Blaise Bodin

Rochelle Ryberg

Hi, my name is Rochelle Ryberg. I am 20 years old and am currently studying for a semester in Orebro, Sweden. My home university is San Diego State. This is the first time that I have lived outside of California and it has been an amazing experience so far.

At my home university I am majoring in Marketing. I look forward to getting my degree; although I am not sure what type of career I will ultimately end up in.

When I am not going to school or working I enjoy being around my family and friends. I also enjoy coffee, shopping, and meeting new people!

I’m looking forward to this course and getting to know the students from Stanford. It should be a great experience!

Julien De Oliveira

Hej Hej everybody!

I am Julien De Oliveira. I come from France and more exactly in the south west. I’m 22 years old. I study business to Toulouse. I like music, cinema and my passion is the soccer of course! I’m stay here during one year principally for improving my English. I think that the Sweden is a very beautiful country. My alone problem concern the whether: so cold! I have very scare for the January and February months but I will see…I live to Brickebaken and I think it’s really so far and I hope for the second semester change of accommodation. I think that my “Bio” it’s very confused but my English is not very good and I haven’t a lot of vocabulary. So, I’m sorry.

Rebecca Harvey

Hi, my name is Rebecca Harvey and I am in group Lumo. I was born and raised in Sunnyvale, California. I am 22 years old but soon to be 23 on December 28th. I attend school at San Diego State University in California, where I am a communications major and sociology minor. I am a senior and will be graduating in May 2008. Through an exchange program I am currently studying at Orebro University in Sweden until January 18th.

I enjoy travelling, dancing and having a good time with friends. I like most all music expect anything that is to hard core in its genera. I love to laugh and I am very sarcastic. Making people laugh and smile is one thing I have become very good at. My family and friends mean the world to me and I would do anything for them. Including my parents there are six people in my family. I have two older brothers and one older sister. Hence, I am the baby of the family which explains a lot about me. I love meeting new people and getting to know them so don’t be shy around me. I believe that being honest and trustworthy are two very important traits to have and I strive to always be both.

[Read Rebecca's reflections on Swedish culture here]

Hi and welcome, please sit down and relax as I now will present to you the story of my life. Which will not be too long; I have, only, lived for 25 years so far. I’m very young.
Well, my name is Therese and I was borned a couple of years ago, in 1982. I grew up on the countryside, like Mowgli.

Anyway, I was finally tamed and from the age of 18 until now I have done quite a lot; I was a restless soul. I’ve worked in 4 different companies, travelled to a number of countries, moved about 9 times.. life was wonderful and exciting and I wanted to do and experience everything! I still do, I just need to finish my studies first =)

To roll back a little bit; I love travelling. I did my first (big) travel when I was 19; seven months alone in Asia. And after that I just cannot stop. Bla bla and lastly, I moved to Spain (Cadiz) for 6 months to learn Spanish. Hola. I came home in July -07 and finally felt like studying. So I started a program in computer science this fall (2007). I love it! I love to learn! It’s the essence of life =) Oh and I also work with aid programs, so development work is something I deeply feel for and I’m trying hard to find a way to later on use all the knowledge I’m gaining here now to save the world =)

[Read Therese's reflections on Swedish culture here.]

Carole-Fanny Astruc

Hey my name is Carole-Fanny ASTRUC

I come from France more particularly the east part of France near Switzerland!!! I am twenty three years old. I was born on Besancon, which is the city in which I make my studies actually. My home university is the university of Franche-Comté and over there I actually study English that is why I am actually in Sweden, to improve my English language and accent….

As all the students of my age I am fond of music and particularly Queen, Celine Dion and Mariah Carey. Concerning my spare time I like to practise Sports and I am particularly fond of synchronised swimming that I practise since I am ten years old. Moreover sometimes, I practise skiing. I have another passion: to play violon.
Indeed I have finished my academy of music!!!!

To finish this little presentation about me, as I am a french girl, I am very greedy and I like to eat well. But my favourite food will always be the Swiss chocolate!!!
Indeed it is my greed with french cheese…

[Read Carole's reflections on Swedish culture here]

Annika Kalen

Hej hej! Här kommer min bio.

