- The scenery: the landscapes are magnificent. You are never far from a lake or the sea and there are lots of forests.
- The cities: Stockholm and Göteborg are two large cities with plenty to offer. There are numerous interesting museums and art galleries, synagogues with regular services, canals, lots of shops and restaurants. With under one million inhabitants for Stockholm and half a million for Göteborg, they have a reasonable size that makes them very pleasant to visit.
- The food: the Swedes eat a lot of fish and are very careful to serve both fresh and tasty food. The breads and desserts are quite nice too.
- Languages: 99% of the population speak English. If you are more adventurous, mastering a few basic Swedish words and expressions is not too hard. In addition, Swedish grammar is not very different from English grammar.
- Swedish literature: I am a fan of Swedish crime fiction and enjoy crime stories when I need to escape. I recently discovered Johan Theorin‘s novel Echoes from the Dead and strongly recommend it for its atmosphere.
- Music: Swedish pop music has not acquired international fame but some groups and individuals are quite pleasant to listen to. If you have a little time try Kent, Jonathan Johansson or Håkan Hellström.
- Movies: you all know about Ingrid Bergman but the Swedish film industry is still strong and alive. The Millenieum movies are worth watching, so are the Kurt Wallender series or the films by Lukas Moodysson.
- The welfare system: low unemployment, no beggars in the streets, free lunches at school for all, 480 days of paid parental leave for each child, daycare, etc. This is better explained by Gabriel Stein in The 10 best reasons to move to Sweden or My truth about tax in Sweden.
- Health and the environment: much before it was fashionable, and necessary, the Swedes have cared for their health and their environment. Recycling, walking, cycling or public transport (rather than driving), affordable organic produce, waste management, homemade food, nature protection are part and parcel of their every day life.
- Last but not least, the Swedes: the Swedes are usually welcoming, unassuming and kind. They are very proud when you take an interest in their small country and are more than happy to share the things they enjoy.
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I think my niece would agree with you, although she currently seems to be having a love affair with Norway.
I remembered that the band Abba was Swedish. I used to listen to them, in the days when I paid attention to popular music.
I read your niece’s blog regularly and find that what she writes about Norway is not very different from my own experiences in Sweden.
Funny you should mention Abba. I had not thought of them for ages. I used to listen to them too. Some time ago.
Oh! I don’t need any more convincing! I’d love to go! For a long time now I’ve been drawn to visit Scandinavia, aside from the cold it seems just about utopic.
I would in fact love to go to Sweden, or any Scandinavian country, in winter. Judging from the insides of houses and other buildings, I reckon they know how to keep warm.
You do in fact have a point there. I bet they stay warmer in winter than I do here in Jerusalem with my lack of insulation or heating.
I remember f-r-e-e-z-i-n-g in the winter in Tsfat. And my husband (before I knew him) has funny stories about living in an unheated apartment in Jerusalem in the winter – he soon found out why he was getting a “deal” and found another apartment.
Warm clothes (long johns!), insulation in the house, and pay the heating bill are the secrets to winter. Russian blood helps, too.
Many years ago, some family friends from Israel visited what was then the Soviet Union in the winter. When they returned home, they said that they found the apartments in Moscow to be unbearably hot!
(They were used to Israeli apartments, which are built to be cool in the summer and thus tend to be under-heated in the winter.)
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Yes,Abba! I like some of their songs.
You make Sweden sound quite appealing to visit.
It is! Next time you go to Europe you could plan a long weekend in Stockholm, or something like that, and you would not regret it.
Elisheva, Leora and Mrs.S. : you’d have a similar experience in the South of France too, especially in old apartments. They were built for hot weather and get very uncomfortable when the weather is cold or very damp.
My parents lived in Goteborg from 1945 to 1960 when they moved to the States. I also spent a year in Norway when I was 7. In our house Swedish was the secret language but I could always tell when my parents were talking about me (they called me the flicka) and about money (pengar).
I recently learned that another word for “girl” is “tjej”. In my parents’ home, the secret language was English.
Have you ever gone back to Sweden to visit?
I haven’t, but very vague plans are there, maybe after retirement. One of my Norwegian cousins lives in Goteborg today, and all of my grandmother’s relatives (my mother’s step-mother, so they aren’t my blood-relatives).
My sister and I visited Sweden when we were young. My grandparents had some business associates there with children our ages. So our parents put us on a plane and we spent two of the best weeks of our lives in Stockholm. The people really are so wonderful there!!!
I am not surprised. In my next life, I want to live in Stockholm!