A Swedish Fika

Today, we will explore the criminal justice systems in Sweden and the United States. The criminal justice system is a complex network of institutions, laws, and practices that the government uses to keep people safe from crime and to ensure that those who break the law are punished fairly. In Sweden and the United States, the criminal justice system is a little different, and we're going to compare and contrast their approaches to crime and punishment. We'll examine their criminal justice sys...

Sweden is known for its strong higher education system and is rated as one of the countries with the highest student satisfaction globally. The country's educational philosophy strongly emphasizes egalitarian sustainability and critical thinking. This is reflected in the structure of higher education systems and the opportunities available to students. A middle-class American education is a unique experience that provides students many opportunities for personal and academic ...

I am sorry to say that there will be no episode this week. I have a bad cold, and my voice will not allow me to record. I wish you all a great week, and I will be back Monday, February 6, with an episode comparing higher education in Sweden and the US.Until then, you might take a look at my new store, where I have several items related to Sweden PixelPia.redbubble.com Support the Show.Thank You for listening to A Swedish Fika. Subscribe to my monthly newsletterMy website, A Swedish ...

In today’s episode, I look at how Sweden and the US handle the concept of work-life balance. I will focus on five aspects; work culture, flexible work conditions, vacation, sick leave, and parental leave.Access to paid time off and the ability to rebalance work and life are crucial to creating a successful work-life balance. Support the Show.Thank You for listening to A Swedish Fika. Subscribe to my monthly newsletterMy website, A Swedish FikaFor Support;Buy Me A Coffe shop, A Swedish F...

Today I will talk about, compare and contrast, and give you my commentary on two cultural norms that, in many ways, have formed the social and political climate in Sweden and the US. This will provide insight into why Swedes and Americans are the way they are and explain many difficulties one may experience when moving from one of the two countries to the other. It will also give my perspective on how I live at the crossroad of these two norm systems. And the two are The Law of Jante in ...

I am now getting very close to turning 65, and with that comes the time to apply for Medicare if you are an American citizen. With this came my interest in comparing healthcare in Sweden and the US, which is what we will do in this episode. The U.S. health system is a mix of public and private, for-profit and nonprofit insurers and health care providers. Sweden’s universal health system is nationally regulated and locally administered. Support the Show.Thank You for listening t...

I compare elementary schools in Sweden and the US in today's episode. In the US, my experience is from New Jersey, which is essential since every state looks different. I have done some research online and found the most common comparisons between the two school systems, and I will add my own experience to this.So let's start. Elementary schools in Sweden and the US are similar in many ways, but there are also some significant differences. Today I will compare and contrast the two countries i...

In this episode, we look closely at the similarities and differences between Sweden and the United States using the demographics of both countries. These statistics can help us understand each country's unique culture and history. From the political landscape to the everyday lives of its citizens, what makes these two countries alike and different? Join us as we compare and contrast Sweden and the US.Support the Show.Thank You for listening to A Swedish Fika. Subscribe to my monthly new...

This season I will shift my focus somewhat and do more comparisons between Sweden and the US. In this first short introduction, I talk about the new direction and where the inspiration came from, an article in Business Insider from 2019 by Ariel Kramer titled I'm an American who lived in Sweden for 5 years — here are the biggest cultural differences between the 2 countriesIf you have any specific areas, you would like for me to do a comparison between, please send me an email&nbsp...

Swedish (Svenska) is an East Scandinavian language spoken in Sweden, parts of Finland, and the autonomous Aland Islands. It is the most widespread Scandinavian language.With only 10.5 million speakers, Swedish is a small language compared to English and other prominent languages. This isn't surprising because a unified version was formed less than 1,000 years ago. The languages spoken nowadays in Scandinavia developed from the Old Norse language, which was pretty much the same in present...

During the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the mass emigration of some 1.3 million Swedes to the United States occurred. Emigration was due to several reasons. One was the sharp population growth. Between 1825 and 1900, the number of children born yearly doubled. The difficult living conditions in cities and the country­side were also important reasons people chose to leave Sweden. In today's episode, I will talk about these questions;Why did they leave?Where ...

