A Royal Celebration

In Sweden, 30th April (Valborgsmässoafton / Walpurgis Night), followed by 1st May (Labour Day and a holiday), is when we officially welcome Spring in Sweden. Among the traditions are bonfires, choirs singing, and also student parades.

30th April also happens to be when our present King, Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden, was born. This year, he celebrated his 80th birthday with quite a lot of "pomp and circumstance". So on the national level, that kind of took over. (Ordinary local arrangements like bonfires and student parades probably just went ahead as usual, though.)

However one wanted to celebrate, we had beautiful, almost summer-like spring weather all over the country. For my own part, I'm not keen on going out in the evenings these days, so I did end up in front of the TV, following the Royal celebrations instead. A big party was held in the royal palace in Stockholm, with no efforts spared, and lots of foreign royalties and other important people invited. 

Among the advantages one has as only taking part via TV is that one is free to snap as many photos as one likes off the screen with one's own phone. So I did...

King Carl XIV Gustaf and Queen Silvia

  

Crown Princess Victoria,
her husband Prince Daniel,
and their eldest daughter,
Princess Estelle

Prince Carl Philip with his wife, Princess Sofia

 

Princess Madeleine with husband Chris O'Neill

One thing our present day royal family have in common is that they all married non-royals. Prince Daniel was made prince by marrying the Crown Princess, and Princess Sofia was made princess by marrying Prince Carl Philip. Princess Madeleine's husband said "no thanks" to the royal title though, and remained Mr O'Neill. (Their children still retain the titles princess/prince, but have no official obligations.)

People giving speaches during the dinner:
Crown Princess Victoria (first), Queen Siliva (last),
Andreas Norlén - Speaker of the Parliament,
Ulf Kristersson - Prime Minister

The King listening to his daughter's speech.

The Queen, Princess Madeleine and Prince Carl Philip

People breaking up from the tables after dinner

The evening ended with a "Tattoo" (Swedish: "Tapto") performance in the castle yard.
(A military term for a drum beat or bugle call to signal the end of the day.)

 

King Carl XVI Gustaf

Sepia Saturday: Sisters

  

In his introduction of Sepia Saturday 824, the host Alan Burnett writes:  

"If you are wanting a theme you can have celebrations or cakes or two splendid ladies - the choice, as always, is yours."

What came to mind for me this week was my own mother (who liked to bake cakes), and her sister, who celebrated her 90th birthday this week. 

Below is a photo of the two of them together, from 1966 - i.e. 60 years ago.

Mum (36) to the left, and my aunt (30) to the right, sitting on the lawn outside the house where we had been living for about one year then. My aunt and uncle lived in the nearby town back then, and my little brother and our oldest cousin (also a boy) were the same age. So the two families used to get together quite frequently.

Later on, my aunt and her family moved farther away, and family get-togethers got less frequent. However, when my dad retired (at age 60), my parents moved back to their home town/area, which was by then also where I lived (and still live). And as my aunt and uncle also had both family and old friends here, we all saw each other a bit more often again. After my parents died (2009/11), my aunt and uncle also still visited me when they were in this area. Since a few years, they no longer drive this far from home, though. But my brother and I last met up with them last summer in Linköping, where they live.

My mum died in 2009, a few months after turning 79; and my dad did not live to celebrate his 80th either. But (as already mentioned) my aunt turned 90 this week. I sent her a parcel, and also phoned her on the day. Her main celebration will be with her own sons and grandchildren this weekend - and it seems that at age 90, she finds that enough. I kind of assume that a birthday cake in some form will probably be part of the celebration, though. What that one might look like I don't know, but here is one that my mum baked for some other occasion in the past (probably Christmas, judging by the table cloth):

PS. My aunt used to read my blog sometimes, but I'm not sure if she still does. I think in the past I've just referred to her and her husband as my aunt and uncle, no names mentioned, so I decided to stick to that with this post as well.

Skywatch Friday

 

Dramatic Moon -  28 April, 21:42 (looking south)

 

 Sunset, 29 April, 20:25, looking west

 Sunset, 29 April, 20:27 - looking north-west

  

Linking to Skywatch Friday, 30 April 2026

Read in April 2026

Two audio books that I listened to in April, both bought with 'credits' included in my Audible membership.  