Annika was born in Gothenburg, Sweden, but later moved to Trollhättan at the age of six and spent most of her childhood years there. She nowadays has a big family consisting of parents, sister, half-brother, step-father and three step-siblings, all in all a typical Swedish
family! At the age of 25 she now lives in Örebro, Sweden. This spring she graduated from the University of Örebro in international law. She currently works as a junior lecturer at the university, whilst studying rhetoric on the side, trying to convince her colleagues to make
rhetoric an obligatory element in legal education. On her spare time she likes to take long walks, spending time with friends and family and reading a good book, if possible all in front of the TV.

Mvh, Annika (publicera inte efternamn tack!)

[Read Annika's reflection on cultural differences here]

Anastasia

Anastasia was born in the Russian Riviera, but has lived in Sweden for almost 18 years. As her mother being an expert in political science and concert pianist and father one of Russia’s greatest lawyer she has as well a big interest for society and law. Outside of academics, Anastasia enjoys art, and have finish Russian school in classic art.

She also interested in writing, working, as a journalist is not only an extra job but also a favourite hobby.

Maija Kalnina

My name is Maija Kalnina and I come from Latvia. It is small, but beautiful country next to Baltic Sea. I have big family back home – 2 brothers and one sister. I miss them a lot.

I like to take challenges in my life and get new experiences so that’s why I am studying here in Sweden for one year. I came here to improve my English and learn some Swedish as well. I like travelling – I lived in USA for one year, I worked as an au- pair in NYC – it was so much fun and now I have a lot of friends around the world. Also I have been travelling around Europe a lot as well, I have been in Norway, Finland, Russia, England, Germany etc. It is so nice to go to other countries and explore other cultures and people and find out that our stereotypes are far from the truth. I came here because it is not far from my country and I think our mentality is very similar so I thought it won’t be hard to live here. So I like it very much so far.

I am studying English in University of Latvia to become English teacher. I love children that are why I chose this profession, and I like to learn languages very much- I have studied Russian, Norwegian, Swedish, and French. And I hope to learn other languages as well.

My interests are swimming and reading interesting literature. Of course I like to go to with my friends and it takes most of my free time.

[Read Maija's reflections on cross-cultural communication here.]

Jonna Kihlman

My name is Jonna Kihlman, I am 24 years old. Currently I am doing the cross cultural rhetoric course and working on my master degree in International Public Relations. I am expecting to finish in January. My dissertation project is about how Swedish non-profit organizations work with marketing, lobbying and media. I have a bachelor’s degree in International media and communication. Right now I am at Örebro University in Sweden, but this spring I was at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. I have also done an internship in news monitoring at the UN in New York this summer. I have lived and studied in Chester, England for a year.
I like to travel and experience different cultures a lot. I have been in some countries in Europe and Asia. I like India a lot and also New Zeeland.

I grew up in a small community by the sea 11 miles north of Stockholm. My mother is an author and a freelance journalist, my father runs his own business. I have an older brother and sister. My brother is a lawyer and my sister works in book publishing.

In my free time I like to read books, do sports and travel. My family has a house on the west coast of Sweden were I like to spend my time in the summers.

[Read Jonna's reflections on cross-cultural communication here.]

Thomas Skagerland

Hi, my name it Thomas Skagerland and I am 33 years old. I am born and raised in the glorious and amazing kingdom of Sweden. I am single and do not have any children that I know about. I do not have any siblings and I don’t need a car.

Besides my work and studies, I like hanging out with my homies, pumping iron, club hopping and watching movies. Since I own a house with four apartments, I sometimes have to work with my hands, which I like.

Martin Thalström, born and raised in Stockholm, Sweden, is 23 years old and is studying business economics at Örebro University.

He has already earned the degree of Bachelor of Economics and is currently working on his research paper for a Master’s Degree. Main areas of interest are management & organization and urban marketing.

He speaks Swedish, English, and Estonian fluently and has basic knowledge in German and French.

