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I love how you are very honest and upfront you are about your thoughts, even on sensitive topics. That is very refreshing and interesting to hear especially from a Swede.
Much appreciated! Yeah, I'm a bit odd for a Swede I think. But I'm also a bit on the fence about many things, so I'm not exactly taking radical sides either. Most issues are just too complex to pick just one viewpoint!
I can relate. I have lived in Sweden for 8 years and even speak pretty good swedish, but I haven't managed to make any swedish friends, I froze my ass off for the most part of the year, I got charged 90kronor for a bread, lettuce and cheese sandwich, and invevitably, when covid hit, I got a major depressive episode which drove me to move the hell out of there to Spain, where I've been happily living for 2 years now. Now, don't get me wrong, it's not that Sweden is bad. I love some things about it, like Allemansrätten, safety, endless green nature and blue lakes everywhere, but those are thing that make this country good for visiting, not for living. Sweden has way too many restrictions and I just never felt free there. High salaries is not at all what makes life good. Thank you for the video.
Very interesting to hear your experience! I think you're spot on - all of those things are real annoyances with Sweden, and things that can be better in other countries. I still like Sweden, but I suspect that that's partly because I'm used to how things are here, but sometimes when I go abroad I really think that I would have a better time living there.
Haha! I actually saw you filming this on Igelsdammsgatan yesterday, I was sort of hoping you were filming another episode of "Worst Stockholm architecture" and including the new apartment blocks they have built at the top of that road...
I was trying to hide in the backstreets to get away from traffic noise...and I was also feeling self-conscious about recording this in public. Like, I kept thinking "I really hope people won't be offended!" :D But ooh, maybe I should have a look at those! Hmm... Maybe a video about the worst new buildings in Stockholm from the last 5 years... :D
Haha! I'm a bit un-Swedish so I love people who say hi :D Thanks for the comment though! So funny that you saw me strolling around there talking to my cam ^_^
I stumbled upon your channel whilst just looking for videos to admire about Sweden haha! Thanks for the tips you made about avoiding scams and generally being such a great tour guide. I’ve been dreaming of going to Sweden since I was 8, and I personally won’t stop at nothing to go there, so till then, I’ll be binging your channel❤
Happy to be of help 😀 There's a lot of both good and some bad things about Sweden, and I love giving a view of how I really see the place 😊 Cheers, and thanks for checking out the videos!
I guess nowhere is perfect. I left the UK many years ago because of the lousy summers and ended up in Turkey where, despite the many negative issues, at least the summers are good and the cost of living is affordable (for those of us with a foreign income at least). Thank you for running through your list of gripes. No alcohol anywhere to be had here today either (but only because it's Election Day.... let's see where this country is now headed.) Cheers!
Good job on actually doing something about it and moving abroad! So many people (like me) just stay put despite annoyances they have. Oh, yeah, Turkey is bound to be a very exciting place right now.. Damn, I thought Eurovision yesterday was exciting, but if I were in Turkey I would be really nervous one way or another! Cheers!
My boyfriend and I are making plans to move to Sweden in the next couple years and your videos are a great source for us. You are funny and provide a fantastic point of view. You deserve MANY more views. Thank you so much for your Swedish content, we will be watching everything you have. 😁
Great video. Fascinating. Hit on some interesting issues. A culture of conformity is pretty alien to me in the US. I've only been to Sweden once, but I still remember eating at the house of a family friend and it was an amazing, memorable meal. Very luckily, they didn't serve surströmming. 👍👍👍 Also "an indecision of Swedes decided nothing at all" is a great sentence. Sounds like a headline for The Onion.
There are certainly a number of differences in the Swedish mentality compared to the US! But most Swedes avoid surströmming - so we have that uniting us at least, even if we are an indecision of consensus-seeking weirdos :D Haha, thank you so much!
@@ThreeStarVagabond In Hungarian and I have lived here soon Three years. Prior to Sweden I lived two years in The Nettherlands. I see big similarities between These two countries. Both have bad food but I do Think Swedish food is better though. . And in general I prefer living in Sweden than Netherlands
As a Finn one culture shock is that Swedes do not have 24h culture at all. In Finland every single city has 24h supermarket / 24h pharmacy & Gas station with some grocery 24h. Malmö which has 344000 residents do not have any of those what I just mentioned. You have to take a train to Copenhagen if you need to buy something from grocery or pharmacy in middle of the night.
That is SO true! It's so weird with all of these stores that always close early in the evening! I never even thought about that until you mentioned it...
The first rule about Sweden, you don't talk about politics. The second rule, you don't talk about politics (this is also about avoiding disharmony and keeping everyone happy I guess). It was an interesting video, thanks for the inside view! My family and I moved to Sweden 1.5 years ago och vi trivs mycket här. As someone who came from Germany, I always had the impression that there is absolutely no integration policy in Germany (with all the bad consequences you mentioned) and I was surprised about how well nyborgare at least get the offer to learn the language for free (and I did and even passed grundläggande kurs B recently). So from a Swede's point of view, you might think that's not enough, but it's hell a lot more than in *many* other countries. (About the crime thing: I think it helps to stop reading the media -- that media campaign brought Sweden the worst government in history). But yes, I agree on many points and now I'll head for the video what you love about Sweden ;)
Haha Sweden is like the anti-Fight Club! Cheers on assimilating so well - and I guess it's hard to see everything objectively since I'm already here in the country. Media is always a problem. If one doesn't listen to it, that's a problem...and it's a problem when one listens too.
My wife and I had a few days in Stockholm a while ago and because it was done on a shoestring, we took some snacks with us from our home in UK. Just as well! We had one fairly simple 2-course Swedish lunch and the bill nearly broke our budget completely. Yes, I realise we should have saved up a bit before we travelled but snacking was the most logical thing to do in order to stay fed. (Ironically, a large part of the snacking was from Swedish Vasabrod, bought at our local UK supermarket! Coals to Newcastle syndrome or what?)
That's so funny, bringing the Wasabröd to Sweden! But yeah it's really expensive to eat out at restaurants. It's definitely feasible to find "cheap" places to eat, but you have to know where to look and maybe go for simpler cuisine. And many people cook at home in Sweden - which can be pretty cheap (compared to eating out). Either way, traveling is always fun regardless if it's on a shoestring or not! :D
Hej, As someone from a warmer country who moved to the north of Sweden, I see different things than what you said. We used to have seasons in southern Europe when I was little 30 years ago, but now it's only 35C+ and during "winter" it might rain for a day or two and might snow for 1 night and it's back to 20C+ in December-Feb. I quite like having actual 4 seasons. I really missed the snow and being able to wear anything else but a T-shirt. As for racism and discrimination I am also blond with green eyes, so I don't see that immediately, but when I speak Swedish with an accent they ask me where I'm from and change their attitude no matter that I look like them or speak Swedish. So you are mostly right, but also things are a bit different 4-5h drive north from Stockholm. Thank you for the video! Greetings from the High Coast! 🌲❄🦌🌞
I guess we all think that the grass is greener on the other side, right? If I lived in a warmer climate I'd probably dislike that too after a while :) Too bad that you've had bad experiences, but it sounds like you got settled in a really nice area - so I hope that makes up for it. The High Coast is absolutely gorgeous! I loved hiking to Slåttdalsskrevan a couple of winters ago. It makes sense that things are quite different in different areas of Sweden. I have some experience from smaller places in the south, but that was a long time ago now come to think of it... Cheers and thanks for checking it out :D
love your videos! the "swedish dream" and the consensus culture sound lovely though - maybe we need another round of discussions about the pros and cons of consensus culture, until we can decide whether or not one should not like it ;) right now my job is to coordinate the work of volunteers helping refugees and new immigrants in germany. are there comparable jobs in sweden?
Thank you! Haha, yes, I think I might have been too hasty in making such a strong statement. Let me make a poll first to see what people say... We have "Migrationsverket", the agency in charge of taking care of immigrants, and I'd assume we have similar jobs there. But to be honest, I don't really know. There's a lot of volunteer work as well with that - but that's all on a local level. I'm not really that familiar with the details...
Great video. :) We moved here to Jamtlands lan over a year ago. I'm Scottish so am used to rougher weather than we get here. My husband is Flemish, so he fits in more with the European vibe here. We're in a very small village and the people, with only a few exceptions, have been kind and actually friendly to these two old incomers. I'm with you on Postnord! Oh gosh, the sheer number of parcels we don't receive, argh! And the cost of living...in just our one year, food prices have risen appallingly, along with utilities such as electricty. But our income hasn't gone up accordingly, so it's tougher living here than elsewhere perhaps. For all that, I just spent a beautiful winter hand feeding red deer that came to visit us daily, enjoying the snow (believe me, in my Scottish Highlands we used to have the same snow for the same length of time. A couple of decades ago it seemed to vanish overnight and I missed it!) and just bought my first set of skis. Which was probably stupid as I'm almost totally blind and over sixty..... Nowhere is perfect. Sweden is a beautiful, almost mythical and often breathtaking country. The people are who they are, and we as incomers have no real right to expect them to change to suit us. (I speak as an introvert here too) but as with all countries now, the politicians seem to be the thorns on this particular rose. My number one gripe would be the technology love in Sweden...all Swedes seem to adore tech. But I'm an anti tech, emf sensitive, wannabe off gridder. That's hard as we bought a home filled with smart tech (unknowingly) and I'm slowly getting rid of it. I suspect that is frowned upon here. :)
That sounds like such an adventure - to move out into a small place in Jämtland! But maybe that's just because I'm a bit of a city guy myself. I love being out in the outdoors to marvel at the nature...but I also really enjoy the convenience of living in a city. Let's hope the inflation stops at least so that the prices won't become even more ridiculous.. And well, PostNord...nothing to do about that one unfortunately :( But there are certainly positive things to outweigh those negative sides. Like feeding red deer! That sounds completely amazing! :D Honestly, I believe that many Swedes are impressed by anti tech people, and secretly wish that they too were off gridders. Especially people who live in the cities. There's likely a reason that so many people want to have a summer cabin to escape to, where they can return to nature... I do have to admit that I'm a complete tech addict myself tho! But in my defense I actually work in tech so... :D
@@etrigueros That sounds absolutely heavenly. I love taking a walk in Stockholm as well to see the water and the greenery, but it's not the same at all.
You´ve done a great list! I can´t make a list myself, but I can agree to some parts here. I stop working around 27+ celsius so, the weather is pretty great.
Thanks! Haha many people disagree with me about the weather, so you're not alone. I'd happily have 30+ in the summers. Let's hope we get a summer like that this year...
@@ThreeStarVagabondcome and visit Hungary in the summer! Here, it's almost as hot as in Italy. 38-40 Celsius. I guess it would be an affordable trip for Swedish people as well. By the way, your channel is great! Greetings from Hungary (although I also often wish to relocate to another country, but it's a nice tourist destination).
I have lived "permanently" in Sweden for more than half a century and seen a helluva lot changes. Privatization was heralded as "the" solution to all the problems. Well, I admit that certainly improved telephone services, but failed miserably as regards the postal service and the railways (as pointed out). Back then, a letter posted on Monday arrived on Tuesday. Now, you might see it in 4 or 5 days -- or not at all (as pointed out). And public transportation is a sad laugh (as pointed out).
Being a Sweden that's now been living overseas for over 20 years I have to say that besides from the alcohol monopoly (and yes, I remember when you couldn't buy anything on Saturdays either), the rest of the items aren't really much of a deterrent and I actually miss the winters. Luckily I now reside in an area of Australia where the snow fields are only an hour away so I do get some winter and snow, however I still haven't gotten used to celebrate Christmas in 35-40C weather. Looking forward to travel "home" to Uppsala this September for the first time in 15 years and introduce my kids to it all.
I guess the grass is always greener on the other side! There are always things you dislike about where you are right now - but others who hear it go "What? That sounds lovely!" :D
Living in Melbourne, Australia for ~20 years and formerly from SEA, I am now about to visit Sweden for a month in winter. None of the above is a deterrent (especially the weather🤣) but I am intrigued about how Swedes navigate around the consensus culture and conformity. I conform most of the time but personally, I don't follow the same path as the mainstream (a programmer who is also a domestic plumber). I'm pretty sure people like me, who like to try different things, exist everywhere in the world notwithstanding Sweden. Your tale of Nordpost and SJ are shared with many countries' government services after being privatized 🥲you have my sympathies.
