Phuong Dinh 🇸🇪🇹🇷

I had 3 wonderful months at SUM Lab, Alanya, Türkiye, as an Erasmus trainee.

Professionally,
• I stepped into research for the first time, working on smart cities and urban mobility within an R&D team. I gained hands-on experience using statistical modelling to explore real urban mobility challenges.
• Coming from a corporate background, I also got to see how similar problems can be approached differently. Corporate taught me to learn by doing—start with the basics, test, experience, and improve along the way. Research taught me to prepare deeply—understand, question, and build a strong foundation before taking the next step.

But ErasmusIntern, at least for me, was never only about work, it was also about life.
🌊 I faced my fears and overcame fears. I hitchhiked for the first time, and yes, I "survived" 😆. I returned to swimming 7 years after a childhood injury made me afraid of the water. And yes, apparently the sea still loves me so much.

Fear doesn't disappear before we do something. Sometimes, we just do it scared!

🌍 I learned to see differently. I arrived with my Vietnamese identity and my experiences of living in Sweden, and found myself surrounded by another culture, another history, and another way of life.

I observed. I listened. And then, aha! I started to see how geography and history shape culture, and how culture shapes the way we think, live, and see the world. From understanding to respecting. Respect for the different.

None of this happened by luck, or by me alone.

I'm deeply grateful to my supervisor, Gurkan Celik, my colleagues Fatimah Alnaami Kiraz, Umar Ghayas, and my girls, Gızem Gul Oz, Selin Kocak. Thank you for the opportunities, the support, the help, the laughs, and all the little moments that made this summer unforgettable.

And, a big thank you to the Department of Computer and Systems Sciences (DSV) at Stockholm University and Alanya Alaaddin Keykubat University for giving me the opportunity to learn beyond the classroom and across borders.

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