Off the Plane!

Though it took 15 hours in three separate planes and an hour car ride, I'm finally here at the Mullsjö Folhögskola! It's safe to say that my travel buddy, Luke, and I were ready for a looooong nap once we got to the school. It's so easy to underestimate how exhausting traveling can be. Sitting in a plane for so long takes a lot out of you, but I shouldn't complain because overall, our traveling went smoothly. Thankfully, we were able to manoeuver the airports easily (shout out to Tom Klein, a family friend, for being so gracious and helpful at the Atlanta airport!), and we didn't have to wait longer than an hour during any of our layovers. The worst part was an eight hour ride from Atlanta to Amsterdam. As someone who is terrified of flying, sitting for eight hours on a plane isn't my favorite thing to do, so I was glad there were some good in-flight movies to pass the time (I finally got to see Big Hero 6- it was amazing!!). After flying to Gothenburg, we were picked up at the airport by our professor, Örjan, and we had an easy hour and a half car ride, which I was mostly able to sleep through. :)

The parts of the drive I did see were BEAUTIFUL! So many tall trees and grass and wild flowers everywhere, unlike anything I've ever seen. Picturesque scenery all around you. Like nature in such a pure state that you just want to stare at it for a long, long time. A surprising part of that beauty was that there were no bilboards along the roads. There were no big, ugly signs distracting you from looking out the window at the landscape. Interesting comparison to Missouri highways, where it seems like bilboards are never out of sight.

We arrived at the school very tired, but very happy to be at our destination. The school is surrounded by tons of trees and on one side, a beautiful lake. The lake has a walking trail around it and I've been told that there are lots of trails in the forest, which I am very excited to explore! Campus is tiny and compact, with only about 150-200 students, I think. All classes and dorms are close to one another, which makes finding your way around the campus very easy. The town we are in, Mullsjö, is also tiny, but cute! Lots of little, adorable houses next to the lake, and trees and greenery everywhere. It's been 60s-70s and sunny here everyday so far, which feels amazing. Not too hot, and not too cold. Perfect weather!

Classes start next Monday, so there aren't many students here yet. Luke and I have been trying to fill up the time with walks around the lake, visits into town, and today, a visit to a bigger city nearby, Jönköping! We traveled to Ikea, ate Swedish Chinese food (different, but still delicious), and got lost trying to find the train back to Mullsjö (no worries, we are back safe and sound!). All in all, an awesome day, and a good start to our first week here. Thank you to everyone who has sent me nice messages or well-wishes; you all are awesome!

Will update in another week or so. Thanks for reading. :) Hej då! (Bye!)