A wonderful day with family Scott

One day in Torquay I got to come with my host family Scott to a really nice town called Dartmouth or something. We were fishing crabs all day and it was very fun. Later on we went looking in the stores in town. We found a store where you could make your own bracelets and necklaces. I made one for my mother and one for my sister. After that Joy, Oliver and I went to a place where you could buy pasties. Oliver bought everyone pasties, tea and coffee, so nice of him!
 
That same night Karen invited me to come to dinner with her family. It was Karen, Charlie, Oliver, their dad, Joy and Hannah. It was so nice and that day was absolutely the best day of the trip.
Joy and Hannah
Karens sister and her husband
Me with a crab
The whole family
Me and Karen
Karen's mom, Karen and Karen's sister
A crab

I'm back in Sweden

I'm back in Sweden. Of course I'm happy to be home with my family again, at least a part of it. But I've also just left a part of my family in Torquay. My hostfamily have really been the best, and leaving them was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. We will meet again though, I've promised both them and myself that. I'm hoping for next year that we will see each other again.
 
Another hard thing to do was saying goodbye to all of my friends that weren't coming with us on the plane to Stockholm. I will miss all of you so much it hurts. I'll see al of you at the reunionparty in the fall and that's I'm really looking foward to that.
 
Seeing my dad and stepmom at the airport - there to pick me up - made me so happy. I hadn't seen them in 3 weeks, that's way longer than I've been away by myself ever before. On sunday we're going to have a family dinner here at Resarö so then I'll get to see my siblings and nephews. Then on monday I'll go to Länna to stay there with my mom. Since my mom is a teacher she has a holliday now. So I'll stay with mom during the weeks and at my dad's in the weekends when he has time of from work.
 
I'll post more pictures from the trip some other time. I just don't want to spend my first day at home at the computer.
 
Here's a picture of Joy and Hannah (Karens nieces), Karen, Charlie, Karens sister and her husband, Karens mother and Oliver.

Picknick

From 11 this morning to about 15 I think we were at Babbacombe beach, it was really nice and it was a beautiful beach. At the beach there were a beachshop where Alva and I bought a boat together. Actually it was a one-man boat for kids but we got in both of us at the same time. Then we had a little race with Amanda who had also bought a boat like ours. Today we had planed to go to the parc and have an nice picknick, Victoria, Hanna, Alva, Johanna, Amanda, Lisa and I. Alva, Amanda and I went to Pizzahut to get our food. I ordered a large pizza with cheesecrusts. When we ordered our pizzas he who took our order asked for our names so we told him. When we got our pizzas there were small tags on them which said the names of the person to who the pizza belonged. But he had heard our names a little bit wrong, because the tags said "Manda, Amber and Ellie". Haha! Not one name right. The picknick was really nice though. The others had apparently already eaten so they had just brought candy and snacks and that kind of stuff. Johanna had bought a jar of nutella which she ate just as it was - with a spoon. It doesn't sound very tempting to me... We also had this wonderful dessert at Pozzahut which was Chokolate Chip Cookie Dough with Ice Cream and Chokolatesauce, best thing ever! After the picknick we went to meet up with the other sts groups in one of the other parcs. There we had what the leaders called "leader quiz". The read some stuff and we were supposed to guess which leader it had happened to (Sofia, Hubbe, Hampus, Ida or Rodrigo). "Which leader has skiied at full speed straigh into a resturante and turned a table over?", "which leader had a pig as a pet at the age of 8?" and "who has been arrested in london?" is some of the questions we got to answer. The answer to the last question was Rodrigo and it was actually kind of a funny storry. He got arrested because the police thought he was an illegal emigrate, but as soon as he showed them his spanish id card they let him go. We also got to know that this spring Sofia got chased by an angry elephant, and that Hubbes nickename is "Mr Blowme" because that is kind of his lastname in swedish or something. Tomorrow we're all going to New Quay. We might even get to try on surfing or something like that, I would really like that since I've never tried it before. I'll write more tomorrow I think. I've got to go to bed now to be able to get up in the morning. Bye, and goodnight!

