Getting a bike in Uppsala

You might already know this, but there are tons of bikes all around Uppsala. Basically, that's the main way of transportation here. So, you'll probably want to get your own.  There are many places where you could get them, so here are a couple of ideas:

• If you're living in student buildings, check the boards! Tons of students post flyers there to sell their bikes.
• There are small stores selling used bikes. There are some in student areas (like in Flogsta), but they might be over prised, so do your research first!
• Check http://www.blocket.se/ The magic swedish word is "cyklar" (under Fritid & hobby).
• Check out sport stores for new bikes, like http://www.stadium.se/ and http://www.teamsportia.se/ 

Enjoy biking!

Buying books in Uppsala

Studying in Uppsala requires a lot of reading. I was used to the fact that going to the classes and reading a little bit was more than enough, but here in Uppsala doesn’t always work that way. You are going to see yourself many times in the situation were you need to read almost the whole book to actually understand the class and that requires owning the book.

Buying used books is always cheaper but they are hard to find since not everyone sells their books. Also, not everyone actually gives you a good deal and many people try to sell their books in almost the full price. Anyway, books are as expensive here as in any other place (at least from what I’ve seen). If you are looking for a place to buy your books you can go to Studentbokhandeln. The books there have an acceptable price, sometimes even cheaper than amazon.com and you will get a 10% student discount if you spend more than 1000 SEK.

If you can actually wait a week or so to get your book, I would recommend buying them in bokus.com. They have a large selection, books are noticeably cheaper than in Studentbokhandeln, and if you have your student card from Mecenat.se, you earn 2.5% of what you pay as a student bonus (5% the first time), which you can use to buy books as well. I have used this page many times and, in my experience, they have a pretty good service.

View Studentbokhandeln AB in a larger map

I know there is actually at least another book store here in Uppsala, but here I’ve always find the books I’m looking for.

Update: here is a list of bookstores I found on a course website (online and offline)

Bookstores:
Akademibokhandeln
Bokpris
Bokus
cdon.com
Drottninggatans bokhandel
Studentbokhandeln i Uppsala

Secondhand bookstores:
Uppsala studentkårs bokförmedling
Begagnadeskolbocker
Bokbörsen
Bokus Köp & Säljtorg
Fixaboken.se 
Kurslitt.se
Kurslitteratur.se 
Kurslitteratur.org
KurslitteraturUppsala 
Libris24
Lycknis
Mystudentstore
Skuffen.se
Studiebok 
Studentarena.se 

Getting a cellphone in Sweden

Hej! :-)

This post might be interesting for just a small group of students out there, but I still it is worth writing. Some of you might be thinking about getting a new cellphone once you are in Sweden or maybe you just want to have a post paid plan so you don't have to worry about actually having credit/money on your phone when you really really need to make a call. Maybe you're just one of those who likes using a Black Berry... For all of you I must say that you'll have to wait... and then wait a bit more... It turns out that when you want to sign up for a contract with any phone company you need to have at least 6 months in Sweden (maybe 8... I think the employees really don't know and it's just an automated check). Anyway, it's not like you'll show them your plane ticket, it's more like they will ask for your personnummer and the system will say you can't sign a contract... Then my advice is for you to get your personnummer as soon as you can so you can start thinking about a contract next year. You'll probably get better prices and you can even get your dream phone a lot cheaper!

And one more things about cellphones! If you try to buy one with a contract, ask about unlocking the phone! Maybe this is super common now (it was not so common to me), but after some time with the company you can actually unlock you phone and use it in your own country after you leave.

Have a great week all of you!