Things Swedes Do That We'll NEVER Understand *Only Swedes Will Understand This*
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- Опубліковано 8 лют 2022
- In this video, we'll be diving into some of the weird and wonderful things that Swedes do and take for granted. You know, the cultural customs that only Swedes will ever really understand. The hallmarks of Swedish culture that are just Swedish through and through, things that the rest of the world can only hope to understand! Watch along as I did into some of the things Swedes do that only they understand - my so called list, of things we'll never understand about Sweden! As always, this is only intended as a bit of fun - you guys know by now that I love Sweden and Swedish culture, I just thought it would be fun to talk about some of the aspects of the culture and customs that you'll only understand as a born and bread Swede!
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Oh I absolutely love the no small talk aspect of living in Sweden! As an awkward ambivert, there's nothing more mortifying to me than small talk 🤣 I only have to say hello to my neighbors, if we run into each other on the stairs, and nothing more. Perfect 👌🏼
haha totally get what you mean! I'd never thought about it being awkward though until some Swedes pointed it out to me😆
.. Unless you live in an apartment with people from middle east as neighbors 😅! They probably think I'm rude when trying to invite me, but I really don't want to engage that much with people next door. I chose my friends from elsewhere like my job or just old friends. Once I was invited to a neighbor and I didn't want to be rude so I went there. I discovered she had a claning company and she told me that she wiped her floor on a daily basis and said "isn't it disgusting how bad this building is cleaned" ... That was _not_ my opinion, and I knew for sure she would have been "surprised" if she ever enterd my flat.
For many Swedes cleaning your home is *not* the most important thing in life.. But we don't want strangers to see how it _really_ looks.
@@ophelian4646 Tack! Nu känner jag mig bättre om min lägenhet!😂
As a Swede from the northern parts of Sweden I'm now happy that the Social distancing are lifted.
Now I'm able to go back from 2 m of distans to 5 m. ;-)
haha I remember reading that joke 2 years ago at the outset of the pandemic and wondering what it meant... now I understand ;) haha
fully agree ;)
There’s a saying that if someone you don’t know randomly starts to chat with you they are either drunk, insane or American. 😄
hahaha love that!! I'm going to start using that Johanna!!
i love that comment, it's so true
🤷🏻♂️what’s the diffrent?? Anerican’s are insane and behave like drunk’s 😜🤣🤣
It depends where you are. I am from the countryside of Scania. I am an extrovert. I start chatting with people all the time. It can be that I always miss the bus. The weather etc. In most cities, people don't want to chat!
@@bosse1998 *cough* crazy person *cough* 😄😉
This is why I'm desperate to move to Sweden.
I not only understand all of this, but I agree and try to live this way but in the states I have so much trouble having friends in my country because no one likes to live like I do.
I hope I can get a job offer soon and give my child a proper life, where no one has fake small talk, people care about nature, and you actually get time off to be with family.💗🤞
so interesting to get your take on it as another international Morgan - and especially thhat you recognise so many of these things! Hope you manage to make it over here soon. It'll be fun to have fika some time when you finally get to move!
You might wanna change ur name if ur comming to sweden ur name is a boy name in swedish
Get your ass over here, we need more real solid people like you.
@@tonykeer , Morgana perhaps :)
@@tonykeer just call me Smörgås 🥪😛
Informal small talk varies depending on where you are in Sweden. In the northernmost part extremely straightforward. The further south you get the more "unnecessary" talk. In addition, Finns generally think that Swedes talk unnecessarily much.
I'd say it also depends on weather you're in a small town/rural area or if you're in a larger city. There's MUCH more small talk where I live than when I go to larger cities. Also, I'm an insufferable chatterbox, so I guess I'm not really very "Swedish" in that aspect. 😜 😂
good point Krister, it really does! interesting to hear that it seems to vary so much based on climate though? I wonder why!
@@attesmatte that's such a good point Sara, that's definitely been my experience too - that you're a chatterbox I mean ;) only kidding! thanks for stopping by!
@@attesmatte That corresponds exactly to me 😂
And, yes Finns can easily look at us as chattery. But you just gotta love them and their humor.
