Last contribution
Anyway thank you for reading and visiting the blog under this four weeks, hope you enjoyed it and that you have learned something about Sweden.
As you say, Cheers mate :)
Animals
This project is soon over but I want to show you some pictures of our "strange animals" before this ends. So here they come, watch and enjoy!
Lodjur (lynx)
Brunbjörn (brown-bear)
Räv (fox)
Varg (wolf)
Älg (moose)
OS Vancouver
Is soon over and the Sweden team goes home with eleven medals. Thats a good winter-OS.
Anja Pärson took bronze.
Prejudice agaisnt Swedish
Good day :). Here I'm back in the southern part of Sweden, has a spring now this coming week so I'm visting my hometown. Usually here's a lot warmer then in the middle and northern parts of Sweden but this winter heres actually some snow! But that's not what this contribution is about, today I'm thought I write some of the predjudice against Swedish and tell you whats true and false.
Everybody loves sport
No, no, no! But like most of the people around the world we don't like sitting still. So we do things. Some learn how to paly the guitarr, some practice sports and some just work to much.
They have lots of strange animlas over there
Depends on how you see it. If you from Asia of course our animals look strange. But your animls look strange to us. It's depends on were you from. But we DON'T live among ice bears, for the sake of love they live on antarctic.
They are very rich
Yes and no. Some are, some aren't. We live in a good country, with a nice gouverment, sometimes to nice if you ask me. They provide benefit to them how need some helps. But it's not like everybody lives in luxury. Sweden is often called "landet lagom" which means "country not to much, not to littel, not rich, but not etc."
They are very goodlooking
Of course we're! So much prettier then any nationality! I have nothing to say to this one...
Most people are blond
And every one has blue eyes and every girl has big breast. Sorry guys, but no. And the girls not easy to get in bed in either (with also is a very common prejudice). We have brown hair, red hair, blonde hair, black hair, green hair, blur eyes, grey eyes, small breast etc. Hope you get the picture...
The sun always goes down very early
Again NO! On the winter season, we don't have so much sun (and yes it's depressing), but in the summer the sun is up a lot more. A lot!
We get messy when we're drunk
Yeah... Most Swedish actually do. Kind of sad that they can't handle themself when they drunk.
Swedish people are very reserved
This one also true. We have an attitude of "what's personal is personal and I have nothing to do with it". And we're shy, very shy. But we don't mean anything wrong, most people has just been learned that you don't ask about personal things.
OS Vancouver
Swedish musicians
Listen to this track by Melissa Horn, you don't understand the lyrics. But their beautiful.
Lets continue to Robyn. Robyn is a big musician in both USA and England. She got her breakthrough in Sweden with the song "Do you really want me". A song I still remember I loved, some years later toughsince I was four when it was released 1995. But 1997 it was released in USA and it became a big hit. After this she have made four albums (seven if you count that some of the albums have been made in diffrent versions). Nowadays she has among other things been priorband to Madonna, started an record company that only release her own music, contribute in Snoop Dogs singel "Sexual eruption" and been on Late Show with David Letterman. She's really good at was she's doing and this girl can sing.
Search on youtube to listen to her, she has requested that you shoukdn't but her songs on your blog.
Roxette is another Swedish group that are world famoused. They had their time on the 90's, like I said I'm not a very big fan of new Swedish music... The group endure by Per Gessle (that are a big solo singer to) and Marie Fredriksson. They have sold 50 miljon albums (!) and twenty miljon singels, and released 15 albums. One of their song, "It Must Have Been Love" is in the famous movie "Pretty women". Nowadays their back on tour and in Sweden their playing 14th of August 2010 for the first time in nine years. Maybe their songs still so good because of the memories from my childhood. I remember we always listend to them when my family were on car vacation...
It's they same thing with Roxette as with Robyn, search on youtube.
Astrid Lindgren and Selma Lagerlöf
OS Vancouver
Henrik Lunqvist after the gold in OS Turin.
Football, ice hockey and equestrian sport
Another big sport in Sweden are equestrian sport, which I practice. There are many different concentrations, the most common ones are horse jumping and dressage. We have some good Swedish riders, Peter Eriksson, Rolf-Göran Bengtsson, Malin Bayard and Minna Telde to mention some.
