Fleur during her internship in Borås, Sweden

Fleur in Borås: “The first two months of my internship have flown by!”

March was a really fun month! Unfortunately, it was also my last time snowboarding because the slopes were closing. I got a visit from two friends from the Netherlands, and we visited Gothenburg and Stockholm together.

Fika!

One of the nicest Swedish traditions is fika. Fika means catching up with friends or family over coffee and something sweet. It's an important part of Swedish culture. Everyone does fika, at different times and at all ages, from young to old. Because of that, there are a lot of cozy cafés with all kinds of treats. In the Netherlands, we’d say “Shall we grab a drink?”—but here in Sweden, it’s: “Time for fika.” It’s really nice to experience the atmosphere in a café. It’s always busy and definitely a lovely tradition. Fika doesn’t have to last for hours—it can also just be a quick 30-minute break.

Semla

Thanks to the well-known fika tradition in Sweden, it was time for me to try all sorts of Swedish cakes and pastries. Semla is a bun filled with almond paste and whipped cream, topped with powdered sugar. In March, there was even a “Semla Day,” so during fika at my internship, we all had one. I’m not a fan of almond paste, so I won’t be getting another semla—but the Swedish kanelbullar (cinnamon buns) and chokladbollar (chocolate balls) are definitely two favorites I’d recommend!

Internship

We also have fika every day at the office. I see it as a coffee break, but in Swedish it’s truly called fika. We don’t have sweets every day—it can also just be a cup of tea and an apple. The first two months of my internship have flown by! I’m doing a research internship, so I’m not involved in daily operations. I mostly do computer work, research, and prep for the study. The internship is still going great and I really feel welcome there.

Visitors

On the second weekend of March, my friends came to visit! I’d been really looking forward to exploring new cities with them. On our second day in Gothenburg, we mostly went shopping—which is great in that city. After two fun days, we took the train to Stockholm. The five-hour trip went smoothly. Swedish trains are much nicer and more luxurious than those in the Netherlands.

Stockholm turned out to be such a lively and fun city! After arriving, we immediately went to see the changing of the guard at the Royal Palace. We also visited several museums inside the palace. The Royal Palace is located in the old part of the city—Gamla Stan. That area is charming, with its narrow streets, cozy cafés, and great atmosphere. In the evening, we went out with people from different countries we’d met at the hostel. It was so much fun to see more of Stockholm, enjoy some good food, and take in some culture.

Unfortunately, the trip back to Borås didn’t go quite as smoothly. I had a 2.5-hour delay, but the upside was that the train had great catering, plenty of power outlets, and good Wi-Fi. I definitely want to go back to Stockholm someday!