Layover...

Copenhagen. Nice airport here. Fresh and clean. Long flight requires lots to read. I'm more than prepared.

It's Departure Day!

It's not really pre departure anymore. It's departure time, departure day! This is what I saw when I woke up this morning. I had a nice long look at the two calendars and thought: "Well, if the calendar tells me to move to DC, then let me move to DC!" So here I am, at the airport, ready to leave on a jetplane and MOVE TO WASHINGTON DC!

Dear reader, I am so incredibly happy. When it's right, you know it's right. I wish you all will have the possibility to feel this kind of happiness I'm feeling. I wish you all will have the courage to follow your dreams and sail away where your heart wants to go.

I'm boarding in a minute. I'm unbelievably tired, so I'm looking forward to have a nice long sleep on the plane and then wake up to my big dream.

Dream on, dear reader. But remember to not only dream about your life, but to also live in your dream!

Lots of love

/Milon on the go

ONE DAY TO GO!

I'm back in Gothenburg, after travelling back an forth between Sweden and Denmark for four days. I had a blast on the boat, but now we are done playing. It's time for my real life to start. I am looking forward to start using my real brain again and read and learn and follow my dream. I cannot wait for this life to start. I cannot wait to leave this grey city behind for some nine months; learn new things and meet new people.

I don't know when I'll get Internet to my apartment, but I'll keep you updated, I promise. Join me, why don't you?! I bet we're gonna have a blast.

LET THE FUN BEGIN!

I'm on at boat...

I should be at home working my ass off cleaning and packing. But I'm not. I'm at work. Out at sea, on a boat. I boarded 7:00 a.m. this lovely grey Thursday and I won't egt off until Sunday night around 23:30 p.m. So, please be patient with the updates. I promise you, once in D.C. this will all be so much more exciting.

So long! Simma lugnt, as we say in Sweden!

Pa-pa-pa-packing!

Really, how do you pack for almost a year? Is it enough? Is it too much? The pre-packing is occupying my couch. Yes, you have to pre-pack before you actually pack. To make sure that what you pack is going to fit in the suitcase in which you will pack, when you pack for real.

I'm losing my mind. I need help. Who knows anything on this topic? Ms Pac-Man, maybe?

Milon - you've got mail!

I got a note in my mailbox, saying I had something to pick out at the post office (well, what's left of the post office these days, a booth in the grocery shop). It was the envelope with the twelve ice cream stamps, that I had adressed to myself, about a week ago.

Can you guess what was in it?! I'll give you a hint. I starts with a V and ends with an ISA!

What am I doing? And why?

I'm walking around, feeling some kind of out-of-body-experience. Walking between the cellar, the recycling station and my apartment, that is about to be somebody else's home for nine months. I am taking out, wrapping in, packing down. Everything with a robot motion. I don't really get emotional, 'cause I don't really understand what all this means.

But of course, it means that I am preparing for the big adventure to come. Everytime I realize that, I get a rush of exctiement, running through my body. So long clothes, books, pictures, what have you. We will see each other again. Don't feel sad if I won't be missing you, it's only because I will be in the middle of living my dream!

Finally a visa!

Yesterday was the day! The going-to-the-embassy-for-a-visa-interview-day. That's right, that day finally came. I got up early in the morning, took the first train from Nyköping to Stockholm, met up with one of my Roomies to be, and started the big mission.

We had been told to go there at least two or three hours before our scheduled appointments, since it would probably be a long, long line just to enter the embassy. So at 8:20 AM we were there, waiting in line with 15-20 other people. After an hour in the sun (yes, the weather was very kind to us) they let us enter the buildning. "Are you her sister?" the guard asked me, since we have the same last name. Another guard with a serious look on his face asked me to take a sip of my water (what did he think it was?) and when I, smiling, said to him "Yes, with pleasure!" he looked at me and gave me a cute smile back.

Once inside the building, we only had to wait another hour before we were called for our interviews. My friend went first, maxium three minutes. I was called to the same booth right after and the nice lady asked me (for the second time this day) "Are you two sisters? Will you also be attending the journalism classes? Alright, it all looks good. Thank you and good luck!". And that was that. I was granted a visa and it will be sent to me within a week.