He lives by the revised Shakespeare quote: Love All, Trust Few, and Fear None.

[Read Martin's reflections on Estonian and Swedish culture here.]

Nick De Valk

Hello fellow CCR classmates. My name is Nick DeValk I was born on January 31st. 1988 in New Prague Minnesota. It's a small farming town in the southern part of the state. Currently I am a sophomore at the University of Minnesota Duluth. Our school has a popular exchange program with Swedish universities, so that is how I got to Orebro. I am studying here for one semester and having a great time doing it. My major is communications, but I am considering changing it outdoor recreation, which is a great interest of mine.

Complacent would be one of the last words I would use to describe myself. I love being active and trying new things. You could say I'm a little bit of an adrenaline junkie. Some hobbies of mine are whitewater kayaking, snowboarding, rock climbing, hiking, canoing, camping, fishing, hunting, and snow kiting...just to name a few. As you can see I love the outdoors. Traveling is another great passion of mine, that is why I jumped at the opportunity to come to Sweden for five months. I love the flexibility of the Swedish education system. So far I've been to Germany, France, England, Russia, and Norway without missing many classes. It is sort of like a second summer vacation for the exchange students with occasional classes. I also worked as a wildland firefighter last summer which has allowed me to see a lot of the United States. I would consider myself a pretty laid back and easygoing person who likes making new friends. If you have any more questions on what I'm all about, don't hesitate to ask.

Audrey Chenou

Hi ! My name is Audrey Chenou and i’m 21 years old. I’m French, I come from a little city of the North-East of France called Besançon . I have started my third year of undergraduate education at Orebro University and I study English and a bit of Swedish . I have chosen Orebro University because I have always been attracted by Scandinavian countries and I had the chance to go to Sweden so I took it immediately .

I have several interests in life and one of them is to travel a lot and know many people from different cultures and to confront and compare mine to the others . And I’m interested in foreign languages, i like to learn and to speak languages and in Sweden, I have the chance to learn Swedish, it’s a beautiful language but very different from French and this idea is very interesting because it’s a different way of perceiving things and to know more about different languages and cultures .

My second interest, which can be one of my research centers, is the Asian culture, especially Japonese one, last year I learnt some Japonese and I ‘m fond of this beautiful culture and I like to learn original languages; the interesting thing is to learn all the different kinds of Japonese writings, it’s so beautiful and pleasant .

I have chosen this course because I have to improve my oral skills and this course seems to be important to me because it will bring me interesting things and values about other cultures than mine and this is an incredible experience and opportunity to open my mind to unknown things and it will be a personal enrichment . In my research, I will focus on the differences but forces that exist between Asian languages and other foreign languages in order to know more about different kind of rhetoric and make some comparisons for linking them.

[Read Audrey's reflections on cross-cultural communication here.]

Maria Konieczna

Hi everybody! My name's Maria Konieczna and I come from Poland. I'm a student at the University of Lodz (located in the centre of Poland), but temporarily I attend courses offered by the Swedish University of Orebro. My major is economics, and hopefully next year I'll get my master's degree in this field.

My main interest is travelling. I guess I'm a kind of person who just can't be in one place for too long. I always try to search for adventures, challenge myself. That is why, whenever I have a chance to go abroad, I simply do that. I also love, however prosaic it may sound, meeting people and exchanging my views with them; getting to know different attitudes, outlooks and cultures can be so fascinating! At the same time it makes me realise how strong influence my Polish background has on my personality and the way I perceive the world. Nevertheless, I try to think, doubt, compare, analyse, and make my heritage more personal, more mine!
THX for reading!

[Read Maria's reflections on Polish culture here]

Marie Andersson

My name is Marie Andersson and I am 24 years. I come from Pålsboda which is a small village just south of Örebro in Sweden. I am a student at the University of Linköping in Sweden, but last year I took a gap year and went to England where my fiancé lives. In England I worked at an international company and I had a great time getting to know people from all over the world. In September I took a French Course in Caen, in the north of France, and now I am back in Örebro until January when I will return to Linköping for my final year on my way to a master’s degree in Business Law.

