Swedish Summer Snapshots

It is pretty surreal, but I almost had 2 (!) months off school by now. 

I had absolutely no trouble at all spending them in Sweden. 

Here is why. 

View from summer house in Åmål

Post-secret-wedding-celebration

Gustav's torp (summer house) together with his siblings

My absolute obsession: picking and eating blueberries

Sneak-peaking at Sweden's largest music festival - Way Out West - in Gothenburg

Teaching American guest Sam how to eat crayfish

Showing American guest Alex Gothenburg archipelago

Teaching grandparents the world of Mac

Cramming some sailboats

Writing papers....

Dancing lindy hop!

Lindy hop camp site

Herräng dance camp - one of the largest of its kind - this year 30 years

Lindy hop lips

Family reunion

Twins and bubble stuff

Getting back on track with running

Baking coma

Catching up with mum

Spending a L.O.T of time laying on the couch

Swedish delicacy - crayfish!

Me and my suitcase...

Back in our beloved bunker apartment - where we will spend our last week home!

Jungle horror

***

Somewhere in Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica:

Local person: Yes, there are many amazing trails for hiking around here. Very good. The best.
Me: *Wiping of some of the 97% humidity* That's great. Any ideas where to go?
Gus: Äh, vi går väl bara? Vem behöver karta eller guide...? (English translation: I am a macho man, follow me, no need for directions)
Me: Eeeeeeh förderar ändå någon slags stig.
Local person: This loop is very nice. Perhaps you can meet the peccary *smiles*
Me: Peccary...? ....?
Local person: You know, the pigs. Wild. If with baby, they can be angry. Then you have to climb a tree, hehehe.
Gus: Älskling det är ingen fara, det är jätteovanligt att man ser vildsvin. De ser bara dig. Om vi träffar ett dock (eller typ en puma, eller orm eller vad som helst som är lite farligt och exotiskt), så måste du ta kort och NJUTA av ögonblicket.
Me: Wild... pig...tree...?

*Moments later, walking on the trail....*

 Me: Eeeeeeekkkkkkkkkkkkk...!!!!! *running for my life*

Gus: *Exited* Look, a dog!

Me: *Sitting high up in a tree* Iiiiiiiiiiii...eeeeeekkkkkkkkk...!!! Get rid of it, take it away, take it away...!

Gus: But... it's... only a dog..? (my remark: VERY sketchy dog, 99% sure it had rabies)

Me:......iiiiiiiii......  .....   ....*refusing to come down*

I have no idea how I got up in the tree in the first place. But scratches on my knees tell me that I must have climbed faster in all times in all histories.

I am sure this is what I saw coming running at us.

***

For more Costa Rica pics, see Gus blog (why double the work load; my pig story is way cooler than his boring pictures anyway).

Now, over and out for the summer - who knows until when. We just landed in Stockholm after flying over Göteborg and even spotting our beloved apartment way down there. 

 

Hej där, hem hemma. Jag har saknat dig!

25 seconds of heaven

It took approximately 25 seconds to walk over the stage, get my MPh diploma from the Dean, smile for the camera and walk down. Boom. Just like that, it was over.

Very nice 25 seconds. Worth every second of the 11 month struggle (almost). 

I'm graduated!

This all happened on May 23rd, I am a tiny bit slow with updates due to a Cost Rica trip in the middle of everything (more about that in next episode).  

How do you put this thing on...?

In case we look back at this day 50 years from now and don't remember where we went to school.

My best and most patient supporter: Gus!

Gift from Gus and my grandparents: Ipad!

Even more important than graduation, my whole family was in town! We took them for the one thing to do in Bmore: crabs.

One bedroom apartment full to the edge with beloved people

My brother and uncle enjoying baseball

Swedes at Baltimore Orioles baseball game, check.

School is over and out..! For now.

Ahhhrrrrrrrrr...!!

Post-capstone presentation: happy, happy, tired Anna.

A few updates in the midst of Bawlmor's sticky weather:

• Graduation is less than 7 days away.
• I've presented my capstone.
• I'm submitting my final.... final exam t.o.d.a.y.
• We found a new house. I has a garden.
• We managed to get rid of our current apartment.
• My Swedish crew including mother, father, brothers + girlfriend, aunt and uncle are currently making their way over the Atlantic.

Now, do I even need to explain why we would go on a pirate cruise at 4 pm in the afternoon?

We RRRRRRR so ready to be done!

Somewhere along the way...

 This e-mail message is to confirm that you submitted MPH Capstone Course Capstone Final Papers at 8:12 AM on May 4, 2012. 

I think this might be one of the best emails I have ever received. Perhaps even better than the one telling me that I got accepted into the MPH program about a year ago. Time does fly and for a moment (actually, there were many, many..many moments) I thought I wasn't going to make it. This year (and final project) has been by far the most challenging in my life; both in positive and less positive ways.

So how to celebrate final submission of the MPH capstone project (för er där hemma, typ samma sak som exjobb)? Well, I went home and cleaned our apartment for 3 hours. It is now shining and I just yelled at Gus for leaving a dirty spoon in our sink. For some reason, I just had to get the Capstone 'dirt' out of the house and make room for new, clean, nice energy. Now sitting on my couch, drinking coffee and gazing and thinking something like "now what...?".

Anna; now what???

Actually, I have a few updates concerning the 'now what'. 

Update #1: somewhere along the way... I ended up applying to the PhD program here at Hopkins with the intention of not maybe getting accepted but if so, without a cent of funding (här i amerikat betalar man för att doktorera, annat än den anställning man får där hemma...). And then, somewhere along the way, I got accepted...with full funding and a nice research assistant scholarship. So here I am, a soon-to-be-ex-MPH-candidate and prospective PhD candidate. 

It is a weird twist. A few reasons why:

1. I intentionally applied to Hopkins because of the 11 month program that would allow me to return to work faster while having gained excellent skills. 
2. I have, in many ways been miserable this year - why would I torture myself by staying?
3. Gus and I aren't exactly loving Baltimore's outdoor life... and continuously dream about going home...
4. I never thought I would become an academic.

So, whyyyyy? Easy explanation:

1. Despite the psychological stress and pain brought along with going back to school, somewhere along the way I discovered a small nerd in myself. I kind of like research. Actually, I really like it. And I enjoy exploring things that I know can make a difference and learn ways of making a difference through new findings.
2. The department (Population, Family and Reproductive Health) where I got accepeted is the department when it comes to working with adolescent sexual and reproductive health. Given the project I have been involved in during this year, I cannot imagine what the future holds. And, the fact that I can account my MPH year into the PhD = finish faster, helps. Lastly, Gus has managed to get an amazing job so the fact that he really wants to stay is... just...really good.
3. We're getting a car = hello exploring hiking along the east coast. We'll move somewhere with a garden = hello being able to be outside.
4. You live and you learn. Not sure I will ever be a real academic though. Too much of a practitioner at heart.

Update #2: somewhere along the way... we ended up booking a trip to Costa Rica. We were actually looking for flights to places like Iowa, Minnesota and California but ended up in San José. Slightly delayed hönneymoon, here we come. 

Coming soon...

PS #1: As a PhD student, I promise to improve my blogging significantly. 

PS # 2: For those of you interested, my graduation ceremony is May 23rd. I will finally get to wear one of these amazing hats. 

(I already tried it on: nope, not very beautiful).

I want a coconut too

Sometimes you find yourself wondering how on earth you ended up where you are. Example:

This is where I am

 

This is where Gustav is

Håll ut Anna. 7 weeks to graduation...!