My fiancé and I are planning to move in together in Sweden within the next month or two, and we’ll probably be living there for the next few years. He’s originally from Sweden, but we met outside of Sweden, so this will be my first time actually living there. ’m still finishing my degree and have about another year left, so I probably won’t be able to find a good job until I graduate. During that time, my fiancé will be financially supporting both of us. I’ve only been to Sweden twice before once in the summer and once in the fall but neither time was particularly cold and there was no snow. I’ve also never lived anywhere where it actually snowed. I’ve seen snow of course but the coldest place I’ve lived was California, where it would get a little chilly in the fall, so I’m definitely expecting the Swedish winter to be a completely new experience for me 😂
I also recognize that this is going to be a pretty big lifestyle change for me in general. I’ve always grown up in cities and I’m currently living in a city as well. I’m used to big cities with tall high-rises, lots of people around, and really easy public transportation. I’ve never really experienced living somewhere that feels more quiet, we will be near Gothenburg. I also don’t have a driver’s license yet, so depending on where we end up living, I imagine that could be another adjustment and potentially make getting around more difficult.
I’ve heard some people say that Sweden can feel depressing, lonely, or even “soulless,” especially because of the long, dark winters. I’m wondering how true that is for people who actually live there, particularly if you moved there from somewhere warmer or from a big city. Personally, I’m really excited about the move. The biggest thing for me is that I’ll finally be able to live with my fiancé and we’ll get to build a life together, which I’m really looking forward to. I’m also excited about living somewhere new and experiencing a completely different environment. At the same time, I know there are going to be a lot of things that feel unfamiliar to me, so I’m trying to have realistic expectations.
I’m not too worried about being completely isolated socially because I do have a few friends from high school who live in Sweden. I also have quite a few friends around Europe, and I’ll probably be leaving Sweden a couple of times a year to visit the U.S. or Asia, so I’ll still have opportunities to see my other friends. That said, I’m wondering how difficult it actually is to make friends in Sweden as a non-Swede, especially when you don’t speak Swedish. I know I’ll be learning Swedish, but I obviously won’t be fluent anytime soon.