There were two happy girls leaving the embassy (me telling the last guard to have a nice day) and back at the train station, when we found ourselves standing in front of an American flag, we both just said: YES!

Early train.

Happy girls

America - here we come!

The Official Countdown.

Today, July 16, it's exactly one month left till departure. It is about time to start The Official Countdown. And no countdown without a Countdown Calendar.

The story of the visa came to a perfect solution - in the end. After lots of stress, correspondence with the embassy who booked me in for a new appointment, hunting somebody to fill in for me at work and thinking about how to travel to Stockholm, I had it all worked out. Not the ideal situation, since I didn't want to take a day off work and a return ticket to Stockholm that exact day was very expensive. But I didn't really care, I just wanted my appointment. After confirming it to the embassy I got an e-mail saying that there were some new openings.

I logged in on the website, which was magically working for the first time in a week, and found more that 60 available appointments next week, when I will be visiting my sister, close to Stockholm. It all just made me laugh! I booked the first appointment available, sent my colleague a text saying that she doesn't have to work for me and told my wallet it doesn't have to worry about buying an expensive flight ticket.

Now, I'm just counting down with a big smile on my face and a much lighter heart. Well, obviously hoping I will be granted a visa. But why shouldn't I? I have nothing but good intentions and nothing else but clothes and books in my suitcase. Good things do happen to good people. Let's start the countdown.

To do the things you can't do. How do you do?

What do you do, when you have a lot of things to do that you cannot really do anything about? I do not know. Do you?

A teeny tiny - correction: huge - amount of stress is eating me from the inside. The embassy replied to my e-mail - thank you, thank you, thank you a million! They even offered me another appointment. Of course, I work that day, so the problem is not quite solved yet. I am trying to change days with a colleague and I am now waiting for her definite answer. Let's keep all the fingers crossed yet another time!

Until this whole mess is straightened out, I will not be able to relax. You see? There are things I have to do, but I cannot do anything this very minute. I will try to turn all this stress into energy and do something productive. I do have to keep on depersonalizing (it's a word!) my apartment and think about what to pack for DC. If I ever get there - see, cannot relax!

Too bad my happy place is 1100 kilometers away. I'll just have to imagine myself there. And breathe.

Still, the story of the visa.

Here we go again, the never ending story with the visa application and interview. A fellow student had been to the embassy today (lucky her, but hey, she lives in Stockholm and all!) and she had been told that the turnaround time for recieving a visa is 14 days. 11 is what I read on the website and that sure caused me a lot of stress. Can you imagine what this new information did to me?!

I mostly wanted to sit down and cry a little bit. Why can it not just run smoothly? I am trying to access the website every single free minute I have, but it's just not working. I cannot log in to have a look if there are any appointments available. I really don't know what to do.

As I usually do, when I need help, I wrote an e-mail. I wrote an e-mail to The Embassy itself. I have absolutely no idea whether or not it will help my situation, but I had to at least try.

It all feels so hopeless when everything should be done online and technology doesn't work. I just want to talk to somebody, a real person. Can we all please keep our fingers crossed for me and my visa story? Good people deserve some good luck. Don't they?

Applying for a visa.

A few notes to self, if ever applying for a visa again:

No.1: Long, long, long before you even get whatever form you need for filling out the online application - take a day off to read everything on the website. Carefully read the FAQ:s, even though you don't think they concern you, because they probably will, in the end. Let's face it, there is a reason for why they are frequently asked questions.

No. 2: Load up with documents and information that you might need; such as previous work experience and grades, passport and other identification, information about family members, travel documents and information about current and future address, information about at least two people who can confirm that your occupation will be what you claim it will be - just to name a few!

No. 3: Make sure you have a valid photo. Ask a friend with a good camera to take a bunch of pictures of you facing the camera directly, with an all white background. Don't go to a photo shop - it's ridiculously expensive!

No. 4: Make sure that you at all time have a working printer connected to your computer while visiting any website connected to your visa application. You will have to print out all the confirmation documents and you can never be sure that there is a possibility to save it to your hard disk and print it later. So - printer needed at all times!

