tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-48137412317099607492012-02-16T19:07:38.730+01:00A JOURNAL OF MY YEAR IN SWEDEN AS A ROTARY AMBASSADORIAL SCHOLARDamian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.comBlogger431100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-80756143580880064592010-05-21T08:53:00.000+02:002010-07-21T08:56:09.742+02:00

... in photographs. Lots of little things happened in May so I'm hoping these photos will help put you in the loop!

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-5887665983431845302010-05-20T08:16:00.002+02:002010-07-21T08:33:23.556+02:00

During May I visited the beautiful province of Småland, a few hours south of Linköping, on a number of occasions for both business and pleasure. First I was in Nybro visiting Thomas and Birgitta, the couple I stayed with for Christmas. It was nice to spend time with them catching up on all that has happened since last we saw each other. In Nybro I gave two presentations to Rotary Clubs and both

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-74525783324480213722010-05-10T17:12:00.000+02:002010-07-06T17:18:48.333+02:00

“Oh no not again! How can this train be late again!”These thoughts ran through my head as I stood on the platform in Alvesta, the cold wind biting savagely at any piece of skin I’d stupidly left exposed to it. Flashbacks of being stranded at Kalmar station in December flooded my thoughts. Luckily then Nybro and friendly faces where only 30km’s away. Not this time. Finally, 20 minutes late, the

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-88888459344053107682010-05-01T13:13:00.000+02:002010-07-06T17:19:34.722+02:00

I'd really hoped to have found time to write the blogs for this month, but alas it was not to be. In a few short minutes I leave for my 3 week tour of Europe and by the time I'm back there will be even more exciting things to write about. However, I will write the blogs for May, but they will only be added after my stories of my Contiki. I'm so sorry that I'm so behind, but when you hear what

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-65473920766122931092010-04-30T16:45:00.003+02:002010-05-13T17:13:43.269+02:00

“Jingle bottles, Jingles bottles, Jingle all the wayOh what fun it is to be in Uppsala today!” One never knows how these little songs start, but someone makes a comment, another a joke and before you know it you are all walking along the streets of the medieval town of Uppsala singing this little refrain for all its worth. But I get ahead of myself. Lets me first explain what is Valborg. It is

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-64877585099824915092010-04-28T12:00:00.001+02:002010-05-12T10:06:00.144+02:00

One of the best parts of being a Rotary Scholar is Rotary. Now I’m not just saying that to get into anybodies good books (although if it does it would not hurt), but rather because  with Rotary there is always something interesting and fun to do and this past week has been the perfect example. It started with a weekend RYLA seminar. For those of you who are not versed in the very in depth ways

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-10801296417932978002010-04-22T17:52:00.000+02:002010-04-22T17:52:52.029+02:00

I got the idea from a youth exchange friend of mine, I hope she doesn't mind. It's a little bit random, but I think you'll get the basic idea.Enjoy! Hej då

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-13962972661554220722010-04-08T14:58:00.000+02:002010-04-08T14:58:53.460+02:00

For those of you are don't speak Swedish the title of this blog is Easter. Easter time in Sweden has been really interesting because it seemed to me like a combination of Halloween, Christmas and Easter all thrown into one. Halloween because on Thursday the children dress up. The girls as witches, complete with broomstick, and the boys as gentlemen, they paint beards on their faces and wear old

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-8028008651021723582010-03-24T18:11:00.000+01:002010-03-24T18:11:23.053+01:00

The definition of spring in Sweden is when the average temperature is between 0 and 10 (just a little something I learnt in my Swedish geography class) and I'm pleased to report that things are finally starting to warm up here. The roads and paths are no longer covered in snow, I can actually see what color the ground is and there are patches of green grass appearing everywhere. However, there

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-37783101840481198662010-02-26T12:46:00.002+01:002010-02-26T12:46:42.015+01:00

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-48276862061799791022010-02-22T15:13:00.000+01:002010-02-22T15:13:06.168+01:00

After not seeing much snow in the UK I was really pleased to be able to show my sister Sweden and it did not disappoint. For almost 3 days after our arrival it did not stop snowing. It was Lara’s turn to be in awe all the time and I don’t blame her because it is beautiful. After the relentless pace at which we travelled through the UK it was nice to be able to do things in more of a relaxed

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-88990923556797955572010-01-26T15:12:00.000+01:002010-02-22T15:35:22.158+01:00

