EXAMPLE PAGE - SCHOOL BROCHURES - SSE - Flipbook - Sida 18
Adapting to life in Sweden
– cultural codes
QUEUES (KÖER)
SHOES (SKORNA)
Swedes queue for their turn. Many services such as
pharmacies and government offices have small take-anumber dispensers that help people keep their place in
line. Cutting a queue is very rude.
Swedes almost never wear shoes in their homes, when
you visit a Swedish home or apartment, you will probably be expected to take your shoes off immediately inside the front door. This keeps sand and gravel from the
streets and pavement out of the home. You may choose
to bring a pair of indoor shoes to change into if you are
not comfortable in your socks/stockings.
PUNCTUALITY (PUNKTLIGHET)
Swedes are punctual. Wasting someone else’s time by
keeping them waiting is seen as impolite. Lectures and
lessons start on time. Appointments for doctors are
for that exact time; if you are late, you will lose your
timeslot to someone else and/or be charged for missing
the appointment. If you are running late to an interview or appointment, do call and explain that you are
late.
MEALS (TACK FÖR MATEN)
When you are invited home to a Swede for a meal,
whether formal or an informal, you are expected as a
guest to thank your host/hostess for the meal. A simple
“thank you for the meal” or Swedish “tack för maten” is
the standard response in a Swedish home to any meal
that someone else has prepared, breakfast, lunch or dinner.
SMOKING (RÖKNING)
Smoking is not allowed in public buildings, including
restaurants and pubs or on public transportation. Many
apartment buildings also prohibit smoking inside. In
such cases you can only smoke either in designated
smoking rooms indoors or outside the building (but not
under someone’s window or balcony).
RESPECTING QUIET HOURS (LJUDMÄSSIG
HÄNSYN)
Swedes can be sensitive about their quiet hours, which
are 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. If you make what is taken to be
a lot of noise during quiet hours, you should not be
surprised if a neighbor complains and asks you to lower
the volume. As rental apartments are very scarce, do
respect quiet hours because if you annoy too many
neighbors with your noise after hours, you can be evicted from your apartment.
18
GENERAL RIGHT OF ACCESS
(ALLEMANSRÄTTEN)
Sweden has a unique right of access which applies to
private uncultivated land. According to this right, you
can camp away from houses for one night in small tents,
pick mushrooms, forest berries and flowers which are
not protected, endangered or fenced off. You are not allowed to take living wood, bark, leaves, bushes or nuts.
You also have right of access to beaches and swimming
areas adjacent to private blocks of land. The guiding
principle is that you leave the place as you found it and
take any litter with you. Note that you are not allowed
to drive cars across open land or on private roads.
