Yesterday as I was waiting for the rest to arrive for a day out at Haga and visiting a second-hand shop, I thought.

It seemed like just another day out with my friends, waiting for them to arrive, I could be at Orchard MRT waiting, they would call to tell me they'll be late, I would be waiting watching the world go by. It's very much like that.

But no, it's not. I'm not at Orchard MRT waiting for my friends, I'm in Gothenburg, for goodness's sake! Sweden! Europe! Halfway round the world! I'm at a place where the sun shines on me but I'm not perspiring, where the cool wind lightly kisses my face. I'm in a place where the native ladies could wear Phua Chu Kang-style rubber boots and actually look good in them.

It's all too surreal. To be in Sweden and living independently for 5 months. It feels normal sometimes though, like sometimes I'll forget that I just arrived here less than two weeks ago because things have become familiar to me already.

And all of these, all of these, it is wonderful. Life is peaceful here. True, I don't go to the parties often, I don't get involved very much, but still, I enjoy the life here. I enjoy the serenity, because that is what I have partly come in search for. I like the having-to-do-nothing feel, just doing the mundane stuff, thinking about what to cook for my next meal, where to go next, meeting up with friends for a lunch or picnic, to discuss possible travel plans, finding out where the classes are and so forth.

You have to get out of your life you're so used to sometimes, if not you'll get too fixated on certain things. To get used to a whole new environment, maneuver the unfamiliar transport system and systems of getting things done, getting your groceries and cooking alone, to live alone in a foreign land. It's definitely an experience. I don't want to say things like "I'm starting to miss it already", because I want to live the moment. But yes, I will definitely miss it one day.