Resident part deux

The question I am asked the most is what I will do for work once in Sweden. How will I financially survive in such an expensive country? Ok, when I got back from my first visit (sort of a visit, it was a 2-week tour) one of my main quips was how expensive everything was. No matter how much free beer those clubs stocked us up with we always found ways to blow through our allotted personal kroner on overpriced beverages and whatnot. Of course all of this changes when you actually hang out with a native and get to know your surroundings. It’s just how I used to think Chicago was expensive before I actually lived here and started figuring it out. You shop here, not there. You frequent this place, not that one. Luckily the rent I’ll be contributing to is cheaper there than what I pay here. And what about all of that beer I’ll be consuming? Besides the fact that I don’t think I can consume as much in the future as I did in that afore mentioned two-week period, the smart way to drink is at student nations. Slight problem: I’m not a student! To get into these nations where the beer and food is cheap you must have a student ID. Last year when I was in Uppsala, the city in which I’ll be living, the process of obtaining a student ID, even if you weren’t studying, was pretty lax. Rumor has it that the officials are getting wise. Wish me luck on this one.

Back to my point, I don’t have a job lined up in Sweden. I’ve been saving my pennies here for the past year or so. I’m going into the move with a slight financial buffer zone. Honestly, I did what I could. From what I’ve been told, because education is free, a majority of people have experienced higher education in specialized fields. Take that and couple it with the fact that there is already a lack of jobs and you get a population of people, those who actually have jobs, overqualified for their position. But before I can really concentrate on working I need to put a ton of effort into learning the language:

I wrote about my beginner’s Swedish class here. And here’s what else you might like to know: “Swedish is a Germanic language related to Danish and Norwegian but different in pronunciation and orthography. English is by far the leading foreign language, particularly among students and those under age 50.” The Swedish alphabet, compared to the English, has three additional letters. These new letters were the first hurdle for me to overcome in my early studies. I “learned” them like this:

Å - Pronounced as the English "o" as in "for".
Ä - Pronounced as the English "ai" as in "fair.
Ö - Pronounced roughly like the English "u" as in "turn".

My residence permit allows me into Swedish for Immigrants courses free of charge. These classes are provided by the government and, based on the info that I have, meet about four times a week for about four or five hours a day. It’s possible I’ll be the only American in my class. So, English will not be a common language therefore Swedish will be the only language spoken in the class. I’m really interested in their teaching techniques. Getting enrolled in this class is one of my main priorities upon arrival.

Enjoy your weekend. And check back early next week; there's plenty more knowledge to leak.