Before going to University I took a year of to work as an au-pair in Paris, France. That year was great fun and I learned a lot about myself and another culture as well, not to mention all the great people I met. I enjoy learning about other cultures and I hope that this course will do just that.

In my spare time I try to meet up with my fiancé as much as possible, which means a lot of time on aeroplanes (which I don’t like at all). I also make jewellery and like listening to music and reading books. In the winter I love to go ski, both cross-country and slalom.

[Read Maria's reflections on Swedish culture here.]

Tankut Sayin

My name is Tankut Sayin. I am 28. I come from Istanbul, Turkey. I studied geophysics engineering in my country. It is about earthquakes. Then I got married and came to Sweden 4 years ago. And I started everything from the beginning. Now I am studying Swedish B and I took Cross Cultural Rhetoric and some other courses from Örebro University. Next year I am going to start the System Development Programme at Örebro University.

I also took some of the Microsoft’s certificate courses and before I came to Sweden, I was working in a cargo company as a system and networks administrator in Istanbul. I enjoy dealing with computers, playing video games, watching movies and going out for dinner with my wife.

Sophie Guesney

[Read Sophie's reflections on Swedish culture here.]

Robert Hirsch

My name is Robert Hirsch, I am 22 years old and I am in my 7th semester of Politics and English Studies. My hometown is Berlin, Germany where I spent my whole youth attending a catholic private school. When I was 16 I spent some time in Lyon, France and went abroad to Austin, Texas for a school year. After that I came back, finished school and started my tertiary education at the FU Berlin and University of Potsdam, Germany. At that time I also began to work as an accountant in a youth club besides university for three years. I further did voluntary work with children and am active in a catholic fraternity. At the moment I spend an exchange semester at the University of Örebro, Sweden to get to know the north of Europe and Sweden better and will continue with another exchange semester in Bologna, Italy to get to know the south and Italy as well.

As one can see I have a very multicultural education and would like to elaborate on that in order to work one day in international politics or international relations. To do so I think it is very important and interesting to get to know different cultures of the world and also the way of intercultural communication, the reason why I attend the project of Cross-Cultural Rhetoric. I therefor really look forward to learn a lot of new things about other cultures and their communication with each other and I am sure to meet interesting people as well.

[Read Robert's reflections on Swedish culture here.]

Caroline Kern

Hello to everybody! I am Caroline, 21 years old and currently a student at Örebro University in Sweden. I am originally from Germany in the Northern and best part of the country, Greifswald. I study Communication Studies and English and I will hopefully finish my studies within the next year. I am really glad of doing this course because after the first two days I found out that this course fits for both fields of my study and it seems to be really interesting and auspicious.
Besides studying, I am really interested in travelling and discover the world but unfortunately money is always short measured. I am also into listening to progressive rock music, reading books about South Africa and Swedish culture and of course spending a happy, boozy evening with good friends…

[Read Caroline's reflections on cultural diversity here.]

Giovanni Piumatti

Hello everydodies! I am Giovanni Piumatti and I come from Italy, exactly from Turin a city situated in the north-west of Italy, famous for the football team of the Juventus and for the FIAT, the most important factory of cars in Italy. More exactly I am grew up in a small village called Sommariva del Bosco, almoust 40 km from Turin. I consider Turin my city because it is where I live when I am in Italy and where I am attending the University. Actually I am studying Neuropsychology and I am at the last year of my first level of studies. In the last two years I lived in different places around the Europe, first in London where I have worked for a period to be able to speak english (it is a miracle that a an italian is able to speak english, at least enough to be understood), than I moved to Portugal in a small town called Coimbra, 200 km north from Lisbon where I have studied for a period and now I am at the University of Orebro in Sweden to complete a research about divorce and its effects on the marriage´s rates and on the family. Travelling it has been for me in these last four years a kind of priority, I think because if you come from a little little village, where everydody knows everybody, you become courious to discover the world when you are jus enough old to leave your country. But the best for me it is always to come back home to my friends and to my family, this is the part of a trip that I prefer.