Valentine’s Day in Sweden is not the spectacle it is in the U.S. In fact, when I met my husband and we spent our first Valentine’s Day together back in 2000, he had to double-check what he was supposed to buy and do, as if Valentine’s Day were a pop quiz he hadn’t studied for. (Honestly, not a bad idea for all guys at the beginning of a relationship.)
I told him the usual; flowers, chocolate and dinner at a nice restaurant. These days, that seems to be the standard in Sweden as well, for those that celebrate.
Apparently, Sweden made a few tries in the 1950’s and 1960’s at making Valentine’s Day a thing, but it wasn’t very successful until the 1980s. (Reminds me a bit of how Halloween is a “new” holiday in Sweden.) Apparently, Sweden prefers to observe new holidays from a safe distance for a few decades before committing.
My husband and I have made a deal now. We buy each other chocolates and only chocolates for Valentine’s Day. It’s what we really want, after all. And of course, we make reservations at a nice restaurant – which has gotten much harder over the years. Winter, and February especially, in Sweden is so boring, that a nice Valentine’s dinner at a restaurant is about the only thing to look forward to.
Of course, it’s quite a hassle when the snow (or slush) outside is at least a foot high, and you want to wear nice high heels with your dress. It’s just not happening. Unless you are fancy enough to afford a taxi to the restaurant.
One thing that’s annoying about living overseas is having to remember when a holiday or birthday is coming up about 2-weeks before it happens. I’ve got two family birthdays, plus Valentine’s Day next month, and because of the unreliable mail lately, on both ends, I need to send something early. Sure, family members say, “You don’t have to send anything, there’s nothing I need,” but they’re LIARS.
I tried this on my dad once for Father’s Day, which is not even in the same month as it is in Sweden, so I believe I should be congratulated for even remembering it. I was also going to be on vacation for several weeks, so it made sense that I wouldn’t send anything. And to be fair, he explicitly told me NOT to. But, being thoughtful, I still remembered to send a card and include a magazine that he liked.
All I heard when I got back from vacation was, “My friends asked me what I got for Father’s Day, and I told them I just got an old magazine.” He was very unhappy.
I’ve also learned a while back that I can’t just order something from Amazon and have it delivered, because when I asked my dad or grandmother what they thought of their gift, they would have no idea it was from me, even though I’d included a message on the receipt.
“Oh, you sent that? I had no idea!”
This has happened 3 times. What a fun life they must lead to think that anonymous people just send packages to them for fun. “A new set of books for free? How nice! Thanks, Amazon! Must be a promotion of some sort.” “Chocolates? I have no idea where they came from, but I’ll eat them!”
So I’m headed into town today to buy gifts, then I’ll pay way too much to have them sent over, just to hear, “You shouldn’t have gotten me anything.”
The cycle continues.