Something that really caught my eye on my first day in Europe was the abundance of cobblestoned paths. I was mesmerized with the architecture there and I felt it was just yesterday when I used to read about Europe, Vikings, Cobblestones, etc.
Dec ’16. First day in the city and I was walking around, talking to my team members about work and the nightlife of Lund. Life just stops around 8 p.m., that’s what they told me and I was not sure how to react as I am a morning person.
After a quick walk, we went to dinner at Saluhallen which is a covered food market with restaurants, drinks and exotic cuisines. We saw all the restaurants, and different types of cheeses and breads. There was this chocolate shop named Ahlgren which had several varieties and I knew I would have to come again to try some and buy a lot. Looking around, we decided to go with Chinese cuisine and as we all were really hungry, we did not stop eating.
Once we were done with the dinner, my employer helped me get a taxi. We waved each other goodbye and I came back to my hotel. I was jet lagged as it was a 6 hour difference (EST & CET). I did not want to sleep, so I just talked to my family, friends, watched Netflix and eventually slept.
Next day, I had to get up early as it was a team sync up. I had to get to Medicon’s office by myself. Locating the office was easy (thanks to Google Maps and the tallest Ideon building) but getting in was not! I did not have the ID card so I had to wait outside for someone to come and let me in. My team members were still on their way to office.
It was freezing outside which made me realize why my friends were laughing at me when I told them about my Sweden trip. I would not say I hate winters but I think winters hate me — I have to wear many more layers than most people to keep myself warm! I could imagine my next two months now. I was a little scared but with three years of New York’s winter experience, I was telling my inner self that I will manage this. Amidst all these thoughts, I saw a lady going in and after all the introductions, she let me in. Phew!
After our meeting, we had lunch in Cafe Inspira in Medicon. I must say the food was quite different from the cuisines I am familiar with. It was different in taste, I would not say good or bad, it was different. I knew it will take me time to adjust to this taste and my colleagues did mention the same thing. It was quite interesting to hear all of their experiences and I was learning from them. I came back to the hotel after sometime and I wanted to sleep as I was tired. I had to reply some emails, I had to talk to my family, friends but I was too tired to do that and with laptop in my lap I just dozed off.
To be continued.. Europe Diaries | Lund | Part IV
Parul Joshi 