I’m thinking about moving to Sweden.
I need a change from living in the UK and have no commitments, so nothing to lose. I’ll be selling everything I own besides my bike and will have about £2500.
I’ll be staying in Jarvso bikepark to start with and hopefully visiting Are bikepark too.
I’ll then be looking to try and stay in Sweden and get some sort of job, probably menial but hopefully at least one level above cleaning toilets.
I’m starting Swedish language lessons in a week.
Can anyone here who has visited or lived in Sweden offer any tips or advice?
Tack!

Hi, I live in Sweden, moved from the UK two years ago. The main issue you will have is getting a personal number . Without this you can’t really get very far. To get one you need a job or a partner here. I can give you some advice but there is a lot to write !

Do you have any qualifications or skills in terms of a job?

I worked there off and on for a number of years….lived there for about 6 months. The single biggest issue for me was coping with the reduced daylight hours. Its brutal in winter, now would be a good time to visit and see how you cope.

lykke til!

Hi howsyourdad
Thanks for the reply.
I don’t have any qualifications and only audio-visual skills really.
I had read that as an EU member I’m able to work legally, is that right?
Where do you live and work?

I’m working there now. It’s bloody lovely 🙂

Daylight not much of an issue for me as an office-bound worker – it’s still dark when you get up and dark when you leave work…

Hi scrumfled
I can’t go until June
I think I could cope with hardly any winter light as long as there is less rain than Wales? 🙁

Where are you based molgrips?

Sundsvall. Only 3 days/week though.

I think that’s only a few hours north of Jarvso.
What’s the weather like generally?

Yes as molgrips says it doesn’t really make a difference as an office worker. The winters are long however, but it makes the summers even more fantastic, and they really are brilliant.

As a member of the EU you can legally stay here I believe, but without a personal number you can’t do anything . You can’t open a bank account , you can’t get insurance, there is some issues with getting medical care , you can’t even get a mobile phone, join a gym or open a library account. it is utterly key to life here.

I work as an engineer for a large Danish company, I had no problems getting work as there is a shortage here and there Is work to be had for sure
I’m sure you could get a job with your skills. They are very much a CV based country, sending in CVs is the way it’s done, plus linked I and all that corporate sh*te 🙂

I live in Göteborg but I’m trying to get my wife to move further north to the mountains. Less rain more snow.

Well the flag’s a big plus 🙂

I can’t answer the question about the weather generally. Before christmas it was quiet and hovering around freezing, bit of ice. Over Christmas it apparently snowed then rained.. now there’s a few inches around and it’s forecast to snow this weekend.

The light is a funny one. I lived in Helsinki for over a year which is not quite as far north as Sundsvall but still north. The sun takes a much shallower path than it does in the UK so although the sun technically goes down early the light lingers for a long time. And when there’s snow on the ground it helps still further.

In the middle of summer, in Helsinki the sun went down after 11, which is odd. However what’s much odder is full on warm sunglasses on sunshine at 10pm. But the best thing of all is that it’s light at say 9pm for like four months. This is brilliant for outdoor pursuits 🙂

I was living alone at the time and used to lounge around in my pajamas all day long eating junk food until 8pm, THEN go out for a 3 hour ride and not need lights. Brilliant 🙂

One of the few places I’ve been where I was seriously tempted to look into moving! The lovely Mrs B used to live and work in Malmo and we’ve been there many times. If the right Job opportunity came up for her we’d bite their arm off!

I’d like to visit Malmo.

(I’ve just watched all 20 episodes of The Bridge in 3 days whilst in bed with bronchitis)

I would move there in an instant if not for the language or business opportunity … big country small population. Nice.

🙂

I’ve never lived there but been on quite a few trips for work, to Stockholm and Gothenburg. I love it and I really like the Swedes. They are really into their outdoor sports and the food is great.
In fact I’m going over there next week for a week or 2 with work.

Language isn’t really an issue. Everyone’s English is that good you don’t even have to ask, you can just speak in English and they are happy to switch. Of course if you’re planning on staying you should learn, that goes for anywhere.

