Swedish News

 

• Their favorite Swedish words.
  A group of foreigners living in Sweden were asked about their favorite Swedish word. Interesting. Australian student/nanny Emma Chataway (who lives in Stockholm) says: “The phrase ‘Just det’ (That’s it) is simple and addictive. It just slides off the tongue, as people around you snap to attention. It is exactly the right sound/word to make when remembering something that you have momentarily forgotten.” Another favorite word of Emma’s is "kackerlacka". “Just because cockroach has never sounded so nice.” Graeme Newcomb, who is a British-South African IT consultant living in Stockholm, likes the word "sjuksköterska” (nurse). “Try saying it fast at a hospital after five pints of Guinness, with glass splinters in your behind from sitting on the photocopy machine at the company Christmas dinner.” American retiree Thomas Smith, who lives in Sösdala, says a favorite word is “Kristianstad” (the town): “It took me so long to pronounce this city correctly, that I now look forward to saying it all the time!”

• Rare monkey born at Skansen.
  Skansen-Akvariet has a new baby and it’s a most unusual one. It’s a Callicebus cupreus, more commonly called a titi monkey. This one was born to a mother who came from Bolivia. It’s not clear just yet if the baby is a boy titi or a girl titi, but Skansen’s animal expert Jonas Wahlström is very proud: “It looks like a little troll!” Titis braid their tails together, probably because they are heavy sleepers, and the braiding helps them keep their balance.

• Spring at Liljevalchs.
  It must be spring, at least in Stockholm, because beautiful Liljevalch’s Art Gallery on Djurgården island is opening its Spring Salon. And it’s a very different Spring Salon indeed. There are lots of tomtar, there’s filth and more paintings than ever … “A few years ago it was a bit nerdy to be part of the Spring Salon, but that has changed,” says Louise Fogelström, chairman of the jury that selects the artwork. “Young new artists as well as the more established ones are both trying to get in.” This year 1,825 artists applied, 168 were selected and there are 263 pieces of art.

• Where the celebrities live.
  We told you where they’re from, the Swedish celebrities – remember? Now, here’s where they live. Joakim Thåström, one of Sweden’s best-known rock musicians known for the rock bands Ebba Grön and Imperiet, comes from Rågsved but currently lives on Östra Söder. Carl Michael Bellman is associated with Gamla Stan, but he was born on Södermalm. The author Carina Rydberg used to frequent the restaurant PA & CO on Östermalm, but she lives on a little island in Stockholms skärgård. Author Louise Boije of Gennäs has a house on Långholmen, and singer/songwriter Orup (who was born in Huddinge) lives on Lidingö, as does artist Pernilla Wahlgren. Crown princess Victoria and her boyfriend Daniel Westling currently live at Hovstallet. Bojan Djordjic is back in Sweden and lives in what he himself calls “The Beverly Hills of Stockholm”: Kista.

• Try clowning.
  If you live in Stockholm now, you could take a class in clowning! Arbetarnas bildningsförbund (ABF, or the Workers Education Association) is the educational section of the Swedish labor movement and was founded in 1912 by the Swedish Social Democratic Party and some of the trade unions. There are ABF locations in almost every Swedish town and if you live in Stockholm some of the courses and classes for this spring are in: Greek, Latin, Persian, Sign Language, Photography, Politics and Society, Art: “Silver, wood and beads” and… clowning. “The comic of the clown,” it says on ABF’s website, “builds on genuine emotions and impulses in the meeting with an audience. In Clown Technique you’ll learn how to be sharp and sensitive, how to improvise, what ‘presence on stage’ means and how to be funny without really trying.” A weekend trial class in clowning will cost you 350 SEK (42 USD), if you feel like continuing it will cost another 880 (105 USD) SEK. Sounds like spring in Stockholm will be fun!

• Doing dishes.
  It’s a chore and it might not be the most fun one, but doing the dishes is getting more attractive. Spruce up your kitchen with some new dishtowels, like these: “Ingeborg” features three radishes and costs 125 SEK (designtorget.se), and “Sigrid” from IKEA (ikea.com) comes in muted colors at the price of $3.99 for two. By the way, please tell us it is just a coincidence that both dishtowels have women’s names….