In late June there is a burst of life, both in human habit and in nature. Flowers are blooming, school is out, and the entire country seems to be preparing for summer holiday.
Midsommar celebrates this awakening.
Before midsummer lunch we strolled into downtown Nässjö to visit the central park and playground. The boys love these play structures that we don't have back home.
Everything closes on midsummer's eve, except a small stores, the gas stations, and in Nässjö, that candy store. The kids were excited to see an entire wall of candy, and we bought a hefty sampling to last the weekend.
The festivities began with picking at least 7 varieties of wildflowers for a traditional midsommarkran. We enjoyed pickled herring, new potatoes, and a fresh strawberry cake al fresco.
In the afternoon we went into the city's culture park for traditional maypole dancing and singing. The older boys declined to participate. It was unseasonably hot and humid, so we only stayed a brief while for the main event.
Luckily there are hundreds of lakes nearby, so we dropped by for a cool dip. We were all exhausted by the heat and day's activities, opting to grill and chill rather than drink late into the night.
On Midsummer day we were treated to a lake tour on a boat. The lake was large with several rock islands, and I "teased" that I wouldn't mind being abandoned on one for the day.
After just 15 minutes navigating, we found a beautiful rocky beach on our own private island. We had coffee and sandwiches while the boys used goggles to explore underwater life. The afternoon was topped off with high speed inner tubing.
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