“Sweden is so out there. Everything just works!”

Sweden is so out there. Really? That’s what a South African guy told us, in a tone of something that could have been frustration, when we talked to him about our project and where we came from. We have met quite a few people who think that European countries in general and Scandinavian countries in particular are, how can I put it, maybe too easy. Everything is so well developed and has been so for so long people forget to appreciate it. We have talked about holes in the pavement (they are veeeery frequent in Mozambique) and how they teach people not to fall into them. Have you done it once you’ll watch out for them the next time so to speak and that’s the end of that. If this would happen in Sweden you would find someone responsible for the hole and expect them to take this responsibility and be ashamed that their road is not working as a road should.

What I think these people want to get to is that people in countries like Sweden forget from time to time that EVERYTHING WORKS. So when a small detail is failing their whole world is destroyed; Like if the bus is 10 minutes late on your way to work you’ll let your anger out on your fellow workers about it for the rest of the day. In a world where there are no timetables or arrival times, this thinking quickly gets ridiculous.  Because we do worry about a lot of silly things, or why would it be fun to make jokes about the “Dagens I-landsproblem” (the Developed country problem of the day – my free translation)?

What I also think is that for me it normally takes about two days to get back to expecting everything to work when I get back to Sweden. I try so hard to stay in the feeling where a power cut for 5 hours is not the end of the world, and still the reaction would be completely different if it happened me back home. It is not what you expect. And, yes, don’t take me wrong, I absolutely don’t want power cuts and cold showers to happen all the time. All I want is some understanding that the world WORKS with these things too. Mozambique works. In my opinions everything has worked even so much better than I expected. Mozambique works based on their current conditions.

If you haven’t understood it yet I am back home now. I’m sitting in my apartment listening to the tram passing by outside. We are lucky Sweden did its best to milder the shock of returning by giving us summer sun and lovely weather when we arrived. It is almost as warm as in Mozambique today and this is what my breakfast view looked like. Not too bad, huh?

The last night in Maputo was wonderful with speech and dance and face painting and tacos and friends and all you could have asked for. Thank you everyone for a fabulous night!

And the journey back home was boring and eventless as it should. All that remains is to remember that everything works here in Sweden and small malfunctions and trouble is not going to be the end of the world. And that a fantastic report is to be written.

(If you wonder where all the sentimentality of leaving is; I still haven't understood I'm back. I just think I'm here on vacation, expecting to go back to Maputo in a week or so...)