Me and a friend were on vacation in the Mediterranean area. We had been out the night before, maybe had a glass too much. Laying by the pool, no one else there, but a big ball in the pool.
I was in a great mood, talking nonstop, my friend had a little bit of a headache.
Finally she got tired of my constant talking, sat up, gazed around, turned to me: "Anna, go and play with the ball." Then she layed down again, adjused her shades, said nothing more.
I did what I was told, took a swim with the ball.
That's a little bit how Finns communicates, any other person had said, something like "Can't you just shut up and let me nap? Take a swim or whatever, but be quiet!"
Finns are the champions of saying so much, with only a few words.
That's weird I am swedish I barely talk at all
I’m from Estonia and 3rd month in Sweden and for estonian these 5 things are also ok as for Swedish people. Holiday three weeks or even month, no smalltalk (I lived in UK also 3 years and I already know about smalltalk 😂), sunlovers, dark winter and no-bad-weather attitude is also quite common for estonians and in the nature is so nice and quiet.
wow, I didn't know you guys had such similarities in culture Margit, how fun! I still need to visit Estonia!!
@@JustaBritAbroad just text me bit before, I can share my ideas where to go and what to do
It's actually minimum 5 weeks vacation=25 workdays..
@@coole6825 sadly 1 block have to be 14 days long including 1 weekend
This is almost exactly the same for Norway. We have to take 3 weeks of in the summer, not 25 days. But all the other things you mentioned is the same. So, it would be interesting to hear what they do in Alaska. Same weather and another culture... It would really be interesting.
You nailed it! Though at the ripe old age of 76, I allow myself the luxury of staying indoors in snowstorms (and rainstorms), desptie the fact that I have the clothes needed. Maybe I have become a little lazy. Also, I´d rather stay indoors when the roads and footpaths are slippery because there are treacherous patches of wet ice around. I´d rather not break a leg, so a cup of tea and some bisquits is a perfect alternative. Tea, because I´m an anglophile. The majority of my peers would probably have coffe, have "fika", but tea-time is THE thing for me.
The sun may not be our omnipotent God, but whether you like to bask in it, as the elderly couple you show in this clip, or not. The sun - rather the light - reminds us (me) of the fact that life reigns by defeating death. (My personal view, being at times a wee bit phisosophical.)
As to holidays - as an OAP, I miss them. Four weeks really enables you to relax, to "get rid of any thoughts connected to your job. I really loved mine, so the weeks before my annual four- or five weeks off, out of seven when I was nearing 60, I was rather anxious, fearing to miss going to the office.
It actually took a few - four to five - days for me to get into the "holiday mood". I am not unique, so I think taking at least four (maybe just three) weeks off in the summer makes sense.
Thank you for your observations and your comments on all aspects of Sweden, Swedish life, culture and peculiarities. We (the Swedes) need more of this, as do probably all the other subscribers and occacional viewers.
Hans Strömberg
Stockholm
haha thanks Hans! And I'm glad to hear that you've afforded yourself some luxuries in the more recent years - why the hell not ;) you've been braving the weather for long enough! Interesting to get your take on the impact of the sun too though! and thank you so much for your kind words about my content, so glad to hear you enjoyed it! there's certainly a lot more reflections and thoughts bundled into the videos I've been doing on this channel over the last year, so it'll be fun to see what you make of it all. Har det så bra! /Gregg
@@JustaBritAbroad Waitin to see the next clip, amusing
You are excused Hans, you have got the medal for being outside in bad weather in your youth. Just let the younger ones ice piking and etc to get their medal. //Love from Borås
Spot on. The DIY thing I also think comes to two facts. Firstly, salaries are high, which means that it costs a lot of money to have a plumber come in and the weekend for instance. Secondly, in school we have wood working, sewing, metal working and various other practical subjects.
Plus, you feel pretty good about yourself when you fix something on your own :)
good point! certainly makes you guys super handy and practical, which is a really good thing!
