Language Progress

Reading the local paper is VITAL to learn the top fika spots in the region (good Swedish practice!). Graham and I have so far visited 4 on this list. Tegnérs is the winner so far, but obviously more research is needed.

Graham and I both passed our Swedish exams in May, qualifying us for… the next level in our respective Swedish studies. Pandemic times have not been so great for meeting and talking with people, but we are reading in Swedish, and watching news in Swedish, and we have Swedish sub-titles turned on everything we watch on Netflix, whether it is Swedish language or not.

During my visit to the Tick Bus I navigated my appointment in Swedish (though my accent, as usual, prompted questions about where I am really from.) My morning kayaking sessions have been great for listening to and practicing Swedish, and my paddling/nature vocabulary is getting better. Arne in particular speaks really slow and clear when there are harder or longer words, which is really helpful!

I have written some emails in Swedish, and at work I always add a disclaimer at the bottom:

Jag är inte så van att skriva på Svenska, så vänliga förlåta mina språkfel

I’m not used to writing in Swedish, so please excuse any language errors

In non-work contexts with folks I am unlikely to correspond with often, I usually don’t add a disclaimer. As an example, I did some online ordering from the outdoor/camping store, and one of the things was a lightweight plastic tick remover that can be used with one hand. When the box came…. only the paper packaging for it was included but the plastic card was not on it. You can see the ripped part where the glue must have come off, but unfortunately it was not in the box either (somewhere on the floor of a fulfillment warehouse there is one kicking around underfoot). This called for a complaint email, so I wrote one up that I hope struck the right balance of polite, clear, firm, and grammatically comprehensible. Heja! I got a quick response and a new tick remover in the mail!

I was a little worried about losing ground over the summer with no practice, but between a bit of reading, a bit of writing, some listening at the kayak club, it looks like we will still be functional come August.