• 23Aug

    Of course Midsummer’s Eve is the big summer holiday in Sweden, and I love being there.  We enjoyed music in the church that morning.

    mid02x

    Everything is decorated with small birch trees and birch branches, even the entrance to the church.

    mid01

    In the afternoon we went to the folk park for the community celebration, which starts when the musicians arrive.

    mid03

    Many of my Swedish relatives were already there.

    mid04

    And the maypole was decorated and waiting to be raised.

    mid05

    I love seeing everyone in their folk dress, especially the children.

    mid06

    Everyone from the parish has the same dress.  This is my relative, Inga-Britt, whom I hadn’t seen in many years!

    mid08

    Here’s Emmy in her Nås dress, and don’t you love the man’s clothes?  I especially love Torsten’s frock coat.

    mid09

    With lots of help, the maypole gets hoisted into place.

    mid07

    It’s hard to take a picture with people and a maypole!

    mid11

    The park is right on the river, part of the same park where Ingmarsspelen is performed.  I told Torsten that during the intermission of the play, we were walking along the bank and we heard violin music coming from across the river.  It was hauntingly beautiful.  We looked and looked and Bob thought he could make out someone standing in the reeds on the other side.  Torsten said, “Oh, that was Näcke!”  At first I thought he was naming someone he knew, then I remembered that Näcke is the water sprite who makes beautiful music!  It must have been him!  Sometimes Näcke lures humans to a watery death, but other times he shares his talent for making beautiful music with them.  How lucky were we?

    mid10

    The wild lupine is in full bloom at midsummer and it has been a tradition to have my picture taken standing in a field of lupine.

    mid12

    Bob got creative with the camera!

    mid13

    We were invited to Sven-Eric’s for a midsummer meal.  It’s also traditional to mow around the daisies that bloom in your lawn!

    mid14

    The food was delicious, and there was plenty of it!

    mid16

    The weather was getting cloudy but it was nice enough that we could eat outside.

    mid15

    Two very happy guests.

    mid18

    And we even had room for dessert later as we sat up and talked into the wee hours of the morning.

    mid17

    Fabulous memories!

3 Responses

WP_Floristica
  • Karen johnson Says:

    I’ve been enjoying your vacation, but LOVE the water sprite story!

  • Donna Pizzi Says:

    Karen, thanks for documenting your trip and telling your stories. Love the Water nymph eerie violin. Glad it didn’t lure you two lovelies farther than a fabulous meal and dessert…. You beam with gratitude in every Sweden location/photo.
    Feel as if we shared it all with you.

  • Laura Fadden Says:

    That is an eerie story…..but love it, as I do believe in ghosts and aliens and all that kind of stuff.