I remember the day I arrived in Sweden. The very first thing that amazed was the stunning sunrise in Malmö right next to the Öresund bridge. After I began my day in Malmö I started moving towards the coast to take a ferry from Oskarshamn to Visby. I could see a beautiful nature, never-ending forests and all these cute red houses which are so typical for Sweden. 🙂

When I arrived in Gotland, I realized was going to live on the island for the following 10 months. It was something completely new to me and also a bit weird seeing a little dot in the middle of the Baltic sea and realizing I was 150 kilometres from the mainland.

However, I fell in love with Visby! It feels like being on holiday for 10 months. J Okay, it is not a real holiday because our master programme in Sustainable Management is only one year, so it is quite intense but where else to study sustainability than on this green island? Moreover, I can enjoy all the beautiful sunsets almost every day because Visby is considered the sunniest place in Sweden. J (and the TripAdvisor does not lie).

What I really love about Sweden is fika. No matter what, there is always a time for fika! And after I learned how to fika, it has gained much more importance to me. It is not just a word, it is a very significant part of the Swedish culture and it is not a surprise that Swedes are one of the greatest coffee consumers in the world (since I moved to Sweden, my addiction to coffee has heavily increased and I have to say that I highly contribute to the statistics).

What surprised me about Sweden? Haha, I would say all the typical Swedish dishes which are actually not Swedish. Halloumi cheese, tacos and ice cream! My Swedish flatmate cooked tacos for us on one of our first days in Visby and I was sort of confused whether I moved to Mexico or Sweden.

Now, I am heading towards the end of my studies, but I have been having a very good time in Gotland so far and can highly recommend this place to everyone, who wants to be focused on their studies, being engaged with other people (campus is super small, so you always encounter the same people which is nice!), enjoy a bit of the student’s life and getting lost in tiny streets of Visby! 🙂

/Karolína