Sometimes it surprises me what people know or think they know about Sweden. And today, I stumbled on a website called the fact file.org, and one of their articles was called 52 Interesting Facts About Sweden. This tickled my curiosity. So in today's episode, I will review these facts and comment on them.But before we go into the facts, let's take a look at the About Us page on this website, which you can find at https://thefactfile.org/sweden-facts/Support the Show.Thank You for listeni...

When I first moved to the US from Sweden, some things changed that I still today have trouble with, and I am talking about measurements. So let's look at some numbers, not considering the measurements. To give you a few examples, my height went from 157 to 5.1. My weight went from 63 to 139. My shoe sizes changed from 36 to 5. And my clothes went from 38 to 12. Of course, I was the same size as before, but the measurements had changed. I went from 157 centimeters to 5.1 feet. From 63 kil...

Today’s episode is inspired by an article on vox.com from 2017 that I accidentally stumbled on. The title of the article is I’m an American living in Sweden. Here’s why I came to embrace the higher taxes.Tom Heberlein writes the article, and I have a link to the full article at the bottom of the show notes.In the article, he says, “My wife and I have been dividing our time between jobs in Sweden and Wisconsin for the past dozen years, and I'm here to tell you that taxes in Sweden are not...

Today I am returning to a topic I have talked about before, and that is food. It seems like many of you enjoy it when I talk about Swedish food. So today I'm gonna take a look at the calendar for special celebration days for different foods in Sweden. Some of them I have mentioned before. and some I haven't talked about at all.Before we talk about the specific foods, you will notice that there are more special days celebrating food during the darker months of the year.If you are interes...

In today's episode, I will talk about something very close to my heart education, and the focus will be on primary education.I will divide this into five sections. In the first section, I want to give you an overview of the Swedish school system. Then I want to talk a little bit about our curriculum in part three. I want to talk shortly about grades and individual education plans. I will also. Do a very short description of Swedish teacher education. And finally, I will focus on my experience...

Last Sunday, September 9th, was the election day in Sweden, and since this is a podcast about Sweden and Swedes, I had to cover that. But before we talk about the actual results of the election, and what changes it will lead to, let’s talk about the election process in Sweden. In Sweden, the election is held on the second Sunday of September every 4th year. There are three elections held at this time;Riksdag (the parliament)Landsting (the regional assembly)Kommun (the municipal as...

Red cottages with white corners and other white trimmings are as iconic as Fika in Sweden. Many houses in Sweden are made of wood and need to be painted, the question is why so many are painted in the color Falu Rödfärg - Falu red? But to tell the story about these red cottages that you can see everywhere in Sweden we must go back in time to a place called Falun, in Dalarna, in the middle of Sweden. Actually, the history of our beloved Swedish red color begins in...

Today I want to have some fun with the Swedish language, looking at some words that sound crazy to any English speaker, translate some compound words verbatim and see if you can guess what they are, and look at some Swedish expressions and idioms that make absolutely no sense if you translate them. I will also talk about the background of the Swedish language, and how easy or hard it is to learn for an English native speaker. I hope you all will enjoy it. Support the Show.Thank...

After living more than 20 years in the US as a Swede, I have thought a lot about how little Americans know about Sweden and what a small country Sweden really is. So for today's episode, I started searching the internet for the most commonly asked question about Sweden. And Swedes, and I will try and answer them as well as I can.And I will answer three categories. The first is, is Sweden blank. The second one I search for is are Swedes blank. And I then took a look at Do Swedes blank, and las...

According to the RSF (Reporters Without Borders), World Press Freedom Index for 2022 Sweden ranks #3 just behind Norway and Denmark. The list is based on the degree of freedom journalists and news organizations have in each country and the efforts that authorities make to safeguard this freedom. Today I want to explore what freedom of speech and censorship mean in Sweden. Openness and transparency are vital parts of Swedish democracy. There are four fundamental laws that are the controll...

Although. I have lived here for 22 years now, and here in the US, there is still food that I really miss from Sweden. Food that is hard to get here, and if I really wanted, I have to cook it myself. Today I want to talk about food. Food that I miss from Sweden. But I also want to talk about some things that I have learned to love here in the US. And some things we have both in Sweden and here in the US that are different between the two countries. So if you like food and are...