@@julesverneinoz I think it's just a matter of social norms - people are raised to consider "how will this affect others", and "how can I get my will through while still maintaining friendship" etc. Japan is even more along those lines, so I don't think that it's uniquely Swedish. But yeah of course there are always people sticking out. And it might be my imagination but I think there are more and more non-conforming people over time...
Great video. I agree about most of it, except the weather. Generally I like the Winters, although this one lasted a bit too long. The Summers since we moved to Sweden 2 1/2 years ago have been fantastic though. We can sit outside nearly every evening throughout the Summer without getting cold. On the British island that I come from there were one or two evenings throughout the whole Summer where it was almost warm enough to sit out until 20.00. The biggest issue I have (in Gävle) are the mosquitoes. There’s a few about already and they’re huge, like something from Jurassic Park! SFI and Svenska som andra språk try teach immigrants about Swedish society and traditions from my experience. Unfortunately after that it just stops.
I get what you mean! Many people would probably disagree with me about the weather but..well..this is my list after all :D Glad that you enjoy the summers here! I'm joking a bit in the video 'cause I do love the summer months, as long as there's sunshine. And yes... I don't think the UK is something I'd prefer really... Haha! Mosquitoes! I should have included those as well in the list - although I'm quite blessed living in Stockholm. Haven't seen any at all so far. I've heard that from several people! And even during SFI the quality can vary a lot it seems...
I had the wonderful opportunity to visit Stockholm last year. What a beautiful city and so nicely maintained. I ate lunch at Östermalms Saluhall. Finally had my first meal of smørrebrød. (I know, it’s Danish 😊 ) I was on a cruise so my visit was very brief. I finally ordered surströmming when I got home to the USA. I actually liked it with tunnbröd and potatoes with sour cream.
Yes!! Absolutely loved it. I actually liked the smell. I was afraid I was going to have a gag reaction. Funny story, when I was at Östermalms Saluhall my friend wanted to try Surstömming at the market. I told him NO!!! you don’t want to have people upset with you and stinking up the area. I told him to wait until we get back home
@@Floorman7285 Haha probably a wise choice to wait! But that's so strange... Has to be some kind of genetic trait that makes you immune to the poison of the surströmming :D
@@ThreeStarVagabond LOL!!! I got lucky with the genetics. In fact I did have a Swedish co worker who told me it was horrible. Lol! So to add to my friends story at Östermalms Saluhall. There was surströmming for sale in the seafood section. He about to purchase it from the gentleman who was about to sell it to him. My friend asked him if there’s a place outside of Östermalms Saluhall to eat it. The gentleman joked but was very serious and told him that we can walk to Södermalm and open the can there to eat it. 😂😂
@@Floorman7285 I love that! And well.. Yeah.. I think it could literally be a disturbance of the public, to eat surströmming in the middle of the city. It wouldn't surprise me if guards would tell people to leave ;D
Systembolaget is a good thing! Good prices, good selection of wine, beer and spirits. They know their products and you can always discuss what ur going to serve for dinner and what wines could be suitable. Do some planning mate! Never woke up on a sunday and felt... shit I need beer this afternoon!
Personally, I actually agree about all of those points. I love the selection and their helpfullness. It's just the availability that's irritating! Cheers to that
I admire the beauty of Sweden and I love the winters, the menfolk are a bit cold and reserved, that's true, and the cost of living is high, but the amazing sights and the sounds of Swedish, Svenska, just please me immensely.
Really happy to hear that! It is a nice country with some very positive things - but then again, that can be said about every country! It's just a matter of finding the things to appreciate, I think
I agree with you on most of these, especially PostNord and SJ. I would add the news, which is almost useless for lack of details. We usually only get two of the “who, what, where, when, and why.”
Hey, we love pickled heering in Denmark, but only for lunch ! I have been to many Swedish hotels, where you can be sure to find Heering for breakfast. That´s a bit too much for a Dane. Love the Knäckebröd though :)
Hey, you can get knäckebröd and I'll take rugbröd, okay? I had the weirdest craving for Danish dark bread the other day - no idea where it came from :D But the sill and herring and stuff I'll never touch...
As a Canadian considering moving to Sweden, it sounds like a lot of the same problems we have here. Privatisation making life harder, healthcare is being defunded/made less attainable, insanely high rent and food (Australians have a hard time with our pitiful minimum wage, for example), the country is becoming more hostile to "Others", and crime is surging due to all of the above.
Yeah, I guess it's more of a global phenomenon right now, with all of these issues. Maybe I should try to find some more uniquely Swedish things to bring up....
I'd say don't get any cash at all. Many stores in the city don't even accept cash - only card payment. Cash is mostly just used by old people and criminals :)
@@sammiejones08 Taxi is convenient but most expensive. Arlanda Express train is half the price of a taxi and quick. There's also local train and commuter trains you can take - a bit cheaper, a bit slower.
When it comes to my profession (welder), I found that the salary in Sweden is significantly worse than what you'd get in the Netherlands or Norway. Also, both those countries tend to be ok if the applicant can only speak English and they also often provide shared accommodation in their job offers, so that you can actually save money and not be slaughtered by the insane rents. On the other hand, Sweden seems to be remarkably uncompetitive. Offering significantly lower salaries, requiring both Swedish and English, and not offering any accommodation (effectively decimating your take-home pay). This makes them very uncompetitive when trying to attract international talent for positions they're unable to fill domestically (like carpenters, plumbers, mechanics, welders, machine operators, etc..). I just thought I'd mention this since you talked about Sweden having high salaries.
That's really good to know! And yeah, I think Sweden only has high salaries if one doesn't compare to...well, all of the countries you mentioned. Sweden is like the cheap neighbor for most countries in northern Europe, I think. I do like it here, but I guess there's really a lack of selling points for e.g a welder!
I made the mistake of moving to Sweden from Germany. Never experienced so much ignorance, irresponsibility and lack of independence in comparison. Just frustrating...
@@ThreeStarVagabond Right? That's exactly what I was thinking all along, but now I know better. I am used to much more discipline, and personal responsibility. Swedes are extremely easy going, they seem nether to respect your time nor to appreciate any efforts.
@@GenyneG I can't really comment on that since I don't know how it is in Germany - but there's certainly some truth to it. Then again, I've seen a lot of efficient and good teams in Sweden too. I think it depends a lot on individuals
The strong German inclination to blindly follow any form of `authority` baffless me big time!. That`s why you blindly followed a crazy ranter like Hitler which was pure idiocy! Luckily most Swedes understood what he was & declined the entire nazi ideology! Blind authority following is very dangerous! I once had a german stand in teacher in Sweden & he was f*****d in the head that`s sure. Acting as an Auswith guard!
as a Scotsman living on a lump of Granite in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of England I love Sweden. Stockholm in Particular. Im learning Swedish and planning a visit to Göteborg and Varberg in the near future. loving your videos.
Sounds like a brilliant plan! Gothenburg and Varberg are both really nice - but then again, I like Scotland so I'd prefer to visit some more places there instead 😂 Either way, thanks a lot!
Göteborg Is at its best in the spring, Varberg is at its best in the summer. If you are going to make that trip, I would have also recommended that you also go north of Gothenburg, to, for example to Smögen. You will then see a dramatic difference in the landscape from Varberg to Smögen. From beautiful sandy beaches to cliffs and pass the few fjords we have in Sweden (they are not as impressive as those in Norway, but still very very beautiful).
Most thing i hate is the competition between neighbours. when i drive with my lawnmower or whatever it is , the neighbours will do exactly the same 10 min or an 1 hour after.
This was so entertaining. I cannot imagine how disgusting the fermented fish would be, but what clever way to preserve protein in the old days! It’s surprising then, given modern refrigeration! I would love to visit that special one week in Mid~Summer! It’s almost like Tasmania, Australia :)
Oh yeah that fermented herring was really important back in the days. People ate it on crispbread for breakfast in the 1700s cause it's preserved and lasts long... Haha it really is a magical time! Every time summer comes I forget about all the other months of snow and rain!
@@InsideoutJoy Agreed, as long as it doesn't hurt anyone. I don't really like any country that's way too patriotic, but Sweden is generally too little instead.
I think its a shame everyone thunk we are racist. If you just live here you'd see that the racist isnt realy there... just cuz we are a moslty white country does not mean were racist.
Not aiming too high seem to be a winning concept. Happiness is increasing with wealth, but only up to a point. Over that more wealth starts to make you more unhappy. It might be boring, but what do you prefer? Boring and happy, or extreme and unhappy?
I think that's a very Swedish way of looking at it! I don't disagree - but I can imagine that some people would prefer wealth. Or think that they would be happier if they could gamble to somehow both get wealth and happiness...
My grandmother and grandfather immigrated from Sweden ~1905. They taught my father sill making. I will be serving sill to my grandkids tomorrow. My second cousin immigrated ~1990. He does not brag. 8 of my relatives are engineers. I have 3 adult male relatives that are not engineers, but they do some engineering in what they do. I have owned 3 Saabs. I have 8 relatives with drinking problems.
That sounded so wholesome and nice, up until the very last sentence - sorry about that! But yeah.. I guess it's not uncommon for Swedes to drink a bit too much :/
Great video and hats off to your honesty. A lot of people otherwise sugarcoat things. There are of course many good points and I’m currently in Sweden because of those points. But since this video is about list of things to hate, I would like to bring another point “Health Care”. It’s very hard to get medical access except for emergencies. Also the emergency definition is quite subjective…
Thank you so much! And hmm... That's actually a really good point. I'd better make a note about health care. Maybe I need to do a "more things I hate" video after summer :D
The things I hate about America is all these ads all over the place every 2 minutes. I forgot what this video was all about with so many interruptions!
Since I get a few bucks from the ads, I can't really say that I hate them! To be honest, I've started paying for UA-cam Premium just to get rid of the ads. Their nagging worked on me :/
@@ThreeStarVagabond I visited Sunday evening, around 10pm in May , the well known Bar-Restaurant ''Zum Franziskaner'' in the old town of Stockholm-very central- and they closed at 11pm . Saturday night they close at 12 .I guess not many places are open after 11pm in Stockholm, eventhough it is the capital of Sweden and has also lots of tourists .
@@johnsinger1887 Yeah, but that's a restaurant in a touristy area. If you go to The Auld Dub or The Big Ben Pub or other bars, they close at 3 AM. And nightclubs close much later than that. So, look up where to go.
@@ThreeStarVagabond I thought that in the touristic areas bars close later , bc tourists don't have to go to work the other day and can stay until very late in the night. BTW ,the Big Ben Pub that you mentioned closes on Sundays at 12 , so no big difference really.Obviously there must be some bars in Stockholm who close a bit later , but just think that in Spain people go out at 10pm or 11 pm. Big difference with Stockholm.
@@johnsinger1887 Yeah but people in Spain are weird. No one should start going out that late. This is not a negative thing about Sweden - this is a bad thing about other countries.
As someone who is working in Sweden and with Swedish people for over 10 years now, I can say that there's just one thing I don't like about it - Swedes are too polite to tell you directly if they don't like you / your service/product / if something is not going to work out! Finns and Norwegians, interestingly, don't have that - with them, you always know if there's a problem. With Swedes - you always have to guess or pick upon tiniest of hints :D Otherwise, though - Sweden and Swedes are just great :)))
That's so spot on! Swedes always do this soft complaining thing. "I like it. But it would be nice if you did this thing like this instead" when they really mean that it's shit and you need to change it completely. Thanks for the comment :D
What do you want from people anyways? They produce only 1 thing if nothing else & it comes out of their a** ; 💩! Yeah smell that! People are disgusting!
@@ThreeStarVagabond I have a real question. I work with some Swedes here in the US. They are nice but one of them is always happy and joyous. We ask him, "Why are you always happy and the other two guys kind of downers"..he responded that he is from the South and they are from the North. Is the joyous guy messing with us?
@@peachtreewa5464 Haha. Honestly, people from the north have a reputation for being quiet and reserved, so it's partly true. They're famous for not saying much, and just making small noises instead of saying "yes" for example. But on the other hand, they reputation isn't that they're depressed or anothing - more like, quiet and content.