After the conference Lara and I made our way to another old friend, Shaun, who was kind enough to help us out with accommodation for the rest of our stay in London. The second last day of our trip we spent exploring the parts of London we had not already seen. Lara had been wanting to visit Madam Tussauds since she arrived in Dublin and who was I to say no. So off we went to get our photos taken

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-46956194813171951582010-01-24T15:12:00.000+01:002010-02-22T15:34:54.402+01:00

I know that it is quiet a mouthful, but that is the official name of what I've decided to call The Conference for short. Ambassadorial Scholars from all over the globe gathered at the head quarters of Rotary London for a 2 day conference. We spent the first day exploring the city of London by foot. We saw many places of interest including St Paul's Cathedral, Trafalgar square, Piccadilly Circus

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-26385049556176050112010-01-22T15:12:00.000+01:002010-02-22T15:34:19.475+01:00

Unfortunately Lara has decided that she no longer likes this game so I'm afraid you are going to have to listen to my monotone description of events, Sorry. As beautiful as Edinburgh is to walk in, it is a nightmare to drive in! We hired a car and after one or two wrong turns, a dead end and a little run in with the traffic cops I finally got the hang of it and we were soon on the open road

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-35285517283308394892010-01-18T15:12:00.001+01:002010-02-22T15:37:32.880+01:00

Damian: Our next stop was the Scottish capital. My friends had all been telling me to visit it and upon arrival it was easy to see why. It is like something straight out of the story book of the middle ages and ones imagination can’t help, but run wild at the sight of such historical middle age marvels!  We were only there for one night, but just being able to walk to royal mile from castle to

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-34828843172558598642010-01-16T15:12:00.000+01:002010-02-22T15:33:11.455+01:00

At this point I would like to introduce my guest author for the month. It is none other than my sister Lara, who flew all the way from SA to meet me in Dublin and has spent the past month travelling with me. Say hello Lara. Lara: HI!  Damian: As you can see she is not one for many words. No sorry that is crazy of course she is! come on say something more!  Lara: I have no idea what to say. Damian

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-32045960756122968912010-01-12T15:11:00.000+01:002010-02-22T15:32:25.293+01:00

The year started off a little slowly with all my friends and house mates spending the holidays at home, but as they started to return that is when things really started to become crazy fun again. At this point I would just like to bring to your attention that the average temperature in Linköping for the past month has been -20'C and as I'm typing this post there is easily 50cm of snow covering

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-65376173216673365342009-12-31T15:31:00.000+01:002010-02-22T15:36:11.381+01:00

Wow...Where do I begin? This has truly been an amazing month! I know I have not been very good at blogging the past month, but once you hear what I've been up to I'm hoping you'll find it in your hearts to forgive me. Well I suppose the best place to begin is at the beginning and that would be 1 December, World AIDS Day, and the official launch of my project ImPATCHit! Arriving back from Kiruna

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-37680846587869544062009-12-23T21:48:00.000+01:002009-12-23T21:48:29.544+01:00

I hope you enjoy this video. I thought I would try something different this time, but unfortunately it has taken me a little longer to complete than usual. I tried my best! It is just a random collection of photo's and videos documenting some of the things I did while in Kiruna  with some friends at the end of November. Kiruna is a city in the far north of Sweden about 200km above the Arctic

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-16649194836273602752009-11-26T18:58:00.000+01:002009-11-26T18:58:08.619+01:00

Do you know that feeling? You know that one you have when you have been waiting almost 23 years for something to happen, say go on a very special trip, and now as you sit on the bus, travelling the last stretch home, it all seems a little unreal? My trip to Italy was so perfect that it almost seems like it was a dream and a big part of me is sad that it had to end. “Why are you always smiling?”

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-84918178149205009982009-11-13T15:46:00.000+01:002009-11-13T15:46:10.508+01:00

In another moment of spontaneity a couple of weeks ago my two travel buddies, Dani and Silke, where able to persuade me (not that I really needed much persuasion) to join them on a trip to Oslo. A one night, two day trip travelling with none other than inexpensive Raynair Airlines. So it was that very early last Saturday morning (I'm talking about 3 in the morning) I found myself braving the

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-91143677337011624372009-11-03T18:11:00.001+01:002009-11-05T19:51:41.618+01:00

I’m really sorry about not writing a proper blog last week, but it has been a rough past two weeks. I can’t exactly put my finger on what I’ve been doing, but I hardly seem to have a free second. The majority of last week was spent writing my exam essays. I know it may not sound like it is very difficult, but if your studies for the past couple of years has comprised solely of solving

