It also made me think of the differences between the two countries…

Norway
They always sound happy when they speak
Lax
Super athletic
NATO
Two languages: Nynorsk & Bokmål (why oh why…)
North Pole

Sweden
Land of the semlor, kanelbulle
The Swedish Bikini Team
Station wagon baby-mobiles
Fil
Stinky fish
Should have never given Norway independence

Maybe we need to make a new one??

You must read it, you’ll be crying yourself silly for more.

This strip, about the lions on the coat of arms of the countries is by far my most favorite. EPIC.

The real coat of arms in Scandinavia

Denmark

Image via wikipedia

Sweden

Image via wikipedia

Norway
I think the lions appears a bit retarded with his tongue hanging out and running with an axe…

Finland

Om nom nom nom nom … flowers!

I put together a list of questions and answers on how Christmas is celebrated in each of the countries. This is thanks to my friend EC who bombarded me with similar ones by email and chat.

When is Christmas celebrated?
United States – 25th – Christmas Day. In the morning families enjoy sticky/cinnamon buns for breakfast. After breakfast they open presents, starting with the stocking. Stockings are the large “socks” hung over a fireplace. They have small goodies, especially candies and favorite snack in there.

Christmas dinner is similar to the Thanksgiving dinner. There is mashed potatoes, stuffing, bread, pies, cookies, but instead of turkey most families have a honey baked ham.
Sweden – 24th – Christmas Eve. Families start the festivities by watching Kalle Anka Önskar God Jul, a Disney collection of songs from the last sixty years. During the show, they eat pepparkakor and drink glögg (Swedish mulled wine). Then for dinner, Swedes partake in the famous Christmas smörgåsbord called Julbord; which is a collection of different foods.

On Christmas Day Swedes rest and enjoy a smaller meal.

Do you go caroling?
United States – Yes, it is common in neighborhoods with children that kids and parents go door to door singing Christmas songs. At the end of the evening, the group gathers at a home for hot chocolate and cookies.

Sweden – It’s very uncommon. But, in church, families gather to sing songs.

When do you put up the Christmas tree?
United States – The weekend after Thanksgiving which falls on the first Advent.

Sweden – On the third Advent or after. It is not uncommon to put up the tree just a few days before Christmas Eve.

What are the most popular decorations?
United States – Wreaths, Christmas lights, and stockings. And when it snows, there’s always Mr. Snowman.

Sweden – Christmas stars to represent the town of Bethlehem and candle lights. Both are displayed in the windows.

What kinds of sweets do you eat?
United States – Cookies are most popular during the holidays. Everything from traditional chocolate chip to peppermint bark to decorated sugar cookies. Candy canes are well known to hang on the tree and of course eat.
Sweden - Swedes are not big on cookies but they enjoy other treats. The only cookie exception is gingerbread cookies called pepparkakor. The Swedish version are thin and crispy and more spicy and flavorful than the American counterparts, which are chewy-soft and sweeter.

Saffron buns, or lussebullar, are soft rolls made with saffron, kesella (quark), and touch of sugar. Swedes also enjoy a hard candy called knäck, literally meaning crack. It is hard toffee candy and can be flavored with almonds or exotic spices.

What kind of drinks do you have?
United States – Eggnog is a classic love-hate Christmas drink. Made with eggs and cream and flavored with anything from rum to cinnamon, eggnog is one of those drinks you imagine Auntie Georgia getting smashed on.

Similar to Swedish glögg, there is mulled wine and mulled cider. They are flavored with the traditional Christmas spices: cinnamon, clove, cardamon, star anise. For children there is hot chocolate with whipped cream and/or marshmallows. I’m a total kid; I love a dollop of whipped cream with dark hot chocolate.

Sweden – Glögg is the ubiquitous choice of drink to have on any cold afternoon or evening. Drop a few raisins and blanched almonds and you have the perfect strong drink to survive the Swedish winter. For toasting and Christmas dinners, there is aquavit or snaps. Children and non-drinkers can enjoy julmust, a Christmas cola soda, or a non alcoholic version of glögg.

What food do you leave out for Santa (Jultomten)?
United States – Cookies and milk. Any sort of cookie will do but most popular are sugar cookies, chocolate chip cookies, and gingerbread cookies.
Sweden – Risgynsgröt. It is a rice pudding with cinnamon and brown sugar. Some tales call for a pat of butter on top of the pudding to ensure Jultomte does not break out in a rage.