Pretty much same here in Finland. We have alcohol monopoly as well, but at least Alko is open from 9:00 till 21:00 from monday to friday and saturdays they close 18:00, but as in there sundays those are closed. Of course in finnish markets sells beer, cider, longdrinks and etc. that are maximum 5,5% strong (9:00 - 21:00) every day. Also gasolinestations and smaller kiosks can sell those too. Same problems with immigration and right wing politicians always warns that it will be like in Sweden if we don´t start to do something about it. So we don´t have as big of a problem yet, but it is getting closer all the time. But mostly all other things are about the same here with little differences. Postal services sucks and our trainsystem operating by VR have trouble to keep up. I have to use train every month and i´m so sick of it that most of the times there is delays at these days. I go same track little bit over 300km and it should take from 2h 10min to 2h 40min depending how many times the train stops at the way. Many times the train is delayed over a hour and that´s alot.
I guess it's not that dissimilar anywhere in the Nordics! We all have the same problems and the same crappy things to complain about. (And some pretty good things to be happy about as well.) Except that you bastards can buy decent beer in supermarkets! I would be perfectly happy with being able to get 5.5% everywhere...
@@ThreeStarVagabond Yes. That is quite new law that we can get 5,5% beers from markets now (since 1.1.2018). But even before that we had 4,8% beers in stores for decates (so called "keskikalja/mellan öl"). We (finns in general) have mocked swedish about the "class two beer" that you sell in markets. It sure taste like beer, but you can´t get drunk for drinking that. We think that is pure evil and should be illegal to sell to people. It´s like your sisters p*ssy. It has the smell and taste like any other, but it is so wrong to have it 😂.
While I have more ties to Sweden than my wife, she loves the thought of a place where it's acceptable to not make small talk with people or expect demanding friendships. I CAN be that slap-happy, "Hiya!" American, but for me it's always been more an acknowledgement of the existence of others. I think, were nods and hellos not expected, I could adapt to that rather quickly. Texas doesn't allow liquor stores to open on Sundays...and hard liquor can only be purchased between 10 a.m. and 9 p.m. So Systembolaget wouldn't seem too weird. We CAN now buy beer and wine on Sundays...and anything at a restaurant or bar with the proper license. But, like you, I remember when things were just shut down, here...which was weird when I moved to Texas from the Chicago area, where you can buy liquor at the grocery store.
Maybe she would indeeed fit in well in Sweden! Haha I'd love to hear both of your opinions if you do visit the place some day. Maybe it's not as bad as I'm portraying it - or maybe I'm actually underselling it since I'm so used to it... Hard to say! Oh! I had no idea that Texas had regulations like that. I really thought that all of the US was a lot more about offering service at all times, and catering to individual freedom etc etc. It's fascinating just how much varies from state to state over there. It's really like a set of different small countries...that just happens to share the same currency, language and mentality to a high degree...
@@ThreeStarVagabond I've always wanted to visit, but never have. I have [distant] cousins, there -- and a cousin stateside who visits fairly regularly. I need to get over there! Texas is a weird state. (Every Texan and American reading this is nodding in agreement.) In many ways, it deserves much of the criticism it receives, but in other ways it gets a bad rap. It's a lovely state (except the heat). But it does boast a manufactured sense of freedom when there are aspects of living here that are restricting. But ask many Texans, and they will say we're the most free state in the nation 😉 The U.S. really is like a set of small countries. I've always found it amusing when European friends who have only traveled around Europe knock Americans who have not left the U.S. But if you lay a map of the U.S. over Europe, it's about the same size. In that sense, someone who's been all over the country is like someone over there who has been all over Europe. It's a big, neat place in so many ways...even Texas!
@@ChristopherGronlund It's well worth a visit! But then again, there are so many places worthy of a visit and so little time... I think I'd like to visit Texas. I like heat, and I'm really curious about what the place is actually like compared to what you see on TV. But unfortunately I've had my eyes set on a road trip through Vegas / California, so Texas might have to wait for a while. But I'm curious about it! I think the geographic variety and the size absolutely makes the US comparable to all of Europe. And the mentality of each state differs a lot too. But I still think there's a difference when you travel to a country that has a different currency, a different language, a different way of getting around, different stores, etc etc. I find it really easy to get around in the UK, for example, but Greece or Lithuania or Romania are all very different to me..
"Fish obsession" doesnt bother me at all. Although I definitely dont like the pickled and fermented fish things, there is plenty of fresh grilled or fried fish which is delicious. Lots of other fresh fish preparations too. Including smoked fish. Not crazy about herring. Salmon better. As for weather, yes, you mentioned the cold, but much worse is the 6 months of dark. I dont mind bright sunny cold days, but dark is pretty miserable.
Snail mail. Here, I thought it was only an epidemic of its own here in the US where our postal or shipping companies would lose mail, it would get destroyed or stolen in transit, or porch pirates would steal it. I stand corrected. Here the only way for us to cut down on the theft is to have a post office box, or some kind of locking container for the mail. Unfortunately, companies are requiring addresses outside of the post office to ship products to and that gives the porch pirates more things to steal unless we own a home and install a locking box to receive the packages. But this isn't possible for apartment renters. However, those that do live in apartments can occasionally have these packages sent to a carrier like UPS, FedEx, etc to be held for pickup. I wonder, is there an alternative carrier option like this in Sweden?
I think the porch pirate issue is much less of a problem in Sweden actually - at least yet. Most people use carrier companies with self-pickup, since many people live in apartments and we're used to a centralized postal service. It's just these last couple of years that delivery companies have started opting for this deliver-to-the-doorstep approach, and I really hate it. If I have any delivery option I'd rather go for the questionable PostNord rather than any company that delivers to my apartment door and just leaves it lying around...
I hate i have to pay to use the bathtoom at certain places. And pay for parking to shop at local grocery store. Also hate that mayo cake with shrimp and other things in it.
Oh yeah! The bathroom thing is so annoying! Agreed on the shrimp thingie too. Parking doesn't bother me, 'cause I don't own a car - I just rent whenever I need to go somewhere. It's not very convenient to go by car in Stockholm anyway...
@@ThreeStarVagabond yea I'm just use to having a car. We have busses but everything is spread apart so it can take time. I have a family so it's easier for them to get around in a car. And we don't have to plan things, we can just get in the car and go. Even at all hours at the night. Also I'm a car guy. Have some sportscars, tuned hatchbacks and a truck for offroading. If I lived in Sweden I would probably just get a diesel truck. So I can haul groceries, furniture, etc. I rem when I first came there I use to ride the sprovan all the time.
@@Joe-eg7ml I think having a family automatically makes it well worth having a car. Or three... I like cars, and I'd love to have one or two but it's just not worth the hassle. I used to have one years ago but it just collected dust in the garage most of the week. But different things for different places!
thank you for this video. there are not a lot of content like this explained for english speaking audiences…hence the persistent cartoon image amongst foreigners consisting of just abba and the muppet chef 😂
Haha, I'll do my best to spread some local insights in that case! ...And come to think of it, maybe that would be another interesting video - things that annoy Swedes about foreign stereotypes about them... ;D
@@ThreeStarVagabond As a foreigner Im Hungarian and the things Sweden is known for both in Hungary and in Netherlands where I lived prior to Sweden is music. But Swedes know less about Swedish music than people outside Sweden
My grandmother Emma from Sweden took a trip from her US home back to Sweden. On her return trip to the US she accidentally ended up on the maiden voyage of the Lusitania out of the UK. I have her Second Cabin Tea Menu dated Monday September 9, 1907. The menu says Kippered Herring, Hashed Mutton, Broiled Beefsteak, Fried Onions, Mashed Potatoes and more items served cold. Enjoyed the other video too about what not to do there so if/when I am able to visit I will know what not to do, except I can't promise I will not speak well of Trump, like I mentioned in my comment on your other video about Gothenburg. I notice you did not comment on my comment about Trump, most politely on your part. Also I do consider myself to be Christian and religious and will be wearing a cross my mom used to wear before she passed in 1976. I am sad to hear Swedes tend to be agnostics or atheists. I like to think my little cross first belonged to Emma. How can you experience the glory of a new born child or marvel at every feather God gave an owl without sensing the wonder of God's creations and blessings for us? No need to respond if this made you feel uncomfortable. One thing I was wondering about is if equality and conformity are valued, how can you live under a monarchy, which is placing some WAY over others simply because of their family ties? Again no need to respond....
A lot of interesting questions, but I think you'll find that most Swedes just try to avoid topics that might lead to discussions where some party will get hurt. As long as people don't exessively bring up e.g Trump, religion, etc, everyone is free to have their own beliefs. However, criticizing the monarchy is a popular pastime for Swedes as well - so that's absolutely fine! :D Oh, and speaking of the Lusitania, that reminds me of the Tasting History channel, where he often discusses meals that people ate e.g at the Titanic. The description of the meals really reminded me of that!
Swedish Vikings practiced their Norse religion way before Christianity was forced upon them. So leave your Christianity to yourself, be respectful to the country you are visiting. Btw I'm an American , happily celebrating Norse Pagan path.
I don't know what ethnicity you are (maybe Dutch, judging by the accent?), but I think the only person likely to say Swedish people are pleasant would have to be a Swede.
Hi! How are you? I have been watching your videos all this week and now that you mention the immigration problem i want to ask something. I heard that due to some immigrants the crime rate went up, and i wanted to ask if i go there (i am trying to learn from your culture and language before going) would i be accepted? I dont want Swedes to look at me and think "aaa f*ck, another anoying latino" Thanks a lot for your videos!! Keep the good work!! :D
Thanks for checking out the videos :D I'd say that no one will bat an eye at latino visitors in Sweden. Unfortunately, given the recent crime waves and troubles here, people might give some ethnic people rude looks - e.g Arabs, some people from Africa, etc. But even then, no one will cause any trouble. Sweden is still a safe and mostly accepting country - especially for tourists and visitors. (But be forewarned that you might receive the same lackluster service as everyone receives in Sweden! Even natives.)
Sorry but Swedens overrated and I’m from England! But at least we are honest that it’s a bit shit here. What you see is what you get here…Not sure why the idolization persists around Sweden.
No place is perfect in reality. Sweden is beautiful, I fell in love with stockholm when I went in 2016. I wouldn't live there, since I'm Mexican I have different lifestyle and personality. But I'd visit at least once a year. Some day 😅
Really nice to hear that you enjoy the country, even if the lifestile differs from what you're used to. I love stuff like that, when people appreciate a country despite differences they may have :D
@ThreeStarVagabond I agree, it's great when people appreciate other countries and prefer to see the good in them. Most importantly, respect the culture and the norms. I loved the city, the streets, the metro! Beautiful and elegant people, I was there for a month on March. My expectations were surpassed. Keep up the good videos 👍🏽👌🏽
I must be honest, integrating in sweden is pretty damn hard. :/ I come from America but I was born in South America, so I am brown. I also have a high specialized degree in math, and i am also a woman, still I find myself having a extremely hard time finding a job, so I needed to open my own company. :/ I really wish I could get a chance in a Swedish company but it seems i must be a native swedish speaker, I get it though, still, it makes it very hard to help other swedes too due to this mentality and closeness.
That sucks so bad! Hmm, well it is a bad market right now - lots of unemployment and the economy has been doing really poorly for a while. I'm sure it'll be better soon but it does take time for companies to start hiring again unfortunately :( And yes, it's definitely a big uphill battle, trying to compete against native Swedish speakers in a market like this unfortunately!
‘A noun for a group of Swedes should be an ‘ Indecision’. Hahahahaha! Actually, carefully discussing and coming to a broader held view is actually refreshing in the hyped (egotistic) world of today. To a point ofcourse. As a dutch Frisian, where a certain consensus culture meant the difference between life and death in times of need, it’s what we need more globally. On the other hand: ‘two Frisians meeting is joy, three Frisians meeting is a row’ (old proverb).
Oh absolutely, there are good and bad sides to everything - and there are many positive things about this group consensus mentality. But it does get annoying at times. Hmm... I know way too little about Frisians but it does sound like an interesting people :D Oh no, I just looked it up on wikipedia, and there's a ton of interesting information here! Now I'm stuck!