The Killing Time by Elly Griffiths
Book 2 in the Ali Dawson series*

Release date: 2026-02-12

Audiobook 10 hrs and 33 mins

Narrated by Julie Maisey 

Book 1 was called The Frozen People, and was reviewed by me here a year ago.

Audible's introduction:

Ali Dawson is a police detective who leads a unit that investigates cases so cold her team must travel to the distant past to solve them. But Ali and the team haven't been allowed to time-travel ever since their technical expert, Jones, got stuck in Victorian London.

To distract herself, Ali looks into a present-day case - an apparent suicide of a young man who fell to his death from a high building. She believes the death is linked to a psychic medium called Barry Power, who convinced the boy he could fly. Ali goes to one of Power's shows where he claims to be in contact with Jones.

When Ali notices that evening that her cat, Terry, has gone missing, she decides to go back in time just long enough to prevent Terry from escaping through his open cat flap. A dangerous plan which backfires, and she finds herself once more in Victorian London, where she meets Jones, as well as Power...

My opinion: I still find myself struggling a bit with the time travelling concept in this series - but from her previous books, I know that Elly Griffiths is a good writer; and if this is going to be a longer series, I suppose she may also be planning to develop those ideas further in later books. (The "rules" involved still do not seem to be quite clear even to the characters experimenting with it in the books...) 

Thinking about it now, it also strikes me that in a way, perhaps the idea of time travelling is not really all that far-fetched for an author who already wrote a long series with an archaeologist (Ruth Galloway) as the main character... Those books too do involve quite a lot of "digging into the past", even if in a (literally) more "down to earth" way... (haha)

You can find more info about the author and her books on her own website

 

* * * * * 
 

The Great Hippopotamus Hotel
by Alexander McCall Smith
Book 25 in the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series

Release date: 2024-09-05
Audiobook 8 hrs
Narrated by Adjoa Andoh

Audible's introduction:

Mma Ramotswe has a deft hand in delicate cases, and never allows an act of injustice to pass unanswered. So, when it comes to her attention that a matter involving dubious motives has arisen, and that it will require the utmost discretion to resolve, she has no choice but to lend her skills in the arts of detection and reconciliation. She is, after all, head of Botswana’s premier detective agency, but that doesn’t mean she can’t use the help of Mma Makutsi and Mma Potokwane. Meanwhile, Mr J.L.B. Matekoni has found himself in complicated circumstances of his own, requiring not a little of Mma Ramotswe’s time and expertise.

In the end, as each of these predicaments comes untangled, Mma Ramotswe draws on her goodwill and generosity to bring important truths to light – of friendship, honesty and love.

My opinion: I'm quite impressed that Alexander McCall Smith has managed to write yet another book in this long series, and is still able to make them enjoyable - with the main characters still remaining essentially "themselves", but also developing a bit. I always find them quite relaxing reading. (In the past I've borrowed most of them from my local library.)

 

Maple Blossom, Dandelions & More

 

First impression of these trees from afar may be that they it's their leaves that are unfolding already. Getting up closer, though, it becomes clear that it's not leaves, but blossoms:
 

And as I know these trees from other seasons as well, I know they are maples. (They grow in the old cemetery where I walk all year round.)  

Unlike the trimmed forsythia hedges I see from home, some private gardens have forsythias that have been allowed to grow as tall as they please. 

 

In the garden facing the main street, the same house has an impressive cherry blossom tree.
 

It's also dandelion time, and those can turn up almost anywhere!

"I mustn't forget, I'm alive, I know I'm alive, 
I mustn't forget it tonight or tomorrow or the day after that."

Ray Bradbury, Dandelion Wine 

 I've mentioned (and quoted from) this book before, it's an old favourite of mine - and tends to come to mind for me when I see the first dandelions appearing in spring.

It's set in 1928, in a small town in Illinois, and inspired by the author's own childhood memories. "A magical timeless summer in the life of a twelve-year-old boy named Douglas Spaulding" . The title, Dandelion Wine, refers to the idea (or wish) of bottling memories just like home-made wine.  Each chapter is like a short story in itself, with Douglas sometimes the main character and sometimes just witness of events. I think I have it as audio book as well as in print, maybe time to re-listen again...!