Weird Facts About Sweden!
When you think of Sweden what is the first thing that comes to mind? Is it Skiing? Huge forest areas? Is it Abba? Whatever it is – be prepared to be stunned! There are some really weird facts out there about Sweden that you tend not to appreciate until you have lived there for a while.
Weird Facts About Sweden!
Glad Pask – commonly known as the Easter celebrations – are big fun in Sweden. Throughout the country people take a long weekend, with some of the holidays exceeding that of Christmas time. The good old egg plays a large part in the festivities since they were previously unavailable throughout Lent, or since the Spring had only just broken. The first painted eggs appeared in Sweden in the 1700’s but the Swedes traditionally wrapped their eggs in Birch leaves to cook them, leaving an intricate pattern on the shell. You can read more about Glad Pask here.
Donald Duck’s Christmas Eve
Donald Duck’s Christmas Eve is a big thing in Sweden. What? I hear you ask… well, every Christmas Eve since 1959 Sweden’s main TV channel play the 1958 special Kalle Anka och hans vänner önskar God Jul (Donald Duck and His Friends Wish You a Merry Christmas). It’s only a little weird. After all, in Britain people wait for the fat man in the colorful suit to come down the chimney…
The Swedes have a tremendous amount of love for Crime Drama. ‘The Killing’ is perhaps the best known on the other side of the pond; but there are a whole range of gritty and dark crime dramas that have been birthed in Sweden and are raising the bar for Nordic cinema. You can read this article if you want to know more… and it isn’t just TV… it’s in the literature as well!
Love/hate relationship with Candy
Swedes have a love/hate relationship with Candy. It is a dentist’s haven that is plagued by sugar with the average adult eating more than a kilo of sweets a week! It is one of Europe’s biggest importers of candy and, every Friday night, you will find Swedes running home from work to pile into junk food in front of the TV. Sounds like great fun! We also found this neat little video about quite how much they consume.
Cashless society
Sweden is setting the way in terms of cashless society, with some 80% of Stockholm transactions carried out by card or online payment process. Even the children carry debit cards! While they might be leading the way for the rest of the world, there are those who do not agree with the cashless system. This is because some people think it is disadvantageous to the elderly and other vulnerable groups who cannot necessarily always gain access to technology.
Above all else, the best thing about Sweden is the Freedom to Roam. This simple law gives ever Swedish resident the ability to go and sleep anywhere outdoors that they so choose. As long as they aren’t too close to houses and they clean up any mess they make. This is a wonderful system that means you can get out and about whenever and wherever you like. So what are you waiting for? Sweden sounds better and better by the second!