You know…I subscribed to your channel because I plan on moving to Sweden, and then you drop this lol…I’m not frightened though, ive lived in Ukraine, Sweden can’t be worse than that
Haha, sorry for this nasty surprise! But yeah, it's still a good place to live. But we've gotten some really bad things happening the last 5 years or so. I hope it'll get better soon! Let's just hope we don't get invaded as well eh.. :/
Don’t worry, I haven’t unsubscribed lol…and I still plan on moving there despite the downsides. To be honest, the US is getting pretty bad too so Ima just join my best friend in Sweden. If I have to suffer…well, everything is better with friends, right?
@@coreyfaulkner1115 Absolutely! And I think you'll find it pleasant here. I know a few people from Ukraine who moved here many years ago and after the first culture shock they seem to really like the place :D There's always some downsides to every country after all, but as long as the positives outweigh them it's fine!
Staying for a short few months as a tourist..and loving it here..didn’t experience r*c*sm as a brown skinned..and I find swedes too friendly being an introvert myself😂
Because of the iranian regime it's not possible to buy cold beer in Sweden anymore. The country existed for 500 years and invented the refrigiator but it still not possible to buy a cold beer.
As a Swede i experienced more racism from immigrants than i have heard of other swedes being racist. Edit: and the comment about weather seems like it's 20 years old or experiences from far up north. The summers keep getting longer and hotter than they used to and in some parts of the countries like the south the temperature is just barely under 0 during the winter and snow is almost non-existent in some places.
Personally I'd say that I've seen more racism towards immigrants than the reverse - but then again, I'm not the most social person and I don't meet that many different groups of people. And nah, I don't agree at all. 2018 was a hot summer, but it's been a lot of rain and cold days after that. Some warm weeks now and then (like June 2023) - but then it's followed by, for example, a really cold July.
Most of those immigrants are comming from horrinble dictatorships where they have no rights @ all. Swedish laws & rules are nothing to them. They`ll test them & Swedes all they can.
Swedes complaining about the weather is always funny to me because i've often considered moving from Iceland to Sweden for the dry and warm weather and almost complete lack of wind. You people basically live in the tropics comparatively. You can even use umbrellas because your rain is vertical not horizontal. Also because everything is cheaper and less corrupt.
It's so refreshing to hear comparisons with Iceland :D Haha, there's always something to complain about one's country, isn't it? We have a distinct lack of volcanos though!
The food thing isn't really true. There's always a extra plate if you happen to be around at mealtimes. And of course I'll do the same. I don't really know where this rumour came from. I grew up in Stockholm and now lived in the countryside for 22 years. It's been the same everywhere.
I mostly added it to annoy people who complained about Sweden when this became a thing. But for me it's been mixed. Most people tried to offer food, but some families who were a bit on the poorer side or hadn't prepared more food had to struggle when situations like that came up. I was raised to not put myself in that position - always make sure I'm not hungry when I visit people etc.
Went for a Fica instead xD I think Sweden is similar to Japan - very beaurocratic where nothing gets decided for a very long time. And the conformity aspect as well..
Yeah, people say that the Swedish and the Japanese mentality is very much alike! I can't wait until I visit Japan to see for myself how much truth there is to that :)
I'm afraid you are mistaken on the immigration. Sweden has taken more per capita than most countries. Muslims do not integrate once the number exceeds a very small amount. Sorry if that is unpopular to say, but it is true. Other minorities integrate, Muslims do not.
Ladies and Gentlemen! I'd like to annonuce, the most heavy inflation of europe. The winner iiiiiis: Huuuungaryyyy! I'm so sorry, but I have to take the "most high inflation in europe prize" and give it to Hungary. This years top was 25% and it is only the official annoucment, some products prices are went up 50-60% especially the grocieries.
Consensus, Conformity, state-owned companies, these things together i believe is called 'civilisation'. Maybe that's an outrageous opinion, but i grew up in the UK where these things are not common anymore due to decades of privatisation and the US' style 'cult of individuality', and the result is mistrust, social volatility and growing poverty. The rest though, i agree with you.
I think it'll be interesting to see how both the UK and Sweden develops in the coming decades. Everyone is complaining that everything is getting worse...so will things ever get better again, or are we all just changing, and change is always seen as bad?
There’s actually a good point with the consensus culture (in a certain case). Let’s say you are into a project and you disagree on certain basics and have your objection noted in the protocol. Later on, you have to make new decisions based on the basics you dismissed. Maybe this new issue have your approval,but said NO to the fundaments this issue is built upon … “You voted NO to a nuclear plant being built but you voted YES to have it painted green, blue and yellow ….so are you pro or against nuclear energy?”. I must point out that this is a case mostly in boards dealing with constructional projects, but may appear elsewhere.
Could be relevant! I think it's beneficial sometimes since it leads to less resentment in general. But it can be frustrating if people have a lot of "unnecessary" objections to things as well, or if people aren't seeing the big picture...
@@ThreeStarVagabond So true! I have just been voted chairman in a local club and being rather progressive and trusting people in groups or committees doing a good job I try to “distribute” (couldn’t grasp the correct word), my style is totally different from the last chairman, who’s still in the board. In order “not to rock the boat too much”, we have to do things step by step. A final word, I do love that your comments are a bit ambivalent - you show that you dislike a lot about Sweden, as we all do, but you also show you embrace Sweden and cares about out country, culture and traditions. Keep on doing these fine videos. Btw, the backdrops are frigging amazing - you definitely show how beautiful and diverse our country is.👍
@@Soundbrigade Well, change is (often) good, so it's just beneficial for people to experience new types of leadership now and then! Even if it has to be one step at a time, unfortunately... Haha, yeah absolutely - I love a lot about Sweden, but I dislike a ton of things as well. I think I have a slightly different view compared to many as well, being brought up with a lot of Finnish and Yugoslavian values. But in the end I really enjoy the country, so I'm happy to show it off in a good light ^_^
I always dreamed about Sweden, until i visirted, in the same time i didnt like Denmark, until i visited. When i was in Sweden i like the nature, but the criminality is very high. My friend was attack by group of ,,not sweden guys´´ in the gamlastad 1st day he arrived. On the other side Denmark has no mounties but its far more safer.
Sorry to hear that! It really is becoming more unsafe - even though I haven't been exposed to such attacks myself. That sounds really strange, that they'd get attacked like that in a very touristy place! Well, glad to hear that Denmark felt safe at least....
I am surprised that Lars doesn't see the connection between one of the things he "doesn't mind" (high immigration from 3rd world countries) and high crime, which he hates.
as a swede i agree on point 1, at point 2 sill im born in the 90's and i hate fishbullar aswell bu free caught fish mmmm is yummy for my tummy.as a swede i think this is a dying culture as well surströmming i see this tradition dying everywere,and that is no-one likes it. it taste bad and smell bad. Point n3 is more loose as you move out to the coutryside were no one gives a fuck. if you have a house and you party,imagine you get alot of uninvited people. but sure in the cities they are more concervitive. point n4 systembolaget is the governments fucked up thing cuz like america we got to drunk and had a ban that is why it got created.nr4 i agree on you fully well its our useless poilitician that promiced everyone jobs but it just got flooded, and yeah i can leave the politics outside.point 5 have you been outside of stocholm? and i mean like realy outside ? people there will tell you if you dont like you to your face. and mo we dont backstab in the country. angoende postnord you are right.sj now will provide busses free of charge to what ever you are going.i agree with the cost of living and its sucks.no we dont have a differnt way of reporting it. its just classefied as such cuz its a statiscic that hasnt been formed yet cuz we never hav had this much crime of it.
Funny you should say that Swedish people have a hard time with irony because they take things too literally. That´s exactly what I have heard since I was a kid. Also that the Swedish have more respect for authorities than Danes. Do you have any comments on this ?
All I can say is that it's pretty much true! Swedes definitely have some (misguided?) trust in institutions in general. But as for irony...I'm not sure. It's probably that Swedes are afraid to be ironic with new people or in a different language mostly.
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Wtf do you hate sweden for I live there 🤬🖕
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Lovely video and very realistic and honest feedback, thank you so much
Happy to hear that you think that! Thank you - really appreciate it :D
I love how you are very honest and upfront you are about your thoughts, even on sensitive topics. That is very refreshing and interesting to hear especially from a Swede.
Much appreciated! Yeah, I'm a bit odd for a Swede I think. But I'm also a bit on the fence about many things, so I'm not exactly taking radical sides either. Most issues are just too complex to pick just one viewpoint!
Im hours from NV USA (Vegas) & hating these extroverts! Very few even look American. Same goes with CA
I can relate. I have lived in Sweden for 8 years and even speak pretty good swedish, but I haven't managed to make any swedish friends, I froze my ass off for the most part of the year, I got charged 90kronor for a bread, lettuce and cheese sandwich, and invevitably, when covid hit, I got a major depressive episode which drove me to move the hell out of there to Spain, where I've been happily living for 2 years now.
Now, don't get me wrong, it's not that Sweden is bad. I love some things about it, like Allemansrätten, safety, endless green nature and blue lakes everywhere, but those are thing that make this country good for visiting, not for living. Sweden has way too many restrictions and I just never felt free there. High salaries is not at all what makes life good.
Thank you for the video.
Very interesting to hear your experience! I think you're spot on - all of those things are real annoyances with Sweden, and things that can be better in other countries. I still like Sweden, but I suspect that that's partly because I'm used to how things are here, but sometimes when I go abroad I really think that I would have a better time living there.
Haha! I actually saw you filming this on Igelsdammsgatan yesterday, I was sort of hoping you were filming another episode of "Worst Stockholm architecture" and including the new apartment blocks they have built at the top of that road...
I was trying to hide in the backstreets to get away from traffic noise...and I was also feeling self-conscious about recording this in public. Like, I kept thinking "I really hope people won't be offended!" :D But ooh, maybe I should have a look at those! Hmm... Maybe a video about the worst new buildings in Stockholm from the last 5 years... :D
@@ThreeStarVagabond I was going to come and say hello, but after 20 years in Stockholm, I know that is not a thing you do.. ;-)
Haha! I'm a bit un-Swedish so I love people who say hi :D Thanks for the comment though! So funny that you saw me strolling around there talking to my cam ^_^
Hi
I stumbled upon your channel whilst just looking for videos to admire about Sweden haha! Thanks for the tips you made about avoiding scams and generally being such a great tour guide. I’ve been dreaming of going to Sweden since I was 8, and I personally won’t stop at nothing to go there, so till then, I’ll be binging your channel❤
Happy to be of help 😀 There's a lot of both good and some bad things about Sweden, and I love giving a view of how I really see the place 😊 Cheers, and thanks for checking out the videos!
I guess nowhere is perfect. I left the UK many years ago because of the lousy summers and ended up in Turkey where, despite the many negative issues, at least the summers are good and the cost of living is affordable (for those of us with a foreign income at least). Thank you for running through your list of gripes. No alcohol anywhere to be had here today either (but only because it's Election Day.... let's see where this country is now headed.) Cheers!
Good job on actually doing something about it and moving abroad! So many people (like me) just stay put despite annoyances they have. Oh, yeah, Turkey is bound to be a very exciting place right now.. Damn, I thought Eurovision yesterday was exciting, but if I were in Turkey I would be really nervous one way or another! Cheers!
Been living in here for 3 years. You are so on point.
Unfortunately so, right? 😀
Great video! ❤
Thank you 😀
quite entertaining! wish you the best
Thank you! :D
My boyfriend and I are making plans to move to Sweden in the next couple years and your videos are a great source for us. You are funny and provide a fantastic point of view. You deserve MANY more views. Thank you so much for your Swedish content, we will be watching everything you have. 😁
That's so nice to hear! Agreed, I think there should be a lot more people watching my stuff ;D Oh, a premature welcome to the cold north!
@@ThreeStarVagabond Thank you so much.😁
I hope you dont have kids bc its not safe here for them
@@neuroleptika No kids, so we're good. Thank you for the heads up though. 😁
Great video. Fascinating. Hit on some interesting issues. A culture of conformity is pretty alien to me in the US. I've only been to Sweden once, but I still remember eating at the house of a family friend and it was an amazing, memorable meal. Very luckily, they didn't serve surströmming. 👍👍👍 Also "an indecision of Swedes decided nothing at all" is a great sentence. Sounds like a headline for The Onion.
