Karneval!

So we hit the big carnival in town last weekend. It was so fun to see the otherwise reserved Swedes cut loose a little. It was a bit like a parade I suppose. They did parade through town and there were bands and music. It was crazy. Loads of creativity involved. Now I didn't really have a guide to all this but here is what I gathered. The event is created by students entirely and only 1x every four years. Each student group gets a band and float together. They decide on a theme, build a float and costumes around that theme, drink heavily and parage through the entirety of town. The theme of this was Sweden and even more so, Skane (the province). It's hard to explain the significance of each "symbol" except to say that they are each in their own right very Swedish. The first you might recognize as the midsummer pole that Swedes dance around what is (no?) the wettest, I mean longest day of the year. The second is the local dairy producer, the third is caviar in a tube that Swedes grow up on, and the 4th. is a traditional sausage type product that to me tastes and looks like a giant hot dog. Don't mess with the falu-korv though, people here LOVE it. The kids liked the bands, didn't like the crowds. I liked the sun and the people watching...