Archive for the year 2009
Swedish Adjectives – following a possessive word Posted by Transparent Language on May 10, 2009
“I hate those Swedish adjectives,” my friend proclaimed, “they make no sense!” My friend has been studying Swedish for a few weeks already, and as she says, it’s been a slow going, painful process. The fact that she’s doing it mostly by herself, with only her Swedish boyfriend as a reluctant teacher, outside of Sweden…
Summer Plans 2009 – Vacationing in Sweden Posted by Transparent Language on May 7, 2009
It’s (almost) the middle of May already. Time’s fun when you’re having flies, or rather, the other way round. The weather may not be very summery yet, or up North – not even very springy yet, but summer is already on everybody’s mind. Yes, it’s time to plan your summer vacation, if you haven’t done…
The Mysterious Ways of Swedish Post Office Posted by Transparent Language on May 4, 2009
People abroad are always very surprised when they hear me say things like, “Oh, I have to go to the gas station and pick up my package” or “we pick up our mail at the supermarket.” “What? Don’t you have normal post offices over there?”, they ask. Well, as a matter of fact, we really…
Valborgsmässoafton Posted by Transparent Language on Apr 30, 2009
It’s April 30th and we all know what that means in Sweden – it’s Valborgsmässoafton or Valborg. In English this celebration is better known as Walpurgis. This year it also marks the start of a really long weekend. Tomorrow – Friday is Första Maj (May Day), then come Saturday and Sunday, and the world will…
Reading Books in Swedish, continued… Posted by Transparent Language on Apr 28, 2009
Continuing with our topic of reading Swedish books, there are a couple of issues that need to be addressed. 1. Where to get Swedish books abroad? Hmmm… That is a very good question indeed. Bokus no longer ships orders to the US, due to problems with the US Customs. This is very annoying, I know…
Reading Books in Swedish? – How to Begin Posted by Transparent Language on Apr 26, 2009
A while back somebody asked about which books would be a good choice for a first-time reader, in Swedish naturally. I know that some people recommend the classics: Astrid Lindgren, or Selma Lagerlöf or more recent works by Henning Mankell or Liza Marklund or Stieg Larsson. But I am going to be a little bit…
Hav or sjö? Posted by Transparent Language on Apr 23, 2009
When is a lake not a lake? When it’s a sea. Doesn’t make much sense, now does it? But unfortunately that’s how it can be in Swedish. Sometimes a lake is just a lake, but sometimes, even though it’s called a lake, it’s really a sea. Of course, I am talking about the “hav” and…