What does Santa (Jultomten) look like?
United States – The American version of Santa can be credited to the Dutch’s Sinterklaas, cartoonist Thomas Nast, and folklore from other countries.

The modern version of Santa we know today is based on Coke-Cola’s creation by Haddon Sundblom in 1931. He based the modern day St. Nick on Clement Clark Moore’s 1822 poem “A Visit From St. Nicholas” (commonly called “‘Twas the Night Before Christmas”) and Nast’s work from 1862.

Santa Claus is seen as jolly, fat, well tempered and with a large white beard and red outfit.

Sweden – Santa is known as Jultomten in Sweden and julnisse in Norway. Jultomten derives his name from tomte, a small man living in a farm who worked using magic. The tomte could be very kind and bestow gifts but also very moody and sometimes borderline sociopath. In folktales he’s known to kill a cow out of anger for not receiving his pat of butter on risgrysgröt and beating those who do not keep the house/farm well.

Jultomten however has a better temperament than the tomte. The name Jultomten came into use somewhere around the 1500-1600s. He rides on a giant goat, like Thor, and hands out presents.

Today’s Jultomten are similar to the American Santa Claus who is a fat, jovial, old man riding a sleigh. But you can still find the traditional jultomtar statues in the store; big hat, lots of hair, little nose, and faceless.

Note: Anyone who has more knowledge about how Jultomte derived his name from tomte and what he looked like in Sweden let me know. It’s tricky finding good information about jultomte in Sweden.

You can guess that our home is an amalgamation of both cultures with a dash of Indian (lots of color!) and Jewish (rugelachs, latkes and when younger, dreidels).

More reading on Christmas

http://gd.se/extra/nuardetjuligen/1.241333-sa-kom-jultomten-till-sverige

http://sv.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jultomte

We meet a few years ago via Facebook when I was looking to meet other photographers in Sweden. And there he was! He’s a veritable road-warrior who has traveled the world for photographers. He’s met everyone from President Clinton and Carl Bildt to little tent mice to tribal leaders.

When I got married early this spring (sorry I’ll share photos one day), I asked him to be our photographer. While he was reluctant at first to shoot a seven day wedding, he was the right man to be the pusher. Wedding photography is guerrilla warfare after all.

Today he works with private clients who are models looking to bolster their portfolio or normal people looking for private portraits of an artsy nature (not sexy, but not necessarily non-nudes). He has a full plate working with private clients, shooting for the Daily Photo, and working hands deep in gum printing. In 2012 he will delve deeper into the New Topographics movement and exhibiting his prints.

Christopher also runs the DailyPhoto.se a collection of photographs from his town, Sweden, and the world. Personally, going through his photographs is mesmerizing.

Check out his timeline page:

How you can not be addicted to every photo? Each of his photos has a short story and through them you observe a slice of life in the Great North.

The man himself…on the left not right.

Even though we speak on a regular basis, it has been a long time since I bothered about Chris why’s and how’s of photography. Here’s an interview I had with him.

How did you get into photography?
I don’t believe I was ever out of photography. Even at a young age I was making photographs with my mind, imagining snapshots of life. I didn’t begin making a living out of it though until I befriended a Pulitzer Prize winning photographer who started me along my own path.

Why did you start Daily Photo?
It’s important to complete work, which I’m horrible at. On dailyphoto.se it’s a sort of canvas for everyday projects that never get finished, but it trains me to try.

How do you focus to get that “one shot”?
When I wake I look for the emotions inside me and try to find inspiration in the world that expresses those emotions. The stronger the emotions the stronger the focus for the photograph.

What is the most amazing place you visited?
Deception Pass, Washington State. I recovered a bit of my soul there.

What three tips do you have for budding photographers?
Shoot cliches.
Get good at it.
Then, never shoot a cliche again.

If you were a tea, what tea would you be? :)
Fo Cha, but I drink a far more mundane variety.

Check out Christopher’s sites
Christopher Grant Portfolio – English / Swedish
The Daily Photo – English
Ezine – Sign up – Focusing on the best photographic moments, the magazine will be published quarterly starting in the winter of 2011. Sign up to receive the ezine for free.

