Tartan Häst January 2016

Transcription

1 Tartan Häst January 2016 Dear Readers, God Fortsättning! And welcome to a new edition of The Tartan Häst We have a lovely Lucia article, a member s story about Sweden sixty years agoaccompanied by his black and white photos and another brilliant article by our Brittish correspondent in Stockholm; about Gotska Sandön, now a National Park. Enjoy! 1 Contents: P. 1 Tartan Hest, A New Year P. 2 Lucia at Marchmont St Giles Church P. 3 My Swedish Midsummer Sixty Years Ago P. 4-5 Gotska Sandön Welcome to the Scottish-Swedish Bellman & Burns Dinner Sunday 7th 7.30 PM At Cafe Maralayne On Antigua Street Book scottish-swedish.org 25 pp three courses

2 2 Lucia 2015 This year our Lucia celebrations were held on 6 December at Marchmont St Giles Church in Edinburgh. The Lucia procession was organised by Malin who had rehearsed all the traditional songs with the children. As always this was a delightful and moving occasion. Kristina Andreasson, Chaplain from the Swedish Church in London, conducted the Advent service. She had visited the congregation in Dublin beforehand and only just made it to our service. This was a very stormy period and her flight had been cancelled. Very fortunately the weather improved slightly and another flight was available later. We are all very grateful to Kristina for battling on and for giving us such a lovely service. Our members Carina, Arthur and Harris contributed by reading Bible texts in Swedish, Scots and English. After the service the children from the Swedish School sang for us, having been rehearsed and led by Helene and Sandra. A charming ending Then it was time for fika in the hall. There were cakes and coffee for the adults and hot dogs for the children. Many people had contributed their baking and helped out by setting the tables in the hall or working in the kitchen. This year we have been holding a membership drive and there was an opportunity to join the Society. Kristina also kindly signed Levnadsintyg for those of us who need them. All in all it was a most successful event. As we all know, there is a lot of work involved in arranging something like this and many people contributed in all sorts of ways. A very special thank you, however, goes to Kerstin who, for the third year running, masterminded the whole afternoon. Gunilla

3 3 youngish official from the company's central administration. The spread of food was impressive, and the generous pouring of snaps, red wine and cognac to a youth of my sheltered upbringing even more so. Anders eventually took his leave at the dining-room exit, and my inebriated self was left to somehow stagger (falling only once!) up the stairs to my room. My Swedish Midsummer Sixty Years Ago In 1955, as a 20-year-old student in Sheffield, I had the opportunity to spend eight weeks in Fagersta, Vastmanland, as a 'praktikant' in the steelworks of Fagersta Bruks AB. I undertook the 36-hour voyage from Tilbury on Svenska Lloyd's liner 'Saga', arriving at Goteborg early on Thursday, 23rd June. I fell asleep fully-clothed on top of the duvet, and first awoke in what seemed to me to be daytime an impression that initially was reinforced when I looked out of the window and saw a man washing a car in the street and a church clock registering five -past two had I really slept for fourteen hours, and missed my morning induction appointment at the personnel office? Then I realised that the difference in latitude between Fagersta and Manchester meant that the period of darkness in June would be very short. I went to bed properly and slept until breakfast time. Of the events on the following day, suffice it for the present to say that it was Midsummers Day and I was invited to come along to a celebration that evening. My memory of that event is understandably clouded by time, but it took place in a woodland clearing near the edge of the town, and not in the Folketspark. There was an open-air wooden dance In the afternoon I was met off the train at floor and a covered area for the food and drink. I Fagersta by the company's head of personnel (with was introduced early on to two students from Birthe splendid name Magnus Gumaelius!) who delivmingham University Alan and Nick who had alered me in a chauffeur-driven car to the ready started their 'praktidtid' at the works. We Brukshotell, into which the company had booked me were soon approached by a young, uniformed Swefor my first dish soldier whose ears few days. had pricked up on hearing English spoken. He told us in an overtly In the evening Glaswegian accent of his I was enteradventures during a stay tained to dinof several months in ner in a private Scotland. dining room in the hotel. My host was

4 4 Gotska Sandön Gotska Sandön is a small island of sand (about 36 km²) 60 km SSE of Stockholm, 40 km N or Fårö. It is one of 29 Swedish National Parks. It is inaccessible and remote therein lies its attraction. or like this: There are no harbours, and no airfield: there are 3 lighthouses (no longer manned and therefore no longer any permanent residents); the Swedish YHA have some accommodation there and during summer there are a few tourists. During the summer months, there is a boat service from the mainland and from Fårö, and a few yachtsmen make the trip. There are 2 ways of arriving: like this: Various people have lived on the island at various times. According to folklore, there was a good living to be made as a pirate. Seal hunting has been popular. There have been lighthouses on the island since the latish 19 th century: just N of the island are the treacherous Kopparstenarna reefs. Pilots have also been based on the island, and there was a school for their children from about The famous Swedish author Albert Engström spent time on the island. The military have come and gone. Summertime at least, there is a manned lifeboat on the island. Nowadays, the unspoiled natural beauty, and the fauna and flora are the main attractions. The sand dunes support a rich variety of grasses and bird life. The highest point is about 40m asl; tracks criss-cross the island, but otherwise walking in the sand is hard work.

5 5 Gotska Sandön cont. For tourists, water and accommodation are available, but no food one must transport one s own food to the island. Your correspondent has sailed past the island on numerous occasions, and made the trip to the island about 6 times it is a hugely beautiful place. The passage from the mainland by yacht takes at least 16 hours, requiring enough wind for the passage but not too much to make lying at anchor a risk. This usually is rewarding with lovely sailing and fine sunsets: here one can see Gotska Sandön an hour or so away on the chart plotter: Dinner on board: Particularly with a night approach, the first thing one sees is the light on the W point. Here seen close at hand, this lighthouse,which was constructed by the legendary Gustav von Heidenstam 10 of his 11 lighthouses are still standing. And finally, a classic sunset. Next, a couple of shots from the sand dunes on the NW side of the island where yachts are anchored in the lee of the island. A visit is to be recommended.