NATO – an extraordinary day in Sweden’s history
Watching the Swedes
by Neil Shipley's watching the Swedes
2w ago
So Sweden is now an official member of NATO, the military defense alliance. As the 32nd country to join the alliance, Sweden will be protected under Article 5 – the ultimate guarantee of allie’s freedom and security. To the outside world, this might not be that significant. But for Sweden, March 7th 2024 is a day that will be recorded as one of the most momentous in history. By becoming a member of NATO, Sweden ends over 200 years of official non alignment. This neutrality stretched back to the Napoleonic wars. Sweden joining NATO was inconceivable just over two years ago, and the Swedish pop ..read more
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The world’s longest cross country ski race – Sweden’s ‘Vasalopp’.
Watching the Swedes
by Neil Shipley's watching the Swedes
3w ago
Tomorrow, the world’s longest cross country ski race takes place in Sweden. Called Vasaloppet, it entails participants skiing 90 kilometers from start to finish. It’s an extremely popular international race, which can take up to 12 hours to complete, and which is broadcast live on tv. When tickets to participate are released, they sell out in 15 minutes – it’s that popular. The first Vasalopp was in 1922 and it takes place annually, the first Sunday in March and it is an early sign of spring.  It’s an amazing sight to watch, as more than 15,000 mad, happy skiers glide along – the swishin ..read more
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50 Swedish words for snow
Watching the Swedes
by Neil Shipley's watching the Swedes
2M ago
A massive amount of snow has landed in Sweden, so I thought it’s worth sharing this list again. Not surprisingly when living in a country where it snows a lot, people start to see differences and nuances in the type of snow, whereas in English the word might just be an unsatisfactory ‘snow’. The Swedish language makes it easy to join words together to describe these nuances. Here is a list of 50 Swedish words related to snow. 1) Blötsnö – wet, slushy snow 2) Drivsnö – snow that is blown into troublesome snow drifts 3) Aprilsnö – snow in April, according to superstition, signifies plenty of fo ..read more
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Sweden’s 20th day of Christmas – it’s officially over!
Watching the Swedes
by Neil Shipley's watching the Swedes
2M ago
Today – 13 January – is the official last day of Christmas in Sweden. Known as ‘Tjugondedag jul’ (twentieth day of Christmas) or ‘tjugodag Knut’ (twentieth day Knut), it marks the twentieth, and final, day of the festive season. The name ‘Knut’ comes from the fact that today is St Knut’s Day in Sweden – commemorating the Danish king who was assassinated in 1131. One of laws that Knut introduced was that nobody should fast during twenty days of Christmas, and that January 13 was the official end of the period. In Sweden, today is the day when Christmas should be ‘danced out’. Traditionally, th ..read more
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Swedish expression: ’There is no cow on the ice’.
Watching the Swedes
by Neil Shipley's watching the Swedes
2M ago
With all the frozen lakes at the moment, I am reminded of the Swedish expression ‘Det är ingen ko på isen’ or ’there’s no cow on the ice’. This expression is used to mean there is ‘ no need for worry’ or ‘don’t be concerned’. So, where does the expression originate? Well, like many Swedish expressions, this one also has a rural origin. In the old days, farmers that had no running water would take their cows down to the lake to drink. As long as the cows stayed on land, and didn’t venture onto the frozen waters, there was no risk of them falling through the ice and drowning. In fact, the expres ..read more
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Swedish expression: ‘to suspect owls in the moss’
Watching the Swedes
by Neil Shipley's watching the Swedes
2M ago
In English, when we suspect something isn’t quite right we ‘smell a rat’ or say something is ‘fishy’. In Swedish, they suspect ‘owls in the moss’. The expression – ‘att ana ugglor i mossen’ – has a Danish origin. The original saying dates to the 1600’s and was ‘det är ulve i mosen’ which translates as ‘there’s a wolf in the moss’. The expression makes sense and was used when a dangerous situation was suspected. So, how did a wolf turn into an owl? There are two theories. One theory is that it happened as a mistake. The sound of the Danish word for wolf ‘ulve’ was misheard as ‘uggla’ the word f ..read more
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Thirteenth Day in Sweden
Watching the Swedes
by Neil Shipley's watching the Swedes
2M ago
Today, 6 January, is a national holiday in Sweden and in many places around the world. In Sweden, not a lot happens on this day – it is just another day off. If it lands on a weekend, as it does this year, the bank holiday is forfeited, unlike in many other countries where the following Monday is taken off in lieu. So what does the 6 January celebrate? In orthodox churches, the 6 January is celebrated as the day of Jesus’ birth. In western Christianity, the 6 January notes the arrival of the three wise men (the magi) to Bethlehem to visit the baby Jesus in his cradle. These wise men are said t ..read more
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Swedish New Year’s pizza – with cabbage! 
Watching the Swedes
by Neil Shipley's watching the Swedes
3M ago
Today, January 1st, is the most popular day to eat take-away pizza in Sweden. Partly it’s easy to order but also its greasiness acts as a great remedy for sore heads and tired bodies. The Vesuvio and the Capricciosa are very popular pizzas in Sweden. However, the number 1 ‘national pizza’ is the Kebab pizza – a greasy pizza with kebab meat (and sometimes fries) dumped on the top. When you order a pizza in Sweden, you will also experience a very strange bedfellow. In Sweden, pizza is served with complimentary salad, in both restaurants and take aways. This salad is called creatively –   ..read more
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Happy New Year 2024!
Watching the Swedes
by Neil Shipley's watching the Swedes
3M ago
Wishing you a peaceful and fulfilling 2024! View over winter Stockholm ..read more
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Advent Calendar – Dec 24: Kalle Anka
Watching the Swedes
by Neil Shipley's watching the Swedes
3M ago
Window 24. As I am following the Swedish system of advent calendars, today is the last window, not the 25th as in the UK. So here is the final word: Kalle Anka. This is the Swedish name for Donald Duck – a Disney character with a strong, and unexpected, connection to Swedish Christmas. Traditional Christmas celebrations on Christmas Eve in Sweden get off to a slow start usually. It all begins with a Christmas breakfast, consisting of rice porridge, wort bread, ham and Christmas cheese, amongst other things. After breakfast, some people go for a walk, some go to church, others begin the prepara ..read more
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