Hey all

Hi everybody! Today was a really good day. This morning we went to the port to go bananaboat. At first it didn't go very fast since we had told the driver we didn't want to fall of. After a little while he started going in circles and we had to hold on hard to not fall, Johanna fell in the cold water anyway. And she dropped her bikini, haha! In the end all of us except Viktoria jumped of the bananaboat. It was really fun! After the days lessons we had "evening cruise" as activity. It wasn't very special. But it was nice, we were out on the water for about 45 minutes I think. After the cruise me and my friends went to subway for cookies and tea. Maybe I'll post some pictures from the cruise tomorrow or something. Tomorrow we get to sleep in! Woho! We don't have to be at the clocktower untill 11 o'clock. And then we'll head off to meadfoot beach or babbacombe beach. That's the beach I went to with Charlie and Karen. I think we will have a great time! Let's hope for good weather too. Here's a picture on cute, best Tindra who now sits as princess among the angels up in heaven!

The beach and the cinema

Today I have as I wrote earlier been home  from school. It has actually been quite nice. It's been warm and lots of sun. Around lunch I did as my stepmom suggested and ate an onion. It wasn't very tasty but it did help me get rid of my fever. And after that I've actually been feeling pretty well. We went to the beach. Karen, Charlie and me. It was really nice and it was so hot!
 

Postcards

Today I'm ill, I have a sore throught and a really bad cough. And i also think I might have a fever. So today I'm staying at home, resting. I've spent the morning writing postcards to my familly. And the rest of the day I think I may just lie in my bed watching movies.

QuayWest

Today it's QuayWest on the schedule. It's going to be so much fun - swiming in the pools and going in the slides. Let's hope for some sun today too, that could make the day even better. Almost everyone in our group is coming I think, the activity is optional. Which means that the explorerpass doesn't include it, you have to pay it separately and there by now one can be forsed to come. Our leader won't let Alva and Johanna come because they've been ill recently. I'm just geting worse, my throught has been hurting for a while now but today the coughing began. Look at the picture and see I FOUND SWEDISH CANDY! Well, have a nice day!

Birds here

The birds here aren't afraid of humans at all, they sit just a few inches from you and look completely relaxed.

Day 7 - exeter, dartmoor and the beach

This morning was actually different from the rest - I got to sleep in. Since it is weekend the leaders thought we should get to sleep a little longer than usual. Anyway,
I got up at a quarter to 8. Then at 9 o'clock I went to the Coachstation to catch the bus to Dartmoor with the rest of my group at 10. Dartmoor was as it turned out like
a big mountain. It was a really cool place and I would have loved to climb at it. Unfortunately we didn't have the equipment needed for that kind of thing. But it was
fun!

Exteter was the next stop. It was a really nice town. The first thing we did when we came there was to watcht all the birds. There were swans and seagulls, since we
had lots sandwiches left from our lunches we used it to feed the birds. After that we went shopping. I found a pair of shorts in a really cool golden colour.

When we came back home we just changed to beachclothes and went right back out. We met up at the beach at 7. It wasn't very hot in the water but it was okay. We even had
a "seaweed-war". Then I just went straight home, to tired to stay out with the others. When we first came here Alva was kind of sick, her throught was huring and she had
lost her voice. Now she's better and everyone else has gotten her virus and is just getting worse. But I'm guessing it'll be better soon since it went away pretty fast
for Alva.
Hanna, Lisa and me
Lisa, Amanda and Hanna
Amanda
Amanda
Hanna
Hanna, me, Lisa and Amanda
Viktoria and Lisa
 

Day 5 - Tea and skones

On the fifth day of our trip we went to this beautiful place called Cockington village. We fed ducks in a pond and after that we went to a cafe to try Tea and skones like they eat it in england. We got this two storie plate with skones, jam and clotted cream. And ofcourse we got tea, lots of tea. It was really tasty, and I drank like 4 cups of tea.
Amanda
Hanna and me
Johanna eating skones
Alva
Johanna
Viktoria
Viktoria and me

