I could. July is a slow month in Sweden, so besides the shoot, I spent most of my days working on the online magazine. I feel like Sweden falls under the low-context category, as I felt like my workplace relied on a lot of unspoken expectations.I was often expected to know how to complete tasks without being shown the process first. This led to several miscommunications at the beginning of my internship because I would complete tasks differently than my boss expected. I found it difficult to speak up at first, but I found it was easier to just be honest and explain that I had never been taught that specific process. I would apologize and tell my boss that I understood now and would make sure to do it correctly in the future. Those conversations improved our communication and helped me become more confident asking questions. This experience taught me that clear communication and being willing to speak up are essential in any workplace.