No. 5: Talk to your employer and prepare him or her that you might have to take a couple of days off with very short notice during this or that period. In that way, you will feel more free to pick and chose the dates for your visa interview - it's nice to be flexible!

No. 6: Be patient and make sure to have lots of time when filling out the online application. Each section allows you to work for 20 minutes, but let's just say that there are more than one section to fill out. Grab a good cup of coffee and maybe even a cookie and you are good to go - ready to book a visa!

Sleepy, stressed out student!

The stress never ends!

The printer hunt went well. A nice neighbour lend me his one and made sure to carry it down to my flat so I had it when I came home from work last night. At midnight it was time to start the battle against the website. Well, first I actually had to start the battle against technology since the printer wouldn't work with my computer. After lots of browsing I finally found the right driver to install it and I've got to admit I felt kind of proud of myself. Milon vs. Technology: 1-0!

After a few hours of clicking, re-loading and using different browsers, all of a sudden, the website was magically working. So I started worknig on my application. It did not take 20 minutes, as I had been told. Somewhere when the sun started to rise I lost track of time, let's just leave it at that.

I recieved a barcode, I logged in to book an appointment - August 1st was the first day available. What other choice did I have?! I booked it, and at first I felt relieved for having it all set, but around 5-ish, when I put my head down on the pillow it occured to me that I'm not sure I will recieve my visa in time!

To sum up: Sleepy, stressed out student is on the edge of a minor breakdown. But what can one do? Not much else than keep all fingers crossed and find a happy place. Maybe I should send a little extra love to the world, to increase the possibilities of getting some help from good karma.

May the winds blow in the right direction.

Non-working websites and no printer in sight!

Too much of things I don't have or things that does not work!

All day long, I've been trying to get access to an online application for getting my visa. Not working, not working, was the reply my browser sent me every single time. After a few hours I had to go to work. Back home again, the webiste is finally working but I realize that I cannot fill out the application anyway, 'cause I don't have a printer.

I need to print all the documents and receipts. I don't want to take the risk of not being able to just save it to my computer and print it later. I need a printer! I need it now! Can anyone lend me one? Please? Tomorrow morning I'm gonna have to start the printer hunt.

I also have to go downtown to one of those photo booths to get my picture taken, since I realized that an acceptable photograph of myself, to be able to fill out the application, is yet another thing that I don't have. A picture of me in my dance performance make-up is apparently not good enough.

Not working. Not having. Not sleeping. It's tiring. And Little Miss Control Freak freaks out a bit when she does not have it all under control. But I try to just breathe and live after my motto that it will be alright.

Happy Midsummer to y'all!

The most Swedish day of them all is here - Midsummer!

I'm doing it the traditional way: going out tho the country side, to my sister's summer house by the lake. I'm in charge of the strawberry cake and the others will bring with them herring, salmon, pies with cheese from my home province and new potatoes. Everything you need to get it as Swedish as it can be.

I will go out in the woods to pick some wild flowers. I will make sure we build a maypole - midsommarstång, as we say in Swedish - and I hope we will play at least one game of kubb. I will stay away from the nubbe - snaps is not my cup of tea anymore - but will make sure to enjoy one cold, delicious beer to dinner.

I will probaly have mosquitoe bites all over my body and sit under a blanket to watch the sun go down, only to rise a few hours later. Before going to bed, I will put seven different flowers under my pillow in order to dream about my future Prince.

That's what we do at Midsummer Eve. 

I wish you all light, love and laughter!

Wants and needs.

I'm not a girl who buys a lot of clothes, nor shoes. I prefer spending my money on good food, strong coffee and sweet chocolate cakes, preferably while out travelling! I don't buy a lot of other stuff either. Let's just say that I'm not a big spender. However, at this very moment, I have a list of three things I would love to buy.

Number One: A new computer. One slightly (a lot!) lighter than my good old fellow Dell Inspiron 6400. No offense, Mr. Dell, you have been a good soldier by my side and never caused me any bigger problems. But after five years, your batteries are so tired they won't even last for an hour and I think that you have actually put on some weight! A MacBook Whatever is supposed to be nice and sweet.

