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The ten best things about Sweden revealed

In honour of Swedish National Day on June 6th, The Local has put together a list of the ten best things about Sweden. And no, there's not a mention of Abba, Ikea, or meatballs.

Published: 5 June 2013 16:52 CEST

The ten best things about Sweden revealed

On Thursday, June 6th, Swedes young and old will take to the streets in a joyous and unbridled celebration of all things Swedish, turning normally staid and pristine town squares from Ystad in the south to Haparanda up north into patriotic seas of blue and yellow.

Not.

Yes, June 6th is National Day, but Swedes remain somewhat lagom in how they mark the holiday, which has only been around since 2005.

Previously celebrated as Flag Day, June 6th is thought to be the day that Gustav Vasa became Sweden’s first king back in 1523.

In recent years, an increasing number of towns in Sweden have taken to organizing National Day celebrations featuring folk music, picnics, petting zoos, and in some cases ceremonies honouring local residents who took Swedish citizenship during the previous year.

IN PICTURES: The ten best things about Sweden

But whether or not you plan to head out on Thursday with your blue and yellow flag in hand, or simply look forward to staying home from the office and nestling up with your iPad to browse through entertaining lists you’ve found online, The Local wants to make sure you have something to celebrate this June 6th.

Thus, we’ve put together a list of the ten best things about Sweden. From wildlife to wild food, there’s plenty to be happy about in Sweden (even the OECD agrees).

Click here to see how close our list is to what yours might be.

Have a happy National Day.

David Landes

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Norway to send 200,000 AstraZeneca doses to Sweden and Iceland

Empty vials of the AstraZeneca vaccine. (Photo by GABRIEL BOUYS / AFP)

“I’m happy that the vaccines we have in stock can be put to use even if the AstraZeneca vaccine has been paused in Norway,” Health Minister Bent Høie said in a statement.

The 216,000 doses, which are currently stored in Norwegian fridges, have to be used before their expiry dates in June and July.

Sweden will receive 200,000 shots and Iceland 16,000 under the expectation they will return the favour at some point.

“If we do resume the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine, we will get the doses back as soon as we ask,” Høie said.

Like neighbouring Denmark, Norway suspended the use of the AstraZeneca jab on March 11 in order to examine rare but potentially severe side effects, including blood clots.

Among the 134,000 AstraZeneca shots administered in Norway before the suspension, five cases of severe thrombosis, including three fatal ones, had been registered among relatively young people in otherwise good health. One other person died of a brain haemorrhage.

On April 15, Norway’s government ignored a recommendation from the Institute of Public Health to drop the AstraZeneca jab for good, saying it wanted more time to decide.

READ MORE: Norway delays final decision on withdrawal of AstraZeneca vaccine

The government has therefore set up a committee of Norwegian and international experts tasked with studying all of the risks linked to the AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson vaccines, which is also suspected of causing blood clots.

Both are both based on adenovirus vector technology. Denmark is the only European country to have dropped the AstraZeneca
vaccine from its vaccination campaign, and said on Tuesday it would “lend” 55,000 doses to the neighbouring German state of Schleswig-Holstein.

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