I don’t have a Swedish calendar at home, I only have a goofy little one with a “Hello Kitty” design that is totally useless in Sweden (because what do I need Japanese public holidays for?) but it’s so darn cute that I keep it anyway.
So imagine my surprise when I go to tvättstuga in my building this morning to rebook my laundry time (note to self: prepare a blog post about tvättstuga) and look at the Swedish calendar hanging there. It’s surströmmingpremiären today. The fish is finally rotten enough to be consumed.
Surströmmingpremiären takes place traditionally on the third Thursday in August (like today), and I wasn’t joking in the sentence above. Today is really the official day when we know for sure that the fish is finally fermented enough.
What? The words “fish” and “fermented” in the same sentence make you nervous? And they should, oh yes.