My host family

Some pictures of the family I'm living with right now. They're so friendly and nice, it's better than I ever could have expected. I'm so happy about everything. Ofcourse i miss my family, but it's so much fun here you don't have much time to think about that stuff to be honest. At first it was really wierd speaking english all the time, but you do get used to it. I don't even think about it anymore, it's just plain talking. Tomorrow we're going to Quay west to visit a waterpark with lots of slides and other fun stuff.
Buddy
Charlie and Buddy
Charlie
Karen and Buddy
Hamster of which I have forgot the name

Today

I know I said that I would write à couple of days ago and then I haven't. But today I will. Tonight and tomorrow night is like the only sparetime we've got. Er got to sleep in this morning though. We're going to Exter and Dartmoor and we're supposed to meet up at the coachstation at a quarter to ten. I've got to go now but I'll see you tonight!

Finally there

This is the first time since I came here I've been able to use internet and write on the blog. Everytime I've been on my way asking them for the password for their wi-fi I've just forgotten. I will write later tonight though. When I'm on the computer. Hugs

I can't believe this

I can't believe this! At this point tomorrow I will have arrived to England. I don't know what to say exept I AM SO NERVOUS!

Mysphotos.blogg.se

Hey check out my other blog where I usually write (in Swedish). Of course during the trip I will only be uppdating on this blog. But right now you can still visit mysphotos.blogg.se to see my photos and read about my everyday life.

Packing List

CARRY-ON BAGGAGE
WALLET:
money
bank card
 
chewing gum
1 book
passport
STS lexicon
ABC manual
sunglasses
presents to the host family
almanac
headphones
important papers
 
CLOTHES
2 tank tops
2 shorts
1 skirt
1 dress
2 long sleeve shirts
2 sweatshirts
1 pair of jeans
1 pair of short jeans
nylon stockings
leggings
raincoat
underwear (panties, socks and bras)
3 bikinis
1 cardigan
1 cap
running shoes
platform shoes
ballerina shoes
flip flops
joggingpants
jeansjacket
 

small bag
beachbag
towel
books
adapter
 
ELECTRONICS
camera
mobile
mobilecharger
cameracharger
hard drive
computer
computercharger

NECESSARY
DRUGS:
Asthma: Bricanyl, Pulmicort
vegetarian tablets
esperitox
alvedon
Ipren
alergimedicin
nezeril
mildison
resorb
cortisone
 
scissors
tweezers
shampoo
conditioner
perfume
soap
sunblocks (6, 15)
bodybutter
makeup
hairbrush
hairbands and hairclips
jewelry
razor
deodorat
toothbrush and toothpaste
 
As you see I'm not going to pack much clothes. But that's just because I'm planning to go shopping lots of clothes when I get there.

Nice dinner and 11 days to go

Today dad, Katarina and me had a lovely dinner out on our terrass. Mm, summer!
Each day it's getting closer and closer to the trip, today it's 11 days to go. To be honest I'm actually quite nervous. I'm pretty scared of riding the airplane even though I've done it a million times before. But after all this is the first time without either of my parents or sister. I packed most of my stuff today and I'm very proud my bag didn't weigh to much, it was just 12 kilos and you get to bring 23 kilos. That just means more space to fill with shopping, right? I will buy shampoo, conditioner, sunblocks and that kind of stuff there otherwise the bag would definately weigh to much!

How much money?

I got another question about how much money I think it's appropriate to bring for the trip.

I think that totally depends on how much you want to go shopping and so on. There are many things to keep in mind when deciding how much money you should bring. First: destination. In my case I'm only going to need money for 3 ordinary weeks with a little shopping, one day in London, and also I'm going to need money to pay for the buss to school.

I'm bringing 2000 per week, but I've saved for a very long time and I just don't want to risk having too little money with me.

So I hope that answered your question, and otherwise, ask on facebook!

