Differences and similarities between the Technology and architecture in Sweden and Italy

In GKC everyone gets their own computers given by the school to write down notes from the lessons and to do your homework. We also have the access to a free wi-fi. In Capirola nobody gets a computer but they have computers they can use in a computer lab for the Informatics. The students in Capirola do their homework on a paper and write down notes in a notebook. Although, they don’t have a free wi-fi. Both in Capirola and in GKC you’re not allowed to use your cell phone unless the teacher says it’s okay. If you use your phone during the lesson at GKC the teacher will ask you to put it away. But if you use your phone during the lesson at Capirola the teacher will take it away and give it back to you at the end of the school day.

In Italy it’s more common to play video games than computer games. We play the same video games in both Italy and in Sweden such as FIFA, GTA and COD. But in Sweden we also play computer games. Almost everyone knows what Netflix is and almost everyone use it. Whereas, in Italy they don’t use Netflix. They usually watch movies in the cinema or on Sky instead of watching movies and series on the internet.

In Italy every house has fences. Mostly because they want to protect themselves and the house from thieves. In Sweden it isn’t that common to have fences around the house. Some houses don’t have any fence at all. Sometimes there’s bushes that parts the houses from each other. In the houses the majority of the people in Sweden use electricity driven stoves. Meanwhile, most of the Italians use gas stoves. We both have wooden floors and stone floors. But the Italians have more stone floors than we in Sweden have. In Sweden it’s normal to have stone floors in the bathroom and sometimes in the entrance.

The cities in Sweden have more nature than in Italy. There’s more cars and people in Italy because the population is bigger. They also have lots of old monuments, older buildings and shopping centers. The cities in Sweden are turning more modern although we still have some older buildings and monuments left. 

Differences and similarities between the nature in Sweden and Italy

In Sweden we have a lot of trees and forests where you can pluck blueberries, while this is prohibited in Italy. Italy, just like Sweden, has mountains in the northern parts, while Italy also has mountains in the center. There are lots of plain fields in the southern parts of Sweden.

We have the same the types of animal on the farms, for example chickens, cows, horses and goats. Eating fish from the lakes is prohibited in Italy. This is complete legal in Sweden.

Sweden has a lot of agriculture, especially in the southern part of the country such as Skåne. Here we grow potatoes, carrots, wheat, oats, corn, apples, plums and pears. Italy also grows potatoes and corn. But unlike Sweden, Italy grows oranges, olives and grapes.

The climate varies considerably from the north to the south of Italy. In the north of the country - the area between the Alps and the Tuscan-Emilian Apennines - the climate is harsh, with very cold winters and very hot, particularly humid summers. In central Italy the climate is milder, with a smaller difference in temperature between summer and winter and a shorter and less intense cold season than in the north; summers are longer, but the sultriness of the northern cities is mitigated by the sea. In southern Italy and the islands winters are never particularly harsh, and spring and autumn temperatures are similar to those reached in the summer in other areas of Italy.

Sweden enjoys a generally temperate climate, thanks to the Gulf Stream. Winter can be crisp and invigorating. In the south, winter is generally very cold with an average of temperature below 0C degrees, but temperatures can vary markedly in different parts of the country. Sweden's northerly position has a definite summer advantage in that temperatures are rarely extreme and humidity levels are not high. You can divide the country into three regions; central and southern Sweden, the northeast, and the northwest, or far north to describe the weather in Sweden

Italians usually go camping in the summer, when it´s not so cold and they usually go to Garda Lake, which is really fun and nice. Swedes also go camping in the summer. But when swedes goes camping, they’re usually in the woods having a barbeque. 

What are the differences and similarites between italian and swedish food?

The breakfast is usually salty, for example Swedes eat butter and ham or turkey, and some fruit. They drink coffee which is long and without sugar and fruit juice sometimes. They also drink milk in every meal. Swedish people have also lunch and dinner very early in confront to us: lunch at 11:00 a.m. and dinner at 6:00 p.m. Italia usually have lunch at 1 pm and have dinner at 8 p.m. But at lunch students eat in the cafeteria fish once a week, soup, meat, lasagne, vegetables and drink water. Italian students eat lunch at home. They either don´t have plastic bottles of water, they only drink it from the tap because the water is very clean and it’s from the mountains. On Friday night Swedish families usually eat tacos, while Italian families eat pizza. Swedish pizza is very different from the Italian one, because instead of mozzarella they use cheese. Between lunch and dinner Swedish people eat ”Fika” which is juice or milk with kanelbullar. It doesn´t have to be kanelbullar, it can be just something little and sweet. Meatballs are similar to our Italian”polpette” which are bigger, but Italians eat them with pepper or tomato sauce instead of the Swedish that eat them with jam and beet sauce. Typical Swedish candies are salty, while Italian candies are really sweet. Italians use different dishes for the first course, the second course and side plates. Swedish people eat everything in the same dish.

Differences and similarities in Italy and Sweden’s culture.

Both Italy and Sweden is Christian. The difference is that Italy is Catholics and Sweden is Protestants. Italy and Sweden are both celebrating Lucia December the 13^th. In Sweden we celebrate Lucia by Lucia trains and eating saffron buns. In the morning December the 13th the kids in Italy wait for gifts from Lucia. Italy “celebrates” saints every day. Sweden doesn’t celebrate saints except for Lucia.