Sweden is the world’s third-largest music exporter, just behind the US and the UK. Over the past decades, Sweden has been cultivating future songwriters, producers, musicians, and DJs. The so-called Swedish Music "Miracle" is the years between 1990-2003 when Swedish musicians made it firm on the US Billboard.The world is looking to Swedish songwriters and producers, for music that works well on mainstream radio, playlists, and pop charts. If the only Swedish band or musician you can name...

Swedish & Nordic designs are popular in homes around the world, and it is easily recognizable. Today, I will focus on interior design and furniture. I will try to take you through a modern Swedish home room-by-room. I will also take a look at IKEA, the store that more than any other has spread the Swedish design ideal around the world. The main elements of all designs are functionality/simplicity/craftsmanship. You will find muted colors with lots of white, grey, and tan, with ...

In today’s episode, I want to share some ideas for those of you that have ever thought about taking a vacation in Sweden. I will start with travel restrictions, talking about some general things that you need to know like where to stay, how to travel within Sweden, some tips for food, and so forth.I will then talk about places to visit and activities to take part in. For that part of the episode, I will talk about four different regions of Sweden, starting with the capital Stockholm, an...

Midsummer Eve is celebrated on the Friday of the week between June 19 and June 25. This is a time that you spend with friends and family often in large gatherings. And like so many holidays, it's filled with food and drink. But as I said, there are some traditions with roots in folklore, not like the movie I talked about in the beginning, with Norse roots, but it has some magic connected to the folklore. The Nordic Midsummer celebration has its roots in Christian tradit...

Between August 3rd, 1991, and November 8 the same year 5 different shootings took place in Stockholm. All of them seemed to have the same perpetrator since they all indicated a red dot on the victims before being shot, like from a laser sight, and they all seemed to be targeting immigrants. The four first victims survived, but the 5th died the day after the incident. After this, no more shootings occurred until January 22nd, 1992, when the shooting spree started again, and between Januar...

The term was coined by the criminologist and psychiatrist Nils Bejerot to explain the aftermath of a bank robbery in Stockholm, Sweden in 1973.It is not a psychological diagnosis, but a way to describe and understand the responses some hostages have towards their captures. Although Stockholm syndrome was named based on the location of a bank robbery-hostage situation, some of the same behaviors and feelings are seen in victims of other types of trauma. Today, I will share the...

The regal warship Vasa was built in Stockholm, Sweden, in 1628 and was supposed to be the fastest and most armed warship of the Baltic sea, and maybe all of Europe. Instead, it turned into a catastrophe as it sunk after just a few minutes on its maiden voyage. This catastrophe in the mid-20th century turned into a great success as the ship was almost intact and salvaged from the bottom of Stockholm harbor. Today Vasa is a beloved museum in the heart of Stockholm. Today I will g...

Until this day I can vividly remember third grade in Sweden when we started the Vikings I was fascinated with the mythology the stories about how the world and the humans were created and the stories about the gods the Giants and all other beings and today I want to share some of those stories with you. I will talk about the saga of the creation of the Cosmos, Ask, and Embla, the two first humans, and how the world was constructed and organized. I will also talk about some of the Go...

Today Sweden is looked upon as a peaceful neutral country, but it hasn't always been that way. And today I want to talk about one of the historical events that I, as a kid was very fascinated about, and that is the Stockholm bloodbath, or as it's also called the Stockholm massacre.It started with the Danish king Christian II who was to become the king of Sweden, but Sweden wasn't that easy to convince that this was a good thing. We had supporters of Christian II as the king led by archbishop ...

Today, I want to introduce you to some creatures from Swedish traditional folklore. Some of them are pretty harmless while others are violent and scary. So if you have young kids within hearing distance, or if you are easily scared yourself, you should proceed with caution beyond this point. The beings I will talk about are; tomten (gnome)troll älvor (fairies)vittror (no translation)lyktgubben (the lantern man)näcken (nixie)mylingen (no translation)skogsrået (forest nymph)maran...

