Christmas in the Stenberg family.

The other day I talked to Jake about Swedish Christmas. He was surprised at what we do. Specially at three o'clock (every Swede knows what I'm taking about) so I though I would write about a typical Christmas in my family.
Noted, none of my parents where born in Sweden but I would still say we celebrate a pretty Swedish Christmas.

Christmas is on the 24th, Christmas Eve, this is when we celebrate.
I wake up in my childhood home, in a small town close to the Baltic Sea, Trosa, and the whole house smells like food. A traditional Christmas food in Sweden is ham (julskinka, Christmas ham) that is cooked in the oven for almost a whole day on low temperature.
Breakfast is rise pudding (also known as Christmas porridge), with cinnamon and milk. This my dad always has ready for us when we get up. Sometimes there is an almond in the pudding and the one that gets the almond gets a wish or it is said that they get married next year. Some families gives a present for the one that gets the almond, but that's not that common in the Stenberg family. And my little brother Tim always gets the almond anyway.

After breakfast I help my dad with the cooking. Since I'm a vegetarian/vegan I cook all the veggie foods that I want on the Christmas table and dad cooks all the meaty stuff.
There is ham, pickled herring, eggs, homemade bread, salad with anchovy and eggs (my mums favorite), there are porkkanalaatikko a Finnish carrot pudding kind of (my favorite), salmon, eal (my brothers favorite) and so on. We drink julmust, this coke like soda that is always drunk around Christmas. Of course there is also snaps, a little shot of alcohol now and then during the meal.

A traditional Stenberg family Christmas table.

 We eat and eat. Then three o'clock strikes.
This is when everyone (or at least many) in Sweden move from the Christmas table to the TV. Here is what Jake was so surprised about: we watch Donald Duck.
To quote the article Jake was reading about Swedish Christmas, Funny as it may sound, Swedes, young and old, gather in front of the TV to watch Christmas-theme Disney cartoons, the decorated Christmas tree glittering in the background. This program has been an indispensable part of the celebrations ever since the 1960s.
It's something we always do, and I forget that other nations do not do, but I guess it's a bit strange. A tradition is a tradition.

Then it's time to open presents. We don't have a Santa knocking on the door anymore and the presents are under the Christmas tree. My mum hands them out and we open then. After that is done we have some glögg, mulled wine and play with our open presents. For me this usually mean that I start reading or at least turning pages in the books I've gotten.

The six o'clock comes around the it's time to turn on the TV again for another Christmas TV tradition, Sagan om Karl-Bertil Jonssons julafton, which is a short film from the 70s about Karl-Bertil who gives away the rich people presents to the poor, thinking he is Robin Hood. Take from the rich and give to the poor. He works at the post office and on the 24th he takes all the presents sent to directors and other fancy titles, goes to the bad part of town and gives the poor people the presents.
Karl-Bertil's father finds out that Karl-Bertil has done this and makes him go around to everyone that he has taken a present from and apologize. Instead of people being angry for not getting their presents, they praise Karl-Bertil for giving it to the poor. The poor getting gifts like Satre in French, glass vases and other things.
It's about 20 minutes long and if you're curios you can watch it the first eight minutes, in English (I can't find the whole thing in English, I'm afraid), on youtube if you click HERE. (Jake, click and watch!) In English it is apparently called Christopher's Xmas Mission. I guess Karl-Bertil doesn't fit in a English speakers mouth.

After that Christmas Eve in my family is pretty much over. We drink more glögg and might watch a movie or play a game.
Next day on the 25th, we celebrate again with the food that was left over and big brother (Fredrik), big sister (Teresia) and her amazing daughters (Tove & Sofia) come around. They celebrate the 24th with their mother/grandmother. It's pretty much more eating and more present giving.

Little brother Tim and niece Sofia, Christmas 2011.

That it for Christmas. It is common that on the night of the 25th, after overeating, family and all, you go to a bar with your friends and drink beer.
Aren't we Swedes crazy? :)
This year my family, mum, dad and Tim are coming to Berlin to celebrate Christmas. I don't know what we will do yet but I think we will have a nice time. It will not be as traditional but still.

I'm off to work. Happy holidays!