SoMu autumn semester reconsidered: “The whole semester was an adventure”

At the beginning of the New Year, we usually reconsider what is passing by and what is waiting for us. Even though SoMus are having holiday, they found some time to share their memories about the autumn semester and their expectations for 2015. Maria, Karolina, Vilma, and Ella were studying at Vytautas Magnus University, while Frederik and Maren were enjoying the semester in Stockholm.

What was the most interesting thing(s) that you found out this semester?

Maria Jefimow (1st year SoMu): That one can share a room with two others without killing each other :)

Karolina Lenkutytė (1st year SoMu): It was really exciting to discover differences between cultures as I have had the possibility to communicate with students from Germany, Nigeria, Poland, and Latvia.

Vilma Mikašytė (1st year SoMu): The thing that probably surprised me the most is the life and problems of Roma people. While other minorities fight for their rights and want schools with their native language as the language of instruction, Roma do not want to have that because this way outsiders could learn their language.

Ella Walter (1st year SoMu): Living together with two other girls in one room is fun :)

Frederik Bissinger (2nd year SoMu): Lots of things: the café Espresso House is conquering Drottninggatan;  don’t order a winter-frappé to go – you cannot drink an ice cube; in case you ordered a winter-frappé to go, go to Kungliga Djurgården (a nice park on the island Djurgården) and enjoy the open fire while melting your ice cube frappe :); a long dark Scandinavian winter isn’t that bad; the Lithuanian language is still challenging but also fun to learn; language café is a good institution for improving language skills, meeting new people, and drinking some coffee for free; participating in choirs isn’t only fun, but also helps you to improve your language skills; butterflies and sharks fit well together – go to Haga Park and take a look :); rumours that two members of ABBA live on Lidingö (the island I lived on); the entrance at Nordiska Museet (“Nordic Museum”) is free on Wednesdays from 5pm; Swedes like to wear dark colors in autumn and winter.

Maren Gockel (2nd year SoMu): I learned lot about Baltic Language Policies and Baltic Policies during and after the Soviet Union. This was very interesting for me because it gave me a new perspective on the current difficult political situation between the Baltic States and Russia.

What was the most intriguing/difficult/interesting assignment that you had this semester? Why?

Maria Jefimow: The assignment to write a research proposal was both interesting and difficult. The topic itself was interesting, but it was difficult because of the lack of time we had. It was intriguing to see how much work must be put into a research proposal: many things have to be taken into account to make the research really worth and possible to investigate.

 Karolina Lenkutytė: The most interesting and challenging assignment was writing a proposal for my suggested research topic. Assoc. Prof. Dr. J. Ruzaitė allowed us to choose the topic quite freely; thus, we could come up with various ideas related to sociolinguistics and multilingualism. During the day of the final presentations I was surprised by a variety of different but really interesting ideas that my colleagues came up with during the course.

Vilma Mikašytė:  The most interesting assignment was the investigation on linguistic landscapes. I chose to carry out a research on linguistic landscapes on people’s T-shirts. The most difficult part was to collect my data, for which I went out to Kaunas streets and asked people if I can take a picture of their T-shirt. Some people were very nice and helpful; however, I also experienced that gathering one’s dataset might also be rather challenging because quite a few people were rather rude and unwilling to participate in my research.

Ella Walter: There were several interesting assignments; for example, the research on linguistic landscape. This task was so nice because it was interactive and you were able to get a new view on your environment. Another very interesting and fun assignment was the conduction of a sociolinguistic interview. This was a new task where you learned a lot about your interview partner as well as about your role as an interviewer.

Frederik Bissinger: The most interesting assignments this semester were my presentations about the language situation in Lithuania Minor and the German-Lithuanian language contact situation in Lithuania Minor. The available sources were numerous and linguistically diverse (English, German, Lithuanian, and Swedish) and, hence, the task was challenging. Nevertheless, it was very interesting and I could learn a lot. Unfortunately, I did not dare to consult the Lithuanian sources, but this might be a future task when I have deepened my knowledge in Lithuanian :)

Maren Gockel: The most difficult one was probably about language contact in the Baltic States because I do not know much about it. The most interesting one was about the Baltic language policies. I really liked the topic and thought it was really interesting.