There are certainly a number of differences in the Swedish mentality compared to the US! But most Swedes avoid surströmming - so we have that uniting us at least, even if we are an indecision of consensus-seeking weirdos :D Haha, thank you so much!
@@ThreeStarVagabond
In Hungarian and I have lived here soon Three years. Prior to Sweden I lived two years in The Nettherlands. I see big similarities between These two countries. Both have bad food but I do Think Swedish food is better though. . And in general I prefer living in Sweden than Netherlands
@@sellammar1 I love this comment! I think I need to do a Dutch food tour some day to see how bad it is 😀 But happy to hear that you enjoy Sweden!
You are informative and funny! Thank you for all the information : )
Thank you! Really nice to hear that :D
As a Finn one culture shock is that Swedes do not have 24h culture at all. In Finland every single city has 24h supermarket / 24h pharmacy & Gas station with some grocery 24h. Malmö which has 344000 residents do not have any of those what I just mentioned. You have to take a train to Copenhagen if you need to buy something from grocery or pharmacy in middle of the night.
That is SO true! It's so weird with all of these stores that always close early in the evening! I never even thought about that until you mentioned it...
The first rule about Sweden, you don't talk about politics. The second rule, you don't talk about politics (this is also about avoiding disharmony and keeping everyone happy I guess). It was an interesting video, thanks for the inside view!
My family and I moved to Sweden 1.5 years ago och vi trivs mycket här. As someone who came from Germany, I always had the impression that there is absolutely no integration policy in Germany (with all the bad consequences you mentioned) and I was surprised about how well nyborgare at least get the offer to learn the language for free (and I did and even passed grundläggande kurs B recently). So from a Swede's point of view, you might think that's not enough, but it's hell a lot more than in *many* other countries. (About the crime thing: I think it helps to stop reading the media -- that media campaign brought Sweden the worst government in history). But yes, I agree on many points and now I'll head for the video what you love about Sweden ;)
Haha Sweden is like the anti-Fight Club! Cheers on assimilating so well - and I guess it's hard to see everything objectively since I'm already here in the country. Media is always a problem. If one doesn't listen to it, that's a problem...and it's a problem when one listens too.
My wife and I had a few days in Stockholm a while ago and because it was done on a shoestring, we took some snacks with us from our home in UK. Just as well! We had one fairly simple 2-course Swedish lunch and the bill nearly broke our budget completely. Yes, I realise we should have saved up a bit before we travelled but snacking was the most logical thing to do in order to stay fed. (Ironically, a large part of the snacking was from Swedish Vasabrod, bought at our local UK supermarket! Coals to Newcastle syndrome or what?)
That's so funny, bringing the Wasabröd to Sweden! But yeah it's really expensive to eat out at restaurants. It's definitely feasible to find "cheap" places to eat, but you have to know where to look and maybe go for simpler cuisine. And many people cook at home in Sweden - which can be pretty cheap (compared to eating out). Either way, traveling is always fun regardless if it's on a shoestring or not! :D
You had got me thinking but then got me at the cold stay safe. Your beautiful
The cold and the darkness is actually the most negative thing about Sweden in my view! But thank you and have a great one
Hej, As someone from a warmer country who moved to the north of Sweden, I see different things than what you said. We used to have seasons in southern Europe when I was little 30 years ago, but now it's only 35C+ and during "winter" it might rain for a day or two and might snow for 1 night and it's back to 20C+ in December-Feb. I quite like having actual 4 seasons. I really missed the snow and being able to wear anything else but a T-shirt.
As for racism and discrimination I am also blond with green eyes, so I don't see that immediately, but when I speak Swedish with an accent they ask me where I'm from and change their attitude no matter that I look like them or speak Swedish.
So you are mostly right, but also things are a bit different 4-5h drive north from Stockholm. Thank you for the video! Greetings from the High Coast! 🌲❄🦌🌞
I guess we all think that the grass is greener on the other side, right? If I lived in a warmer climate I'd probably dislike that too after a while :)
Too bad that you've had bad experiences, but it sounds like you got settled in a really nice area - so I hope that makes up for it. The High Coast is absolutely gorgeous! I loved hiking to Slåttdalsskrevan a couple of winters ago.
It makes sense that things are quite different in different areas of Sweden. I have some experience from smaller places in the south, but that was a long time ago now come to think of it... Cheers and thanks for checking it out :D
love your videos!
the "swedish dream" and the consensus culture sound lovely though - maybe we need another round of discussions about the pros and cons of consensus culture, until we can decide whether or not one should not like it ;)
right now my job is to coordinate the work of volunteers helping refugees and new immigrants in germany. are there comparable jobs in sweden?
Thank you! Haha, yes, I think I might have been too hasty in making such a strong statement. Let me make a poll first to see what people say...
We have "Migrationsverket", the agency in charge of taking care of immigrants, and I'd assume we have similar jobs there. But to be honest, I don't really know. There's a lot of volunteer work as well with that - but that's all on a local level. I'm not really that familiar with the details...
Loving your videos :)
So happy to hear that :D Thanks!
Great video. :) We moved here to Jamtlands lan over a year ago. I'm Scottish so am used to rougher weather than we get here. My husband is Flemish, so he fits in more with the European vibe here. We're in a very small village and the people, with only a few exceptions, have been kind and actually friendly to these two old incomers.
I'm with you on Postnord! Oh gosh, the sheer number of parcels we don't receive, argh! And the cost of living...in just our one year, food prices have risen appallingly, along with utilities such as electricty. But our income hasn't gone up accordingly, so it's tougher living here than elsewhere perhaps.
For all that, I just spent a beautiful winter hand feeding red deer that came to visit us daily, enjoying the snow (believe me, in my Scottish Highlands we used to have the same snow for the same length of time. A couple of decades ago it seemed to vanish overnight and I missed it!) and just bought my first set of skis. Which was probably stupid as I'm almost totally blind and over sixty.....
Nowhere is perfect. Sweden is a beautiful, almost mythical and often breathtaking country. The people are who they are, and we as incomers have no real right to expect them to change to suit us. (I speak as an introvert here too) but as with all countries now, the politicians seem to be the thorns on this particular rose. My number one gripe would be the technology love in Sweden...all Swedes seem to adore tech. But I'm an anti tech, emf sensitive, wannabe off gridder. That's hard as we bought a home filled with smart tech (unknowingly) and I'm slowly getting rid of it. I suspect that is frowned upon here. :)
That sounds like such an adventure - to move out into a small place in Jämtland! But maybe that's just because I'm a bit of a city guy myself. I love being out in the outdoors to marvel at the nature...but I also really enjoy the convenience of living in a city.
Let's hope the inflation stops at least so that the prices won't become even more ridiculous.. And well, PostNord...nothing to do about that one unfortunately :( But there are certainly positive things to outweigh those negative sides. Like feeding red deer! That sounds completely amazing! :D
Honestly, I believe that many Swedes are impressed by anti tech people, and secretly wish that they too were off gridders. Especially people who live in the cities. There's likely a reason that so many people want to have a summer cabin to escape to, where they can return to nature... I do have to admit that I'm a complete tech addict myself tho! But in my defense I actually work in tech so... :D
Well said! And real facts
Thank you!
Thanks I enjoy your content 😊 ❤
Thank you! And I definitely enjoy your comment :D
Great video, very honest video. You should come to Panama so I can give you a huge list with no end.
Haha I will have to go there one of these days! I'm sure it can't be that bad - the weather is better at least ;)
@@ThreeStarVagabond And the white sand beaches, that's where I go when the politicians frustrates me.
@@etrigueros That sounds absolutely heavenly. I love taking a walk in Stockholm as well to see the water and the greenery, but it's not the same at all.
You´ve done a great list!
I can´t make a list myself, but I can agree to some parts here.
I stop working around 27+ celsius so, the weather is pretty great.
Thanks! Haha many people disagree with me about the weather, so you're not alone. I'd happily have 30+ in the summers. Let's hope we get a summer like that this year...
@Three Star Vagabond why do you want to kill me 😂
@@Dashuone You gotta break a few eggs to get a nice sunny omelette :D
@@ThreeStarVagabondcome and visit Hungary in the summer! Here, it's almost as hot as in Italy. 38-40 Celsius. I guess it would be an affordable trip for Swedish people as well. By the way, your channel is great! Greetings from Hungary (although I also often wish to relocate to another country, but it's a nice tourist destination).
@@june.w.1288 Thank you so much! And yeah I'm really thinking of visiting Hungary again - but maybe next year. So much to see and do ^_^
And even after that list i still would love to live in Sweden
That's a pretty good grade then! :D I do like it here still, but I just hope we won't run the country even more into the ground.
I have lived "permanently" in Sweden for more than half a century and seen a helluva lot changes. Privatization was heralded as "the" solution to all the problems. Well, I admit that certainly improved telephone services, but failed miserably as regards the postal service and the railways (as pointed out). Back then, a letter posted on Monday arrived on Tuesday. Now, you might see it in 4 or 5 days -- or not at all (as pointed out). And public transportation is a sad laugh (as pointed out).
Thanks for those observations! Very interesting to hear the pros and (mostly) cons that way
Life is pretty good when the major thing to dislike is the weather
Pretty much, yeah!
Being a Sweden that's now been living overseas for over 20 years I have to say that besides from the alcohol monopoly (and yes, I remember when you couldn't buy anything on Saturdays either), the rest of the items aren't really much of a deterrent and I actually miss the winters. Luckily I now reside in an area of Australia where the snow fields are only an hour away so I do get some winter and snow, however I still haven't gotten used to celebrate Christmas in 35-40C weather. Looking forward to travel "home" to Uppsala this September for the first time in 15 years and introduce my kids to it all.
I guess the grass is always greener on the other side! There are always things you dislike about where you are right now - but others who hear it go "What? That sounds lovely!" :D
Living in Melbourne, Australia for ~20 years and formerly from SEA, I am now about to visit Sweden for a month in winter. None of the above is a deterrent (especially the weather🤣) but I am intrigued about how Swedes navigate around the consensus culture and conformity. I conform most of the time but personally, I don't follow the same path as the mainstream (a programmer who is also a domestic plumber). I'm pretty sure people like me, who like to try different things, exist everywhere in the world notwithstanding Sweden. Your tale of Nordpost and SJ are shared with many countries' government services after being privatized 🥲you have my sympathies.
@@julesverneinoz I think it's just a matter of social norms - people are raised to consider "how will this affect others", and "how can I get my will through while still maintaining friendship" etc. Japan is even more along those lines, so I don't think that it's uniquely Swedish. But yeah of course there are always people sticking out. And it might be my imagination but I think there are more and more non-conforming people over time...
Great video. I agree about most of it, except the weather. Generally I like the Winters, although this one lasted a bit too long. The Summers since we moved to Sweden 2 1/2 years ago have been fantastic though. We can sit outside nearly every evening throughout the Summer without getting cold. On the British island that I come from there were one or two evenings throughout the whole Summer where it was almost warm enough to sit out until 20.00.
The biggest issue I have (in Gävle) are the mosquitoes. There’s a few about already and they’re huge, like something from Jurassic Park!
SFI and Svenska som andra språk try teach immigrants about Swedish society and traditions from my experience. Unfortunately after that it just stops.
I get what you mean! Many people would probably disagree with me about the weather but..well..this is my list after all :D
Glad that you enjoy the summers here! I'm joking a bit in the video 'cause I do love the summer months, as long as there's sunshine. And yes... I don't think the UK is something I'd prefer really...
Haha! Mosquitoes! I should have included those as well in the list - although I'm quite blessed living in Stockholm. Haven't seen any at all so far.
I've heard that from several people! And even during SFI the quality can vary a lot it seems...
Swedes are cold, tend not to offer food to unplanned guests and taxes to high.
And we smell too!
I had the wonderful opportunity to visit Stockholm last year. What a beautiful city and so nicely maintained. I ate lunch at Östermalms Saluhall. Finally had my first meal of smørrebrød. (I know, it’s Danish 😊 ) I was on a cruise so my visit was very brief. I finally ordered surströmming when I got home to the USA. I actually liked it with tunnbröd and potatoes with sour cream.