I think it might also come from the fact that Sweden was urbanized pretty late. Our great grandparents lived in remote villages where you couldn't get someone to come repair things for you. You had to fix it yourself, or with the help of family and nabours. I was raised to not pay someone else to do things unless they're illegal to do without proper training. Not expressedly told so, but that's just what everyone did. And I've never even lived in the countryside.
The no smalltalk applies to Germany as well. When I visit Sweden to see family I see little to no differences in that instance. Beautiful silence. The same applies to the weather. In fact, the saying is paraphrased in the exact manner in Germany.
oh right? I've only been to Germany a couple of times, so I didn't realise that such a similarity existed, how interesting! thanks for sharing!
@@incognito7843 Hi Inco! I married a swede and I can confirm that. I have had zero cultural mishaps in Sweden!
One thing that basically only my Swedish friends will understand is:
-Leave me alone for a couple of days.
Yes, something happened. I am angry. I am upset. I am sad. And I want to be alone. If you disturb me, I might punch you in the face, even if you are my friend. If you are not close friends, they will not even tell you. They will just disappear for a while. Most often, nothing is very wrong, but your Swedish friend just need some alone time, think stuff through, find their soul and calm again, and then life continues.
If a Swede ever tells you that "I need some time alone", first, you are pretty close friends. Otherwise they would not even tell you. Second, give your friend that space. That is important.
What a great observation, and such an important one to share around! Hopefully a few people reading down here will know how to handle this situation sensitively and empathetically now next time it occurs based on your advice, way to go!
@@JustaBritAbroad I might try to clarify the "emotional logic" behind this. If a Swede tells you that "I need to be alone", that basically often means "I care for you, include you in my life, you know my plans and there is no need to worry about me". Your Swedish friend will most often come back - you are now included in their life.
For me, it is a sign of true respect.
@@jokervienna6433 I can confirm this is how many Swedes are but I want to add that I think we Swedes are in general a bit introvert leaning so if a Swedish friend sends a notice that they are going to be missing for some day/s it might not even be that something special has happened or they are upset etc, they could simply be charging their social energy battery!
No bad weather, just bad clothes. That's what I was brought up on. Out to play in sunshine, rain or snow. You just had to be outside to get fresh air everyday. 🌞🌧❄
even today, you see how this reflects in the culture!! Love that motto!
Great points and you could also ad to the last point that we are very punktual. If a meeting starts at 14.00 and you arrive at 14.03 you are supposed to apologize for being late and be prepared for all the reproachful looks.
I'm offended by how correct you are (not really, haha)! Great video, as always! You really know us!
Favourite comment of the day 😜congrats😂haha thank you, and thanks for stopping by!
Thank you for todays nice laugh. It´s so much fun to hear how people from other countries see us and our country. And I think you´ve nailed it once again. I love this video!
you're welcome Göran, thanks for checking it out! its alweays fun to get feedback on some of the things I'm talking about😅 fun to hear that you could recognise some of the things I talked about!
There is a historic aspect of why we tend to take all of our time off in the summer, too. When the industrial revolution rolled around here in Sweden, a lot of people who went to work in factories left their families in the country to do so. Buuuut, things are really busy on a farm during the summer, so it wasn't that uncommon for people to take employment in factories in the autumn, and then leave again in the spring to help out during the most important time of the year on their family farm. It apparently became such a Thing that many factories simply shut down during the summer (and the remnant of that is industrisemestern, which is when many industries STILL more or less shut down for a few weeks in the summer to allow their workers to take time off). At least that's the explanation I've heard.
yeah that's true Lisa! :)
Thanks for sharing great video much appreciated.
thank you! so fun to hear that you enjoyed it :D have a great day!
@@JustaBritAbroad Anytime
I think you are spot on you have learn Swedish culture! 👍 😀
haha fun to think you thought so Stefan! thanks for watching :D
Great video 👌🏼
Thanks André!!
I'm from Sweden and fully agree with the Brit's wording ;) Love your vids, hi from Borås
thanks Per! fun that you could recognise what I was talking about!
