Mixing Cultures... and Pancakes

So the apartment was empty last night when I came home- the boys were off celebrating their father's birthday, Anita is on a weekend spiritual retreat, and Magnus was helping with his friends put the sailboat up on land. I actually got quite a bit of work done last night- I decided to go home early and just sat and read and wrote and worked. It was nice 'cause I could blast music out of my computer without worrying about bothering anyone. Just very chill. AND I even went to bed at a decent time!!!

Today it was just Magnus and I in the apartment, and I was kind of worried because of all the people in the family, sometimes I feel a bit of disconnect with Magnus. The funny thing is, I think it's because of his height. I just haven't ever really gotten to know someone that well that was that tall, and it unnerves me to look up to him while I'm talking all the time.

But today was nice. He had grading to do, and I had reading, so we shared the living room and both worked. Then Magnus went out for a run, I took a shower, and then when he came back he suggested that we make pancakes and try out the Maple Syrup that my mom had brought as a gift when she came to see the family. I was all for it. I've been eying the bottle all week, really wanting to have some but thinking it would be bad manners to be the first to sample. Maple syrup and I are good friends, and along with apples they are the two foods I probably miss most when I'm at college. The Maple Syrup you can buy at Davidson just doesn't taste the same.

But this was real, Massachusetts boiled and made MAPLE SYRUP. (which, I will admit, even tastes better than the Maple Syrup you can buy in NY) So Magnus is like, why don't you make the pankake batter while I go take a shower (because he's just come in from his run). And I'm like, "Sure." Because I sure as heck wasn't going to be like, "There's a reason I haven't offered to cook for you guys thus far, and it isn't because I don't want to, it's because I have no clue how to bake anything using the metric system and I feel too silly trying to because I still haven't figured out where everything is in your kitchen, even if I do snoop through your cupboards when nobody's home and try to read the spices on your cabinet even though EVERYTHING IS IN SWEDISH AND I CAN'T UNDERSTAND ANY OF IT."

But some of the panic must have shown in my face, because Magnus pauses and is like, "Ah, but you wouldn't know how to use the metric system. Here, let me get a recipe out." And, THANK GOD, he not only gets out the recipe out, but even gets out the measuring cups I need, because everything is done in deci-liters, yet depending on the recipe they still use teaspoons and tablespoons (or also the metric system), yet the teaspoons and tablespoons use the Swedish version of abbreviation instead of the American.

And then he leaves me.

Well, there was one tense moment where there were these strange lumps in the batter, and another moment where I was like, did I add three or four cup- I mean deciliters yet, and another moment where I was like, surely the batter is too thin, this looks nothing like the batter my mom makes for pancakes and I added just a tad more flour, but overall they seemed to turn out well. Swedish pancakes, I've found out, are very flat (almost like crepes), less cake-y and more just... solid. They also, in my opinion are a bit more bland. When you eat them you roll them up, and then cut them, or at least that is what Magnus did.

I've decided that I'm going to be brave, get my mom's buttermilk pancake recipe, convert it to metrics, and make them blueberry or raspberry or chocolate chip pancakes, because apparently Magnus and the rest have never had that type.

But the good news is, the Maple Syrup was GREAT on them (even though they didn't seep into the pancakes like they do with American ones)- but then there's no wrong way to eat Maple Syrup, I don't think. Unless you try to do it through your nose. Or some other extreme thing.

And the other good thing is, Magnus and I had some bonding time. We talked about mannerisms and I told him some of my funny stories about when I first came to Davidson and had a crash course in Southern Manners (or how to be on the receiving side of Southern Manners). We talked about how different cultures have different ways of speaking and subtle unspoken communication differences.

It was fun.

Tonight I'm meeting up with a friend I made at dancing, and we're going to go have a fika (a Swedish meeting to have coffee or some other hot beverage, though most normally coffee), and then I'll probably come home, get some more work done, and go to bed. But for now I need to head out.

Until later!

Family History 2

So the next place we went was Mildred’s old house, which is being fixed up by Håkan’s brother Rowland (who apparently is very well off and owns 5 houses all over the world). There we had fika, a wonderful Swedish tradition similar to teatime in Europe, except that it happens with coffee and it can happen both in the morning and at night… kind of a glorified coffee break. There we got to look at some really old pictures of some of our relatives (which I have on video and in pictures, since we weren’t able to copy the originals).

After having fika, we went to visit the farm that Zacharias was born on. As I said, the area was beautiful, and Håkan picked me a really unique flower that was purple with little dots on the underbelly and shaped like a trumpet or bell. I took pictures of it, but the camera didn’t want to focus on the flower *pouts* I want to find out what type of flower it was… it was simply beautiful.

Marion had arranged for a really neat craft museum to be open for us, where a couple had taken it upon themselves to preserve some of the handicrafts that were being done in the area. Marion had donated a sampler to the place (see picture), so she was able to get the owners to open it up and give us a tour. There was a loom, some really neat crocheting and lacework, and possibly my favorite thing, snow chains for bicycles. Yes, only in Sweden would the people be mad enough to ride their bikes in snowy icy weather that would call for bicycle snow chains.

After the craft museum we went to lunch… a welcome break because I was getting low on blood sugar and nearly falling asleep on Håkan as he drove us there. Next we went to a really neat place… Haverud, which is the only place in the world were there is both a road, train and water bridge all in one place. It was SO COOL. I got a postcard of it, in addition to video. Real Swedish innovation, along with being really creative and quite picturesque.

Then, off to a craft store that sold some really neat local crafts. At this point I was getting pretty tired, but I had just enough energy to peruse all four levels of the store and pick out some postcards and knickknacks to take back with me.

Finally, finally we went back to Håkan’s house, where we had a large fika or small meal, and then, Håkan surprised us with something he doesn’t show many people… the footage to his 50th anniversary. Then, we had to say goodbye to Håkan and Marion, for we won’t see them tomorrow, our last full day. I nearly cried, because it was so wonderful to meet such great relatives that were not only so kind and welcoming but so willing to work with me on my Swedish. They had great sense of humors, and even though by the end of the day I was feeling Swedish-Languaged out, they were just unflagging in their delight that I was learning their language. It was very heartening and humbling at the same time.