Virtually Swedish!

I used to think Swedish = Volvo, Saab and Ikea.

But with the recent visit of the Gotheborg, a recreated Swedish 18-century East Indiaman to Singapore, I am becoming much more aware of all things Swedish.

I recently attended the exhibitions "Improving Life - the design of Swedish inventions" at the Singapore National Museum. Never knew till then, that safety matches was a Swedish invention! Or zippers, 3-point seat belts, Tetra Paks or the adjustable wrench! There were 60 other useful inventions on display. It was definitely an eye-opener.

The Swedish creativity doesn't stop there. They have now ventured beyond the real world. Link

She is now the first country to have set up an embassy in Second Life, a virtual reality world where residents get to create the life as they want it.

"We are planning to establish a Swedish embassy in Second Life primarily as an information portal for Sweden," Swedish Institute (SI) director Olle Wästberg told AFP.

"Second Life allows us to inform people about Sweden and broaden the opportunity for contact with Sweden easily and cheaply," Wästberg said.