I’m told that if you know English and German you’re already most of the way there.

something to remember though is Sweden is huge. Living In the North , in the Arctic Circle , is a world away from Malmö

The weather this year has been really weird, it should be about -15 now with snow, it’s hovering around zero with wet snow and rain

It’s EU so you have the right to work. Unless rules have changed since I was working in different EU countires you can stay there for three months without any formalities. After that you need to register as a resident and they can ask you for proof that you have the means to support yourself – a job or investment income in other words.

molgrips – Member

Language isn’t really an issue. Everyone’s English is that good you don’t even have to ask, you can just speak in English and they are happy to switch. Of course if you’re planning on staying you should learn, that goes for anywhere.

I’m told that if you know English and German you’re already most of the way there.

Yes, they speak better English than me I guess. I don’t feel “integrated” enough if I can’t speak or write their language if I want to move there.

Another issue is bureaucracy and I wonder how bureaucratic they are or can be. I have already spent so many years in the GeordieLand learning the tricks and trade of bureaucrats so the fear is facing a more advanced type of bureaucrat.

😮

I moved here ten years ago, so ask away.

No plans to move back.

Based just outside Göteborg.

Hi Swedish Chef, i’ve got a couple of questions please.

Apparently Sweden has a slightly higher unemployment rate than the UK
Do you think that unskilled jobs, driving etc are reasonably easy to come by or is it your impression that it is hard to get a job at the moment?
Do you know if there are certain areas where work is easier to get?

Are any parts of Sweden definitely drier than Wales/UK

Have you ridden at Jarvso or Are bikeparks?

Cheers

Never ridden at either of those parks, but have skied at Åre and it stunning.

Malmö and the south is the driest area, as stated Sweden is a long long country.

Clearly the three largest cities of Stockholm, Göteborg, and Malmö offer the best employment opportunities, especially for a non Swedish speaker. Having native English is a bonus though.

Unemployment for the younger age groups is relatively high, no idea how it compares with the UK though. Having said that the gang of people I met at Swedish classes when I moved over had no issues getting jobs despite no speaking the language.

Getting the personal number is key though, a classic catch 22 situation. Its tricky, but no impossible, to get a job without one, but renting somewhere and setting up a bank account is somewhat frustrating.

Look at http://www.thelocal.se for a few tips and tricks.

I’m told that if you know English and German you’re already most of the way there

From the limited amound of Swedish I read when I was still fairly proficient at German I can see your point. Not as intuitive as Dutch (which is far closer to German) but still good for an educated guess.

Thanks for the info Chef
Sounds a great country to live in, i’ll do some more research

Have you ridden at Jarvso or Are bikeparks?

You’re contemplating moving to a massive, rugged, empty country and you want to know about trail centres!

Well, short answer is “yes”, but also be aware that getting a social life in Sweden can be difficult – people tend to hang round in circles of family and schoolfriends, and don’t automatically invite outsiders in. It’s not that people are unfriendly, far from it, just that’s the way things work. Also Swedes can be a bit “shy”.

Language is always a barrier, even in a place where everyone can speak English – in a group of people it may be awkward that everyone speaks YOUR language, and it means you can’t join in. I found sometimes that with a group of people we’d be somewhere quiet and I could follow the conversation, and then someone would suggest going to a bar, and then the evening would be done for me, because the noise level was sufficient to disrupt my understanding.

But it’s a lovely, lovely country.

From the limited amound of Swedish I read when I was still fairly proficient at German I can see your point. Not as intuitive as Dutch (which is far closer to German) but still good for an educated guess.

Swedish seems closer to Dutch than German, for some reason. Anyway, it’s fairly easy to learn to read, and less so to speak, on account of some difficult sounds. It’s much easier to understand and speak than Danish, which is pretty much of a nightmare.

It’s EU so you have the right to work. Unless rules have changed since I was working in different EU countires you can stay there for three months without any formalities. After that you need to register as a resident and they can ask you for proof that you have the means to support yourself – a job or investment income in other words.