Today, I want to tell you the story of the king who became a pirate. This is a true story, but some of the facts can be questioned as it all took place in the late 14th century and the documentation was not that precise, but I will try to tell this story to the best of my abilities. The king I am talking about was Erik the king of the Kalmar Union, which consisted of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden in the late 14th century. But we need to start this story much earlier. We actually need...

Today, I want to introduce you to some famous Swedes. Some of them you might be familiar with, but I hope I will introduce you to some new names as well. This list will include both people from the present as well as from the past. When I started to plan for this episode, I had no idea that a small country like Sweden had so many famous people. So I have decided to make this a couple of episodes. The focus of today will be Hollywood. Support the Show.Thank You for listening to A Sw...

Being such a small country, Sweden has been the growing ground for many inventions. Some of them many of us use on a daily basis. Today I want to talk about some of these Swedish inventions, and I will divide this into five main groups; work-related, travel, medical, tech, and everyday items. Some of these inventions might surprise you that they are Swedish, others you may already be familiar with, but I hope you will find my selection interesting and maybe you will learn somethin...

Easter in Sweden was until the 1970s observed as a religious holiday, but today it is largely secularized with a blend of Christian, folklore, and old Norse traditions. It is still an official holiday in Sweden with many people off from work on both Friday and Monday of the weekend. Today I will talk about the different traditions on skärtorsdag (Maundy Thursday), långfredag (Good Friday), påskafton (Easter Eve), påskdagen (Easter Sunday), and annandag påsk (Easter Monday). I will ...

Sweden has always been at the forefront of technology and banking innovations. They introduced their first automated cash machine in July 1967. They got their first payment cards in the 1950s, digitalized bank accounts in the 1960s, and developed internet infrastructure and internet banking in the mid-90s. But today's question is; Is Sweden moving towards a cashless society?Today I will talk about how this trend toward a cashless society started, where we are now, and what will happ...

In the year 2000 Sweden officially recognized five national minorities and their languages as official minority languages. Jews and YiddishRoma and Roman ChibSami and the Sami languageSwedish Finns and FinnishTornedalers and Meänkieli (sometimes known as Torne Valley Finnish or TornedalsfinskaIn parts of Sweden where Sami, Finnish, and Meänkieli are still widely used, which is in the north and northeast of the country, this means that the people are allowed to use these languages when de...

If you talk to someone, especially an American, that have worked in Sweden for some time one of the things you probably will hear is that Sweden has a fantastic work-life balance. But what does that mean, what is it Sweden do so well and why?What are the factors that create this balance between work and the rest of your life? Today I will talk about four aspects of the work-life balance. Working hoursSick days and care of childrenVacationsParental leaveBut I want to start by talking...

Today I want to try and paint a picture for you. I want to describe an average Swedish family. This family does not exist, it is a creation of statistics about Sweden and Swedes, but I hope it can paint a picture about life in Sweden. Let me introduce you to the Andersson Family, Andersson is the most common last name in Sweden. It consists of dad Lars and mom Anna the two most common adult first names in Sweden. They have two children, a boy, and a girl, that is slightly over the averag...

This week, on March 8, is international women’s day and that got me thinking… Sweden is often said to be one of the most gender-equal countries in the world, but what does that stand for?Sweden is a member of the EU and we are starting today’s episode by taking a look at the yearly gender-equality index from 2021. Sweden ranks #1 in this index with a score of 83.9 out of 100.Sweden has a long history of prioritizing questions of equality but there is still work to be done. Support t...

Almost everything in Sweden has a schedule or a timetable, and it is followed to the minute. If a bus is scheduled at leaving 8:53 am that is the time it leaves unless nothing very exceptional happens. If a TV show is scheduled to start at 7:30 pm that is when it starts. And if a meeting is scheduled for 2 pm to 4 pm it starts at 2 pm, not 2:01, and ends at 4 pm, not at 3:57 or 4:01.Punctuality is very important and that means not being late OR not being early. If you are invited to a party t...

Two of the traditions I miss a lot from Sweden are Fredagsmys (Friday Cozy) and Lördagsgodis (Saturday Candy) and in today's episode, I want to introduce you to both of them. Fredagsmys is when you stay home either with a group of friends or after you have kids you stay home with your family, having some easy-to-make food, very often Tacos but occasionally a pizza, and then watching TV or maybe a movie, eating chips and dip, popcorn, or something similar.Lördagsgodis is the t...