You all should be able to get culturally immersed and maybe find a lovely Swedish man or woman.

YSC in San Francisco Bay Area
Scandinavian Club in Connecticut
Scandinavian Club of Hawaii
Scandinavian Club of Columbus, Ohio
American Scandinavian Society of New York, NY
Swedish Cultural Center in Seattle, WA
Norwegian National Club in Chicago, IL
Danish Clubs and Associations across the United States
Icelandic-American Organizations in America
Swedish Organizations in America

If you know of a Scandinavian/Nordic community in the US that should be added to the list, please let me know.

Please beware the book is disturbing and promotes terrorism, violence, and chemical warfare.

He also posted a video on Youtube about the European Declaration of Independence from the Knights Templar. The video is gone now but possibly available at other sources.

Update: Earlier in the afternoon, a shooter opened fire on young teenagers on the small island of Utöya, west of Oslo. He has killed several teens and many jumped off the island and swam away. The shooter is now arrested though his name and motives are not released.

Two bombs went off in the government quarter in Oslo, Norway. Two people are confirmed dead and 15 injured.

No terrorist groups have claimed responsibility but the attacks appear to be directed towards the Norwegian government.

Last week, three bombs exploded during rush hour in Mumbai, India. No grouped claimed responsibility. However, security officials believe it was the work of Pakistani terrorist group.

You can read more in Swedish at DN, DN photos and Svenska Dagbladet. In English, you can visit Reuters and The New York Times.

This principal is a fundamental of Scandinavian culture. Here in Sweden, many people consider jantelag as the reason why smart students don’t get ahead, companies don’t have brand values, people don’t care to do better.

How has jantelag affected you as a Swede and foreigner? Where do you think the system comes from? I wrote a long article about my views of jantelag, but before publishing I’d like to know what you think. Has jantelag destroyed or saved Sweden?

[poll id="14"]

Norway, was as usual, epic in pricing with Oslo ranking in at number two and Stavanger, the oil capital, at number 6.

Number 2: Oslo, Norway
FOOD: Lunch at a restaurant: $43
Can of beer from grocer: $4.71
One kg of rice: $5.66
One dozen eggs: $6.72
ENTERTAINMENT: Movie ticket: $16

They forgot to mention a BEER at a restaurant is $12 and a pizza for one costs $20 (at least in Narvik). Goddamn Norway.

No. 6: Stavanger, Norway
FOOD: Lunch at a restaurant: $33
Can of beer from grocer: $4.76
One kg of rice: $5.71
One dozen eggs: $6.34
ENTERTAINMENT: Movie ticket: $15.50

No. 8: Copenhagen, Denmark
FOOD: Lunch at a restaurant: $36
Can of beer from grocer: $2.10
One kg of rice: $4.85
One dozen eggs: $6.99
DVD rental per night: $8 <--WTF?! (Perhaps rent a dvd online for cheaper?)
ENTERTAINMENT: Movie ticket: $15
APPLIANCES: Washing machine: $1,196 <-- seriously, WTF!
I hope happiness is free there.

No. 14: Helsinki, Finland
FOOD: Lunch at a restaurant: $25
Can of beer from grocer: $3.02
One kg of rice: $3.42
One dozen eggs: $3.54
English magazine: $8
ENTERTAINMENT: Movie ticket: $15
APPLIANCES: Washing machine: $780

No. 21: Stockholm, Sweden
Rank in 2009: 80 <-- due to the strengthening kronor, wow
FOOD: Lunch at a restaurant: $15
Can of beer from grocer: $2.07
One kg rice: $3.77
One dozen eggs: $4.36
Beer bar: $9
ENTERTAINMENT: Movie ticket: $14
APPLIANCES: Washing machine: $865
Sucky rental market – Priceless

Some things to note: ECA International based their rankings on a basket of 128 goods that includes food, daily goods, clothing, electronics, and entertainment, but not rent, utilities, and school fees. Their guide is geared towards expatriate employees so some cities like Kinshasa or Luanda are technically not expensive cities to live rent-wise.

Most notably is the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, Mr. Liu Xiaobao, presented in Oslo. Last year the committee awarded President Obama the peace prize, a controversial decision considering the President’s short time in office. This year, there has been fierce opposition of the committee’s decision to award a criminal dissident of the peace prize.

