One of my first real Swedish cultural gatherings was the BBQ on Friday in the same week I arrived, organized by ISA (International Student Association) here in Linköping. Most open spaces here have outdoor communal BBQs, which is fantastic! Camila, from Brazil, (first person I made friends with here in Sweden) and I made some noodle salad to bring and share at the barbeque. I was expecting it to be similar to a potluck as the ones I knew from back home in Germany and the Netherlands; people come together, have nice food, and interact. It turns out though such an event in Sweden is organized differently. People all meet at the same place, but everyone stays within the group of people they came with and only eat the food they brought. Not really an integrating event in my perspective. However, we both made the most of it and met people who, like us, wanted to meet others.

From this encounter and many more to come, I found that Swedish people do value their personal space as well as respect the personal space of others. They are super friendly people, but you need some time to warm up with them. In my experience, if you meet a Swedish person you are the one to take the first step in approaching them and starting up a conversation (only applies to sober Swedes) After all, with this, you do intrude into someone’s personal space. Once you know them long enough though it is amazing to see how open they become towards you.