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-45682293354459319742009-10-27T11:56:00.000+01:002009-10-27T11:56:11.588+01:00

As I sit here typing this post, I should actually be typing my two 5 page essays for my Business Ethics take home exam. However, I'm having so much trouble writing them that I seem to be finding any excuse not to. So here I am typing this blog. As not much new and all together interesting has happened this past week I have decided to try something a little different for this post. In the spirit

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-3796118848243660322009-10-19T18:05:00.001+02:002009-10-19T18:05:55.472+02:00

I know this might seem like a strange title for a post, but so much has happened in the past week I really wanted to talk about it altogether. Plus counting weeks is a very Swedish thing to do especially at university where each weeks timetables are completely different. It really helps keep track of what is going on. Anyway after this little piece of information let me tell you about week 42.

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-50458257339140809002009-10-15T16:19:00.000+02:002009-10-15T16:19:29.370+02:00

...this was not like any of the other parties I had been to because this one was organised, with the help of ESN, entirely by exchange students! I volunteered to work at the party because I still have the RAG (Reach out and Give - The charity committee I was part of in SA, where we organised parties to raise money) blood running through my veins and I was curious to see

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-85679958053004406152009-10-05T23:33:00.000+02:002009-10-05T23:33:17.761+02:00

This past weekend was one of the most inspiring weekends I've had in a very long time. Maybe it had something to do with having a lot of time to think because I did not understand much of what was going on or that I always feel so capable when I'm at a Rotary function. Capable in the sense that I know no matter what, anything is possible with Rotary! I think I'm getting a little ahead of myself

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-17860336453765862962009-09-27T21:48:00.000+02:002009-09-27T21:48:51.036+02:00

It was last weekend that I went on my first trip out of Sweden. Now to which country that was exactly took me a little while to figure out! Roughly 3 weeks ago when I was approached about the trip the conversation went something like this, "Hej Damian. Do you want to join us on a ferry trip to Helsinki?" "How much does it cost?" "I think about 500 crowns." "For the whole trip?" "Yes!" "Ok,

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-73739138771549371522009-09-24T12:09:00.002+02:002009-09-24T12:12:33.348+02:00

...was both fun and maybe a little bit of a bad idea. The only reason I say it was a bad idea is because I've now been suffering with a cold for over 2 weeks and it just won't go away! It's one of the reasons I've not been able to post something in a while, but enough about the bad part let me tell you about the fun part. In Sweden there is this rule/law/saying thingee (not exactly sure what to

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-58024929940150323712009-09-09T22:31:00.000+02:002009-09-09T22:31:02.517+02:00

...is the first official Swedish I learnt in my classes last week. (It means; my name is Damian.) Not only did parties dominate last week, but I also started with my first classes. (Now do you understand why I'm so far behind on my blogs?) The education system in Swedish universities is very different to what I'm use to, with most people only following one subject at a time. The catch is you

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-61206428072762267882009-09-09T21:58:00.000+02:002009-09-09T21:58:00.107+02:00

...is something the Swedes love to do and I'm not complaining! The reason I'm so behind on my blogs is because there has been an array of different parties that I had to attend and even organise. I actually feel a little guilty about writing this blog because I'm scared the Rotarians reading it might think I'm not studying and doing my ammbassadorial duties, but that is not the case as I'm busy

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-82235302198501300172009-09-08T15:09:00.005+02:002009-09-08T16:02:10.385+02:00

...was the perfect way to once again admire the natural beauty of Sweden.The canoe trip is one of the most popular events hosted by ESN with people queing on a weekly bassis in their hordes to get a ticket. Luckily for me I have contacts and I was able to go on a private trip with Yvonne and some other friends from Germany. We were only six and were able to sit three-three in two boats. The canoe

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-17858952261489901242009-09-08T13:54:00.005+02:002009-09-08T15:07:37.847+02:00

...was the name given to one of the weirdest things I've done in a long time and I think those who know me will tell you that I've done some pretty weird things.Linkoping is a student town, as I'm sure you've noticed, and with any town where there is a constant in and out of young people there is a lot of furniture being sold. Now it was one such piece of furniture that Myron had decided he just

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-78546376503037723632009-09-02T19:34:00.003+02:002009-09-02T20:04:43.806+02:00

...was something I'm not easily going to forget for two very simple reasons.Now those that know my mother will know that she is a very particular person and it's something we all love about her. Now IKEA would be my mom's paradise!IKEA is a Swedish trademark known all over the world except in South Africa. You should have seen the looks I was given when I told people I'd never heard of it before,

