{"id":5471,"date":"2015-06-18T15:30:00","date_gmt":"2015-06-18T22:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.swedishfreak.com\/?p=5471"},"modified":"2015-06-23T10:07:20","modified_gmt":"2015-06-23T17:07:20","slug":"10-ways-to-celebrate-midsummer-like-a-swede","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.swedishfreak.com\/2015\/10-ways-to-celebrate-midsummer-like-a-swede\/","title":{"rendered":"10 Ways To Celebrate Midsummer Like A Swede"},"content":{"rendered":"

Midsommer<\/a> is one of the best holidays to be in Sweden for. If you don’t know what Midsummer is or haven’t experienced it, watch the video above. In 4 minutes you will get exactly what Midsummer is for Swedes.<\/p>\n

I miss Midsummer immensely, so here are 10 things you can do to bring Midsummer to your home this year.<\/p>\n

Avoid the City<\/h2>\n

Nobody hangs out in the city during midsummer. This is the time for you to go out into nature, enjoy the warmth and light, and be with friends.<\/p>\n

I don’t know what cities are like during midsummer because I was never in a city during midsummer. But I hear it is rather boring. So find some grass and create a midsummer party for your friends and loved ones!<\/p>\n

Drink Beer. And Some More<\/h2>\n

Yes, midsummer is a big celebration in Sweden. Play horse shoe, sing songs, and get drunk like a Swede.<\/p>\n

Drink beer. Ideally you want cheap beer so you can drink a lot of it and save your money. \u00a0If you aren’t a beer drinker, why not make a Swedish cocktail? I recommend getting some lingon juice from IKEA and adding some Swedish Vodka. Volia, you have an American-Swedish cocktail.<\/p>\n

\"Swedish<\/a><\/p>\n

Eat A Lot of Food<\/h2>\n

There is nothing like a Swedish party without a BBQ. \u00a0We would grill meat (moose meat if you have it), veggies like zucchini, mushrooms and onions. We also grilled some cheese<\/a> which was delicious.<\/p>\n

Not living in Sweden, don’t worry about it! Throw what you can and enjoy yourself. It’s midsummer!<\/p>\n

Wear A Garland<\/h2>\n

\"midsummer-garland\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Garlands are normal wear for Midsummer. Why not make your own either out of real flowers or, if you live in the desert like me, get some fake flowers that you can use for your garland \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n

Bake Strawberry Cake<\/h2>\n

Strawberry cakes are a stable for Midsummer. I will be experimenting with a Swedish recipe (which will go in the Swedish recipe section of my site!) on Sunday, but for now why not try these recipes recommended from our Swedish Freaks on Facebook<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Play Swedish Games<\/h2>\n

\"Kubbspel\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Kubbspel<\/a> is the game to play in Norrland<\/a> for midsummer, or actually any summer night where drinking is involved.<\/p>\n

You can purchase an official set on Amazon.com, however it is quite expensive. I’m sure you can find some wood lying around.<\/p>\n

Check out the official Swedish rules here<\/a>\u00a0(in Swedish), or you can see how to play on Wikipedia<\/a>. \u00a0Luckily for us, this game has taken off in the U.S. \u00a0What a great time to show it to your friends if they haven’t played it yet!<\/p>\n

Play Swedish Music<\/h2>\n

There is nothing like Midsummer than listening to some Swedish Music! I’ve created a mishmash of different Swedish music, some classical, some folk music, some classics (like ABBA) and oldies.<\/p>\n

While there are some commercials (thank you YouTube!), it is a great playlist to listen to! Enjoy \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n