Currently Linköping has around 105.000 inhabitants. Depending on where you are from that might be a lot or very little. For me it is definitely the latter. Before moving here, I’ve lived my whole life in Vienna, the capital of Austria with more than 2 million inhabitants. In this post I’ll talk about some of the difference between living in a big capital city and living in a mid-sized town like Linköping.

1. Everything is close

The first thing that surprised me when I moved to Linköping was that everything is so closeby. I live in Ryd, which is quite far outside of the city center and still, to get downtown I just need to hop on my bike for 10 to 15 minutes. When I asked Google Maps how flong it takes me to bike to the Saab-Arena (ice hockey stadium) I was very surprised to see that it will be just 17 minutes, even though I basically have to ride through the whole town to get there. Another great thing is that nature is always closeby. To get to Tinnerö Naturreservat, with it’s pristine lake views, I need to ride for less than half an hour.

This is such a big contrast when compared to my life before in the big city. To get anywhere I always calculated with at least 30 minutes transit time in public transport. It’s great to save so much time when living in Linköping.

2. Quiet

Linköping is so quiet! I don’t necessarily mean this just in terms of noise (as sometimes there is quite a big of noise from the nearby military airport), but just in terms of general business. In Ryd, where I live the streets usually are really empty and you can only see a few people around. At home, as soon as I left my apartment I was right in the middle of a busy shopping street, which was always full of people – day and night. This is a nice benefit in my opinion as it is less stress inducing and lets you calm down more easily.

Quiet Ryd roads in winter

3. Less options for bigger events and shops

This is the only downside on my list. As Linköping is not a big city, there are some shops that are just missing here. For example I wanted to buy some sporting equipment from my favourite shop, but they only have outlets in the biggest swedish cities of Stockholm and Göteborg. Luckily in times of online shopping this is not a big issue.

Also you should not expect your favourite artist to visit Linköping on their europe tour 😉 . But as Stockholm is just a few hours away, it’s not a big deal to go there for these occasions.

4. … but you still have everything you need

In general I think Linköping has just the right size. You have all the options you want from a city, with a variety of shops, nightlife, events and much more, while still not having the overwhelming and stressful feeling of a megacity. I’m very happy with my choice of moving here and trying out this way of living!

That’s it from me this week. Hej då!

Niko

Why not continue the conversation with us?

Start with checking out:

Our programmes, the application process, webinars, and our Instagram and Facebook account.

Still left wanting more?

Book an appointment with our recruitment coordinator at infocenter@liu.se.

Pin
Comments are disabled for this post