This is the Catch 22 referred to above, I think – you need a person number to get a job, but without a job you can’t get a person number.

Probably best to do a holiday there, as you plan, then make a decision, just to see if it is for you.

Lived with a lovely swedish girl on Djurgarden for 2 years. Absolutely stunning place and lovely people. Recommended.

I’ve had the catch 22 played on me and always turned it round. Revise your European treaties, check out a few relevant cases from the European court, and start making notes of what people say and asking for their names. If ever they refuse to give you their name make an appointment to see their boss and work your way up the hierarchy. If you persist you will eventually find someone who will give you what you are legally entitled to rather than waste their time and ruin their reputation losing a court case.

If you have no ties then just go.
If you don’t like it, come back.
You will be accepted far easier by locals if you make an effort to speak their lingo.
Good for you taking language classes. A lot of people assume just because locals speak a bit of English they don’t have to bother. Pure narrow-mindedness. And if they come across a local who doesn’t speak English (God forbid) they just speak slower and louder as that’s the international communication way.

To add t what Dr J said, I totally agree that swedes are very shy. Lovely when you get to know them, but it is hard to get to know them. Hobbies, such as cycling , help a lot .

The language is in some ways simple, like the alphabet is basically the same expect for the three extra letters, and they use a lot of English words . I found though that the main problem with learning is the shyness, like so just rocking up and talking and revealing this about your personal life and so on is not really done…

Anyhow if you want a tour let me know. Maybe all the Swedish Brits abroad can do a tour of each other’s biking places .

Have you ridden at Jarvso or Are bikeparks?

You’re contemplating moving to a massive, rugged, empty country and you want to know about trail centres!

I only have a downhill bike and love riding chairlifted bikeparks.
Particularly big jump trails like A-Line
The two in Sweden are meant to be very good, Jarvso has had it’s trails designed by Tom Pro who designed and built many classic trails at Whistler.
Also chairlifted bikeparks have a good biking community where it is very easy to meet lots of like-minded new people.

You’re contemplating moving to a massive, rugged, empty country and you want to know about trail centres!

Yeah it sounds good doesn’t it? I haven’t travelled Sweden much but from my small amount of experience of properly empty places you might fin it’s not as great as it sounds in terms of biking. Without humans to make a trail network either deliberately or as a consequence of daily life you end up with no riding at all. Some places in the US are just thousands of miles of forestry extraction roads and thick forest.

You need some sort of destination like a town or a recreation venue to get trails in these places.

Two pages in and still no mention of the Women…

❓

Two pages in and still no mention of the Women…

Ah, you beat me to it. Spent a brilliant weekend in Stockholm once. I’ve never seen so many amazing women in such a concentration. Astounding!

Useful phrases:

Hej, tak, hejda, jeg elsker deg, du ha smoga einer (actually Danish, but seems to be understood).

I also briefly worked on a farm in Sweden, but that’s another story.

Hej, tak, hejda, jeg elsker deg, du ha smoga einer (actually Danish, but seems to be understood).

Not really, but Danish is unintelligible anyway 🙂

The thing I notice about women in Scandinavia is that (apart from being drop-dead gorgeous) they are very self confident and don’t treat every encounter like an attempt to chat them up that has to be repelled with coldness – they will flirt right back, as they wish. Very strange coming back to the UK and having to re-adjust to the local customs.

DrJ – Member

The thing I notice about women in Scandinavia is that (apart from being drop-dead gorgeous) they are very self confident and don’t treat every encounter like an attempt to chat them up that has to be repelled with coldness – they will flirt right back, as they wish. Very strange coming back to the UK and having to re-adjust to the local customs.

Come to GeordieLand where we have tonnes of women waiting for the right men to chat them up but don’t piss them off coz they will deck you in no time. Strong women we have here and we don’t have winter coz it is sunny through out the year. Look at the local women wearing next to nothing.

I really need to visit Sweden for business opportunity. Wonder how difficult it is to start a business there …