About

WELCOME!

I’m Karen Roldan ♡

A Filipino who moved to Sweden in 2018. As a foreigner in Sweden, I am letting you in on my adventures and experiences (even the negative ones) while living abroad!

Started as a weekend hobby to share my quick getaways, this blog becomes my platform for sharing my expat life, different travel stories, tips, and guides.

I believe you don’t have to travel far to experience new things!

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ABOUT THE BLOG

How it all started

When I was 16, after my high school graduation, I moved to Australia for college and lived there for less than a year. I was alone and young then; I felt homesick. After the program, I went back to the Philippines to continue my college education and later relocated to Sweden in 2018.

I work in the IT industry and was lucky to get a job in Sweden. This is my second chance to move abroad, and it felt like it was the right time also.

Three years later, I am married, my husband moved to Sweden, we bought an apartment, and is really starting a new life here.

This inspires me to rebrand my blog, karenroldan.net, and focus on travel and expat life content!

I believe that you don’t need to travel far and have a lot of money to experience new things.

THE HEART OF EVERYTHING IN THIS BLOG IS AUTHENTICITY.

Karen Roldan is a travel and expat life blog that aims to share different travel stories, tips, and guides. As a traveler, I like to spend more days in a city and explore its hidden gems. I get more excited if I can visit an underrated city first!

As a foreigner living in Sweden, you will also find here my adventures and experiences while living abroad.

MORE DETAILS

Get to know me

I am born and raised in the Philippines.

I’m not a big fan of social media. I share on my Instagram stories every now and then, but I always run out of ideas!

I love coffee! I drink 3 to 4 cups a day and I could never get enough. I can still fall asleep after drinking coffee.

I’m afraid of driving alone. Miguel, my husband, loves to drive so I stopped driving.

I always have a ‘food of the quarter‘ where I crave a specific food almost every day and still not get tired of eating it.

Frequently Asked Questions

How did you find your job in Sweden?

I found my job through Glassdoor! There is an option to filter by country and some job listings indicate if they offer relocation or not. I applied directly to the company’s website. Here’s a post on how I moved to Sweden.

How can I move to Sweden?

There are a lot of options for you to move to Sweden. You can study, work, or move to someone who is living in Sweden already (spouse, registered partner, or cohabiting partner).

How much money do you need to relocate abroad?

I am not the right person to ask! Fortunately, my employer covered my relocation and most of my expenses related to that. There are some expenses out of my own pocket. I will share it in a separate post soon!

What it’s like to live in Sweden?

I moved to Stockholm in 2018 and my husband moved here in 2020! So far, we loved living in Stockholm. It isn’t as busy as Manila; life here is more relaxed. I have shared in this post what I love about living in Sweden!

I want to visit Sweden someday. Is it hard to get a tourist visa?

Getting a Schengen Visa may be a bit overwhelming because of its requirements. But, if you follow the steps & provide the necessary documents, then you should not worry about it too much! Here’s a guide that might help you with your tourist visa process.

I’m a Philippine passport holder and got a job abroad. Do I need to get an exit clearance?

Unfortunately, yes! If you are a skilled worker, you don’t need to get an agency to get an OEC (Overseas Exit Clearance). You can process your documents as a direct hire. Just remember though that you might need at least a month for this!

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LET’S BE FRIENDS

DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR BLOG SUGGESTIONS?

I always love hearing from my readers! I met most of my friends in Sweden through this blog, so don’t hesitate to contact me especially if you are moving to Sweden soon!

Of course, if you want to see some topics on this blog, feel free to leave a message also!