Stockholm halvmarathon + Lund

It’s been a little bit since I’ve written a post, and I wanted to share a snapshot of a few exciting days in my life here in Stockholm (and not in Stockholm…which you’ll read about later in the post!) Without further ado, here’s a snapshot of some of those days…

Saturday: Stockholm Halvmarathon!

Amongst other things (like a breakfast for homestay students and their families), Saturday was the day I ran my first ever half marathon!! It was a day I’d been preparing for excitedly but also anxiously for months. A few weeks before, I recruited a friend at DIS to run with me, and I was glad to have someone to navigate the crowd and manage my nerves with.

Naia holds her medal after finishing running the Stockholm half marathon. She is wearing pink cheetah socks. — Monday: traveling to Lund!
Part of DIS academics is core course week, when you travel somewhere in Scandinavia/Sweden with your core course to learn about topics related to your core course, do cultural activities, and bond with your core course. My core course (Precision Medicine: Tailored Treatment in Clinical Practice) travelled by train to Lund, in Southern Sweden, early Monday morning. I’d never travelled by train for so long (4 hours or so), and I really enjoyed it–I definitely prefer train to flying. After arriving in Lund and getting lunch, we visited Lund University’s stem cell research center (and met up with some DIS Copenhagen students!) We got to learn about their research, visit some labs, and hear from some Americans who moved to Sweden for their PhDs (this is an option that is quite appealing to me…)

The library at Lund University
We also did a walking tour of Lund University, then got dinner together as a class. I didn’t know what to expect for the food (DIS provides 2 meals a day for study tours), but it was soooo good–we got a two course Italian meal and the pasta was delicious.
Tuesday: more time in Lund
We had a later start on Tuesday, so I woke up a little earlier in the morning to go for a short run and recruited a friend for said run. We ended up in the graveyard by accident, which was huge and full of nice running paths…although it was a little spooky since it was a foggy morning. As a class, we visited Kulturen, an open air museum very similar to Skansen (another open air museum in Stockholm). We got to go into lots of old buildings, which were fun to see.

Inside an old church in Kulturen
After lunch, we headed to BioInvent, a biotech company in Lund. We again learned more about their research and visited some labs–it was interesting to see what it might be like to work in industry and also to see how big the labs were compared to the tiny lab I worked in this summer at Whitman.

The BioInvent building

Wednesday: Lund -> Stockholm
Wednesday started early, with an 8am meeting in the hotel lobby ready to go. However, I didn’t mind (too much) because the early meeting time was so our class could go to a ropes course in the woods outside Lund. This was SO fun. I’d never done anything like it and I don’t really know how to describe it–kind of like American Ninja Warrior but with less strength required, a climbing harness, and also ziplines…suffice it to say, I had a lot of fun and I feel like I bonded with my class.

Here’s what some of the ropes course looked like…
We spent the afternoon interviewing people about the Swedish healthcare system (random people on the streets–this was more successful and fun than I expected!) and then headed back to Stockholm by train. All in all, it was a fun but busy week–a little break from the normal routine!

Monday: traveling to Lund!
Part of DIS academics is core course week, when you travel somewhere in Scandinavia/Sweden with your core course to learn about topics related to your core course, do cultural activities, and bond with your core course. My core course (Precision Medicine: Tailored Treatment in Clinical Practice) travelled by train to Lund, in Southern Sweden, early Monday morning. I’d never travelled by train for so long (4 hours or so), and I really enjoyed it–I definitely prefer train to flying. After arriving in Lund and getting lunch, we visited Lund University’s stem cell research center (and met up with some DIS Copenhagen students!) We got to learn about their research, visit some labs, and hear from some Americans who moved to Sweden for their PhDs (this is an option that is quite appealing to me…)

The library at Lund University
We also did a walking tour of Lund University, then got dinner together as a class. I didn’t know what to expect for the food (DIS provides 2 meals a day for study tours), but it was soooo good–we got a two course Italian meal and the pasta was delicious.
Tuesday: more time in Lund
We had a later start on Tuesday, so I woke up a little earlier in the morning to go for a short run and recruited a friend for said run. We ended up in the graveyard by accident, which was huge and full of nice running paths…although it was a little spooky since it was a foggy morning. As a class, we visited Kulturen, an open air museum very similar to Skansen (another open air museum in Stockholm). We got to go into lots of old buildings, which were fun to see.

Inside an old church in Kulturen
After lunch, we headed to BioInvent, a biotech company in Lund. We again learned more about their research and visited some labs–it was interesting to see what it might be like to work in industry and also to see how big the labs were compared to the tiny lab I worked in this summer at Whitman.

The BioInvent building

Wednesday: Lund -> Stockholm
Wednesday started early, with an 8am meeting in the hotel lobby ready to go. However, I didn’t mind (too much) because the early meeting time was so our class could go to a ropes course in the woods outside Lund. This was SO fun. I’d never done anything like it and I don’t really know how to describe it–kind of like American Ninja Warrior but with less strength required, a climbing harness, and also ziplines…suffice it to say, I had a lot of fun and I feel like I bonded with my class.

Here’s what some of the ropes course looked like…
We spent the afternoon interviewing people about the Swedish healthcare system (random people on the streets–this was more successful and fun than I expected!) and then headed back to Stockholm by train. All in all, it was a fun but busy week–a little break from the normal routine!

One thought on “Stockholm halvmarathon + Lund”

Avukat October 17, 2023 at 2:39 pm

Hey there! 🌟 I just wanted to express my gratitude for sharing your incredible adventures! It’s fantastic to read about your experiences in Stockholm and Lund. 😄 A huge congratulations on completing your first half marathon – that’s a remarkable achievement! 🏃‍♀️ Your cheetah socks are super cool, by the way. 🐆 Exploring Lund, visiting Lund University’s stem cell research center, and the ropes course sound like unforgettable experiences. Your storytelling and the pictures make it feel like we were right there with you! Keep enjoying your journey, and thanks for letting us be a part of it. 😊🌍 Cheers to more adventures and bonding with your class! 🎉🚂 Warmest wishes, Denizli en iyi Avukat; Denizli avukat; avukat🌞🌻

Reply ↓

DIS: Stockholm

Stockholm halvmarathon + Lund

Saturday: Stockholm Halvmarathon!

Monday: traveling to Lund!

Tuesday: more time in Lund

Wednesday: Lund -> Stockholm

One thought on “Stockholm halvmarathon + Lund”

Leave a Reply Cancel reply