värdfamilj, something about host family in sweden

Apology for being too lazy to update my blog, and after I go back to China it will stop as it is an exchange year blog, but please feel free to contact me if you have any advice about my articles or questions about exchange life, being exchange in Sweden, you are going to China for exchange and would love some tips. Here is my email: yiweiky@hotmail.com

Host family is like the first and biggest way that you know about your host country, it will influence your whole year, therefore, there are some tips from the year I spent on how to get along with your host family.
First of all, try to be a member of the family, be curious and share your experiences. Swedish families love to share their lives, blogs are even part of most Swedes' daily lives. You can always tell them what's going on in your school or what you have done with your friends, FIKA is kind of like afternoon tea and also typical Swedish, even at home they would have FIKA, then it's the perfect time to talk about, Swedish life is quite peaceful and slow, and Swedes want to share their stories, so always listen and ask, it will help you become popular.
Secondly, learn the language. For the students that speak European languages it wouldn't be a problem, especially if you are from Finland, Germany and America, and for the students from Asia, I know that we are shy to speak Swedish while we are not as good as the Europeans, but you must try, even at first just with your friends, and also, remember to speak Swedish to your host family, they would love to help you with Swedish, if you start speaking it you will find that your host family would be so proud of you. And as an exchange student, language is sometimes the first thing we can think about when it is exchange, right? Also, learning the language helps you to have more friends, Swedes prefer to speak their Swedish rather than English even though they are just so good at it.
The third is to help your host family with some housework. Sometimes your host family will give you 'order' about what to do, usually just wash the dishes, and in Sweden people use dish washer and washing machine, so all you need to do is put stuff into the machines, it is easy, so you can always help with something even your host family doesn't ask you to do, or ask them is there anything you can do for help.
The last one is to be grateful. It is really important, you are so lucky to be chosen by the family among so many people, they take care of you just like your own parents and siblings, you should always feel appreciate. Saying thank you is never old-fashioned.

In addition, here is the story between me and my host family, I have two host families, the first one was welcome family, their daughter just came back from exchange year and their son just finished job in Australia, so the family wish to have the moment to be together, yet they still took nearly two months to take care of me and showed me a lot about Sweden.
Then my second family, their second daughter is an exchange student to Japan, so they host me and want to learn some culture about Asia by the way, and they are really really so nice, they always took me to different places for events or meet new friends, and my host parents love to train, to be honest, before I came to Sweden, training is kind of on my most hated list, but under their influence I went to gym quite often until I broke my knee during the skiing trip.
In fact we got a whole week for the ski trip, however I had the accident the second day, so I ruined their trip and my host parents had to send me into a hospital and took care of me the whole time, during my time in the hospital my host mom always try to make me relax especially when I knew that I was about to have a surgery. To make me not feel lonely my host mom always asked me for the permission to go home when I transported to the hospital near home, and she stayed with me the whole time before, during and after the operation. When I could go home all my family members did a lot to help me, and they always told me to train my leg to make it recover as soon as possible.
My host family is so fantastic, but I didn't just enjoy the kindness from them, I share my school stories and everything I bought with friends, on the birthdays, Christmas and some festivals I prepared small gifts for them. Before I hurt myself, I once joked that I am in love with the dish washer and I don't mind to be the only one who take care of it, I can do it all the time. I am quite a lazy girl, but I helped some during the house cleaning, and one big thing, I am so interested in learning Swedish, though my Swedish speaking and listening are very poor, I am quite ok with my writing and reading, so I am always happy to show my writings to my family.
Having a host family is still not the same as in your own family, you will have a new experience, with culture difference, you will find some new rules in your new family, sometimes it changes a lot, so you need to balance your own habits and host family's habit. It won't be easy if you stay for ten months, however it will bring you a lot of benefits which only wait for you to explore them.

Mars, en månad kommer vår och hopp

Äntligen kommer vår! Mars, snart ska vara sluta och komma April, men denna månad var så speciell för mig. Jag hade många provningar på engelska och förstått jag var inte så bra på engelska. Jag misslyckades på några provningar, det var först gången att misslyckades så många provningar på engelska! Och ändå vet jag inte annan provningar.

Jag måste studera mer engelska! Hoppas näst gången inga engelska lärarna ska tror min engelska är dålig!