How many hours per day were you studying?

Maria Jefimow: Difficult to say. There have been days were I felt I was studying probably up to six hours, but also there were days when I was studying for two hours or less.

Karolina Lenkutytė: I think I could more easily answer this one: “How many hours per day I was NOT studying?”

Vilma Mikašytė: Frankly, not as many as I should have. It is very hard to combine job with studies and staying alive :)

Ella Walter: It depends... Sometimes even six hours or more.

Frederik Bissinger: You do not really want to know – two advanced language courses and seminars where you work on your own small projects take some time :)

Maren Gockel: At the beginning, it was quite relaxed while the end of the semester was full of work. Approximately, I would say I spent 2 hours per day studying in addition to the regular courses at the university.

How many hours per week were you socializing?

Maria Jefimow: 24/7, because sharing a room with two other students, it is kind of impossible not to socialize ;)

Karolina Lenkutytė: Enough not to leave my friends behind and make friends with the new colleagues at the university.

Vilma Mikašytė: As many hours as our classes took.

Ella Walter: All the time. There wasn't a lot of time for yourself personally because you were surrounded by somebody most of the time.

Frederik Bissinger: I met with my friends during breaks or after university to enjoy some Swedish coffee or to go to museums or parks in and around Stockholm. I also attended Lithuanian and Swedish language cafés, as well as English and Swedish choirs, which were in total six hours per week.

Maren Gockel: I lived with another SoMu student; therefore, there was always someone to talk to. That was really great! We did not go out much, but had regular coffee and baking breaks, which were always fun. Additionally, we had a weekly Lithuanian language café, where we drank coffee and talked to Lithuanian students.

What was your favourite lunch dish this semester?

Maria Jefimow: All kinds of pizzas at “Pas Paolo” (for sure one of the best places in Kaunas).

Karolina Lenkutytė: I like food which reminds me of home, so maybe chicken broth or chicken steak with mashed potatoes.

Vilma Mikašytė: I’d have to say buns with spinach and a large cup of coffee. It wasn’t my favorite kind of lunch but definitely something my stomach had to enjoy most often.

Ella Walter: I didn't have a really favourite one, but we went to “Pas Paolo” – an Italian restaurant – quite often and I liked the food there a lot.

Frederik Bissinger: Homemade sandwiches made of: two slices polarbröd (Swedish soft bread), American sauce (out of the tube of course), fresh salad, slices of tomatoes, cucumbers and onions, Swedish hushållsost (“household cheese”), some pepper and salt. And to drink: coffee to go in lack of time or homemade gilių kava (“acorn coffee”) in case of time for preparation.

Maren Gockel: I do not have a favourite lunch dish but I fell in love with Swedish cinnamon buns called kanelbullarna. They are amazing and especially great with coffee and a nice friend to talk to :)

What was your favourite leisure activity this semester?

Maria Jefimow: Watching movies with my roomies and having a glass of wine with them, sleeping.

Karolina Lenkutytė: Going to movies or chilling with my friends in the cafeteria.

Vilma Mikašytė: What leisure??? :)

Ella Walter: Going to the gym with friends. Exercising or dancing zumba was a really great opportunity to relax from the university.

Frederik Bissinger: My favourite leisure activities were to go for a walk and enjoy the woods, lakes, and parks in and around Stockholm, have Swedish fika (a coffee break with some sweets, esp. kanelbullar “cinnamon rolls”) with friends, attend language cafés, and during the winter season to go ice skating.

Maren Gockel: Probably walking around the city. Stockholm is a wonderful city with many great places. There was always something new to see and to discover. I liked walking around the waterfront the most. It’s really beautiful and relaxing.

What was the most memorable event/situation/adventure this semester?

Maria Jefimow: The whole semester was an adventure itself. I got to know new people, a new city, a new country. The most memorable days were probably the weekend we spent at the seaside and enjoyed the beautiful landscape of the Curonian Spit. Lithuanian language classes were memorable, too :)

Karolina Lenkutytė: A short trip to Vilnius with Bettina and Vilma. We explored the city and museums. It was fun!

Vilma Mikašytė: One of the highlights was our trip to Grūtas park, which I liked very much. When it comes to situations and adventures, I think we were trying to come up with ingenious ways of how to meet all the deadlines in time.

