Before I even begin this post, kräftskiva is the annual Swedish summer crayfish party where people gather, eat crayfish, sing songs, and have fun.
On the weekend of August 20th, my host mom, sister, and I headed up to my host Aunt Åsa's summer house on the archipelago to celebrate Annie's birthday and have fun eating crayfish.
On Saturday morning we arrived at the summerhouse, and after getting situated, prepared a fika for Annie's birthday. We had some cakes with whipped cream, saft, and cookies with jam. Everyone wore party hats (I'm sorry to inform you I do not have a picture of that), and we gave Annie her gifts.
*this is their dock we jumped off, the sauna room was right behind me
Then --before we started prepping for the party-- I became a real Swede and tried the sauna for the first time! We first jumped in the cool water and Åsa, her daughter Tess, Steven's partner Marie and I all swam across the channel before we went back to the sauna. We then did traditional method of swim sauna swim sauna and so on. Let me tell you, it is my absolute favorite thing. I felt so healthy after --like all of the toxins in my body were sucked out of me. I realize how weird that sounds, but you have to trust me when I say its the absolute greatest thing ever --I wish I could do it every day!
Then it was time for the main event: the crayfish party. As you can see, the whole table is completely decked out with crayfish, decorations, bread, and the list goes on. I then tried the crayfish for the first time, and I thought they were really good! I definitely struggled opening them though. During the party it is tradition to sing songs --and even though everyone says they always sound terrible-- my family are all choir singers so it always sounded fantastic! But Åsa and Gunnel's (my host mom's other sister) husbands both also write their own relating to the family which makes it even more fun!
After the dinner we had desert, which --even though I don't have a picture-- was a beautiful spread of rhubarb crumble, ice cream, fruits, and chocolate. In the Ericsson family it is always a tradition to watch a Jane Austin movie at night at the summer house, so we all gathered around with our deserts and watched Mansfield Park. It was not very good, but it was still a really fun experience to have with everyone --especially the inside jokes about how terrible the movie was after.
*before, during, and after the run...
Sunday morning I was invited to go on a run with Åsa and Tess, and I went. It was lovely, but at the same time, I WAS HOLDING ON FOR DEAR LIFE (metaphorically). I really really wish I was but I am just not a runner. But I ran the whole 3km there and half the way back, but I was on the verge of throwing up so I stopped to walk. We got back to the summerhouse and we swam again, which was the best feeling after a 6km (3 mile) run.
We headed home early Sunday afternoon, but I had such a great time at the summerhouse with everyone I wanted to share on here!
Bekah
(Side note: I forgot to mention something about summerhouses here in Sweden. In the U.S. --at least from my experience-- you are pretty well off if you have a summerhouse. However, that is not at all the case here, as no matter the economic class, most everyone has a summerhouse).
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