Number Two: A new cellphone. Again, Mr. SonyEricsson I-don't-know-your-name, aka Little Pink One, you are also a good friend of mine and always have been, but I can see you are a bit tired. You are getting old. Your buttons are not working correctly. Your battery dies after a few calls and sometimes you don't even connect to the charger. If I could, I would by a BlackBerry. Oh my God, yes.

Number Three: A new camera! I loved Mr. Canon Digital IXUS 8515. He was perfect for me. But he is no longer with me. His brain is still working, yes, but his heart does not beat by itself anymore. A chilly (freezing) day up in the Italian mountains, he got severe injuries and never recovered. May you rest in peace, dear friend. I think it would be great to get to know your younger brother.

So, these are the three things I would like to buy. Unfortunately, I'm saving all my money to be able to still buy food and live a decent life in D.C, so it's gonna be me and the guys travelling again. Well, at least I know them inside and out. I hope they will survive yet another adventure with me.

Me and the guys moving to Nice in 2009.

Me and my dear friend Canon taking a walk in Nice.

Know your destination.

Did you know, that when you travel abroad it most likely won't be like home? Do not laugh. Not all people know this. However, I do! To me, that is the whole point of travelling. I want to see something else; new streets, different buildings. I want to create new routines and experience a culture I am not used to.

I've never been to The States, but I don't live in a bubble, so of course I have my own idea of what it will be like. Just out of curiosty, I borrowed a few books about "American" culture from the library. If there even is such a thing as an American culture, I do not know. I will try to find that out, though. First, by reading these books and thereafter by living in this whole thing myself.

I will get back to you on this one, I promise. This topic will probably get it's own category later on, with both reflections from the book and from the live street.

Let's start reading...

Home is where your heart is.

Things to do before leaving: A million. One of them: Finding someone to sublet the apartment, my home sweet home. I know, I know, that should have be taken care of already. But, my mind has been elsewhere. Don't know where. But somewhere.

Tomorrow, I'm gonna call these two different guys who might be interested. Keep your fingers crossed, will you?! It sure would be the best option possible to have someone to take care of my sweet little crib while I'm on the other side of the Atlantic Sea. Not that I want to think about that now, but I am, after all, returning in May 2012. It would be neat to come back to this place.

I love this place and I am pretty sure that I will miss it. However, home is where your heart is and now, this following year, all of my heart and all of me will be 100 % i Washington D.C.

Packing panicking already!

After booking my ticket to D.C. and while checking all the datas, I realized that I am only allowed one piece of baggage! How in the whole wide world will that be possible? Well, it simply won't. When moving to the south of France a couple of years ago, I was struggling to pack for one semester in a relatively warm climate.

This time, I will be in need of everything from high heels and dressy suits (which I don't have yet!) to warm jackets and winter boots. And of course everythin in-between - different jackets, shoes for various occasions, lots of clothes for working out, my OnePiece and so on and so forth. I have already started packing in my mind and not even my biggest suitcase is big enough for the list I've made so far.

What a problem, huh?! I hope to solve it by paying for an extra piece of baggage.

Networking and making new friends.

When I tell people I'm about to head over to the states - yes, I've been starting to tell people for real now - they all ask the same question: "Are you going by yourself? Aren't you nervous?". On the one hand, I understand their question. On the other, I don't.

Yes, I am going by myself in that sense that I'm moving overseas without anyone I already now. Yet, I'm not going there alone, since there will be 22 other Swedish students attending the same programme. Plus, I've heard that there are quite a few people living in the US. Yesterday, I got the opportunity to meet a bunch of these Swedish students. We all got some information about the school and living abroad and for a soon to be 25-year-old like-to-travel-person it wasn't that exciting.

However, after this meeting I ended up on a bar with my soon to be classmates and it appeared, that famous "click". We made so much plans, started up a small project, bonded and all got so excited we didn't understand how we're gonna survive this summer just waiting and waiting to leave!

I'm not going to The States by myself and I'm definitely not nervous about my trip, just very, very excited!

Cheers mate!