The decision cost not only uproar and vitriolic anger by the Chinese government but also the loss of diplomatic ties and trade relations (too bad Wikileaks has no diplomatic cables on the past weeks discussion between countries) with Norway. China went so far to say that countries who attend the ceremony would have repercussions and be a black marks. Besides, said the Chinese government, the Peace Prize is an American conspiracy and the prize itself is “an anti-China farce” run by “clowns” in Norway.

China’s way to win over countries: threaten them.

Mr. Xiaobao is in prison for eleven years and his wife is under house surveilance and unable to leave home (or China). For the first time in 75 years, since Hitler ruled Germany (and prevent the Nobel winner), was there no person able to receive a prize himself/herself or even on behalf of someone. Never thought China would be in the same sentence as Hitler when it comes to political democracy.

I support giving the prize to someone who has fought, and continues to fight, the right to freedom. For that I dedicate this post to all citizens around the world who have battled with their soul to better the lives of people around them.

As the head of the Norweigian Peace Prize committee, Thorbjorn Jagland, said: “It is no coincidence that nearly all the richest countries in the world are democratic, because democracy mobilizes new human and technological resources,” he said. “China’s new status entails increased responsibility. China must be prepared for criticism, and regard it as a positive, as an opportunity for improvement.”

For Mr. Xiaobao, who strives for peace, his award sparks war in the country he lives.

Around the same time, Julian Assange, the founder, engaged in alleged sexual molestation and rape, in which two Swedish girls came forward. And today, a week after the diplomatic cables were released to the public, he was arrested in London pending extradition charges to Sweden.

What bothers me most, is someone pulling the marionette? Did Sweden miraculously create a functioning legal system? No, because the first time they tried to the execute the warrant, it was filled out wrong. And in a country where less than 6% of extreme crimes are ever solved, the Swedish police now have a case against Assange? Is this the same Sweden which agreed with the CIA in covert and illegal operations to take a suspect in the middle of the night on a plane? And the same Sweden where municipalities equate hemp body lotion to drugs?

Two girls, of which the names cannot be released, claimed he stopped wearing a condom, ergo sex was nonconsensual. Why not call the guy a douchebag and leave? Since when was a man being an idiot and not wanting to wear a condom demand attention from the Swedish police and Interpol? And separate incidences of nearly the same nature? If this was a case of serial rape, why has Assange never been arrested before?

I smell pickled herring. Actually, I smell surströmming stinking out of the prosecutor’s office that organized the arrest. The city of Stockholm does not even have functioning street cameras, installed for security and safety, and they have evidence Assange committed a crime? The crime unit which tests crime scene materials for evidence took three months to test my husband’s jacket and scarf for blood and hair stains. But making a case against Assange took only a couple weeks. The line of reality for little people versus persecuting the famous seems to be dark and bold.

A computer programmer being beaten by a crazy with a gun is less important to solve for the people of Stockholm than some guy who didn’t wear a condom and is in charge of leaking documents of unimaginable proportions to the world.

Or is that the point? The little people, us, don’t mean crap to the security of the state. But a guy who leaks documents? We need to get that bastard at any expense. Did the Swedish government concont this story? How do we know those girls are real (not decoys)? How do we know those girls even met him? (he admits to meeting them but not saying anything else) And how do we know this is not a dirty trick to set him up? This guy can be an idiot and committed the crime, he’s known for being unstable. But the timing? It is just too perfect.

If you cannot arrest Julian Assange for espionage and treason, why not arrest him for not wearing a condom and call it molestation and rape?

The Secretary of Defense, Robert Gates, said “that sounds like good news to me.” Amazon.com and Paypal have cancelled commercial ties to Wikileaks (grace à Sen. Joseph Lieberman). Twitter is supposedly suppressing wikileaks and cablegate hashtags from making the trending topics; though idiotic garbage like #twetot and #lemmeguess is at the top at 16.21 EST. Conspiracy, coincidence, Sveriges Demokraterna’s racism against Australians? We do not know, but we have responsibility to find the truth.

The Swedish justice system will either be hailed by the world for saving themselves against thousands more pages of sensitive information on the web; or, be considered a joke, unable to make a real case and make it harder in the future for victims to pursue real rape crimes.

There’s surströmming and it’s about to blow its top all over Sweden and the United Kingdom. Be sure to wear a gas mask. Or a non leaky condom.