How Swede it is

10 days into my trip and I’m starting to get a little bit homesick.  I’m loving the trip so far, and having a great time exploring and getting lost in Stockholm/Uppsala (though I could do with getting a little less lost sometimes – that’s a novelty that could soon wear off!), but I’m starting to miss some of the people I’ve left behind and won’t see again for some time (if at all). 

It’s a strange dynamic, homesickness – on the one hand you’re having an exciting adventure but on the other you’re missing all the familiarity of being at home.  I think for me a large part of it is that I’m spending a lot of this trip so far thinking about how great it would be to share this trip with some of them – touring the country, getting lost looking for a train station, swearing about the cost of a beer here (still $20 a ‘pint’). 

But travelling alone has its advantages also – you don’t have to account for anybody else, and you can usually do all the things that you want to do, without having to worry about making sure you tick all the right boxes to keep people happy.

In conclusion, I am a little homesick – but homesick for some of the people I left behind.  This feeling  usually only lasts as long  as it takes for me to look outside at the sunshine and blue skies (as opposed to the wind, rain, and cold), and if things get bad then I will still have my emergency marmite!