Men, jag var glad att äntligen ett viktig prov IELTS tog jag i Göteborg var okej för mig. Jag fick 6.5, inte mycket bra men det var mitt först IELTS prov och jag omdömet inte så mycket. Jag hoppas om jag får fick 5.5 ska vara jättebra. Jag tror att jag ändå inte duktig på engelska speciellt efter jag studerar svenska, jag blandar alltid svenska och engelska.

 

Jag tog tåget kl.6.22 15 Mars därför vaknade jag kvart över fem! Men jag hade tur att träffa en kinesisk tjej på tåget som också hade IELTS med mig, vi pratade mycket. Hon hjälpte mig att hitta väg till folkuniversitet som vi hade provet. Sen träffade vi två flera tjejer! Glad att träffa kineser och prata kinesiska innan provet!

 



Först halv Mars ändå var vinter, kallt väder och mycket regn, men ibland hade lite solen! Svårt att veta vilka kläder att bära.
Nu förstår jag varför nästan alla svenska folkar älskar solen. Jag tog många bilden när vi hade värm solen! Sverige i solen är fantastik!

Nytt livet!

snart ska ha lite regn igen! träds vänster är ljus men höger är lite mörk.

Barn kommer att spela mer!

Katten tycker också om solen!

 

Efter provningar var jag ledig, jag hade mer tid att plugga svenska, därför börjar jag baka kaka att studera svenska! Det ska vara lättare för mig! Och på min svenska lektionen lärt jag mer svensk grammatik, jag tror att jag kan förstå mycket mer grammatik då!



Mars var en jobbig månade för mig, men det var också en månade som hade vår och ge mig hopp. Snart ska det bli bara tre månader kvar innan jag åker hem, jag kommer saknar livet i Sverige, men jag saknade hem så mycket denna månade, i April ska det bli en ny början!

Hej! Wanna get to know culture through a hotel?

Thanks for my dear previous host mom's advice! I got some new information about the Swedish hotels, as I should compare the hotels on the same level, I will put the newly added information at the end! And also I will add the hotel that is like just a small hotel as the one I lived to let everyone know more deeply.

***Just before you read please notice as different places have different hotels, even in China we have thousands of hotel types, so here is just what I know more about the hotels that basically I have lived before. And sorry for that I am not so familiar about the hotels in Sweden, so maybe I will introduce more about Chinese hotels, also if you find there are mistakes, please do not hesitate to tell me! THANKS! 

Hotel is a 'home' when you are in some place not close to your home.
Luckily as yesterday was my host grandfather's birthday, though actually we live in Trollhättan where it is only about 10 minutes' drive to Vänersborg, we chose to live in a hotel, then, for the first time I had the honour to know a Swedish hotel.
Our hotel name is Hotell Hehrne, as it is in Swedish, so I assume that hotell is hotel in Swedish, so the real name should only be Hehrne.

Here is the outside of the hotel, you have to admit even though the building isn't so modern feeling, the environment is so wonderful!

Then let's take a look at the hotel in China, before the photos I have to say that hotel to Chinese is something really important during their trips, a hotel's quality can directly decide a Chinese person's mood for the whole journey! So don't be surprised when you find most of the hotels are more like luxury exhibitions!

I haven't been to too many cities, but each time my parents would pick really fantastic hotels for me, so now among all these hotels I will only show one very good and leaves me a surprising impression.

This hotel is called 武汉马哥孛罗酒店 in Chinese, Marco Polo Wuhan should be the English name, but well, it is not important, we can also start from the outside. But as I had been there about three years ago, I didn't have photos, all photos are found from the internet.

It is a five-star hotel, which means the highest level in China, and it is near the river so if you can afford a lot of money just for some nights then you can have the chance to live in the high floor to enjoy the view of the amazing river and the city.

It is in the city centre, so it is really convenient to travel. That may also be the reason many tourists choose there.



Just I think comparing to Sweden Chinese hotels' outside are more like artificial, so when you take a look you might feel China is somehow too city style.

After that we should go inside, hotel lobby.

Unfortunately I forgot to take pictures and also I couldn't find it on the internet, but it is connected to the restaurant.

However, the lobby in Chinese hotels are nearly like a palace, this might because Chinese think a lobby is a way to show whether it is a good hotel that worths spending a lot of money, it directly shows to everyone.