Great video! I am not good at small talk, I would enjoy that aspect of Swedish life! (:
Yes, you got it spot on with "Cut the crap and get to the point" I really love your comment there! Why should you "Beat around the bush" =)
haha proper little British expression for you there Eva! fun that you enjoyed it :)
The thing with the sun or even light is something absolutely critical here in sweden. Because during the winter, it really can get really dark and that can translate to being mentally in a dark place. It is easier to be happy and open during the summer than during the winter when you basically are just trying to survive. So being outside as much as possible, especially in the summer is just a part of us. Thanks for the video!
These are def not only Swedish things, all of them are common if you live in any colder place, by/in the Arctic included 🤝 but it's a great video, thanks for sharing!
I am not Swedish well, not much more Eastern European but, I don't like small talk either nor, do a lot of my friends. I like, the direct approach. Maybe, not so much as a kid but now, I think since, I am older is a quality to be desired.
interesting! which part of Eastern Europe are you from, if you dont mind me asking? fun to find out that there's some similarities there!
@@JustaBritAbroad Well, I live in Canada but my great grandfather to my knowledge was Russian and Ukrainian and his wife was Polish. I guess, I embody the culture more or less some of it anyway.
@@MDobri-sy1ce Haha, how "american" of you to relate to your ancestors =) It is so annoying when americans tell that they are "swedes" because their great great grandpa/ma migrated from Sweden to america. I know some italian guy´s and they said italians feel the same when americans pretend they are italians, I think most europeans do have a similar opinions in this matter. Feel free to correct me.
@@dennisbohman3848 Actually, I am Canadian. No but seriously, this is just how, I am as a person. And, I feel “Canadian culture “ is just a blanket statement like, it is just to vague. Also, I feel more in American culture people seem to relate with that first and then their heritage but in Canadian culture it is the opposite.
@@dennisbohman3848 I think its okay to relate pieces of your home countries culture and parts of your heritage its when your not related to that culture genetically or through heritage their might be a problem. For example, NFKRZ calls people with no Russian or Slavic heritage “Slavaboobs.”
The small talk. I love it when it comes to start building a relation and where it serves an obvious purpose. In business I in a way admire it from you guys but still feel "Let´s get to the point"! Hahahaha... As there are quite a lot of tasks in the workday, I would choose to shake hands with the other party - but not to hug, or snuggle... So much that needs to be done!
haha totally get what you mean Johan! and you're right, that's enough to get the job done!
@@JustaBritAbroad Could you please advise as to how my name is Johan now!? 😕
the maximing long weeksends is a thing in sweden aswell- each year you get very early on (like early januari) how to place vacation days around chrismas/new year to get as long vacation on as few days as possible - and most of my friends and family takes like 3 weeks during the summer and have 2 weeks left to use for long weekends, semester breaks if the kids are at school/around chrismas or to save up for next year.
Hello from Prepetual Sunshine in the desert Southwest of the USA. Where the Sun is hot 🥵 and cloud cover, rain and snow does happen but much appreciated!
A small correction. The legal minimum vacation is five weeks, but many people get more than that by collective agreements between the employer's unions and the trade unions. Also, the rule about having the right to take four weeks during the summer can be waived by such agreements.
but good point about vacation rights!
I love the sunshine. Without it you can't sit in the shadow and enjoy your life..😎
Really good mostly to the point . The only thing i missed is timekeeping we are "time extremist" 8 o'clock means 8 o'clock maybe 8:05 but not later
No more than 3 min late is acceptable to me.
oooh that's a good one Mats! I've talked about punctuality and time keeping before in a video funnily enough, and some people said they thought it was overstated, so I left it out this time. Glad to hear its not just me that thought so!!😅
@@majskolv interesting! nothing wrong with being punctual :D
@@JustaBritAbroad Except when you're at university. Then there's the academic quarter. The lecture that is scheduled to start at 10 starts at 10:15.
as a swede there is a special class in some schools that you didn't point out is called språklass basically its a special class where kids that have a hard time with understanding and reading and writing go to that special class to get more help to be able to learn those kind of things
I have found that out recently except, in Canada, and in English the word "semester" is considered anti-holiday.
haha you're right! its often used to describe like a school term!
