Hello, welcome to my blog. My name is likith Madhu and I will be speaking about my experience of winter survival and adaptation at Linkoping.
I am from India, especially from the south part of India. The weather in my city is almost constant and the temperature of my city is around 20°C to 35°C in extreme cases. When I first understood that I will be doing my masters, the first thing that struck my mind is the cold weather. I was pretty sure it was going to be cold because it’s SWEDEN!!! I did my research before the application and I was aware of the harsh weather in Sweden ( harsh at least for me ), but I realized it’s time to get out of my comfort zone and explore new things. So, I braced myself and made up my mind to accept the master’s offer. When I left, it was a rainy season, so it was a bit cold when I left India. When I arrived here in Sweden, it was a good summer period, and the weather was comforting. I made sure that I buy some warm clothes from India so that I will be prepared for the winter in Sweden. But I was a bit surprised to witness the summer at Linkoping because I felt like I was in my hometown. I arrived around mid-August and the temperature was around 20 C. this temperature was reasonable for me. Another new experience was the sun. the sun was always up. The sunrise was at 5.30 in the morning and go down at 9.30 at the night. It felt like I was on a different planet. I met a lot of people during my summer at Linkoping, the Indians I met suggested me to get ready for the winter because it will be the complete opposite experience. But they also said it will be a smooth transition and it was a piece of comforting information for me. The things started to get real as it was almost the end of summer.
As the days passed, the temperature started to go down. I still remember, it was mid-September, and I was already wearing a jacket. But I realized the people around me were not wearing any thick jackets. At this point, I was sure that the only way to be like others, is to get used to the changing weather. So, I started to go out without jackets and thermal wear. It was not a good feeling at the start, but I eventually got used to it. But the temperature was contently changing, and I would eventually wear thick jackets. At this point, I realized it was not the weather that affects you, it is your clothing. You need to wear something appropriate for the day. Another thing that matters the most is the weather predictions. It’s almost on point and it gives us the perfect weather forecast. It is probably the most used app on my phone. It is very important to check the weather before leaving the house. After a month I was so used to it, I would check the weather every day as soon as I get up. The app accurately tells me what to wear for the day and plan my day. Sometimes it would be a bad idea to wear something without checking the weather forecast. It’s important to check the forecast before scheduling any event or meetings which involve cycling outside.
My first snow experience was on the 9th of November 2019. I was seeing the snow for the first time and it was a wonderful experience. I was with my friends, outside, throwing snow at each other. It was a fun night!!! The next day when I woke up, everything was completely white. My window was filled with bright light because of the reflections of the snow. I was excited to open the blinds and look outside. It was a Satisfying view with a beautiful tree next to my window which was filled with snow. It was like a movie scene from Disney world. It was not cold outside since it was not windy. The wind can influence the temperature a lot. Sometimes it the weather forecast shows it 5°C but it would feel like -1. The wind is the main culprit and I hate it. The best way to get around this is to wear a windcheater jacket. I could see people working with a big vehicle to clear the roads. They not only clear the main roads but also the cycle path and because of them, we can cycle around the city. Me and my friends were throwing snow at each other the whole day. It was a bit sunny and brisk and white view.
The worst part was hearing the snowfall was a bit late that year and it was comparatively less. The locals told me that this was due to global warming. While these swedes were worried about the snow, I was happy for the little snow that showered upon us to make us happy. The worst part of the snow is that it forms Icey layers on the road after a day. This will make us fall while cycling around the corners. I had 4 bad accidents with the icy layers. The snow disappeared after 3 days. The 2nd day was a bit wet as the ice was melting away. It felt like Linkoping was getting back to normal. After the 1st snow, it was very cold, probably almost -4°C to 0°C till February. I do not accurately remember when, but it snowed again two times in January and mid-December. I was wearing the thermal layer throughout the tuff winter period and it helped me a lot. It is kind of irresponsibility if you do not wear winter shoes and gloves when it starts to snow.