I assume reasons cause this big difference is actually more like Asian culture and European culture, Asian people like to have the place that should make them feel as a prince or princess, but to European people they prefer to get close to the nature and they like everything just useful, you can easily find the evidence from the goods in the shopping mall.

Then it is about the room, when I was in Wuhan, I was so lucky that I got not a just standard room but a big nice-view room.

That one is almost the same as I lived last time! Definitely worth going there again only for the room!







Of course we have normal rooms, to tell the truth we have a variety of different kinds of rooms, and here I guess is the standard room.

How about the room in Sweden?

This is the room I shared with my two host sisters, so we added one more bed.







And in the room next to us, it is better, more like a little house!

If you look more, you will be surprised that the beds are smaller than the ones in China! Actually even the big bed is connected by two single bed! That is based on the living habits in two countries, in Sweden people prefer to sleep on a single bed, so even it is a big bed it is usually put together by two, but in China even people are single they still like to buy a double bed which is so big!

In the hotel room in Sweden you can find a book, which I think maybe a bible, as most Swedish people are living a Christian life. But in China, as people usually don't have religion belief in the hotels it is hard to find a bible or other books, the most might be a phone book and some introductions about the hotel and sometimes the tourist attractions in the city where the hotel locates. When Chinese people out for a tour they like to go to the places for the tourists, but maybe to Swedish people just some small places that can relax themselves, so that's why in nearly all the tourist attractions in China often there you can see nothing but crowd!

Also a little detail, in Sweden they provide keys to open the door while in China you use an intelligent door card, so in Chinese hotels without the card you can't turn on the lights or using any electricity!

In the toilet in Sweden it is not common they provide toothbrushes, toothpastes or combs, so when you stay in a hotel never forget these!

But in china they are all for free and you can ring the ask for more, sometimes if you are lucky that they don't just provide these for once using but really ok quality that can last a long time!

To have breakfast, I actually have no idea how they count people when they enter the restaurant in Sweden, but in China there are always small pieces of paper attached to the room card, you have to show it to enter for breakfast, one piece for one person, and they have particular date and time period. Don't be late!

The breakfast both in Sweden and in China are buffets, just in Sweden it is smaller and only western, while in China both eastern and western are available.

The restaurants in Sweden is very close to the lobby as I mentioned, but the one in China always has an individual floor.

What about the entertainment? Well, the one we lived yesterday has a building nearby that you can be a team to join different developmental games, and also they have two hot springs outside, with hot water and cool air that is the most enjoyable things ever!

So, China, still as I talked before, hotels can decide a people's whole mood, and also as we see in the picture the buildings are really tall which means they provide many different relaxing programmes, just a phone call you can book everything! And they are all inside the building, such as SPA, swimming, gym, bar and so forth. If you would like, luxury shopping is also available in the hotel! Even I think most time people don't really have enough time to enjoy all of these, but these things sound attractive and can make everyone pleased, so that's why I found the hotels in China are always so modern, in this fast developing country, only these kinds of hotels can let Chinese people feel comfortable while Swedish people just need a simple bed, some time to enjoy themselves.

 

Newly added part:

As most time in China that many tourists come, it will always make the city become larger and larger, so we should also take a look at hotels in Stockholm and Gothenburg as they are quite the most famous cities in Sweden!

http://www.fivestaralliance.com/find-luxury-hotels?keywords=&facet=true

First of all, here is a website that you can search almost all the five star hotels in the world.

 

We can start from the most beautiful capital in my opinion--- Stockholm!

http://www.grandhotel.se/en/explore/hotel/superior-double-room

Since I didn't have a chance to stay in the hotel, it is always better to share the website to everyone, you can find the most pictures on it.

This one is called GRAND HOTEL.

 

 

These are from the website gallery called singe room which I think is the basic room, and I had to admit Stockholm is really a rich city, what a nice environment if anyone have the honour to stay there! I lived in Stockholm for two months, and this city is definitely more than amazing, the sky and the sea are the most attractive elements to me.

 

 

 

There are 11 types of the rooms, so I will only choose three, from the basic to the highest.

This one is the third one premium double room.

 

 

This one, well, the highest level which is called suites with parlours. In the introduction it makes me feel like it locates for the entire floor!

I had never lived in a hotel room this big even in China, this kind usually is way more than expensive, so I assume in Stockholm, it might cost really a huge amount of money!