@@JustaBritAbroad I honestly, rather be taking college courses right now. For me, it's normal. I have been going to college off and on for over a decade but, I lost my farfar, a few months ago, I tried to get back into "routine" but my mind is not in the right place at the moment. I hope y end of Summer/Start of Fall, I can try again. For now most of my days consist of Duolingo and Babel.
Non blaming and problem solving. I have worked in 10 different countries (mostly Europe) and in most countries, when there is a problem, the most important thing is to decide whose fault it is. And when there is no problem the most important thing is to cover your back so that you don’t get blamed when there is one. Sweden is different, at least the companies I’ve worked for. Mid Europe is the worst but South Africa was healthy.
interesting to get your thoughts on this, especially since you've lived and worked in so many different countries. fun to learn more about how they do things differently here in Sweden!
@@JustaBritAbroad , finding out how, where, and why something failed is important to be able to do better in the future. But it should not be the first question. The first question should be “How do we fix this problem asap”. Once that is done it is good to go back to the root cause and learn from it.
Everybody makes mistakes. If you shame your worker when they do something wrong they are likely to try to cover it up, possibly causing even worse issues for your company. Which is worse, delivering a flawed product or saying to your client that it is delayed because you found a an issue with it?
I think blaming is a very natural response. I don’t really know why it is more suppressed here than in many other places. Possibly linked to the general consensus, team, and collaboration culture.
@@mockupguy3577 I've always "owned" my mistakes and it really frustrates me when colleagues doesn't do the same and try to blame others or say that they have no idea how it happened.
I protest! Swedes are perfectly capable of procrastination! Putting something off and then doing it at the last minute. Indeed?
interesting! I've clearly just met super efficient swedes in my time here ;)
Yes we generally dont like small talk in Sweden (thank god). I skip small talk just like how I fastforward through youtube intros :p
Absolutely true!
These are all pretty spot on. Personally i think the DIY thing gets a bit redicilous some times, it´s like to a swede a house is not something you live in, it´s something you renovate whether you need to or not. Also it´s not uncommon that professional builders etc have to fix things people tried to do themselves but they didn´t do it right lol.
hhaha interesting!
Pretty spot on...
haha thanks Martin!!
As a Swede I agree to all of this even though me as a person loves the winter and think that the best thing about june, july and august is the thunderstorms that may come out if nowhere..
The "do it today" attitude I thought about a little but then I remembered that heck, I bought paint and sheets to redo my livingroom this weekend so yes I'm guilty.... =/
haha glad you could notice even the let's get it done attitude Jon! thanks for sharing :)
Interesting about your view on smalltalk. I'm Swedish and live in Sweden, but have worked in big international companies, and I see a clear difference in how we smalltalk, which is the opposite. Swedes are pretty open and personal. We can talk about our kids, spouses, illnesses, divorces, last appointment at the gynecologist's... But British, Americans and others hardly reveal anything personal at all to colleagues, which we swedes find strange and a bit annoying. You never become really good friends with non-swedish collegues, only acquaintances.
In all my work situations we do rounds, small talk check-in, and people are quite deep on where they are in life and how it makes them feel at the moment.
My experience is then totally the opposite than yours.
Yes, that is my limited experience too from my youth when I went to fairly internationally staffed archaeological digs in England, the Americans were very friendly and so were the Brits but you never really got over a certain barrier of surface politeness, and I am sure that was not due to language barriers as I formed close friendship w other people there who were neither British nor American and with them could discuss really personal stuff..
-20 can happen anywhere (Like last year in Skåne), half of our nation is -35 - -45 for months.
-20 is house painting weather.
Semestern är helig då vi lever i ett mörkt land mer än 6 månader på året och sommar vädret är något att se fram emot!
Solen är så helig, speciellt nu så här innan våren anländer, det finns ett tecken att våren är här när folk tar av sig jackan i fåtal plusgrader och tar in solen!
