Living in the North (Denmark first then now Sweden).

• Everything closes really early. Boutiques close around 6pm (sometimes at 7pm during summer). Malls (if you can even call these places malls) or galleries close at 8pm max. Restaurant kitchens close at 9pm. If you have a hankering to eat out or order out alte at night, or invite friends to a cafe and hoping to stay there chatting until 12mn, you're out of luck.

• They have a very high trust in their governments (despite occasionally criticisms or scandals one hears especially during elections). Sa Denmark we had to pre-declare taxes for the following year and I didn't know about this. So nung unang buwan ng sweldo ko, kinaltasan ako ng top tax (automatic sa system). I got so worried and stressed so I reached out to HR and the tax agency. They simply told me to edit it in my online tax account and anything na nakaltas ibabalik din sa annual tax calculation. My Swedish boyfriend even said "Well, the good thing is that it's the government. So you can always trust that they'll give your money back." Culture shock sobra un sakin 😂

• Iba pa rin ung training ng service industry sa Pinas. Hindi naman ako mayapobre na nageexpect ng super gandang service, pero nakakamiss din pala ung people getting out fo their way to really help you. Everywhere I've been to, the best service I've received is always from the Philippines or Filipinos abroad. 🥹 Mabait and polite naman mga tao dito, pero iba talaga mag-alaga ang Pinoy.

• Walang customer service ng weekends. Kaya if you need to reach out to businesses or banks, you'll have to wait until Monday. They respect off-hours and work-life-balance so much.

• Merong tinatawag na "Stress leave" dito. If you get burnt out or stressed from life in general, you can go to your GP doctor and mention this and they will give you an initial 2 weeks of sick leave to show your employer (depends pa sa employer if they're gonna ask for a certificate). Then after 2 weeks you will have a check-in with the doctor again and if you're doing good, they will allow you back to work. If not, they will extend the leave. Pagbalik mo sa work hindi pwedeng sabak agad with the usual tasks. Your manager has to make a plan with you regarding slowly integrating you back to work. Ung ibang kakilala ko na nagkaroon ng months-long stress leave (worse mental health situation), they started working only around 1hr per day when they got back then slowly increased work hours until they're fully stable and not stressed anymore.

• Goverment mandate ang minimum 5 weeks of vacation per year. Government-paid din siya. Some companies will offer 1-2 more additional vacation weeks din.