Top 10 differences of a Swedish Christmas

(Remember these are based on my experiences.)

10. Stockings aren’t really done here. Maybe if you have a couple kids you might get stockings and do them, otherwise they can tend to be just used for decorative purposes or not at all.

9. There are just as many Gnomes with red hats celebrating the holiday as Santa Claus, if not more!!! Our Christmas napkin holder is Gnomes in red hats instead of Santa.

8. Window décor in Sweden is a must. Everyone and I do mean everyone has a lighted star or 5 or 7 lighted candelabra (larger ones exist too but are not as common). Anton noticed upon returning home one day that we were the only ones in our apartment building that didn’t have one and we needed to conform on this tradition, so he bought one and put it the window.

7. Advent candle lighting is a normal part of Christmas tradition here in a country that is not very religious, which I find very interesting that Christian and Pagan traditions are the norm for all.

6. Baking for Christmas is the same idea, but what is baked is different. Gingerbread is EVERYWHERE, it’s like a religion. Thin heart shaped gingersnaps take up almost half an aisle in every small grocery store or you can buy dough to make your own. Saffron buns are a homemade tradition here and they are very tasty! They also have Christmas bread that is spiced/flavored and crackers.

5. Christmas flowers are tradition. Yes they have Poinsettias (we have 1) and mini Poinsettias, but they also have lots of Amaryllis and Hyacinth (we have 4). Real live flowers are a part of everyday Christmas décor, yet there is no holly.

4. Holiday drinks are different. They have a drink called Julmust which is a pop that is the number one seller in December. It’s hard to describe the flavor, but it’s ok in my opinion, what is better is Glögg. Glögg is mulled wine that is full of flavor. The traditional kind is red wine made with spices like clove, or orange peel, or raisins and is like only 2% alcohol. It is served warm. You can go to the liquor store and get up to 12% alcohol according to Anton. He and I have three different kinds, chocolate ball flavored one, chocolate and orange (my favorite), and a regular bottle which we haven’t opened. And sadly there is no egg nog. :(

3. Food! Christmas dinner is different. Yes there is ham, but there is also cabbage salad (yum), beet salad (indifferent), pickled herring (ick), lox with a dill and mustard sauce (yum) and Swedish meatballs (yum)! We also take shots of different liquors throughout the meal too!

2. Yule goats exist. They are really old decorations that have a historic background dating back to pre-Christian days. The yule goat is made of straw and is adorned with red ribbons.

1. The biggest difference of Christmas in Sweden? They celebrate it on the 24th. That’s right the entire holiday is celebrated on the 24th. Anton lucks out on being Swedish on this one, because as you might have guessed, he was born on the 25th! So here the 25th is just Anton’s birthday.

As they say in Sweden, God Jul!