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-38243047726418052652009-08-26T14:08:00.007+02:002009-08-26T14:50:17.890+02:00

...is the LiU version of Oktoberfest!But this post does no start there because this is the perfect opportunity to tell you about queueing. Yesterday I decided I'd avoided the queues at the admin building long enough and I should really go and get my student card. So off I went just after 12, pushed through the crowds to the ticket machine and got my number, 751, but when I looked up at the number

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-61312360012122738152009-08-26T11:15:00.006+02:002009-08-30T02:30:43.219+02:00

...is where I ended up going on Sunday afternoon. (instead of my cycle.)I lent a bike from my friend Myron (from Germany) who had the flu and decided to spend the day in bed. Thomas (from Belgium), Astrid (from France) and I set off towards Berg and after deciding to take the road less travelled stumbled upon the nature reserve. Its not very big and it only has two viewing points where bird

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-15028541513457601372009-08-26T10:53:00.004+02:002009-08-26T12:43:08.101+02:00

...has given up the ghost.I had planned to write this awesome post at the end of my year about how great my bike was, how it survived the year and was my trusty companion through it all even though I had my doubts about it in the beginning. Complete with photos of us at different exotic locations.Unfortunately that will not be the case as after two weeks of loyal duty my not so trusty, blue, red

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-45820302060130653302009-08-22T16:42:00.005+02:002009-08-22T17:03:01.983+02:00

...was real funNorrköping is a smaller town about 45 minutes from Linköping and it hosts another of the universities campuses where one of my German friends studies. She invited us to visit because of this big festival in the town. August is a very popular time for festivals in Sweden because its coming to the end of summer and everyone is making the most of the sunshine.We left at 17:00 from LiU

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-28092029665313174362009-08-19T18:51:00.004+02:002009-08-19T23:45:58.970+02:00

...have been really chilled. Have not really been up to much since the adventures of the bicycle trip.On Sunday I was invited by Rotarian Claes and his wife to their house for supper. We had a lovely meal of wild yellow mushrooms, that they'd picked themselves that afternoon while on walk in the wood, nettles and cheese pie and salad out of their garden. It was really nice to just relax and talk

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-54845645019854835522009-08-18T09:42:00.005+02:002009-08-20T00:03:00.284+02:00

...Or so we thought!In Linkoping cycling is the most popular form of transport and everyone has a bike and as I think you've already realised, we exchange students have also bought ourselves bikes and it was last Sunday that we decided to really test them out.We had come up with this brilliant idea while city exploring on Saturday, but said we would wait and see if it was going to rain. So a

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-85615043351056004902009-08-16T09:37:00.006+02:002009-08-16T10:40:01.751+02:00

This has been a rather busy weekend, but I enjoyed every moment of it!On Friday I decided its time to get myself some transportation. So off I went to the closest Turkish second hand bicycle shop I could find and bought myself a set of wheels! However as I sit typing this post I'm not entirely sure how long this bike is going to last! The Turk was like , "for you...I make special price!" and

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-88263637848190456712009-08-13T16:03:00.003+02:002009-08-13T17:06:07.981+02:00

What a beautiful day it is! I got in late to a not so cold( only 13 degrees), but raining Linkoping last night and was warmly greeted by Claus (I think that is how you spell it) and Inger. I was so tired, but relieved to finally be here. They took me to a F1 like hotel and you can imagine the first thing I did was sleep! Ater waking late and eating breakfast and sleeping again, Inger took me on a

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-58792753039454246782009-08-12T17:07:00.003+02:002009-08-16T09:36:32.855+02:00

Can't believe I'm sitting in Amsterdam!I can't say much cause I only have so much time on the internet.My flight was long and a little uncomfortable, but I'm glad to say incident free...except for the very special beer I had to throw out, but I'll explain later!Amsterdam itself is very cool, its just a pity it's raining. I took a cruise on the canal and saw all the famous buildings and then went

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4813741231709960749.post-87451020309678991472009-05-14T14:54:00.000+02:002009-05-14T15:06:28.521+02:00

When I went to Turkey a few years ago as a Rotary Youth Exchange Student I made a very crucial mistake. I lost every single one of my photo's and on returning to South Africa did not have a single anything to help me remember my 2 months I spent there. It did not help that my blazer with all my badges was stolen upon my return either!This time I promised myself I would not make the same mistake

Damian Lahoudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12379370740370441484noreply@blogger.com8