Ha en fin vecka!
haha förstår det Sina, man måste njuta av sommarvädret när man kan! jag är helt med den tanken, vet du!
in the winter when the sun comes im like yaaay the sun bjt in the summer im like get outta here ur blinding me and am gonna burn up 😅 and my dad always says dont say that or it will dissapear 😂
haha the classic nothern Europe reaction 😅 haha love it!
The small talk thing is something I do with my friends, not random people, even if those random people are people I work with. Unless the people I work with become my friends, which happens quite often. Though staying on task and getting the work done first, then having a fika is a better idea I think. :)
The last thing about DIY is acctuly not that common in sweden as you say it is, we all want to do it our self but we say "there is a day tomorrow aswell" and don't do it that day.
on my first workplace we had it very hard to stay on topic when we had a meting. We were to many people that wantet to tell about things we thought were funny or interesting.
really Ida? how interesting! perhaps its industry specific then?😅
You have forgotten the Fika moment, its there anybody talk about there lives.
And dont say "have nice day", becuse that is not your bussines, I suffer as much I want, becuse I know that spring is around the corner.
I love this 😆🙌
hahaha so true Stig 😆
@@Tropicallyglutenfree me too!!
That about small talk.
You get very close to your colleagues here quickly even in short conversations, but I would not call it small talk, but rather smaller conversations with deep talk. So if a colleague asks "How has your weekend been?" they actually want to hear about your weekend.
Nothing is too much or too deep to talk about and we often know each other very well. Nothing unnecessary "hey how are you" that is said in passing to someone. If you ask someone how they are or what is happening. It is because you really care about how they feel and want to know for real. And if the answer is a short "good", then you leave it at that, but you have still let the other person know that you care.
I have worked in both men's and women's dominant workplaces and there is no difference.
Small talk for me is when you ask a person you do not know when the bus arrives, or "Why has not the plow truck been here yet" comments. Both very relevant and yet it is said not just to fill a silence with unnecessary words.
This also includes the boss. Managers in Sweden are usually like any employee, no higher important person than the other employees. A manager here usually wants to integrate and be "one in the gang" among the employees.
I believe we have a law stating you have to have 3 weeks off in the summer? I know I talked about it with my parents in Sweden. You have to have 3 weeks in the summer. Rewinding takes 1 week. Regarding sun, we have very little sun in Sweden. May and August is the best months. June and July is often rubbish.
I definitely recognize the no-small talk. I was out on "APL" (Work, and in exchange, you get "paid" in education) and a British guy was working there. I had a lot of small talk with him and honestly, I just found it unbearably uncomfortable. I kinda wanted to die after 15 minutes of small talk only 😅
How do you know you have arrived at Arlanda?
When you sit on the toilet at the airport, your feet don't touch the ground. I'm 5'5". Pretty short by Swedish standards.
We, the danes, fit your descriptions as well. So uniquely swedish? Not so much! 😄❤
If someone does this video about Finland, they would switch the fifth (innovation) with sauna/bastu or just add sauna as the sixth item. So, your title lies. ;) And, in my opinion Swedes are very talkative folk compared to us Finns. In my former employer that was a Nordic IT company, Swedes wanted to "diskutera mer" though every part of the project was already decided. ;)
They were just not satisfied with the desicions and wanted to take more control ;-)
In the UK we also take vit D supplement
Yes if Sweden is ALL THE NORDIC COUNTRIES then you are right. At least Finland and Norway.
yep, its fun to see that Sweden's nordic neighbours share some of these qualities!
@@JustaBritAbroad The Finnish people are masters of saying as much as possible with as few words as possible.
To them we Swedes are chatty and whimsical 😋.
I love our Finnish neighbors. They keep us in check.
A bit like we do with the Danes 😉
Very typical Nordic way of living. Now that days strats to get longer you will propably see more and more people on the ice for ice fishing. There you can absorb the sun light at outdoors during wintertime and perhaps you get some fishes too.
I'm a bit too far south for ice by this time of year Archie - would love to experience what you're talking about though sometime!
Most Swedes have 5 weeks vacation a year, there are some that have 6 weeks though.
