My first month in Stockholm

It’s already been more than a month since I arrived, and it feels like I’ve been living here forever, but at the same time, these weeks have literally flown by.

Stockholm and Sweden are amazing. There have been few times in my life when I’ve been left speechless just by nature alone, and here, it’s happened continuously. There are woods and forests everywhere, and if you get lost in them, you’ll almost certainly end up by a lake or the sea, and you can walk alongside them for hours, surrounded by beautiful nature.

Luckily, the weather has been mostly good, and since classes only started at the beginning of September, I took the opportunity to explore the city center, the old town, and lots of beautiful places around, and I can simply say I love this city. It’s calm, clean, very well connected, and everything works perfectly.

Then classes started. For this first period, I’m taking courses in Digital Forensics and Knowledge Management for Computer and System Sciences. So far, I’m really enjoying them, even though the workload is much higher than what I’m used to in Italy. In Italy, classes last about 4 months, and we usually take 4 courses per semester, whereas here, we still take 4 courses per semester, but they are split into two periods of two months each, with exams at the end. I think I prefer this system because, even though everything is more intense and “packed,” focusing on just two courses at a time makes it easier to concentrate on the subjects you’re studying.

At home, everything is going well. Let’s just say the first few days were a bit rough—partly because my room was empty and sad, partly because the corridor was half-empty (since it was still summer and people hadn’t arrived yet), and partly because, for the first time in my life, I was completely alone, thousands of kilometers from home. But it didn’t take me long to settle in, create my routines, and make this space my own. I’ve met lots of people from all over the world, and little by little, I’m making some friends, which was something I missed at the beginning. I hope we can break the ice with the guys in my corridor, as we barely say hi to each other right now, but they all seem like very nice and interesting people. The only exception is the girl in the room next to mine, who has been super friendly and cheerful since day one, and I always chat with her whenever we meet.

I’m also trying to do more sports, eat healthier, read more, and push myself to be more outgoing in general. What I want to take away from this experience, beyond the academic side, is exactly this: improving as a person, forcing myself to step out of my comfort zone, getting used to doing things I would never do at home because of the silly limits I impose on myself. Meeting people, learning about new cultures, adapting, learning to appreciate solitude, learning a new language, growing in general.

Despite some difficulties, I think I’m succeeding and always giving my best.