What is identity?

I went on a trip to Italy around the time when the days in Europe became very long and it was hot even in short sleeves.

When I was traveling, I would walk into a restaurant or a store to buy souvenirs, and a kind-looking.
Then shopkeeper would ask me "where are you from?  and they would talk to me.

I always wondered whether to say "Japan" or "Korea," and I would say "Japan" when I was with my Japanese friends and "Korea" when I was with my Korean friends, depending on my mood. LOL!

But when I was traveling in Italy at that time and was asked the same question, I suddenly thought, "I'm from Sweden".

I wanted to say I'm from Sweden.

Of course, I was traveling from Sweden, but I also wanted to say that I had a connection to Sweden (for about 10 months, lol), and when I was in various places on my trip and there were translations in various languages, the first thing I looked for was not Japanese or Korean, but Swedish.
I feel happy when I see a Swedish flag or something, and I feel a sense of camaraderie when I hear Swedish on the street. 

Through my one-year study abroad experience, Sweden became not just a long-term study abroad destination, but a very important part of my identity.

After spending about a year as an international student, I learned to speak Swedish, even if only a little, made many Swedish friends, and gained many precious memories. I also met two people at my part-time job who treated me warmly as if I they are my Swedish parents. Although it is not the place where I was born and raised, nor the nationality, Sweden has become my "home".

Before coming to study in Sweden, I used to often ask myself, "What is the purpose of studying in Sweden?"

"How to educate immigrant children in their native language."

"How immigrant children learn about their own  native culture."

I said that I wanted to learn and see such things with my own eyes.

Perhaps it is because I myself went to Korean school and learned about my nationality and roots very, very strongly, that I often think about being proud of my roots or valuing my roots as a belief. I think this is an important part of my identity.

But when I talk about such things with my university advisor, she says,

"Yes, Miryong's point of view is really very important. But if you study abroad in Europe, I think you will feel more diverse identities. People's identities in the world are more diverse and fluid, and roots are not always one thing."

I was told something like that.
At first, I kind of understood, but not completely.I wondered what "diversity of identity" meant.

But then I really started living in Sweden, met friends from different backgrounds, and saw many different ways of identity.

When I introduced myself as "I'm from Japan but my nationality is Korea," they were not that surprised. I met many friends who said they were immigrants, and it was so commonplace that I didn't even bother to tell them. I felt that it was no longer necessary to mention such things.

In Sweden, there are many adoptions. I have met many friends who are looks like half-Korean or half-Japanese, but when I talk to them, I find that they are friends who were raised in Sweden as adopted children.

After such experiences, when I was working in a Korean restaurant, I stopped speaking in Korean as the first language when a Korean-looking customer came in.

Even if I could, some people are more comfortable speaking Swedish. Some of them have never been to Korea.
It seems obvious, But you can't judge a person by his or her looks.

There is a Swedish friend who is a very good friend of mine.

He was born in Romania, but moved to Iceland with his parents when he was very young.

He speaks Icelandic, Romanian, Swedish, English, and Japanese.

The last time I was talking with him about Eurovision (a music festival in which European countries participate and are ranked according to which country wins), he told me that Romania didn't qualify, but Iceland and Sweden are still there, and Sweden is going to win this year, so it's fine. Wow - or something like that.

I thought it was nice to have three countries in his heart.

Of course, his parents' roots are in Romania, so I guess strictly speaking his birth roots would be in Romania, but identity is not that simple.

Iceland, where he spent his childhood, must have been a wonderful place.

I wonder how much Romanian culture he has felt as the place where his  parents were born.

How much time he pent in Sweden, where his  family moved, and how many friends he met there.

When I was talking with him, in conversation, he might not realize it, but sometimes he says As a Roumanian, and sometimes he says As a Swede, and I started to think that's kind of nice.

Identity is not simple, it is not set in , and it is not one thing to be decided. All of them are important, and sometimes one of them becomes stronger, weaker, equal to another, disappears, or newly appears.

My identity has also been very fluffy and shaky during the year.

I would like to think that Sweden is one of my homes, one of my identities.

I think Sweden is a nice country for such people. No matter what we look like, the first language spoken in restaurants and stores is Swedish, and you are never judged by your appearance.

Maybe it is because I have lived in such a country that I feel so at home. I don't know.

Sweden has become a place where I can casually think, "Let's go visit 00 or 00 next spring! (But I need money...).(Well, money...lol).

Last year, just before my study abroad, I was so nervous just to buy a plane ticket from Tokyo to Stockholm, and I couldn't decide on a flight well.

Now I want to come back to Sweden soon, and now I am already looking at next year's airline tickets with my smartphone in hand.

When you have people you like, a place becomes much closer. This is true not only in Japan, but anywhere in the world.

I really believe this to be true.

What is identity?

What I know now is that Sweden, with so many people I love, has become one of my homes, one of my important identities.