“You can get off at this stop or the one further down the street, or at McDonald’s next to the big shopping center and from there…” My mormor (grandmother) is directing my eyes to possible ways to get to my school while I stare out of the window of the big blue bus. Tomorrow will be my first day of school and I still have no idea how to get there from the bus stop or, from what I understand, bus stops because there seems to be more than one choice. I am getting frustrated very quickly; I am lousy with directions and, even at home, I can’t find the way from my house to ELHS. Now my grandparents are expecting me to know where to go after only showing me once? HA!

I ask them to walk with me the same way over and over from Karro (my school) to the bus stop. I am trying hard to remember where to turn, finding landmarks that will help me recognize the turns to make, but I can’t pay attention. I love public transportation, though; just the idea of getting on a bus and getting to your destination easily is new for me, and I enjoy that. It’s just hard in the beginning when I am not sure what I am doing.

Many people have asked me what I miss about home and if I miss knowing my way around – I laugh every time. I’ve learned more about my surroundings here in two months than I have about my surroundings in Auburn/ Lewiston in six years. I’m told that this is because I never had to find my own way to and from a destination at home and, when I get back to Auburn, I am going to try to find my way around on my own!

Now I can find the best café, the cheapest place to buy candy, and two of the movie theaters in the area. I can also get to the theater and my friends’ bus stops as well. I am thankful for the long walk to and from the buses; I take in the area, breathe in my new surroundings.

It’s beautiful; rebro is beautiful; every morning’s walk makes me glad to be here. rebro is like a typical old city, similar to Old Town in Portland. On my way from Karro, instead of just walking on the sidewalk, I take a shortcut by walking through the garden where there are still flowers and a sculpture of a man pushing a rock the size of himself. It’ s almost necessary to stop and look at him, he looks like it’s really difficult to hold the weight up; it’s very lifelike. There are always a lot of people sitting in the garden because, from there, there is a picturesque view of the castle.

I keep walking; it’s about three blocks to my bus if I want to go this way today. I cross the bridge that goes over the mote of the castle. I walk quickly because a.) I’ve been very afraid of bridges for as long as I can remember and b.) I want to get to the smell of the bakeries on the other side. Nothing beats the smell of a bakery in rebro. The cold air is so stiff but the smell of cinnamon somehow drifts along, makes it to your nose, and you find yourself defeated by the cinnamon buns that some master chef has put in the oven.(That’s how they get customers-they leave the door open!) More cafés and more shops with the occasional salon in between describes the rest of the way there. Many shoe stores and restaurants with people sitting in large windows so they can watch the people passing by.

This is how I perceived this scene in late August. It is October now, and the time of year certainly makes it all different. The colors on the trees are admittedly not as varied as those in Maine/ New England, but it’s still gorgeous. Now, with the colder weather here, the people are different; walking around with scarves pulled securely around their necks and hats placed firmly on their blond heads, they rush to escape into a warm building.

City life certainly has its own special magic about it, something you can’t quite put your finger on but something that intrigues you nonetheless, and rebro, with its present yellow and orange tints, truly knows how to use its magic to entrance its people.

Want to contact me?

e-mail: [email protected]

address: Angelika Guy, Huginvgen 12, SE-715 31 Odensbacken, SWEDEN