semiswede

Spring has been a long time coming this year. It seems that cloudy and cool has prevailed which makes it hard to believe it is the end of May with the temperature stuck in the 50s and 60s (12-18C). But there is one thing that reassures the fact we are headed into summer, and that […]

This past weekend my five year anniversary in Sweden came and went without much more than the thought of “huh, today it’s been five years since I moved to Sweden.” Five years is kind of a milestone though, so I have been giving some thought to my half-decade here and my gradual Swedification. It ranges […]

Melodifestivalen begins this weekend with a six-week long competition that will grip the nation until March 9th when we find out who will represent Sweden in the 2013 Eurovision song contest. Founded in 1956, Eurovision is the top-ranked program in Europe with 125 million viewers tuning in annually to watch musical performances from roughly 40 nations. […]

In Sweden, Knut is considered the final day of the Christmas season. Knut was a Danish prince who was murdered on 7 January 1131 by his cousin. In 1169, thanks to his influential relatives, he was canonized by the Pope. By the end of the 1600s the name day of Knut was changed from the Epiphany […]

Trettondagen literally means “day 13” and is the thirteenth day after Christmas, i.e. January 6th. Known in English as the Epiphany, it commemorates the revelation of Jesus as the Son of God, and when the Three Wise Men came to the Manger in Bethlehem. In Sweden it is a red day (an official holiday) with […]

Despite the fact it’s extremely dark in Sweden during December, in my opinion, it is a really lovely time to be here. The season is full of Christmas lights, the julbord, glögg, seven kinds of cookies, and complete with dancing around the Christmas tree holding hands. The celebration essentially lasts from the First of Advent […]

Every year on October 4th it’s Kanelbullens dag in Sweden. Time to break out the flour, yeast, and cinnamon, or buy kanelbullar (KUH-neel-BOO-lahr) at your favorite bakery. They are so entrenched in Swedish culture that you will even find them in gas station quick marts and in “convenient” little bags to go. But unlike in […]

Vecka 28-31 har vi stängt för semester. Translation? Week 28-31 we are closed for vacation. During the precious Swedish summer you will find variations of this sign from websites to hand-written versions hanging in small shops. Swedes take summer very seriously and there is always hope for a mild, yet gloriously warm and sunny summer. […]

Sweden was one of the last countries to adopt a national day. Nationaldagen is the 6th of June and only became a red day (a day off from work) in 2005. There aren’t a lot of food associations with this particular holiday and many people in Sweden are surprised to learn there is actually a […]

Although mother’s have been celebrated throughout history in various ways, the modern idea of Mother’s Day is imported from the U.S. where it was first celebrated in 1908. Mother’s day in Sweden was championed by author Cecilia Bååth-Holmberg to be the last Sunday in May when there would be flowers and greenery nearly throughout the […]