My name is Maria, and I’m a second-year student at the EIT InnoEnergy Master’s in Smart Electrical Networks and Systems. I’m originally from Norway, but I studied for my bachelor’s in Stockholm at KTH Royal Institute of Technology, which was where I first learned about EIT InnoEnergy Master School. This means I was already living in Stockholm when I started my master’s journey at KTH. Nevertheless, since I have lived in Stockholm and attended KTH for four years, I would say I’ve learned enough about the place and university to give some tips to EIT InnoEnergy newcomers that decide to study at this top engineering university.
Swedish Food and Cuisine
As many are aware, Sweden is one of the countries with higher living expenses in Europe. While affordable accommodation is available for students through KTH, buying food out and even getting groceries can be expensive. Nevertheless, there are ways to make an affordable student life in Stockholm. Lidl is known to be the cheapest supermarket, while other shops sometimes have special offers on products that can be worth keeping an eye on. In addition, there are some fruit and vegetable markets with low prices, for example in the suburbs of Rinkeby and Hjulsta, and the vegetable market in the centre at Hötorget which is worth visiting just for the experience.
For those that long for the food of their home country, there are several specialised markets and shops with food from different parts of the world and bigger supermarkets offer a wide variety of products. However, I would also recommend trying some of the Swedish specialties, where the most classical ones include:
- Meatballs with lingonberry sauce and mashed potatoes
- Pickled herring, which can be bought in any shop with different flavours
- Blood pudding with lingonberry (Oh, Swedes like their lingonberry!)
- Pancakes and pea soup
- Crispbread with any topping (as a snack)
Fika
Speaking of food, one particularity about the Swedes is their love for ‘fika’. ‘Fika’ is the Swedish coffee break. Enjoyed either with colleagues or even as a weekend meet up with friends, the traditional ‘fika’ includes filter coffee, with or without milk, and usually some of the following pastries:
- Cinnamon buns
- Chocolate balls
- “Dammsugare” (vacuum cleaners)
- “Hallongrotta” (pastry with raspberries)
- Princess cake
- “Kladdkaka” (gooey chocolate cake)
What to Do in Stockholm
Apart from going to have ‘fika’, there is a lot to do in Stockholm. There are several natural parks accessible by public transport that are great for hiking, such as Tyresta natural park, Nacka nature reserve, Norra Djurgården, Kungliga Djurgården and Lidingö, which is an island connected to Stockholm with beautiful trails.
At Lidingö, you can also visit Millesgården, which was the house of one of the most prominent Swedish sculptors, Carl Milles. They have art exhibitions and a garden filled with his statues, and his statues can also be found all over the city.
They also have an outdoors museum, Skansen, with animals and old Swedish buildings which is a perfect outing for a sunny day.
Other museums that are worth visiting include Prins Eugens Waldemarsudde, where the garden can be entered for free, Vasa Museum, with an old, capsized ship, Fotografiska, with modern photography exhibitions, Modern Art Museum and the ABBA museum, for an interactive museum experience base on the legendary Swedish band, ABBA. There are also four world heritage museums with free entry, namely Etnografiska, Medelhavs, Världskultur and Östasiatiska, educative museums on ethnography, the Mediterranean, World culture and East Asian culture, respectively.
Swedish Climate and Seasons
Many of my classmates were nervous about the cold and kept asking me about how cold it would get. Stockholm is located more to the South in Sweden, and does not have the low temperatures, snowfall and extreme midnight sun/polar nights of the North. However, temperatures do drop significantly in the winter and proper winter boots and a jacket is needed. Since the weather can be quite unpredictable, my advice is not to let the weather stop you from going out and doing things, but just make sure to have appropriate clothing. Get on your warm clothes and go out and explore!
By Maria Isabel Bang Jensen, EIT InnoEnergy Master School student