Really happy to hear that! But wait what? Surströmming?! That's insane - I can't stand the smell of it, and almost not the sight of it either :D
Yes!! Absolutely loved it. I actually liked the smell. I was afraid I was going to have a gag reaction. Funny story, when I was at Östermalms Saluhall my friend wanted to try Surstömming at the market. I told him NO!!! you don’t want to have people upset with you and stinking up the area. I told him to wait until we get back home
@@Floorman7285 Haha probably a wise choice to wait! But that's so strange... Has to be some kind of genetic trait that makes you immune to the poison of the surströmming :D
@@ThreeStarVagabond LOL!!! I got lucky with the genetics. In fact I did have a Swedish co worker who told me it was horrible. Lol! So to add to my friends story at Östermalms Saluhall. There was surströmming for sale in the seafood section. He about to purchase it from the gentleman who was about to sell it to him. My friend asked him if there’s a place outside of Östermalms Saluhall to eat it. The gentleman joked but was very serious and told him that we can walk to Södermalm and open the can there to eat it. 😂😂
@@Floorman7285 I love that! And well.. Yeah.. I think it could literally be a disturbance of the public, to eat surströmming in the middle of the city. It wouldn't surprise me if guards would tell people to leave ;D
Systembolaget is a good thing! Good prices, good selection of wine, beer and spirits. They know their products and you can always discuss what ur going to serve for dinner and what wines could be suitable. Do some planning mate! Never woke up on a sunday and felt... shit I need beer this afternoon!
Personally, I actually agree about all of those points. I love the selection and their helpfullness. It's just the availability that's irritating! Cheers to that
I admire the beauty of Sweden and I love the winters, the menfolk are a bit cold and reserved, that's true, and the cost of living is high, but the amazing sights and the sounds of Swedish, Svenska, just please me immensely.
Really happy to hear that! It is a nice country with some very positive things - but then again, that can be said about every country! It's just a matter of finding the things to appreciate, I think
@@ThreeStarVagabond Tack! lol
I agree with you on most of these, especially PostNord and SJ. I would add the news, which is almost useless for lack of details. We usually only get two of the “who, what, where, when, and why.”
Hmm... I agree with you, but then again - is there any place where news is actually reported well? I guess it's still something to dislike either way
Thanks for your honesty.
Hey, we love pickled heering in Denmark, but only for lunch ! I have been to many Swedish hotels, where you can be sure to find Heering for breakfast. That´s a bit too much for a Dane. Love the Knäckebröd though :)
Hey, you can get knäckebröd and I'll take rugbröd, okay? I had the weirdest craving for Danish dark bread the other day - no idea where it came from :D But the sill and herring and stuff I'll never touch...
As a Canadian considering moving to Sweden, it sounds like a lot of the same problems we have here. Privatisation making life harder, healthcare is being defunded/made less attainable, insanely high rent and food (Australians have a hard time with our pitiful minimum wage, for example), the country is becoming more hostile to "Others", and crime is surging due to all of the above.
Yeah, I guess it's more of a global phenomenon right now, with all of these issues. Maybe I should try to find some more uniquely Swedish things to bring up....
What does Canada think of "udders" LOL Like USA citizens?
Is Sweden a place where I can use Swedish currency or is everything cashless? I'm traveling to Stockholm next month
I'd say don't get any cash at all. Many stores in the city don't even accept cash - only card payment. Cash is mostly just used by old people and criminals :)
@@ThreeStarVagabond Thank you for your reply. Is Uber available over there?
@@sammiejones08 Yep it is! I use it myself regularly. But you won't be able to use to to/from the airport, just so you know
@@ThreeStarVagabond So how do you get from the airport then to your hotel or destination? My apologies for my bad grammar lol
@@sammiejones08 Taxi is convenient but most expensive. Arlanda Express train is half the price of a taxi and quick. There's also local train and commuter trains you can take - a bit cheaper, a bit slower.
You are Sweden so of course you would like your culture.
So I think an foreigners is better suited to analize Swedish culture
When it comes to my profession (welder), I found that the salary in Sweden is significantly worse than what you'd get in the Netherlands or Norway. Also, both those countries tend to be ok if the applicant can only speak English and they also often provide shared accommodation in their job offers, so that you can actually save money and not be slaughtered by the insane rents. On the other hand, Sweden seems to be remarkably uncompetitive. Offering significantly lower salaries, requiring both Swedish and English, and not offering any accommodation (effectively decimating your take-home pay). This makes them very uncompetitive when trying to attract international talent for positions they're unable to fill domestically (like carpenters, plumbers, mechanics, welders, machine operators, etc..). I just thought I'd mention this since you talked about Sweden having high salaries.
That's really good to know! And yeah, I think Sweden only has high salaries if one doesn't compare to...well, all of the countries you mentioned. Sweden is like the cheap neighbor for most countries in northern Europe, I think. I do like it here, but I guess there's really a lack of selling points for e.g a welder!
I made the mistake of moving to Sweden from Germany. Never experienced so much ignorance, irresponsibility and lack of independence in comparison. Just frustrating...
That's almost a bit unexpected, given that Germans are relatively similar to Swedes in some ways!
@@ThreeStarVagabond Right? That's exactly what I was thinking all along, but now I know better. I am used to much more discipline, and personal responsibility. Swedes are extremely easy going, they seem nether to respect your time nor to appreciate any efforts.
@@GenyneG I can't really comment on that since I don't know how it is in Germany - but there's certainly some truth to it. Then again, I've seen a lot of efficient and good teams in Sweden too. I think it depends a lot on individuals
The strong German inclination to blindly follow any form of `authority` baffless me big time!. That`s why you blindly followed a crazy ranter like Hitler which was pure idiocy! Luckily most Swedes understood what he was & declined the entire nazi ideology! Blind authority following is very dangerous! I once had a german stand in teacher in Sweden & he was f*****d in the head that`s sure. Acting as an Auswith guard!
as a Scotsman living on a lump of Granite in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of England I love Sweden. Stockholm in Particular. Im learning Swedish and planning a visit to Göteborg and Varberg in the near future. loving your videos.
Sounds like a brilliant plan! Gothenburg and Varberg are both really nice - but then again, I like Scotland so I'd prefer to visit some more places there instead 😂 Either way, thanks a lot!
Göteborg Is at its best in the spring, Varberg is at its best in the summer.
If you are going to make that trip, I would have also recommended that you also go north of Gothenburg, to, for example to Smögen. You will then see a dramatic difference in the landscape from Varberg to Smögen.
From beautiful sandy beaches to cliffs and pass the few fjords we have in Sweden (they are not as impressive as those in Norway, but still very very beautiful).
@@tangfors tack så mycket, that sounds like a good trip.
This guy is awesome! Poor introverted bastards had me rolling
That's basically describing all Swedes to some degree though 😀
Most thing i hate is the competition between neighbours. when i drive with my lawnmower or whatever it is , the neighbours will do exactly the same 10 min or an 1 hour after.
That's one of the most Swedish comments I've read in a long time :D
I thought you would say Bingo LOTTO lololol
Now that's something to really hate about Sweden. Totally missed that :D
This was so entertaining. I cannot imagine how disgusting the fermented fish would be, but what clever way to preserve protein in the old days! It’s surprising then, given modern refrigeration!
I would love to visit that special one week in Mid~Summer! It’s almost like Tasmania, Australia :)
Oh yeah that fermented herring was really important back in the days. People ate it on crispbread for breakfast in the 1700s cause it's preserved and lasts long...
Haha it really is a magical time! Every time summer comes I forget about all the other months of snow and rain!
The thing is that most of the reactors that try it is that do not look up how you are supposed to eat it.
What I hate about Sweden is you get labeled as “racist” for being proud Sweden
It's always a fine line between patriotism and going too far in that direction. Let's hope we all can agree on a reasonable level soon!
@@ThreeStarVagabond I just think being proud of being Swedish should be something good. I mean why should we be ashamed of who we are?
@@InsideoutJoy Agreed, as long as it doesn't hurt anyone. I don't really like any country that's way too patriotic, but Sweden is generally too little instead.
I think its a shame everyone thunk we are racist. If you just live here you'd see that the racist isnt realy there... just cuz we are a moslty white country does not mean were racist.
The worst racists are immigrants from the Middle east.
Not aiming too high seem to be a winning concept. Happiness is increasing with wealth, but only up to a point. Over that more wealth starts to make you more unhappy. It might be boring, but what do you prefer? Boring and happy, or extreme and unhappy?
I think that's a very Swedish way of looking at it! I don't disagree - but I can imagine that some people would prefer wealth. Or think that they would be happier if they could gamble to somehow both get wealth and happiness...
My grandmother and grandfather immigrated from Sweden ~1905. They taught my father sill making. I will be serving sill to my grandkids tomorrow. My second cousin immigrated ~1990. He does not brag. 8 of my relatives are engineers. I have 3 adult male relatives that are not engineers, but they do some engineering in what they do. I have owned 3 Saabs. I have 8 relatives with drinking problems.
That sounded so wholesome and nice, up until the very last sentence - sorry about that! But yeah.. I guess it's not uncommon for Swedes to drink a bit too much :/
Great video and hats off to your honesty. A lot of people otherwise sugarcoat things. There are of course many good points and I’m currently in Sweden because of those points.
But since this video is about list of things to hate, I would like to bring another point “Health Care”.
It’s very hard to get medical access except for emergencies. Also the emergency definition is quite subjective…
Thank you so much! And hmm... That's actually a really good point. I'd better make a note about health care. Maybe I need to do a "more things I hate" video after summer :D
@@ThreeStarVagabond wow… your reply was super fast…or maybe I’m used to delays now :D
Haha! I had the page up and saw your comment :D ...And your reply now for that matter!
All countrys have their issues. Love to live here and i dont regret moving here one bit.
Glad to hear it! And I totally agree that each country has its ups and downs - it's just a matter of what fits best for each person
The things I hate about America is all these ads all over the place every 2 minutes. I forgot what this video was all about with so many interruptions!
Since I get a few bucks from the ads, I can't really say that I hate them! To be honest, I've started paying for UA-cam Premium just to get rid of the ads. Their nagging worked on me :/
How many Sweds dose it take to change a light bulb. No matter how many sweds it will never be done as they will never reach a decision.
I'd love to argue against this, but I can't. I haven't gotten approval from the board of decision makers yet.
Bars close at 11pm, which is unthinkable for other countries , especially in Southern Europe. That's a big minus really.
Fair point! I think there are plenty of bars open after 11pm though - but places close pretty early in general.
@@ThreeStarVagabond I visited Sunday evening, around 10pm in May , the well known Bar-Restaurant ''Zum Franziskaner'' in the old town of Stockholm-very central- and they closed at 11pm . Saturday night they close at 12 .I guess not many places are open after 11pm in Stockholm, eventhough it is the capital of Sweden and has also lots of tourists .
@@johnsinger1887 Yeah, but that's a restaurant in a touristy area. If you go to The Auld Dub or The Big Ben Pub or other bars, they close at 3 AM. And nightclubs close much later than that. So, look up where to go.
@@ThreeStarVagabond I thought that in the touristic areas bars close later , bc tourists don't have to go to work the other day and can stay until very late in the night. BTW ,the Big Ben Pub that you mentioned closes on Sundays at 12 , so no big difference really.Obviously there must be some bars in Stockholm who close a bit later , but just think that in Spain people go out at 10pm or 11 pm. Big difference with Stockholm.
@@johnsinger1887 Yeah but people in Spain are weird. No one should start going out that late. This is not a negative thing about Sweden - this is a bad thing about other countries.
Out of curiosity. Which countries that have accepted more migrants than Sweden do you feel things have been working out well for?
As someone who is working in Sweden and with Swedish people for over 10 years now, I can say that there's just one thing I don't like about it - Swedes are too polite to tell you directly if they don't like you / your service/product / if something is not going to work out!