Ella Walter: Going to Klaipeda and spending one of the nicest weekends at the Baltic Sea, but also many memorable and especially funny moments with the rest of the group.

Frederik Bissinger: The entire semester was a memorable experience: I met lots of new people, became friends with wonderful people, improved my Swedish, Lithuanian and English skills, learned a lot about language situations, policies and contact situations, enjoyed the Swedish nature, and had just a great time, even if it was work intense.

Maren Gockel: I hope that the most memorable event and adventure is still ahead of me. My roommate Zarina (also a SoMu student) and I will travel to Abisko in a few days. Abisko is a national park in the North of Sweden in Lapland. We will go there for four days and already have a lot on our to do list. Of course, we want to see the Northern Lights. Abisko is famous for that and, hopefully, we are lucky enough to experience this amazing spectacle of nature. Additionally, we will go dog sliding there. Both of us will get our own sleigh with some huskies in front of it. Very exciting!

How are you spending your Christmas and New Year holiday?

Maria Jefimow: I spend my holidays with my family and friends and work a bit to save up some money.

Karolina Lenkutytė: With a cup of coffee and a good book! That is all I need after the intense semester.

Vilma Mikašytė: I’d love to say that I’m spending it with my family and friends but that won’t be true. Since we found out that our Erasmus scholarships were reduced, I found yet another job to save as much as possible before going to Mainz.

Ella Walter: I am using the Christmas and New Year holiday to spend a lot of time with my family and friends as I haven’t seen them for a while.

Frederik Bissinger: I spent my Christmas and New Year with my family, meeting friends, writing my final seminar paper, and reading literature for my MA thesis.

Maren Gockel: I spent the holidays in my hometown in Germany with my family and some friends.

What do you expect from 2015?

Maria Jefimow: I hope that it will be an awesome year and maybe even better than 2014 :)

Karolina Lenkutytė: Unforgettable experiences in Germany and Estonia!

Vilma Mikašytė: I hope that I will come up with a really good idea for my Master’s thesis. I also wish for our studies to be demanding and challenging. Since I won’t have the opportunity to work when I’m in Mainz or Tartu, I feel I can push my limits even further and achieve good academic results.  And since my BA thesis was about wine labels, I can’t wait to try famous German wines and see what modes appear on their wine labels :)

Ella Walter: That it’s going to be even better than 2014 :)

Frederik Bissinger: That it will be a year full of new but manageable challenges. I will write and defend my MA thesis and plan to continue my academic education on a higher level.

Maren Gockel: I hope 2015 will be an amazing year. The first months will be quite exhausting because I will write my master thesis. It also marks the end and a new beginning; the end of the amazing SoMu experience and the beginning of entering the real world. The master thesis is the basis for future jobs and even though the SoMu program has been wonderful, it is time to find a job. Therefore, I hope for a good job opportunity. Of course, I am also very thankful for the SoMu programme. It is really great and I not only learned a lot about sociolinguistics and multilingualism, but also about myself and other cultures. One of the main advantages of SoMu is cultural diversity and new experiences. To broaden your horizons is not something you can learn at school or university. This is something you learn through travelling and through making friendships with peoples from different countries and cultures and I am very thankful that SoMu gave me the opportunity to do that :)

Your New Year greeting :)

Maria Jefimow: I wish that 2015 will be a year full of new experiences, fun, and success in every condition of life for everybody.

Karolina Lenkutytė: Do not wait until something will change your life. Only you can change it and there is no need to wait for a new year to pursue your goals. Start now!

Vilma Mikašytė: Let your past make you better, not bitter!

Ella Walter: May 2015 be full of new and enriching experiences for all of us! I am really looking forward to spending the next semester in Mainz and Stockholm with my new friends :)

Frederik Bissinger: I wish everybody a happy, healthy, joyful, and successful new year. Live your dreams and be happy. Special greetings to my fellow students who are also writing their MA theses this semester. I’m looking forward to seeing you at the conference Multilingualism in Baltic-Sea Europe in Mainz in April :)

Maren Gockel: Frohes, neues Jahr! Happy New Year to everyone :)