Stockholm: First and Lasting Impressions
Adriana Condarco-Quesada

Upon arrival in Stockholm, I was struck by the cleanliness of the city and the overwhelming posh boutiques and chic hair salons. My first impressions of Stockholm through drowsy eyes were those overshadowed by the stereotypes heightened by my 6-month sojourn in Flekke, Norway. Attending Red Cross Nordic United World College has been an experience that has exposed me to the Nordic identity, and I am not embarrassed to admit that the only prior connections I made to Norway were smoked salmon, towering blonde men and women, and overall prosperity due to an abundance of off shore oilrigs.
I was not aware of the historical ties amongst the Nordic countries, nor was I aware of the existing peculiarities and stereotypes amongst the Nordics themselves. I am proud to say that eventually, through countless conversations with Nordic classmates and lessons in basic Norwegian communication, I soon obtained the ability to differentiate between the melodic Norwegian tones and the throat curling Danish d's.

The Swedes however, eluded me in my quest to come to terms with the Nordic identity. Perhaps it was my lack of interaction with my fellow Swedish classmates or my fashion inferiority complex that set up this undesired blockade. Whatever the reason, my only impressions of Sweden in general arose solely from discussion with Danes, Nationalistic Norwegians, and representatives of the rest of the world.

I arrived in this state of ignorance to Stockholm alongside a mix of 21 Norwegians and Swedes ready to embark upon an extensive tour of the Nordic area culminating with a visit to St. Petersburg with a mission to identify and understand Nordic parallels while honing our journalist skills.

My firsts steps in the beautiful Gamla Stan were optimistic, but the prevailing materialistic air soon changed them into steps of disappointment.

From the offset I encountered many challenges, the most significant being the language barrier and although I was able to communicate in English with all the members of my group, the presentations by journalists and other representatives of Foreningen Norden spoke only Swedish or Norwegian. The little I was able to comprehend was through the help of a very patient fellow schoolmate and extreme concentration.
The second challenge was tangent to the first, and that was culture. Alongside a Swedish representative originally from Uzbekistan, who had been residing in Sweden for the last 4 years, we were the only non-Nordic representatives. I believe that in order for one to understand the complexities behind Nordic politics and dynamics, a thorough understanding of the culture and history is vital. Only recently exposed to both, I felt myself at a great disadvantage. Even if I were miraculously able to understand both Swedish and Norwegian, I would still feel at a great loss because I would be unaware of internal differences or cooperation.
When the opportunity to stroll through Gamla Stan finally arrived, I was overwhelmed. Already what I had seen of Stockholm through the thick glass of the tour bus had intrigued me greatly. The beautifully preserved architecture underneath the clear blue skies, surrounded by sparkling water and bathed in sunshine, was calling me. Smiling like only a tourist could and walking over the uneven cobblestone past endless boutiques on both sides, my smile soon evolved into what I can only imagine was a look of astonishment and disappointment.

I had heard about the Swedish design and fashion capital before, and gorgeous men and women who strut up and down in the streets. What I didn't expect was to find the streets flooded with young girls hidden by make-up and reminiscent of Barbie dolls. I entered the most popular stores and saw many men and women with a carnivorous craving to make the next fashion statement.
At some point, I realized that perhaps I had been disillusioned. The historic buildings were façades like those of the young girls. Had I reached the capital of materialism and were only Narcissists strolling the winding streets? I could no longer recognize the welfare capital that I heard so much about throughout the presentations and in textbooks. I was saddened by this first encounter and unfortunately to my greatest misfortune, this impression will remain with me.
My stay in Stockholm was too brief to say the least and I hope that another visit will clarify my first impressions from this trip. The only consolation I received was from a fellow Swedish group member who I met with to discuss the approach that we would take when writing our articles but which led to a discussion about Swedish stereotypes and what seemed to me, the prevailing materialism.

From our conversation I reached the conclusion that style is embedded in the Swedish culture particularly in Stockholm who sets the fashion for the rest of the Nordic countries. Together we decided that an enormous pressure exists amongst young people to remain fashionable and attractive, perhaps explaining the overwhelming materialism that I encountered. I determined that perhaps an access to all basic necessities and overall comfortable lifestyle, allows for certain excesses in the consumer market.
Although I discovered things about Stockholm that I did not expect to, I am not at all disappointed with my visit. It has only encouraged me to further delve into the Swedish culture and the Nordic identity in general. My short visit has only proved to me that the surface of a nation may be deceiving and very complex and that generalizations cannot be formed based upon such short encounters. I look forward to my next Swedish encounter, which I hope will not mold my current outlook on Swedish popular culture, but rather allow me to absorb more of the complexities underlying what I know was only the surface of what is a very culturally and politically dynamic country. Who knows, maybe next time I will also have a chance to absorb some of the Swedish style myself.