There are so many differences when it comes to dining out between Sweden and the US, and today I want to talk about some of them. Some examples are how the serving staff is acting, and how much should you leave in gratitude, it is both a cultural difference since we Swedes are often known as "the silent Swede" but it is also a difference in how servers are employed. This is very much based on my early experience of going out to eat after I first moved to the US, and conversations I...

Today I will talk about differences in how we address people outside of our close family and friends group, for example at our workplaces. In Sweden, during the late 60s, we had a movement that is called Du-reformen, you-reform, that in short completely changed our way of talking to each other. Du-reformed led to Sweden and Swedes stopping using titles and Mr. Mrs. and Ms when addressing each other. I have in my entire working life always been on a first-name basis with all my bosses, an...

Today I am taking a walk down memory lane and telling you a little bit about the apartment where I grow up in Bollmora, Tyresö as a backdrop to comparison about our homes in Sweden and in the US. I talk about how we describe our homes and how that made me expect something different when I first moved to the US than the actual home that eventually became mine. I will also talk about differences in how our homes are built and differences like drinking tap water, using AC, and shoes o...

In this episode, I am going to talk about Allemansrättem, the law of public access or as it is also called the Right to Roam, that we have in Sweden. This is a right for everybody to take advantage of what nature has to offer, but it is also a responsibility to not disturb nature and people in any way. The title, you don't miss what you have until it is gone refers to my realization that I never really appreciated the right we have in Sweden until now, living in the US, where I don't hav...

New season, new year, and my first "winter" living in Florida. As so often when I new year starts I look back and take a look at where I am in life at the moment. This year has included some big changes for me, including moving from New Jersey to Florida, and no more winter and snow. I am a Swede that really can't take the snow and the cold so for me this is fantastic, but at the same time, I do miss the changes that are so obvious when you live with the four seasons as different from ea...

Season 2 of A Swedish Fika is around the corner, and there will be a few changes. First of all, I want to make this season more personal, more from my point of view, and tell more about my own experience both from Sweden and from the US. To do so, I think it is just fair to start with a more personal introduction of who I am, which is the purpose of this trailer. A way for you to know a little bit more about me as a person. I am really excited to start the second season of A Swedish Fika, but...

The Swedish Christmas starts on the 1st of Advent, four Sundays before Christmas Eve, and we lit the first candle in our advent calendar.On the first of December, the TVs julkalender (Christmas calendar) show starts.The next big event comes on December 13th when we celebrate Lucia.Christmas Eve, December 24th, is the most important day of them all, this is when Santa comes and visits when we get our gifts, and when we eat our julbord, a special version of a smorgasbord.The official end of the...

Today I am talking about Alfred Nobel, the Nobel Prize, and the Swedish tradition of sankta Lucia (Saint Lucy), and what they have in common.Alfred Nobel was born in Stockholm on October 21, 1833. He was among many other things the inventor of dynamite and the blasting cap, synthetic rubber and leather, and artificial silk. By the time of his death, December 10, 1896, he had 355 patents in his name and was quite a wealthy man.Saint Lucia, a martyr and saint in the Roman Catholic and Orthodox ...

One thing that fascinates Americans from time to time is that we have a king in Sweden. So today I want to tell you about the Swedish monarchy, how it functions and who the Royal family are.Sweden has a long history of kingdoms, some say it goes back around 1000 years. Today my focus will be on the current royal family and the system we have at the moment. Who are they and what do they do? Support the Show.Thank You for listening to A Swedish Fika. Subscribe to my monthly newsletterMy we...

When I first moved to the US in 2003, I lived in the south of New Jersey, very close to both Delaware and Pennsylvania. Little did I know at that point that I was moving into a part of America that had once been a Swedish colony called New Sweden. So today I want to do a historical overview of Sweden’s presence in America. The focus will be on the colony New Sweden in the years 1638 - 1655, but I will look at Swedish emigration to the US between 1851 - 1930 where 1 of 5 Swedes lived in t...