5 weeks is the legislated minimum. You're not allowed to give your employees less than that. Personally I have 7 weeks.
@@chalphon4907 I know that 5 weeks is the legislated minmum, thats why most have 5 weeks.
good point Stefan, that's certainly the minimum at least!
@@chalphon4907 7?! Nice!! I'm coming to work with you😂
@@chalphon4907 If I´m not helt ute och seglar, Staff hired by government got 5 weeks up to the age of 30-35? and then 6 weeks until they turn 40? Anyway it´s something like that.
Are you Cornish? My parents moved to Penzance in the 90s from Sweden.
Well spotted!
You'll feel at home in Finland and Norway too.
But, ...but... Do we really ask you how you are?
😉
oooh I'm yet to visit Finland, perhaps 'll have to swing by and see what I make of it!
Norrmän är roliga, de pratar en jäkla massa och roligt låter det, speciellt när en norrmna blir "arg". (kan norrmän bli arga?). Det låter lite som en pitchad gammelsmurf med attityd =)
I think what makes it hard for Swedes to have small talks is their fundamental belief that everyone are just the same. Swedes assume they know everything about one another already and assume everyone’s mind works just as their own. And whenever that’s not the case it’s highly contradicting and strange for them
you forgut fika. Do you understand swedish?
I think it’s very few Swedes that would do there own plumbing (seems dangerous and potentially expensive if it goes wrong), but otherwise I think the diy part is correct. I think you should have included jantelagen (one of the main parts of Swedish culture that I hate)
Boy Scout axe throwing. The goal is to throw the axe so it jams into the ground as close as possible (while not hitting!) to the opponents foot. The opponent then has to move his foot to touch the axe. Both get an ever widening stance, and the loser is the first to fall over. Not sanctioned by the Scout master, but everyone did it just for fun. Miraculously no one was injured.
hadn't heard about that before Johan!
Guilty to everything on the list :)
haha you are? fun! thanks for sharing :D have a great evening Tomas!
"Only Swedes Will Understand This" Not only Swedes. Same in Norway
Fun!
The saying" det finns inget dåligt väder, bara dåliga kläder" (ie you just have to wear the right clothes in bad weather) is a saying I, as a genuine Swede, hate to the core of my being!!! It is only those outdoor freaks, constantly bursting w energy, who use it to patronize us who rather stay indoors with a good book than go out in heavy rain, snow or heatwave! I have also heard Norwegians use it too, and they are truly outdoor maniacs, so i am not surprised.
*five weeks... the law only requires five weeks, not six. However 6 weeks paid leave is not uncommon.
@Margareta Holmgren ...yes and some places even more. The best I've heard of is 34 days from the age of 40 (6 weeks +4 days, almost 7 weeks), but that's really uncommon I think.
yep, exactly :)
oh is that a thing? interesting Margareta! might have to find myself a workplace like that haha
These are very scandinavian
Summer/vacation/school off, but many save days for xmas or sportlov, since we all have vacations, theres the split summer vacation, so def not very swedish, sorry, but very scandinavin 😀
interesting!
Back in 2021 in Nattavaara, Gällivare it was -39,3 Celcius during winter.
That however is nothing as the record goes to 2 february 1966 in Vuoggatjålme had -52,6 Celcius.
Remember the North Pole is between -18 and -40 Celcius sooo, I'm not saying we Sweds would be fine on the North Pole... What I am saying is that my Indian friend think we are snow elves.
Everything was "strictly Sweden" and mixing it with your English sense of humour isn't bad. 😃
hahaha thanks Staffan! have a great evening :)
Everything you said is true, but you forgot the thing that's maybe most the difficult one for non-Swedes to understand. Donald Duck on TV at 15:00 on Christmas Eve!
oooh good point Billy! I've talked about the Kalle Anka addiction before funnily enough, but people didn't like that I brought it up haha so I've avoided it since!
This is not particularly Swedish, these things apply to all of the Nordic countries. Kind regards from a Dane.
interesting! thanks for sharing - and always fun to hear that I've got Danes watching too!!
