Summer in Sweden is something special. We first saw it in 2024, after a very long, very cold and very snowy winter. Spring hesitated for a long time whether to come or not, made a few false starts and gave up towards the second half of May. At the end of the month, nature literally exploded, taking full advantage of the white nights. It was as if every small blade of grass knew that it didn’t have much time and had to use it quickly and completely. Lilacs appeared in the meadows in the form of huge trees, and the shepherd’s purses (which turned later to be wild celery) became taller than me.
The forest fruits, on the other hand, invested more in terms of quantity than in terms of size. The undergrowth was completely occupied by blueberries, the park alleys – by strawberries, and the small untamed green spots between the city blocks – by raspberries. Tiny, but immensely tasty. In August, the mushrooms followed. I had never seen so many different mushrooms in one spot. Naturally, I did not dare to touch them, but the locals produced extraordinary quantities of canned food for the winter. When, of course, they managed to fight off the most active local mushroom eater, the black slug.
You might ask what people were doing besides picking berries, competing with the shepherd’s purses and marinating mushrooms. They were hitting the forest, so to speak. Literally. People too, as part of the living environment of Sweden, were aware that summer is short and therefore it should be made meaningful. Early in July, the cities emptied out, and in August even the Emergency Aid had an answering machine. In return, the roads and campsites were filled with caravans and campers, while the forests looked like this:
Sweden is roughly four times larger than Bulgaria, and the population according to official data is only 1.5 times more. I share it so that you can imagine why, despite their efforts, the Swedes were unable to fill all of nature. Here I also include the nearly 100 thousand lakes of all sizes, which, despite the color of peat and minerals (slightly rusty-brown), add an idyllic beauty to the landscape. It’s as if an artist had come by and arranged the landscapes specifically for us to have a perfect photo. And so you would believe me –
Lest you think that people just walk through the woods and take pictures of the lakes, it’s worth explaining that the Swedes are a very active nation. This is probably the way to compensate for the famous fika, which in short means coffee with lots and lots of sweets. They jog along the alleys, ride bicycles and horses, go summer skiing on the roads and, last but not least, row on the lakes. The nature parks here are not protected areas, but places for activities in nature; they are always by the water and offer boats for rent, for those who lack their own. Meaning us.
Summer in Sweden is also a festival time. It starts with the Midsommar holiday, which is one of the most beloved. It is celebrated with great enthusiasm. If you remember my article about the Falu Mine, the only reason there were no human casualties when it collapsed into the Big Pit was because it happened on Midsommar, when absolutely no one was working. Women dress festively, put on flower wreaths and go dancing in the large meadow. Men also join in, so the dancing is more cheerful. A decorated wooden pole is raised in the middle, which then remains there for a long time.
That’s when the concerts start. Swedes love music. It’s no coincidence that the composer who wrote the most songs that reached No. 1 in the World Charts is a Swede. Not to mention ABBA. All towns, amusement parks and even former quarries are being equipped with stages where a diligent festival life is going on. Needless to say, we also joined in the general musical euphoria. Unfortunately, not knowing Swedish limited our experiences quite a bit, but I’m not complaining.
It is also proper mentioning that many cultural and historical sites in Sweden are open only in the summer. Manors with gardens, painted farms, open-air ethnographic museums – the only chance to see them is to not stay at home during this season. One such site is the Arsunda Viking Park, where entire families can spend some time living like in the old days. On certain days, they open the park to outside visitors. We happily took advantage of this offer and were rewarded with demonstrations of ore smelting, flint fire making, and Viking games.
Finally, I can’t miss swimming in the Baltic Sea. I don’t know how familiar you are, but it is more of a slightly salty lake that was formed when the ice melted many, many years ago and started to salinate when it opened up to the ocean. The water is the same as in lakes – slightly rusty, and it doesn’t smell of sea in the way we are used to. And the beaches are not sandy, with a few exceptions. This didn’t stop us from taking a dip on the days when the sea had reached its maximum temperature – almost 20 degrees!
Leave A Comment