Me and my horse, riding is so much more then competition. But I guess all sports are.
Ice-hockey is also a big sport, specialy when an international competiton is going on. And were good at it, actually often in the top three. So we bring out the beer again, call our friends and watch hockey. And this is actually fun to watch, mostly because their allowed to fight...
Our swedish team "tre kronor"
Drugs in Sweden
The law in Sweden forbide all drugs, from hasch and heroin to new one as tramadon. Some drugs are used medical, but there are a big black market, specialy in the south Sweden. There it's close to both Amsterdam and Copenhagen, and todays free boundary has made it easy to smuggle.
I've come from Malmö, the third biggest city in Sweden. The city is in the southern parts, 20 minutes away from Denmark. I know there are a big market of drugs there and it's not hard for a ten-twelve years old child to get a hold of it. It's a pity for it shouldn't be that way. Still the gouvernment are trying, maybe not hard enough, to reduce it.
So were is the problem? From my own experience it's mostly people that don't have anything to do on there sparetime that starts with drugs and then get stuck. And theres the attitude that drugs are cool. It's hard to oppose a "fashion".
It isn't so that every kid takes heavy drugs like cocaine or heroin. It's more common with hasch, even here it's an attitude that hasch isn't anything bad. It hasn't killed anyone, has it? Well I hope kids relase the danger in drugs, and grown-ups to for that matter. Because it isn't cool and it has harm a lot of people.
Tourist places
There are some places you can visit when you're in Sweden. This places I also want to see or have already seen.
First of all I think you just have to visit Stockholm. It's a beautiful capital were you can just relax and take it easy. If you getting boered of that you're still in a big city with all the actions that comes along.
Then we have Liseberg. An amusment park in Gothenborg (Sweden second placed large city). This park is so beautiful at christmas time and it's so really funny in the summer. It's a perfect place to bring the hole family.
Another place thats also beautiful both on the summer and the winter is Åre. On the winter is a paradise for skiing (if you don't compare it to the Alps, cause nothing beats that). They have nice pistes and a gosy enivronment. On the summer is as beautiful a mountains are at this time. You can hike, camp or maybe climb. It has a relaxing effect on you.
The last place that I think is a tourist place is Ishotellet. Which is a place I havn't been to, but hopefullt one day I will. Ishotellet lays in the nouthern parts of Sweden and it's made of ice. Everything is made of ice. If you're luck maybe you can see the northern lights, thats one of my oldest dreams.
Of course there are many other stuff you can visit, if you like to camp we have some beautiful lakes and woods. The coasts are beautiful, both east, south and west. We have the two other big cities, Gothenborg and Malmö, that both has their special personality.
Midsummer
So what is Midsummer? Well today, in modern time, you eat potatoes, smoked salamon, egg, herring and other midsummer dishes :). To that you drink snaps and after you eat strawberries. Of course variation occurs. Some dance around the midsummer pole (see picture) to a few very diffrent and funny songs. To amke and dress this pole is for some half the day. Under the day you should had gather seven diffrent kinds of flower to put under your pillow at night. If you do this you're goning to dream about the one you getting married to, (you should to a few more things, but I usally just picking my flowers).
Midsummer is a day of overnatural thinking. Their one story about Näcken, an old Swedish myth. This man plays the violin to entice people to swin and than he do so they drown. On midsummer day, you should take extra caution to this...
Midsummer is an old heathen tradition, the christian of course made it christian. Just like everything else. Any way you actually celebrate the sumemr height of the sun, the longest day of the year. Other then that we don't really no more about how the heathens celebrated this day.
Their have been some fights between the heathen way and the christian way. You see midsummer is also the holy Johannes (something something, I'm not very religous) birthday, 24/6. So in the old times midsumemr day always was on 24/6, today it's on a Saturday between the 20/6-26/6.
The Sweden school-system
Lågstadiet och mellanstadiet
Lågstadiet:Class 0-3, you start in class 1 when you're seven (if you born early on the year or want to start earlier, you can start when you're six). Often you start in class 0 when you're six (same thing here, you can start when you're five). You learn the alaphabeth, how to read and write. The begining of matematichs also start here and in class 3 you start to read english a little bit. The mellanstadiet is the same thing, a little bit deeper. In some parts of Sweden you switch school or teacher when you start mellanstadiet.
