Monday, May 21, 2007

syttende mai

This weekend we headed down to my husband's hometown of Stoughton for the annual Syttende Mai celebrations. Syttende Mai (17th May) celebrates Norway's independence from Sweden. This is a HUGE deal in Stoughton - way bigger than the 4th of July when the U.S. celebrates independence from my people. The weekend culminates in a massive parade down Main Street, which I'll post some pictures of later on in the week. Here today is Maddie, dressed in a traditional Norwegian dress, under one of the hundreds of Norwegian flags flying over this little Scandinavian outpost in Wisconsin.

6 comments:

Kate said...

And where is Stoughton located, asked this former, but ignorant, Wisconsinite?! I loved the picture and enlarged it. Maddie's hair matches the intricate and lovely embroidery. I love heritage days such as this, regardless of the culture. The more the merrier!

Chris said...

Kate - Stoughton is about 20 minutes south of Madison and is a big Norwegian community. And let me tell you, they are really proud of their heritage!

Mandi said...

Great photo. Sorry not a fellow Brit at all (ex-Zimbabwean actually). Just went there for a holiday.

Lothiane said...

Oh this is so great! And what a lovely bunad she is wearing! It's Telemark, isn't it? Mine is from Rogaland (western part).

It's so fun to read about how they celebrate May 17th in other countries. :) Thanks for sharing!

Kala said...

That is such a fascinating story - are you Norewegian aswell? At first, i thought this pic was in Norway - i would have never thought Norway's independence from Sweden would be so popular in Wisconsin! Great post and interested tidbit of facts =)

Anonymous said...

Chris - what a great picture of Maddie. She is beautiful - you captured her spirit - thanks for sharing! Shelley