There is no such thing as bad weather, only bad people ;-)
I really dislike the "questions" == greetings:
Hur mår du? How are you?
Allt väl? Everything fine/going well?
Luckily most people knows better than to ask. The reply is always fine or yes regardless of the actual status.
If you're not a doctor use another phrase to start the conversation...
hahaha interesting point! everyone says "yeah its going fine" or "det roller på" or something similar - you never really get much of an answer, so why ask hahaha
So how are you supposed to ask for noone to feel awkward?
😀👍
thanks for giving it a watch Per!
How old are you?
26! you?
We are not rude in Sweden, we just like to give space. Welcome.
no, I certainly don't think Swedes are rude either :)
"sådär ja, då är alla här, då börjar vi"
Sweds go never strait to the business without smalltalks /conversation :-D You have never been in Estonia . There they are stait to the business without unessesary talks :-P
noWAYAYS IT NOT UNUSUAL TO REACH 100 Fahrenheit IN THE BITTER NORTHERNMOST PARTS
I don't mind having a casual conversation with some sweet old lady at the bus stop but that's a big no no here. People will stare at you like you've just asked for their first born when all you wanted to know was the time. Mostly in cities anyway. Non-city folks are a bit more relaxed IMHO.
good point! as you say though, definitely a difference in attitude here cities verus the country!
Come On Grey any Vlogs coming?
haha what would you like to see vlogs of?!
@@JustaBritAbroad A Day of the Life In Greg in Sweden either working at home or going around Sweden. I kind of enjoy living vicariously through others where they are in places, I cannot be.
It's not really true. I am Swedish and don't take long vacations, but spread it out.
sure, there's always exceptions, but I'd say its fair to say the majority of people take long ones?
Swedes respect wild animals
good point!! there's a lot of understanding for wider animals in Sweden!
One word: Godis
Godis worship is at least equal to sun worship.
hahaha totally with you there!! he says as he prepares his lördagsgodis for tonight haha
The info is about Sweden, but the pictures are mostly blacks. What's up?
Get to the point. That's why I live in Texas now. I didn't fit in with the swedes despite being born in Stockholm.
you missed breathing
well you are wrong... danes do the same...
I didn't say they didn't :)
@@JustaBritAbroad I beg to differ.... in the title of this video it says... only swedes will understand this... and in the intro you say that it is unique to sweden...
i ' m not mad or anything... I just point out that these things are very normal in Scandinavia and maybe in all Nordic countries ; )
You haven't adapted to Sweden yet: Your introductions are too long, just get to the point please! ;-)
As for the sun, you have understood it: It is easy to take sunlight for granted when you get it every day. When you don't for weeks on end, it is a very different story. The only thing I think you got wrong is why Swedes so often do their own renovations at home: That, I would claim, is a result of the high taxes. It is just too expensive to hire a handyman to do simple jobs at home so you more or less have to do it yourself. It has improved with the tax deductions introduced by the former, center-right government, but the roots are in the tax system - according to me.
hahaha touché Christopher :') and you're completely right, it definitely changes your dynamic and relationship with the sun!
Hello Gregg! Love your videos!
I am Robert aka Bob and I am Born and raised in Malmö, Sweden!
BUT I have travelled, lived and worked on three continents, that have given me a bit of perspective on Sweden and Malmö! AND despite being a "local patriot", that have come to love and appreciate my little home town of Malmö!
BUT having gained a bit of a perspective - I AM AWARE that both my lovely little town and SWEDEN has BOTH Pros and Cons!
I would LOVE TO be your GUIDE to the MALMÖ/Swedish psyche and mentality!
And/or being a resource and "Sounding board".
I am retired so I call myself a "time millionaire"…
SO I would love to be of help and perhaps I can be of use and helpful!
Also I have a GOOD network of Expat friends that live in the Malmö/Copenhagen area!
I myself have considered moving abroad to become more of a Polyglot and Polymath!
PLEASE feel free to contact me!
I'd love to be useful and help.
Wishing you a Wonderful Weekend!
Live well and take care!
Swedish Robert "Robban/Bob" Jacob in Malmö, Sweden!