Finns and Norwegians, interestingly, don't have that - with them, you always know if there's a problem. With Swedes - you always have to guess or pick upon tiniest of hints :D
Otherwise, though - Sweden and Swedes are just great :)))
That's so spot on! Swedes always do this soft complaining thing. "I like it. But it would be nice if you did this thing like this instead" when they really mean that it's shit and you need to change it completely. Thanks for the comment :D
What do you want from people anyways? They produce only 1 thing if nothing else & it comes out of their a** ; 💩! Yeah smell that! People are disgusting!
As an American, except for the fish, I would suggest using a word like dislike instead of hate.
As a Swede, I hatefully and emphatically disagree.
@@ThreeStarVagabond I have a real question. I work with some Swedes here in the US. They are nice but one of them is always happy and joyous. We ask him, "Why are you always happy and the other two guys kind of downers"..he responded that he is from the South and they are from the North. Is the joyous guy messing with us?
@@peachtreewa5464 Haha. Honestly, people from the north have a reputation for being quiet and reserved, so it's partly true. They're famous for not saying much, and just making small noises instead of saying "yes" for example. But on the other hand, they reputation isn't that they're depressed or anothing - more like, quiet and content.
Pretty much same here in Finland. We have alcohol monopoly as well, but at least Alko is open from 9:00 till 21:00 from monday to friday and saturdays they close 18:00, but as in there sundays those are closed. Of course in finnish markets sells beer, cider, longdrinks and etc. that are maximum 5,5% strong (9:00 - 21:00) every day. Also gasolinestations and smaller kiosks can sell those too.
Same problems with immigration and right wing politicians always warns that it will be like in Sweden if we don´t start to do something about it. So we don´t have as big of a problem yet, but it is getting closer all the time.
But mostly all other things are about the same here with little differences. Postal services sucks and our trainsystem operating by VR have trouble to keep up. I have to use train every month and i´m so sick of it that most of the times there is delays at these days. I go same track little bit over 300km and it should take from 2h 10min to 2h 40min depending how many times the train stops at the way. Many times the train is delayed over a hour and that´s alot.
I guess it's not that dissimilar anywhere in the Nordics! We all have the same problems and the same crappy things to complain about. (And some pretty good things to be happy about as well.) Except that you bastards can buy decent beer in supermarkets! I would be perfectly happy with being able to get 5.5% everywhere...
@@ThreeStarVagabond Yes. That is quite new law that we can get 5,5% beers from markets now (since 1.1.2018). But even before that we had 4,8% beers in stores for decates (so called "keskikalja/mellan öl").
We (finns in general) have mocked swedish about the "class two beer" that you sell in markets. It sure taste like beer, but you can´t get drunk for drinking that. We think that is pure evil and should be illegal to sell to people. It´s like your sisters p*ssy. It has the smell and taste like any other, but it is so wrong to have it 😂.
Very accurate
Kom ner till Mullsjö så bjuder jag på surströmming och Karhut 😉
Haha fy fan, försöker du hålla mig borta? :D
5 stars of Awesome.
Thank you so much! :D
awesome
Jag lika sill med knäckebröd. I love herring. In the Netherlands, I love the herring stand.
That's ok, nobody's perfect ;D Nah, just kidding! I'm a weird Swede who doesn't like fish - everyone else does it :D
While I have more ties to Sweden than my wife, she loves the thought of a place where it's acceptable to not make small talk with people or expect demanding friendships. I CAN be that slap-happy, "Hiya!" American, but for me it's always been more an acknowledgement of the existence of others. I think, were nods and hellos not expected, I could adapt to that rather quickly.
Texas doesn't allow liquor stores to open on Sundays...and hard liquor can only be purchased between 10 a.m. and 9 p.m. So Systembolaget wouldn't seem too weird. We CAN now buy beer and wine on Sundays...and anything at a restaurant or bar with the proper license. But, like you, I remember when things were just shut down, here...which was weird when I moved to Texas from the Chicago area, where you can buy liquor at the grocery store.
Maybe she would indeeed fit in well in Sweden! Haha I'd love to hear both of your opinions if you do visit the place some day. Maybe it's not as bad as I'm portraying it - or maybe I'm actually underselling it since I'm so used to it... Hard to say!
Oh! I had no idea that Texas had regulations like that. I really thought that all of the US was a lot more about offering service at all times, and catering to individual freedom etc etc. It's fascinating just how much varies from state to state over there. It's really like a set of different small countries...that just happens to share the same currency, language and mentality to a high degree...
@@ThreeStarVagabond I've always wanted to visit, but never have. I have [distant] cousins, there -- and a cousin stateside who visits fairly regularly. I need to get over there!
Texas is a weird state. (Every Texan and American reading this is nodding in agreement.) In many ways, it deserves much of the criticism it receives, but in other ways it gets a bad rap. It's a lovely state (except the heat). But it does boast a manufactured sense of freedom when there are aspects of living here that are restricting. But ask many Texans, and they will say we're the most free state in the nation 😉
The U.S. really is like a set of small countries. I've always found it amusing when European friends who have only traveled around Europe knock Americans who have not left the U.S. But if you lay a map of the U.S. over Europe, it's about the same size. In that sense, someone who's been all over the country is like someone over there who has been all over Europe. It's a big, neat place in so many ways...even Texas!
@@ChristopherGronlund It's well worth a visit! But then again, there are so many places worthy of a visit and so little time...
I think I'd like to visit Texas. I like heat, and I'm really curious about what the place is actually like compared to what you see on TV. But unfortunately I've had my eyes set on a road trip through Vegas / California, so Texas might have to wait for a while. But I'm curious about it!
I think the geographic variety and the size absolutely makes the US comparable to all of Europe. And the mentality of each state differs a lot too. But I still think there's a difference when you travel to a country that has a different currency, a different language, a different way of getting around, different stores, etc etc. I find it really easy to get around in the UK, for example, but Greece or Lithuania or Romania are all very different to me..
"Fish obsession" doesnt bother me at all. Although I definitely dont like the pickled and fermented fish things,
there is plenty of fresh grilled or fried fish which is delicious. Lots of other fresh fish preparations too.
Including smoked fish. Not crazy about herring. Salmon better.
As for weather, yes, you mentioned the cold, but much worse is the 6 months of dark. I dont mind bright sunny cold days, but dark is pretty miserable.
Snail mail. Here, I thought it was only an epidemic of its own here in the US where our postal or shipping companies would lose mail, it would get destroyed or stolen in transit, or porch pirates would steal it. I stand corrected. Here the only way for us to cut down on the theft is to have a post office box, or some kind of locking container for the mail. Unfortunately, companies are requiring addresses outside of the post office to ship products to and that gives the porch pirates more things to steal unless we own a home and install a locking box to receive the packages. But this isn't possible for apartment renters. However, those that do live in apartments can occasionally have these packages sent to a carrier like UPS, FedEx, etc to be held for pickup. I wonder, is there an alternative carrier option like this in Sweden?
I think the porch pirate issue is much less of a problem in Sweden actually - at least yet. Most people use carrier companies with self-pickup, since many people live in apartments and we're used to a centralized postal service. It's just these last couple of years that delivery companies have started opting for this deliver-to-the-doorstep approach, and I really hate it. If I have any delivery option I'd rather go for the questionable PostNord rather than any company that delivers to my apartment door and just leaves it lying around...
I hate i have to pay to use the bathtoom at certain places. And pay for parking to shop at local grocery store.
Also hate that mayo cake with shrimp and other things in it.
Oh yeah! The bathroom thing is so annoying! Agreed on the shrimp thingie too. Parking doesn't bother me, 'cause I don't own a car - I just rent whenever I need to go somewhere. It's not very convenient to go by car in Stockholm anyway...
@@ThreeStarVagabond yea I can see that, not having to need a car.
@@Joe-eg7ml Yeah exactly. I try to walk to work as often as I can instead - and even if the weather is crap, there's still subways etc.
@@ThreeStarVagabond yea I'm just use to having a car. We have busses but everything is spread apart so it can take time. I have a family so it's easier for them to get around in a car. And we don't have to plan things, we can just get in the car and go. Even at all hours at the night. Also I'm a car guy. Have some sportscars, tuned hatchbacks and a truck for offroading. If I lived in Sweden I would probably just get a diesel truck. So I can haul groceries, furniture, etc. I rem when I first came there I use to ride the sprovan all the time.
@@Joe-eg7ml I think having a family automatically makes it well worth having a car. Or three... I like cars, and I'd love to have one or two but it's just not worth the hassle. I used to have one years ago but it just collected dust in the garage most of the week. But different things for different places!
LOL ... because of you and your presentation... I am now gonna visit SWEDEN! ... thank you my friend.
Haha not the consequence I thought would happen, but I'm happy to hear that! Thanks and hope you'll enjoy your stay 😀
thank you for this video. there are not a lot of content like this explained for english speaking audiences…hence the persistent cartoon image amongst foreigners consisting of just abba and the muppet chef 😂
Haha, I'll do my best to spread some local insights in that case! ...And come to think of it, maybe that would be another interesting video - things that annoy Swedes about foreign stereotypes about them... ;D
@@ThreeStarVagabond yesss ! 😂
@@ThreeStarVagabond
As a foreigner Im Hungarian and the things Sweden is known for both in Hungary and in Netherlands where I lived prior to Sweden is music. But Swedes know less about Swedish music than people outside Sweden
@@sellammar1 Hmm interesting! I guess that might be true, but I've never thought about it 😮
My grandmother Emma from Sweden took a trip from her US home back to Sweden. On her return trip to the US she accidentally ended up on the maiden voyage of the Lusitania out of the UK. I have her Second Cabin Tea Menu dated Monday September 9, 1907. The menu says Kippered Herring, Hashed Mutton, Broiled Beefsteak, Fried Onions, Mashed Potatoes and more items served cold. Enjoyed the other video too about what not to do there so if/when I am able to visit I will know what not to do, except I can't promise I will not speak well of Trump, like I mentioned in my comment on your other video about Gothenburg. I notice you did not comment on my comment about Trump, most politely on your part. Also I do consider myself to be Christian and religious and will be wearing a cross my mom used to wear before she passed in 1976. I am sad to hear Swedes tend to be agnostics or atheists. I like to think my little cross first belonged to Emma. How can you experience the glory of a new born child or marvel at every feather God gave an owl without sensing the wonder of God's creations and blessings for us? No need to respond if this made you feel uncomfortable. One thing I was wondering about is if equality and conformity are valued, how can you live under a monarchy, which is placing some WAY over others simply because of their family ties? Again no need to respond....
A lot of interesting questions, but I think you'll find that most Swedes just try to avoid topics that might lead to discussions where some party will get hurt. As long as people don't exessively bring up e.g Trump, religion, etc, everyone is free to have their own beliefs. However, criticizing the monarchy is a popular pastime for Swedes as well - so that's absolutely fine! :D Oh, and speaking of the Lusitania, that reminds me of the Tasting History channel, where he often discusses meals that people ate e.g at the Titanic. The description of the meals really reminded me of that!
Swedish Vikings practiced their Norse religion way before Christianity was forced upon them. So leave your Christianity to yourself, be respectful to the country you are visiting. Btw I'm an American , happily celebrating Norse Pagan path.
I don't know what ethnicity you are (maybe Dutch, judging by the accent?), but I think the only person likely to say Swedish people are pleasant would have to be a Swede.
Nah, we're quite well liked all over the western world ^_^
I have a feeling a more liberal systembolaget can solve all the issues mentioned :-P your videos are simple yet fun to watch. Keep up the good work!
Maybe... But I would actually be worried that the selection would become crap! But thank you so much either way! 😄
Hi! How are you? I have been watching your videos all this week and now that you mention the immigration problem i want to ask something. I heard that due to some immigrants the crime rate went up, and i wanted to ask if i go there (i am trying to learn from your culture and language before going) would i be accepted? I dont want Swedes to look at me and think "aaa f*ck, another anoying latino"
Thanks a lot for your videos!! Keep the good work!! :D
Thanks for checking out the videos :D I'd say that no one will bat an eye at latino visitors in Sweden. Unfortunately, given the recent crime waves and troubles here, people might give some ethnic people rude looks - e.g Arabs, some people from Africa, etc. But even then, no one will cause any trouble. Sweden is still a safe and mostly accepting country - especially for tourists and visitors. (But be forewarned that you might receive the same lackluster service as everyone receives in Sweden! Even natives.)