Högstadiet
Class 7-9, the start of the serious school. From class 8 you get grades and now you start to have lessons were you have diffrent teacher in the diffrent subject. This is for many the hard part in school, some just not mature enough. Many also tierd of school. This is the last stages that's compulsory but almost evrybody goes to gymansium to.
Gymnasium
Class 1-3 (again, can be a bit confusing sometimes). Now you choose direction of your education, for example science, mechanic or hairdresser. This education is not compulsory but still the state have to pay for it.
Universitet
This education has a dirction towards a job. If you wan't to be a doctor for example you have to study at the university. Some works don't need a university exam, some do. You're at least over 18 when you start here.
Like I said allmost all education is free, but some courses may cost or if you want to read a course again to get a better grade. I think the Sweden school-system is good. Not perfect, but nothing is. Some changing maybe coming soon, there talking about grades from earlier classes and make some education privat, not state owned.
Sorry for a boring contribution, not really my favourite subject to talk about. But I hope you got something good out of it.
Saab vs. Volvo
Sweden has two car producers, Saab and Volvo. For as long as every Swedish remember their have been a war... Wich one is better then the other?
Everyone driving a Saab is gay, according to the Volvo owners... Everyone driving a Volvo is a poor farmer, according to the Saab owners...
It's going good for Volvo, still selling a few cars and making updates. Saab strukling for survival, now they have a new owner so hopefully they don't go bankruptcy. And they have some awsome cars coming...
Both have power, both have style, both have comfort, but they ain't got any class. So skipp Sweden cars, go Germany, go BMW...
The Vikings and Gustav Vasa
First of is the vikings. The vikings lived in Scandinavia under the Iron Age. They were pirates, tradesmen and devoloped awsome boats. They simple took what they wanted while their wifes were home, taking care of the house. Around the world a rumor spread about the great and terribale warriors from Scandinavia.
Well, then why are this hideous people a Swedish proud? You see, the vikings are the only thing we have in the history. We haven't been in any wars (well, a few maybe, but just with the other Scandinavan countries) and we haven't been a big or powerful country. But everybody knows about the vikings.
Beside's that every swedish man want's to like a viking. Well-trained, drinking beer, taking good care of his wife and just doing manjobs. I personally don't think they succied...
A modern viking, today it's a sport/game to dress and act like the vikings
So, we have one more thing left, Gustav Vasa. This man is THE MAN. Nobody mess with his name. Who is this guy? Gustav Vasa became king the 6th of june 1523 after a revolt against Kalmarunionen. This date is Swedens national day. Gustav was the first one to introduce inheritance monarchy and that is seen like the foundation of the modern nationalstate Sweden. So he became Father of the Land.
Actually he was more of a political genius combinated with ruthlessness and brutal methodes.
Geography!
Hi! Let's have some fun gepgraphy :).
Sweden is in Europe, I hope you already know that, and it's a oblong land from south to north. In north there is a lot of snow and woods, but if you like big cities you should go south. Here you got more people living, more fields and a warmer climate.
We have a beautiful coasts in both west and east. The east coast have brackish water, it's mixed with lake water. On the west side their more seawater. Both extremly wonderful in summertime. In the south their is also a beautiful coast and often tourits bicycles here on their vacation.
On the winter we have some beautiful skiresorts. The biggest is Åre and Sälen. I'm spoild with the Alps and swedish mountain is nothing compare to that. But they're alright. Not the biggest but still great slops and a cosy enviroment.
Welcome
I'm going to lay up my contribution like this:
week 1: Swedish history and geography, the royal family, our politic and economy
week 2, a tradition week: christmas, easter, Midsummer and the swedish national day
week 3, a dish week: meatballs, cream bun and other pastry, potato and sauce
week 4: Fotball, hockey, swedish young and a conclusion.
Their can be some adding and changeing.
I started this blog as a project in my English C course and since my teacher is so 2010 we use blog's. This project is to "students" in Japan and their "teacher, Wanda," but since they dosen't really exit it's a blog for everbody. So don't get confused if a write something about Wanda or her student. Hope you enjoy it!
