Today is a half-day holiday in Sweden – Valborg!
Valborg is a holiday to welcome the coming of Spring by burning all the dead branches in giant bonfires. Of course in my neighborhood we call this “Finally getting rid of the Christmas trees.”
I haven’t spent a Valborg in Sweden without freezing to death, often in the rain, at one of these bonfires. I imagine by the evening, this will be no exception. But my family will be out there, freezing and singing strange Swedish spring songs (Wow! What great alliteration!) and enjoying the crowds while I’m secretly wishing for a very long stick covered in marshmallows.