Swedish Language Blog

Picture the following scenario:

Who: You and a whole bunch of friends
Where: In someone’s big summerhouse on an island in the Swedish archipelago
When: Midsummer’s eve

It’s bright and early on Midsummer’s Eve. You are woken up by the sun who gently strokes you with its warmth. Or perhaps it was the little bird singing away outside your window who made you open your eyes? Outside: A clear blue sky and a calm sea. The little breeze keeps the temperature nice and comfortable. One by one, your friends are slowly waking up and everyone gathers around the big rustic table outside for a lovely al fresco breakfast. During breakfast, you divide the chores between you. Someone is picking flowers, others are making a Midsummer pole. Some are in charge of the lunch, the rest are taking the boat into town to by some more supplies. When all is done, you gather once again around the big rustic table to enjoy the lovely strawberry cake that someone spontaneously decided to make. Afterwards, it’s time for a swim in the lovely blue sea. Perhaps you bring a few bottles of ice cold beer down to the jetty and sit there for a couple of hours. There’s no rush, no stress. When the beers are finished and your bodies are slightly tanned, you all wander back the house to dance around the pole, sing silly songs and drink more beer. Someone has already set the table, and when the dancing and the singing is over, you once again gather around the big rustic table, this time it’s packed with new potatoes, herring, salads, meatballs, aquavit and other delicacies. You eat and drink for hours, sing more songs and eat a bit more while the sun is setting over your little island. The longest evening of the year ends with skinny dipping in the warm sea before you all go to bed just before the sun rises once again over your little island.

This is how the Swedes picture themselves celebrating Midsummer’s Eve every year. Midsummer = sunshine, sea, friends, herring and a little more sunshine. And when we finally realize that the island dream won’t happen this year either, this is how we  imagine that EVERYONE ELSE are celebrating Midsummer. Midsummer’s Eve in Sweden is filled with more expectations than New Year’s Eve and Christmas Eve put together and if you, god forbid, don’t have an island, a summerhouse or a boat, well then you have to settle for less and have a party anyway. And no matter if you are on the island or in the city, a typical Swedish midsummer normally contains a huge amount of rain and crap weather in general, someone who gets way too drunk on aquavit (because herring isn’t the most substantial food in the world), a few arguments and massive hangover. Fun, nevertheless. But not so much the big midsummer night’s dream.

This on  the other hand, is how the Germans imagine a Swedish typical Midsummer’s Eve (a warning to sligthly sensitive readers, though!). This is a – believe it or not – a commercial for IKEA, but it was banned in the end. Can’t for my life understand why!

It’s almost summer! I am saying “almost”, because we all know that the summer season officially starts with midsommar. And speaking of midsommar – what are your plans?
I will spend the occasion in Vancouver, actually, I’m on my way there right now – I’m sitting at the airport while typing this.

But, it’s not airports I wanted to talk about today.

To celebrate the beginning of summer, I have something special planned for you.

I don’t know about you, but for me it just wouldn’t be summer without a dorky summer pop hit, beach and summer reading. You just can’t have a summer break and NOT read a funny, lighthearted book. Do you agree?

And I remember how some of you complained about how hard it is to get Swedish books abroad.

So, I’m going to help you out a bit with this book problem! To celebrate the beginning of summer, I thought a little something special was in order.

And tah-dah! We have our first annual Swedish Blog midsommar book contest.
The book you can win is “Populärmusik från Vittula” by Mikael Niemi. Which just happens to be one of my most favorite books, ever.

It was the winner of the August Prize for the best Swedish novel of 2000 (vinnare av Augustpriset som bästa svenska roman 2000). So, you can say it’s almost a classic.

I picked this book not because I have an extra copy sitting around (thought that’s true, too) but because of its location – a lovely little town called Pajala in the north of Sweden. And you know how much I love the far north! The rest of Sweden is really, well, the rest, if you live in the north.

This book has been translated into English, so if you want to read along with an English version, that’s possible, too. That’s another reason why I decided to give away this particular book, and not another. I want to make this Swedish reading experience as fun for you as possible, so even if you’re not confident you can manage all the way through in Swedish, you can follow along in English when you get tired.

OK, enough of me talking.
Do you want to win it?
All you need to do is to tell me in the comments section, på svenska, in 15 words or less, why I should send this book to you (and not to someone else). The deadline – June 30th.

Easy? Very!
Just remember when you leave your comment to enter a valid email address, it won’t be seen by other blog readers, but it’s visible on my end, and this is the email address, I will use to contact you, OK? Don’t leave your mailing address in the comment – I will ask you for it when my distinguished panel of judges (consisting of me, myself and I) selects the winner.

Oh, and one more thing – the contest is open only to subscribed readers of this blog (to subscribe click in the box to the right – it means that you will be getting new Swedish Blog posts by email) from countries other than Sweden. I know, I know, it doesn’t seem fair. But you guys in Sweden can just saunter down to your local library and read all summer long.

Trevlig midsommar!!!

It’s that time of the year again when the entire Sweden goes outside to sing, dance, drink and celebrate the arrival of summer. Yep, it’s Midsommarafton (Midsummer’s Eve) today. Regardless of the actual day of the summer solstice, the holiday is always scheduled for Friday-Saturday between June 19th and 25th.

On Midsummer’s Eve businesses close early and people rush home. It’s time to raise the maypole! The big celebrations, which in my town are organized in an open-air museum, are taken very seriously. After all, Midsommar is the most important holiday of the Swedish calendar.

As an outsider, I find it a curious holiday to observe. Seeing people decked out in their folk costumes, with flowers garlands in their hair, hopping around the maypole doing the “Frog dance” (Små grodorna dans) makes me giggle. The maypole itself with its pagan phallic symbolism makes me giggle.
“Yeah, we have maypoles in England,” you may say. True, but you simply can’t compare the puny little British stick with its proper Swedish equivalent. See what I mean? Ahem, ahem…

And because you can’t have Midsommar without traditional food, it’s also the perfect time to load up on fresh potatoes (with dill, naturally), pickled herring (not as bad as it sounds), sour cream, and strawberries. And don’t forget snaps. It wouldn’t be Midsommar without snaps. That of course means lots of song singing, with every song demanding a round of snaps.

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