In Sweden we have a tradition called midsummer. The tradition is from the Viking age. At midsummer we dance around a maypole and sing child songs. Midsummer is the lightest day of the whole year before it turns around and goes darker. Midsummer happens under the summer break in Sweden (June to August). Other breaks in Sweden are: February (1 week), March (1 week), October (1 week) and from the end of December to January there is Christmas holiday. In Italy they have break from the beginning of June till the middle of September. From December the 23th to the beginning of January they have Christmas holiday. Easter holiday is from 24th of March to the 29^th of March.

Italy and Sweden have the same kinds of shows on TV. For example MasterChef, cartoons and reality programs.

In Italy it’s legal to drink alcohol when you are 16. The legal age for buying is 18. In Sweden it’s legal to drink when you are 18 and buying when you are 21.

Don´t break a mirror in Italy because that will bring you 7 years of bad luck. If you leave your keys on the table or walk on a well with the letter A on it in Sweden it will bring you bad luck. If your cake bit falls you will not get married. In common of both Italy and Sweden the superstitions are:

·         Walk under a ladder - bring you bad luck.

·         Black cat crosses the road. Spit behind your shoulder because otherwise that cat will bring you bad luck.

·         Find a four-leaf clover - bring you good luck.

Differences in history between Sweden and Italy!

Ciao! We got the mission to research about the differences in history between Sweden and Italy, and what we found is that the earliest finds of humans in Italy are approximately 700.000 years old and that the pioneers of Sweden settled down about 17.000 years ago. One of the reasons as to why Sweden was so late to have any population can be explained by the latest glacial period. During this period Sweden was covered in thick layers of ice and snow while in Italy it was dry and comfortable.

Both Sweden and Italy have history that differs from the rest of the world. Vikings and the Roman Empire. The Roman Empire is one of the most cultures which had had significant impact on Europe. Being an enormous empire made it possible to reach thousands and millions of civilians and thus they learnt about mathematics, politics and the language. They used latin and greek to communicate, Two languages that are still being used today!

We call the 8^th to the 11^th century, the Viking age. A time that is considered very Scandinavian, especially Swedish. We can still see remains from the Vikings today. Poneglyphs and old castles are scattered all over Sweden and can be found many places. The Vikings are famous for their ships and their long trips crossing the North Sea and the Baltic ocean.

The former Swedish and Italian people had one thing in common. Both loved fighting. In ancient Rome they built a huge arena, also known as the colosseum and the purpose of the arena was to see fights in action. Sweden did unfortunately not build a building to compete in fights. The Vikings were instead of infamous for their brutality and their joy to kill others.

The state religion in both countries are Christianity. But in Sweden they have Protestantism and in Italy they have catholic. Until the mid-17^th century the Swedish were also catholic. One of the kings who was responsible of the reformation from Protestantism to catholism was Gustav the ninth, the statue we saw in Gothenburg. The churches in Sweden does not differ compared to the Italian ones. Open port for praying, pictures on the wall of Jesus, and an amazing architecture.

And now that the italian people have been here in Sweden, We can still notice differences between our history and our culture, but I'd rather write about it after we've been to Italy as we still have so much to learn!

My answer

What is the differences and similarities in nature for the surrounding areas near Gnosjö and Leno?

Gnosjö is a typical Swedish small town, with trees surrounding the entire town. The municipality of Gnosjö consists of a natural landscape with a great variety of lakes, hills, pine and leaf trees. In the southeastern part of the municipality there is also a National Park “Store Mosse” which is one of southern Sweden's largest marshes.  

The nature in Leno is more reminiscent of the very south of Sweden. Mostly due to the open fields and leaf trees. The land area is cultivated, still some natural vegetation is preserved. The landscape is mostly covered with buildings, open fields and leaf trees. However Leno also have a lot of bushes more than what is common in southern Sweden and there were almost no pine trees. There were more differences then I expected, but there were still some similarities, like for example both towns have many lakes and rivers.    

My Answer

How is the Italian habitat type in comparison to the Swedish? Can you find any similarities and differences between the different countries?

Italy and Sweden are quite equal both to the outside and their similar nature. The both countries have small and oblong shapes which makes the northern part of the country a bit different from the southern. In general, Italy has many mountainous regions. In the north of Italy you can find the Alps and also the mountain range, Apennines, which reaches the whole way from the north to the south. Below the Alps and on the both sides of the Apennines begins the lowland where also the fertile plains and their different kind of farming take place. Sweden is also kind of mountainous in the north, nevertheless the fact that we don’t have any mountain chain. Almost the half of the surface is covered with forests. In the south you will find mostly hardwood and in the central and in the northern parts of Sweden dominates the nature of coniferous forests, such as spruce and pine. But the nature and weather differ a lot from north and south. For instance, the longer south you get, you will see the agriculture grow more and more. The nature switches all the time due to where you are in the country and their diverse nature is one thing the both countries have in common. Something that is different between Sweden and Italy are their dissimilar climates. Italy has a Mediterranean climate which makes the summer constantly hot and dry while the weather in the winter is alternately and rainy. Sweden has a temperate climate and the different climates affect their variant habitats.

One thing I noticed during my visit in Leno was the big, extended fields which surrounded the roads we were driving at. In Gnosjö (where I live) and the regions near, the only thing you can see is forests. I reacted how openly it was in Italy compared with Sweden and that was one of the biggest difference I could see.