High School Graduation

Falköping’s high school graduated the class of 2011 on Friday.

For whatever reason or combination of reasons, high school graduation is a monumental event in Sweden and our town is no exception.

It started with a lunch for students and their teachers on Thursday, followed by a student breakfast Friday morning before a graduation ceremony. After the ceremony, students paraded through town while embarrassing their teachers in creative ways.



The woodshop kids showed off their carpentry skills.



The parade ended in the town square, where students celebrated some more with family and friends…





… before loading onto flatbeds to be driven around town while they got drunk.







Much to the chagrin of local police.



Then there was a student ball on Sunday, where many classmates partied together for the last time. Some move out of the area to pursue higher education but a large number enter the workforce immediately — high school in Sweden is divided into programs of emphasis and while some programs are college preparatory, around two-thirds are vocational.

National Day

Sweden celebrated its National Day yesterday, although maybe “celebrate” isn’t the most appropriate word.

Swedes save all rowdiness for Midsummer later this month. According to a survey conducted by SVT, the country’s national television broadcaster, roughly 80 percent of Swedes don’t do anything special on National Day.

While many countries, like the United States and our Scandinavian neighbor Norway, celebrate independence on their National Day, Sweden doesn’t have any such history to commemorate.

June 6 is the day Gustav Vasa was elected king in 1523, and also the day Sweden adopted new constitutions in both 1809 and 1974. The date became Swedish Flag Day in 1916 and the government first officially recognized it as National Day in 1983, though it’s only been a public holiday for six years. If it falls during the workweek it’s viewed by most Swedes simply as a bonus day off as the weather is starting to warm up.

The weather couldn’t have been any better yesterday in Falköping. The town organized a day of music, performances and free mini golf in the park.

I’ve never seen so many people out and about here.