 

This should be the hotel lobby, a quite different feeling, it is big, but not the same big feeling as the one in China, maybe it depends on the culture, from the one in China it is called luxury, but this one, not the luxury, a home feeling, a home palace!

 

The restaurant is also like at home, this design is so Swedish, as in almost everywhere you can find the kitchen is just like a normal home! But it is sweet, right? Make you feel like no matter where you are, here is your second home, especially for someone like me who just can't stop eating!

 

I like the feeling, and the waiter looks good!

 

The next one according to my previous host mom is her favourite! And I think the GRAND HOTEL is nice, but I just checked the price, even the single room costs about more than one thousand, so it is more for the businessmen or very rich people, and this one, though might not be cheap, but from the photos they look more similar as the ones I usually lived in Chinese hotels.

https://www.nordicchoicehotels.se/clarion/clarion-hotel-sign/rumstyper/

 



Again, from the photo you will find even it is double room, this one is more suitable for the local Swedish, as this is linked by two single bed which is quite common in the Swedish family, so if the last one is as I said for the businessmen that come from the rest of the world, this one should be provided to all the Swedish people come from other cities! So the only difference between the Chinese hotels is the bed.

They also provide very nice view room that can contain four people, and this one isn't too flash. I guess in this hotel you can find a lot of things as familiar as at Swedish home, so that's not a question why Swedish people prefer this kind of hotels more.
The culture about Sweden which actually is I heard from other people that Swedish people put most attention on the family, in their views, family is the most important part in their lives, so it is not strange that you might always see many young fathers that have a lot of tattoos are happily taking their lovely babies on the streets having a small walk or shopping! It is what I really look forward to my own family as in China people focus too much on business or just work, to tell the truth, I love my father, and he is always so nice, he would always cook for us, sometimes he would even come back just to make a meal for me as I was too lazy then back to work, but unluckily, he has too much work, added that I studied in a boarding school which makes me can only see him less than five hours every week! And in many poor cities a lot of children can only see their parents during spring festival, these children hardly know about their parent, I feel so sorry for them and also it is the same problem in big cities in China. Therefore, I love Sweden sometimes more than my own home country is based on this important reason.
Let's skip this sad part, I didn't find too many photos about the other services such as restaurants, but they provide breakfast which is of course, and besides, they also have gym, parking, room service, laundry service, WIFI, express checkout, various TV channels, and surprised to me, they even have pet care! In China almost every public place has a label said NO PETS, but here in Sweden, pets are allowed to most places, bus, train, and now even hotels, to a crazy dog lover as me, how can I refuse to like this hotel any more?

The last one that is recommended is the one in Gothenburg which is closer to where I live now.
http://www.gothiatowers.com/hotell/rumskategorier/

It is the best room in this hotel, the first impression to me is that is a sweet local home! With the nice view outside the window, if I have a flat myself, I will definitely decorate it like this one!

The basic room, but to me just it is smaller that it is just like a normal room in any Swedish family, maybe a child's room? Clean, neat and home feeling!
In this hotel, they also provide a variety of services, and it also target to the businessmen, so they have a special service called business room. And you can even buy flowers in this hotel! It would be really sweet and happy that if you forget to buy flowers to your girlfriend or wife on your way to the hotel, then this affair can help you not to disappoint your lover!

The hotel, which is like a quick hotel for those who just need a night to sleep and not going to stay there for one more minute, or just don't want to spend a lot of money on a hotel room.
During my school vacation to Nanjing, as we have many students, the school only let us stay in the quick hotel.
Two students a room. And actually we got very different rooms, some are just normal standard rooms, and some very lucky guys including me, got big bed room with quite big space.

Air conditioner is not so common in Sweden as it is a Nordic country, not too much sunshine, however, in China, especially in Southern China, it is the basic element to let people survive in summer and winter! All the public places including most buses, air conditioners have become one important condition that whether people would choose the service!

 

 



I just took some photos of my own room as I focused more on the view that period, and you will find the big bed is only one bed, because we are not so used to sleeping one two single beds connected together. The hotel room doesn't provide many services as it is cheap and I was already so lucky to get the biggest room among all the students, even my class teacher said that me and my best friend are always loved by the god as our school living room is the biggest in the whole hostel!