Sunday, November 14th, 1907 in Vimmerby Sweden a girl was born by the name Astrid Ericsson. She would grow up to be known as Astrid Lindgren, one of Sweden's most beloved authors, mostly known for her children's books. And to celebrate her birthday I wanted to dedicate an episode to her.Astrid Lindgren has written 34 original chapter books and 41 picture books. Her books have sold 165 million copies and have been translated into over 100 languages, and many have been made into movies wor...

I talk about those small, everyday things that are so hard to get used to after moving from a small town in Sweden to the US. Things like what size clothes to buy, how many grams in a pound, and am I paying the right amount? These are everyday things that you often don't think about as hard to get used to but can be both problematic and irritating after you move.Support the Show.Thank You for listening to A Swedish Fika. Subscribe to my monthly newsletterMy website, A Swedish FikaFor Sup...

In this episode, we are taking a closer look at Sweden and Swedes from a religious perspective. Sweden is often said to be the most secular country in the world, but is it really? This is a very difficult question to answer since it is against the law to register people's religious believes. But one thing is absolute truth, it is very uncommon to talk about religion and beliefs among Swedes. I will also take a quick look at the history of religion in Sweden from the Vikings till tod...

One of the most widespread stereotypes about Sweden and Swedes is;Sweden and Swedes are all decadent, promiscuous, and sexually liberated. In today's episode, I will look at the background for this stereotype, and also what is the reality when it comes to Sweden and sex. As always. there is some truth behind every stereotype, but maybe not in the way you might expect. I will as always share my personal opinion on the topic, as well as some research that can help debunk this ste...

Many times when I meet new people and they find out that I am Swedish people say;But you don’t look Swedish?I don’t really know how I should react to a comment like that, am I getting insulted or ???? The stereotypical description of a Swede is;Tall, blond, blue-eyed, and beautiful.In today's episode, I will take a look at how this stereotype came to be so widely spread, and what the reality behind it is. Is there any truth to this, and if so what part is factual? Support the Show....

In today's episode, I will talk about the very strange relationship we Swedes have with alcohol. On one hand, we are very restrictive to drinking during the work week but it is almost a must during the weekend. I will also address how the Swedes changes from the silent, almost invisible, non-attention-seeking individual to the loud, obnoxious always attention-seeking fool when drinking. Of course, we meet attention-seeking fools of all nationalities when the alcohol sets in, but the differenc...

In today's episode, I will take a closer look at the law of Jante which I just mentioned in my last episode. The law of Jante is an unwritten law that in so many ways has colored the Scandinavian countries, our societies, and our behavior. The law of Jante comes from a novel by the Danish-Norweigan author Aksel Sandemose in his novel “A Fugitive Crosses His Tracks” from 1933. In this novel, a young man returns to his home, a village called Jante, which is ruled by the law of Jante....

If you are visiting Sweden your first impression of us Swedes might be that we are unfriendly, quiet, and quite distant, and you will be partly right. Today I want to talk about why we can seem so unfriendly and quiet, why we think the way we think about talking to people we don't know, personal space, and small talk. I will also share some tips for those of you that want to get to know us a little better, and why I think it is worth doing so. I will explain some of the unwritten laws th...

I have often been mistaken for being from Switzerland, and even my own family here in the US took a long time to understand that the two countries are not the same. So in today's episode, I will take the opportunity to educate about the similarities and differences between the two countries. I will also share some interesting facts about things that are Swedish that might surprise you, and that you can use to show a ny Swede you come in contact with that you are not one of those who don'...

In this first episode, I will explain the concept of fika, which is so much more than having a coffee. Fika is very important to most Swedes, and you fika at work, at home, with colleges, friends, and family. Fika is the one thing I wish I could bring with me to the US, except friends and family of course. I will also give you some insight into who I am, and why I am creating this podcast. Not everything will be told in this episode but I will try to add bits and pieces in ev...

This is just a short introduction to the upcoming podcast A Swedish Fika. Support the Show.Thank You for listening to A Swedish Fika. Subscribe to my monthly newsletterMy website, A Swedish FikaFor Support;Buy Me A Coffe shop, A Swedish Fika.PixelPia