Julmarknad

Hooray for a three-day weekend! Since I am transitioning to my new work schedule (Tuesday-Saturday), I got an extra day off this weekend--which was especially helpful because Greg and I were able to get a lot done at the condo. We still have a lot left to do, but we're making good progress. The place will look awesome when we're done.

Over the long weekend I was also able to go on a fun outing with my friend Crystal (a fellow ranger). One day she and I discovered that we both have Swedish ancestors (mine is Great-Grandpa Gustave Fredrickson). So, in celebration of our Swedish heritage, we took a trip up to Bishop Hill, Illinois, which was founded by Swedish immigrants in the late 1840s. My last trip to Bishop Hill was with my friend Linda when I was her intern at the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. That was a rather sad trip because we were going up there to help the people at the Bishop Hill State Historic Site prepare to close (due to budget cuts). But the site was reopened earlier this year, and life has returned to Bishop Hill. Crystal and I went there for Julmarknad--the annual Christmas Market. It was so much fun! All of the shops were decorated for Christmas, and we had some amazing Swedish meatballs (and pie!) at the cutest restaurant: The Red Oak.

There were also some traditional Swedish Christmas characters running around town. Our favorite was the Julbock or "Yule Goat." He was so funny. We learned that the Julbock runs around bringing presents to kids. He was walking around Bishop Hill ringing a bell and making sheep noises. He also liked to hide behind trees and jump out to startle unsuspecting visitors. He was followed around by two little "tomtes." A tomte is a little elderly man who has a long beard and also brings Christmas presents to kids. The Bishop Hill tomtes, however, were little kids with fake beards. They were really funny too. Crystal and I had a great time celebrating both our Swedish heritage and the Christmas season!