In Sweden, the BIG day is Christmas Eve (Julafton) rather than Christmas Day. I'm not sure why, but that's the way it is. We were blessed to be able to spend Christmas Eve with a wonderful family in our branch and see a Swedish Christmas first hand.
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| I love the electric lights that look like candles. They are very popular for trees here. |
While people dress more casually in Sweden for work than they do in the states, they like to dress up for parties. So we dressed in Sunday best and descended on their house around 2 in the afternoon. They had already done Christmas stockings and opened some presents with their family in the morning. A little before 3 we all gathered in the living room. We read Luke 2 and some people shared blessings from the previous year. Familiar scriptures in Swedish are nice. We can follow them quite well because we already know what they say. :-)
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| Kalle Anka |
Then it was time for the all important Kalle Anka (Donald Duck). It has been Swedish tradition for over 50 years to watch this cartoon at that time on Christmas Eve. It was an hour of short Disney clips (overdubbed in Swedish of course)--some Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck stuff as well as song clips from movies like Cinderella, Snow White and the Jungle Book. Chip and Dale are called Piff and Puff in Sweden. It is mostly the same every year but they do put in a couple more recent clips--this time it was the latest Winnie the Pooh movie and a Lion King clip. It was really fun watching the kids sing along to these cartoons they've watched their whole lives-especially to the super high Cinerella mice--and good practice to try and make out the Swedish. While we watched the show we snacked on candies and drank glögg. Glögg is warm, spiced cider. It is common to put a few spoonfuls of nuts and or raisins into your cup with the glögg. Being Mormons, ours was the alcohol-free version. Very yummy.
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| Table set for Julbord |
After the show, we warmed up and set out the food, then we all stuffed ourselves on the traditional julbord--cold dishes like ham, hard-boiled eggs, smoked salmon and herring in different flavored sauces and warm foods like brown cabbage, sausages, meatballs and potato casseroles. And of course, bread and cheese. There is a soda pop here call julmust. It is very popular and only sold around Christmas time (it is also sold around Easter as påskmust).
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| Tomte arrives. |
After dinner,Tomte (Swedish Santa) knocked on the door with his bag full of gifts. None of the gifts are from Tomte-- he is just the delivery person. He delivered one present to each person (we'd been instructed to bring one gift for each in our family). Then Tomte left (or changed anyway :-)) and one at a time we opened that gift. Typically they would continue to open the rest at that pace, but because of the numbers involved (20 people at their house this year) they adjusted their routine. After the first gifts, the kids distributed the rest and it was a free for all opening.
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| Tomte traditionally looks more like the one one the sack-- but American-style has gradually infiltrated. |
After presents, we watched another Swedish classic Christmas cartoon-this one about an intern at the post office who decides to waylay all the packages being sent to spoiled rich people (like directors and engineers :-)) and pass them out in the slums instead. We listened to a little more music and then it was time to take our kids home so that American Santa could do his work.
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| Our minimalist Christmas tree and home-made nativity-- didn't want to drag too many things with us |
Yes, he did find us in Sweden. And managed to make a few deliveries in spite of our skinny chimney with its 90 degree bend. :-) Christmas morning we enjoyed our usual American stockings, present opening and cinnamon rolls. So we were able to have both a Swedish Christmas and an American one.
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And thank you to American family and friends who ignored our warnings that shipping to Sweden was way too expensive and sent us things anyway. It was fun to get a taste of home. :-) |
