Glad Midsommar!
The holiday is celebrated in neighborhood parks, Skansen (Stockholm's outdoor museum) and on many archipelago islands by decorating, raising and dancing around the May pole and playing games. The Swedes, being very practical, moved the May pole from May Day to Midsummer because there was not enough greenery and flowers to decorate it for May 1. Love also plays a role in the Midsummer tradition - place 7 different flowers under you pillow on Midsummer to dream about your future spouse.
We were invited to celebrate Midsummer with our friends Emma and James Methven (and their sons Josh and Ben) at their home in Saltsjö-Boo, Sweden, about 30 minutes east of Stockholm. They live within walking distance of several lakes and the Baltic for canoeing, kayaking and swimming, forests for exploring and boulders for rock climbing. It's a gorgeous area also called Vikinghill (an appropriately Swedish name).
We all arrived with bags and boxes of traditional - pickled herring (sill), new potatoes with dill, strawberries and cream and non-traditional food. James did a fantastic job manning the grill while Emma and her mom, Sue, manned (womaned?!) the kitchen. No one went hungry or thirsty (champagne, cava, rose, aquavit, schapps, followed by lots of coffee).
The kids ran around the yard playing games until 11pm then settled in for a movie. The adults finally called it quits around 12:30am. Saturday is the day for napping and finishing off leftovers!
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| long, long lines for ferries to the archipelago and buses out of the city |
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| loaded up for the trip to Saltsjö-Boo... this photo is deceiving |
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| waiting to be lifted |
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| decorated with greenery and flowers the day before |
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| track rides for the neighborhood kids, decorated with greenery |
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| Josh and Martin - kids sack each other until one falls off... usually only takes one hit |
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| Nicolette, Emma, Linda and me |
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| coveting a party-goer's strawberry cake! |
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| time to lift the May pole... the man in the straw hat is the Evelyn Edmeades (or unofficial mayor) of the Vikinghill neighborhood park, he made the announcements and led the singing and dancing |
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| upp... |
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| upp... |
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| upp! Securing the pole |
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| dancing and singing begin... |
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| Nicolette and Linda |
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| this song and dance was something about washing and hanging clothes up to dry... |
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| a dance just for the children |
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| easy to identify the locals... |
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| ....from the non-locals! |
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| the walk back to Emma's |
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| truly international... the guys outside 'supporting' the grillmaster |
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| all the kids playing games |
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| hors d' oeuvres - cheese, crackers, variety of pickled herring |
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| Martha Stewart could not have done it better! |
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| potatoes with dill, meatballs, salads... |
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| post dinner pre-wash |
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| sign of a party in Sweden |
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| Emma's pavlova - meringue, strawberries and cream |
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| rhubarb crisps, strawberries, brownies... |
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| sparklers |
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| Manouk and Sofia - about 10:30pm - chilly enough to see your breath! |
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| drinking aquavit and schnapps and singing 'Helan går' |
Lyrics to this traditional Swedish drinking song (click the link to sing along!)
Helan går
Sjung hopp faderallan lallan lej
Helan går
Sjung hopp faderallan lej
Och den som inte helan tar
Han heller inte halvan får
Helan går
(Drink)
Sjung hopp faderallan lej
Helan går
Sjung hopp faderallan lallan lej
Helan går
Sjung hopp faderallan lej
Och den som inte helan tar
Han heller inte halvan får
Helan går
(Drink)
Sjung hopp faderallan lej
Literal translation:
The whole one goes down
Sing "hup fol-de-rol la la la la"
The whole one goes down
Sing "hup fol-de-rol la la"
And he who doesn't take the whole
Doesn't get the half one either
The whole one goes down
[drink]
Sing "hup fol-de-rol la la"
The whole one goes down
Sing "hup fol-de-rol la la la la"
The whole one goes down
Sing "hup fol-de-rol la la"
And he who doesn't take the whole
Doesn't get the half one either
The whole one goes down
[drink]
Sing "hup fol-de-rol la la"
If you don't know Swedish here is the phonetic translation (picked up online!):
Hell and gore
Chung Hop father Allan Ley
Hell and gore
Chung Hop father Allan Ley
Oh handsome in the hell and tar
and hell are in a half and four
Hell and goooooore ...........
Chung Hop father Allan Ley
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| Midnight |
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| Lucy, Jessie and Coco - dog-tired |
Tack så mycket Emma, James, Josh and Ben!
We have work to do... songs and dances to learn for next year's Midsommar!
Next holiday: Kräftskivor - Swedish crayfish parties in August!
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