KOCHI: Klara Rosen, a social science student of Stockholm Hersby Institute, had a bad impression about Kerala before heading to the state from Sweden. She believed the state was an underdeveloped one and the people residing here were devoid of hospitality. But Rosen, set to go back with 18 other students on Sunday morning, now has a different story to narrate. For she has realised what she carried in her mind was a misconception.
“Before coming here, I read a lot about this state and the nation. Though I could find many interesting things, the whole concept of the state and the people was not impressive. But after spending a week here, I came to know that Kerala can be termed as a synonym of hospitality. The experience we gathered through interacting with the people and officers made me understand the state is not underdeveloped, and the people too,” said Klara who visited the city as part of the eight-day exchange programme organised by the Indo-Swedish Academic Exchange Forum.
Fabian Oppenhein, who too came all the way from the Scandinavian nation, said Kerala is really different from other places not in terms of looks but in terms of infrastructure development. “The bad thing I just noticed here is the motorists depend more on the sound horns while driving. In our nation, we use the facility very rarely. Otherwise, the infrastructure and the facilities are really great here. After visiting some villages, we could also grab new culture which cannot be seen anywhere,” said Oppenhein, after attending an interactive session led by Riviera Suites managing director Viju Jacob on Saturday.
The 19 students, along with three professors, also conducted a study on six different subjects - including self-help groups, tourism, sanitation and the LGBT community. Apart from interacting with the students of St Teresa’s College and Rajagiri College, the Swedish team visited government offices, hospitals, political party offices and other historically important places.
“Through this academic visit, we aim to provide them a different perspective about the organisation in the state,” said Cecilia Schnackenburg Fosshaug, a social science faculty member at the Stockholm Hersby Institute. The Indian coordinator of the Indo-Swedish Academic Exchange Programme, Fr Thomas Kurian, said: “The programme helps students get an opportunity to engage in mutual visits and to collaborate on academic projects.”