ONLINE REFLECTION 2

Dear classmates, in the last input to this blog we had the opportunity to reflect on everything we want. After thinking about it, I have decided to share with you what my Erasmus experience has been like for me.

I arrived to Karlstad eight months ago with a mix of different feelings: happiness to start this new adventure, sadness leaving my city, family and friends, fear of my horrible level in English and curiosity about Sweden.

I decided to choose this destination with three goals: improve my English, get to know the Swedish culture and finish my second degree. But I never thought what this experience would mean for my life.

Now, Karlstad is not only the name of the university anymore, where I wanted to study one year ago.
In Karlstad I have experience a lot of feelings: funny (thousands of parties, snow fights, being lost in the forest...), interesting (dinners with new dishes, spend time with people from places I had never heard about, Swedish special celebrations...), but sad ones too, because I am family person and it sometimes has been hard to be so far away from my people.

In Karlstad I have learnt to live by myself. I have become an expert of cooking "Spanish omelets" (I think is the only dish I can cook decently...). I am not reliant on my car anymore. I have had the opportunity to live through an extremely cold winter (in my city I thought that 5 degrees was coldest day of my life). Also, I have valued a bit more my country, my city and our way of being.

Finally, in Karlstad I have a family: people from different parts of the world but their nationalities don't matter because they are with me for everything. They are the most important part of my Erasmus, because without them Karlstad had been just another city. I know the distance will be a problem when we come back to our "real lives", but we will be in touch and I will have free accommodation in different countries.

Now, eight months later, what about my goals? I have met Sweden and its culture thanks to wonderful Swedish people, my degree is almost finished and my English... Well, the Erasmus is not over yet so I can continue improving.

To finish my input, I want to offer one advice: if you still have the opportunity to spend a year abroad, do it! And if you can go to the south of Spain... It will be your best choice ever.

I hope you enjoy reading my reflection!

ONLINE REFLECTION 1

The goal of this reflection is think about different aspects of daily life that I think or hope will appear, change or disappear in two different time periods.

On one hand, in relation with the first time period (1-5 years from now) I am going to talk about the following aspects: read the newspaper and go to the cinema. Why? I am going to explain them.

To my mind, read the newspaper is a daily aspect which is going to disappear. Nowadays, with the smartphones, tablets, laptops and TV with internet access, is not necessary buy the newspaper every morning. The advantages are many: cheaper, more comfortable, and more careful with the environment… But we cannot forget that exist people who enjoy reading the newspaper whereas they drink a coffee or take the breakfast with their partners. The majority of that people will continue buying the newspaper every day. 

However, that custom is not common in the new generations so the newspaper will disappear.

In relation with go to the cinemas, in my opinion that will disappear too. Some years ago the perfect plan for a couple, for a band of friends or just for a boring day was go to the cinema. But now, the majority of people prefer watching movies at home, where is cheaper, more comfortable (and it is a pity, but we are in a lazy society) and where the TVs are bigger and bigger.

On other hand, according to the second time period (6-50 years from now) I have selected two aspects: printed books and spend time with the family and friends.

The first one, I think that the custom of read printed books is going to disappear for the same reasons than the newspapers. Currently, buy an electronic book is cheaper, more comfortable to transport (taking account that we can read a book in mobile phones, tablets, laptops and ebooks and store hundreds of them in the same device) and, obviously, we will save more trees. I have put the printed books in the second time period because to my mind it is a stronger market than newspapers. Everyone has printed books at home, work and school, but bit a bit the idea of the electronic books have more advantages is more evident.

The second aspect of daily life that, to my mind, is going to change is the time that we spend with family and friends. The base of every society has been the family, but that idea is changing with the modern life. How can we see this change? It is easy: familiar dinners, parties with friends… And not too much communication! Apps like Whatsapp, Twitter or Facebook don’t allow have a real conversation. Sometimes it seems like we prefer talking by the mobile phone or the laptop instead in a coffee shop with that person. If we don’t change these kinds of behaviors, in 50 years maybe won’t exist the real relationships, and that would be sad and terrible for the society. But it is true that our busy life, the globalization, and the importance of speak different languages affect to our friend and familiar relationships. People travel, work abroad, but thank if these technologies is easier to be in touch. In my own experience, thank of that apps, right now I can know about my family and friends as I were with them, with the difference that I am in Sweden and they are in Spain. However, when I come back, I will leave a bit my mobile phone and I will enjoy drinking a coffee, a beer and having a real conversation with them.

To finish, I hope you enjoy reading my reflection. Thank you.