Finally



My price has finally arrived and I must say I'm posetivly surprised. The package  contained a Sts-bag, a T-shirt with the text "Language Trips, Summer of experience, Sts", 2 Sts pencils, 3 Sts candies, a Sts catalog and a Sts lexicon.

Other bloggers

Is there someone out there who also has a blog about their languagetrip with sts. Because I actually have a little question. Are you going to bring your computer? 'Cause I'm not really sure if I'm going to and it would really help me making that dicision if I knew...



Anyway I can't believe it's just 40 days to go. In 40 days I'm already there - in Torquay! Woho!

No big news

To be frankly it haven't really happened much since i last wrote in the blog (I'm the winner) and so I don't have much to tell you guys. Though I'm still waiting for the price I think it will come any day now since I sent my address to Sts a couple of days ago when they asked for it. I told you the price would be a surprise, but according to the person who answered my e-mail when I asked about it, it would be either cinema tickets, t-shirts or a Sts lexicon. So no big news. But I'll tell immediately when something exciting happens!

Now to something that doesn't really have anything to do with my Torquay-trip. It's really rainy outside today, and I'm thinking about just hanging in the couch drinking tea and watching movies. How nice? I think it'll be Pirates Of The Caribbean On Stranger Tides. Because I just can't get enough of that movie, I particularly like the mermaids.

Sts countdown

Oh I have totally forgotten to check the blog for quite a while now. And now I saw I've got a question in a comment. It was something like this:
"How did you get the countdown to Torquay on your blog?"
And here's how I did it.
It was actually quite simple. You just klick on this link and choose the date for your trip. Then you copy the code in the box that says "html:koden" and you paste it in your "kodmall" where you want the countdown.

I'm the winner

Look what i found when i went in and checked my mail. I'm one of the 5 winners in the sts blog´s "quiz" about sts, their website as well as their destinations. So any day now I'm getting the price - wich by the way is a surprise!

PICTURE TRANSLATION:
CONGRATULATIONS!
You are one of the 5 winners of the STS QUIZ.
Now we just need to know your address and then we'll send the price!
Answer in 5 days. Otherwhise we will pick someone else!
Best Regards
THE STS BLOG
STS language trips

Host Family

I am so happy right now! I just got to know with which family I'm going to stay in Torquay. My Host family lives on Florida Road, Torquay. And this is the house in which I will live over the summer!

When I saw this information I immediately called my father. I was screaming and so close to crying. This is real, not a dream! It's happening, I'm going to TORQUAY!

Departure time

AHHHH! I went looking if any more information had shown up on mypage, and guess what?! The departure time, flight number and so on has appeared! But still - more information to come, like host family, school information and stuff like that. ♥
Departure time is 14 July 5.55 am. Pretty early, but that's one of the things I love so much about trips. Without that early morning you won't get in the right mood. So I was really happy when I saw that the trip was starting in the morning!

I know, I know, the text in the picture is in swedish...

Clothes to wear...

Yesterday I was in Täby Centrum to find some summer clothes to wear in Torquay. I bought 3 pair of shorts, a top, a black bikini and a striped bikini.


68 days

I can't believe it! In 68 days i will probably get ready to go to the airport to head of to torquay

Answer

I got this question from one of people who is reading my blog (probably the only one), and I thought I should answer her. She was wondering from where my trip would go and if I have been told with which family I'm going to live yet.

I'm flying to Torquay from Stockholm, Arlanda. Since I live quite near Arlanda that was actually an easy choice. And no, I don't know which family I will be staying with yet. But I have got the username and password to the site where this information will be appearing. So now I'm very excited but I'm still waiting.

Thank you for your question, if you're wondering anything, just ask!

Some pictures I took today just outside my house.

Sts letter

Now it's finally starting to happen things!

Sts on Facebook

All of you who are going on a languagetrip the summer 2012 should definetly like sts' facebooksite. I only have the link to their Swedish facebooksite, but LIKE IT! There you can get information about the trips, ask questions, and the best part is that you can get to know who are going on the same trip as you!