@@ThreeStarVagabond tusen tack!!
I'm swedish , look it, tall blond blue eyes and totally italian by nature, very friendly, loud, and use hand gestures. Where to live now?
Well, I'm sure you'd fit in in most countries! All of these "shouldn't do" things are just vague recommendations - there are always exceptions :)
Sorry but Swedens overrated and I’m from England! But at least we are honest that it’s a bit shit here. What you see is what you get here…Not sure why the idolization persists around Sweden.
The swedish dream is the international dream it seams. Greetings from Tunisia.
Maybe people are pretty similar in every country after all! Cheers!
@@ThreeStarVagabond hh yep house and car otherwise no woman will marry you lol
@@thelovertunisia Haha, exactly. Except in Stockholm where most people live in small flats without a car. But outside of the city, that's true.
No place is perfect in reality. Sweden is beautiful, I fell in love with stockholm when I went in 2016.
I wouldn't live there, since I'm Mexican I have different lifestyle and personality. But I'd visit at least once a year. Some day 😅
Really nice to hear that you enjoy the country, even if the lifestile differs from what you're used to. I love stuff like that, when people appreciate a country despite differences they may have :D
@ThreeStarVagabond I agree, it's great when people appreciate other countries and prefer to see the good in them. Most importantly, respect the culture and the norms.
I loved the city, the streets, the metro!
Beautiful and elegant people, I was there for a month on March. My expectations were surpassed. Keep up the good videos 👍🏽👌🏽
@@gcacho85 Very kind words! And I fully agree - let's hope I can do other places justice in the future :)
You are my brother couldn't agree with you more Pinpointed the problems 100 %.
Cheers man! Thank you 😀
I must be honest, integrating in sweden is pretty damn hard. :/ I come from America but I was born in South America, so I am brown. I also have a high specialized degree in math, and i am also a woman, still I find myself having a extremely hard time finding a job, so I needed to open my own company. :/ I really wish I could get a chance in a Swedish company but it seems i must be a native swedish speaker, I get it though, still, it makes it very hard to help other swedes too due to this mentality and closeness.
That sucks so bad! Hmm, well it is a bad market right now - lots of unemployment and the economy has been doing really poorly for a while. I'm sure it'll be better soon but it does take time for companies to start hiring again unfortunately :( And yes, it's definitely a big uphill battle, trying to compete against native Swedish speakers in a market like this unfortunately!
‘A noun for a group of Swedes should be an ‘ Indecision’. Hahahahaha!
Actually, carefully discussing and coming to a broader held view is actually refreshing in the hyped (egotistic) world of today. To a point ofcourse. As a dutch Frisian, where a certain consensus culture meant the difference between life and death in times of need, it’s what we need more globally. On the other hand: ‘two Frisians meeting is joy, three Frisians meeting is a row’ (old proverb).
Oh absolutely, there are good and bad sides to everything - and there are many positive things about this group consensus mentality. But it does get annoying at times. Hmm... I know way too little about Frisians but it does sound like an interesting people :D Oh no, I just looked it up on wikipedia, and there's a ton of interesting information here! Now I'm stuck!
You know…I subscribed to your channel because I plan on moving to Sweden, and then you drop this lol…I’m not frightened though, ive lived in Ukraine, Sweden can’t be worse than that
Haha, sorry for this nasty surprise! But yeah, it's still a good place to live. But we've gotten some really bad things happening the last 5 years or so. I hope it'll get better soon! Let's just hope we don't get invaded as well eh.. :/
Don’t worry, I haven’t unsubscribed lol…and I still plan on moving there despite the downsides. To be honest, the US is getting pretty bad too so Ima just join my best friend in Sweden. If I have to suffer…well, everything is better with friends, right?
@@coreyfaulkner1115 Absolutely! And I think you'll find it pleasant here. I know a few people from Ukraine who moved here many years ago and after the first culture shock they seem to really like the place :D There's always some downsides to every country after all, but as long as the positives outweigh them it's fine!
Staying for a short few months as a tourist..and loving it here..didn’t experience r*c*sm as a brown skinned..and I find swedes too friendly being an introvert myself😂
Haha I love that! First time I've heard anyone complain about Swedes being too friendly :D But happy to hear that you had a good time!
Because of the iranian regime it's not possible to buy cold beer in Sweden anymore. The country existed for 500 years and invented the refrigiator but it still not possible to buy a cold beer.
Lol!
Thank you
As a Swede i experienced more racism from immigrants than i have heard of other swedes being racist.
Edit: and the comment about weather seems like it's 20 years old or experiences from far up north. The summers keep getting longer and hotter than they used to and in some parts of the countries like the south the temperature is just barely under 0 during the winter and snow is almost non-existent in some places.
everyone is racist enough to survive.
@@tnekkc elaborate
Personally I'd say that I've seen more racism towards immigrants than the reverse - but then again, I'm not the most social person and I don't meet that many different groups of people.
And nah, I don't agree at all. 2018 was a hot summer, but it's been a lot of rain and cold days after that. Some warm weeks now and then (like June 2023) - but then it's followed by, for example, a really cold July.
it's not even close, immigrants are way more racist both towards swedes and towards each other@@ThreeStarVagabond
Most of those immigrants are comming from horrinble dictatorships where they have no rights @ all. Swedish laws & rules are nothing to them. They`ll test them & Swedes all they can.
"Swedish food": proceeding to show lahm bi ajeen disguised as pizza
Also called Swedish kebab pizza 😅
@@ThreeStarVagabond hehehe i know... :D
Haha we do weird things with food
Swedes complaining about the weather is always funny to me because i've often considered moving from Iceland to Sweden for the dry and warm weather and almost complete lack of wind.
You people basically live in the tropics comparatively. You can even use umbrellas because your rain is vertical not horizontal.
Also because everything is cheaper and less corrupt.
It's so refreshing to hear comparisons with Iceland :D Haha, there's always something to complain about one's country, isn't it? We have a distinct lack of volcanos though!
The food thing isn't really true. There's always a extra plate if you happen to be around at mealtimes. And of course I'll do the same. I don't really know where this rumour came from. I grew up in Stockholm and now lived in the countryside for 22 years. It's been the same everywhere.
I mostly added it to annoy people who complained about Sweden when this became a thing. But for me it's been mixed. Most people tried to offer food, but some families who were a bit on the poorer side or hadn't prepared more food had to struggle when situations like that came up. I was raised to not put myself in that position - always make sure I'm not hungry when I visit people etc.
Went for a Fica instead xD I think Sweden is similar to Japan - very beaurocratic where nothing gets decided for a very long time. And the conformity aspect as well..
Yeah, people say that the Swedish and the Japanese mentality is very much alike! I can't wait until I visit Japan to see for myself how much truth there is to that :)
@@ThreeStarVagabond And we pronounce our vowels the same way 😊
@@staffanpettersson359 Yes! So many similarities ;D
i wish to live there someday with a loving swedish man ❤❤❤❤❤
I'm afraid you are mistaken on the immigration. Sweden has taken more per capita than most countries.
Muslims do not integrate once the number exceeds a very small amount. Sorry if that is unpopular to say, but it is true.
Other minorities integrate, Muslims do not.
Ladies and Gentlemen!
I'd like to annonuce, the most heavy inflation of europe.
The winner iiiiiis:
Huuuungaryyyy!
I'm so sorry, but I have to take the "most high inflation in europe prize" and give it to Hungary. This years top was 25% and it is only the official annoucment, some products prices are went up 50-60% especially the grocieries.
Damn! That's insane! And salaries probably got 3-4% or something, if even that. Well, you certainly deserve the prize - and I'm sorry about it
Consensus, Conformity, state-owned companies, these things together i believe is called 'civilisation'. Maybe that's an outrageous opinion, but i grew up in the UK where these things are not common anymore due to decades of privatisation and the US' style 'cult of individuality', and the result is mistrust, social volatility and growing poverty. The rest though, i agree with you.
I think it'll be interesting to see how both the UK and Sweden develops in the coming decades. Everyone is complaining that everything is getting worse...so will things ever get better again, or are we all just changing, and change is always seen as bad?
Yeah the american `individuality cult` causes wealth despair & an unfair society that`s sure. The UK is less socialistic than Sweden that`s sure too.
There’s actually a good point with the consensus culture (in a certain case). Let’s say you are into a project and you disagree on certain basics and have your objection noted in the protocol. Later on, you have to make new decisions based on the basics you dismissed. Maybe this new issue have your approval,but said NO to the fundaments this issue is built upon …
“You voted NO to a nuclear plant being built but you voted YES to have it painted green, blue and yellow ….so are you pro or against nuclear energy?”.
I must point out that this is a case mostly in boards dealing with constructional projects, but may appear elsewhere.
Could be relevant! I think it's beneficial sometimes since it leads to less resentment in general. But it can be frustrating if people have a lot of "unnecessary" objections to things as well, or if people aren't seeing the big picture...
@@ThreeStarVagabond So true! I have just been voted chairman in a local club and being rather progressive and trusting people in groups or committees doing a good job I try to “distribute” (couldn’t grasp the correct word), my style is totally different from the last chairman, who’s still in the board. In order “not to rock the boat too much”, we have to do things step by step.
A final word, I do love that your comments are a bit ambivalent - you show that you dislike a lot about Sweden, as we all do, but you also show you embrace Sweden and cares about out country, culture and traditions. Keep on doing these fine videos. Btw, the backdrops are frigging amazing - you definitely show how beautiful and diverse our country is.👍
@@Soundbrigade Well, change is (often) good, so it's just beneficial for people to experience new types of leadership now and then! Even if it has to be one step at a time, unfortunately...
Haha, yeah absolutely - I love a lot about Sweden, but I dislike a ton of things as well. I think I have a slightly different view compared to many as well, being brought up with a lot of Finnish and Yugoslavian values. But in the end I really enjoy the country, so I'm happy to show it off in a good light ^_^
very calm and "peacefull" cities, makes me want o go to bed and be lazy..
Fair enough! I guess I'm a lazy bugger who goes to bed early almost wherever I go... Everywhere but at home.
I always dreamed about Sweden, until i visirted, in the same time i didnt like Denmark, until i visited. When i was in Sweden i like the nature, but the criminality is very high. My friend was attack by group of ,,not sweden guys´´ in the gamlastad 1st day he arrived. On the other side Denmark has no mounties but its far more safer.
Sorry to hear that! It really is becoming more unsafe - even though I haven't been exposed to such attacks myself. That sounds really strange, that they'd get attacked like that in a very touristy place! Well, glad to hear that Denmark felt safe at least....
I am surprised that Lars doesn't see the connection between one of the things he "doesn't mind" (high immigration from 3rd world countries) and high crime, which he hates.
as a swede i agree on point 1, at point 2 sill im born in the 90's and i hate fishbullar aswell bu free caught fish mmmm is yummy for my tummy.as a swede i think this is a dying culture as well surströmming i see this tradition dying everywere,and that is no-one likes it. it taste bad and smell bad. Point n3 is more loose as you move out to the coutryside were no one gives a fuck. if you have a house and you party,imagine you get alot of uninvited people. but sure in the cities they are more concervitive. point n4 systembolaget is the governments fucked up thing cuz like america we got to drunk and had a ban that is why it got created.nr4 i agree on you fully well its our useless poilitician that promiced everyone jobs but it just got flooded, and yeah i can leave the politics outside.point 5 have you been outside of stocholm? and i mean like realy outside ? people there will tell you if you dont like you to your face. and mo we dont backstab in the country. angoende postnord you are right.sj now will provide busses free of charge to what ever you are going.i agree with the cost of living and its sucks.no we dont have a differnt way of reporting it. its just classefied as such cuz its a statiscic that hasnt been formed yet cuz we never hav had this much crime of it.
Sweden is BORING
Just like me!
💯
Funny you should say that Swedish people have a hard time with irony because they take things too literally. That´s exactly what I have heard since I was a kid. Also that the Swedish have more respect for authorities than Danes. Do you have any comments on this ?
All I can say is that it's pretty much true! Swedes definitely have some (misguided?) trust in institutions in general. But as for irony...I'm not sure. It's probably that Swedes are afraid to be ironic with new people or in a different language mostly.