Lucia Week


When we first found out we would be coming to Sweden for this school semester,Related image
I could only imagine what a thrill it would be to see the festivities on December 13th as the country
celebrated Luciadagen. What I didn't expect was that one day of celebrating is more like one week of celebrating.  And I have loved it!
Our first Lucia concert took place on the second Sunday of Advent on December 9th.
It was held at Kristinekyrkan in Jonkoping. We found out about this concert from Anne's SVF roommate, Elin, as she is a member of the choir performing at the church.
This church is very old with its consecration taking place in 1673.
 Waiting in line (the concert started at 3:00 pm and was open and free to the public) was cold but the time passed quickly as we watched the adorable antics of the young children in front of us.
It reminded us of our own barnbarn.
Once inside, the sanctuary filled up quickly.
Isn't the sanctuary beautiful?
(I took a video of the Lucia processional, but no still shot...sorry!)
If I could use one word to describe this experience it would be 
ethereal.


Lucia #2 took place on Tuesday evening, December 11 at Immanuelkyrka.
This program was presented by SVF Music Line students, the Jonkoping Orchestra and dancers from
Kultureskolan.
First, Handel's Daughter of Zion was sung by the choir and accompanied by the orchestra.
 

 Next came the surprise of the evening:  dancers performed exerpts from Tchaikovski's
Nutcracker Ballet.
 Every year I go to the ballet back home and this was such a gift to see the dancers and hear five orchestral numbers from this beloved ballet.


 Then, the Music Line came back with a humorous production while Leroy Anderson's
Synocopated Clock was played by the orchestra.



Break Time
Now for Lucia and her Court plus Star Boys.
The Star Boys wore neither pointed hats nor carried star sticks. 




 
 The program was beautiful.

Today marked the official
Santa Lucia Day.
It's Wednesday, December 13.
  
 At 10:00 am, SVF provided a fika for all students, staff and retired faculty.
Saffron buns - Lussekattar - were served.  Mmmm!



 Then it was time to go to the auditorium for the program.



 

 Again...beautiful and lovely.
Afterwards, we had a chance to greet Hans Nilsson - the former teacher of many North Park College Line students throughout the years, including our Jed, Anne and John.

Three Lucia programs in five days.
I love it...and the Bucket List of witnessing Lucia
in Sweden has been met. And exceeded!
Meanwhile, back at home...
 
Glad Luciadagen to One and All!


 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

In Search of Svamp

Image
The Swedish word for mushroom is svamp.  And I'm continually on a search for them as we take our walks in the nearby woods.  Earlier this month, I took the above pictures on one such walk. After showing these cell phone pictures to a Swede, she said not one of them was edible --- especially the top red polka-dotted (makes me think of happy little gnomes!) one which is an Amanita muscaria (fly agaric) which, when ingested, will act on the central nervous system causing loss of coordination, agitation, nausea and sometimes even hallucinations. No thanks! Though I have seen chanterelle mushrooms in stores, I hoped to find some in the wild. No such luck --- and even if I did find one I would be worried about false identification and causing great harm to my body if I ate it.  So, I decided to go with a safer option of finding one/many in an outdoor market.  There they are!  Right next to the lingonberries and blueberries! I bought a container full...
Read more

Läckö Slott and Lidköping

Image
We headed out from our apartment on Sunday morning to drive to this destination:  the castle named as the "most beautiful in Sweden" - Lacko Slott.   But, first, lucky timing on the way allowed us to step inside this church for a bit of the Sunday service at Skara Cathedral.   This church dates to the 11th century, the 13th century for its Gothic style and the 1760s after a new facade was added to the southern side, and the 1800s for yet another restoration. During the actual service, it's not good to take pictures.  I snuck one shot as we were on our way out.  The music was inspiring and ethereal. Onward and forward!  This castle is our destination. It is surrounded by water on three sides and is situated on the shores of Lake Vanern. Our first view did not disappoint! I know I've said it before but wow. Wow. Wow.  Originally built in the 13th century by a Bishop (Brynolf Agotsson), this beauty chang...
Read more

A Quick Trip to Stockholm (Part 2)

Image
After eating breakfast at our hotel, the group headed out for more exploration of Stockholm. Imagine my surprise when someone rushed up to me on the streets of Stockholm...and I knew this someone!  The young woman in the turquoise hat is Anne Clausen Anderson.  She is the same age as our son, John, and is from our home church in Libertyville.  Presently, Anne and her family are living in Stockholm while Petey is on the staff of Immanuelkyrkan in Stockholm. Of course, a quick snapshot needed to be taken as proof of this serendipitous moment! Then we headed in separate directions: she to her Dr. appointment and us to the Vasa Museum . Actually, Wes and I and two others students had already been here so we chose to visit the nearby The Nordic Museum is dedicated to the past and present culture history - folk, people and nation - of Sweden. I loved it, especially, for the costumes, hats, mittens and needlework. And great big 'ol Gustav Vasa in the Stora ...
Read more