By a Juniper tree with a cerise cashmere scarf and wonderful vintage mink fur coat.
Photo for CMC by: Jan-Erik Nilsson © 2009.
In march in Sweden the weather is temperamental and just when you think that spring is on its way and that the snow has all but melted and gone, comes a sudden gush of snow so thick that you think you are in mid-December again, waiting for a white Christmas.
Continue reading “Snowfall in march, on the west coast of Sweden 2009”
Restaurant Sjömagasinet in Gothenburg, Sweden in early spring 2009, housed in a building, originally an 18th century ship’s furnishing storage.
Photo for CMC by: Jan-Erik Nilsson © 2009.
The restaurant Sjömagasinet in Gothenburg, Sweden, is well known, as is its iconic owner and Chef de Cuisine Leif Mannerström.
What might be less known is that the restaurant’s odd looking building at the immediate waterfront of the Göta River was originally an 18th century magazine, built by the Swedish East India Company (1731-1813) to house spare equipment for the huge sailing “East Indiamen” ships.
These frigates went on their yearly voyages to China and back for tea, silk, spices and porcelain during the best part of the 18th century, departing from just outside this building around February each year. They usually arrived back in the late summer after a voyage that took almost two years for each round-trip, if everything went well. If not, the arrival could be delayed. As a matter of fact, there are cargoes that still haven’t arrived as yet, but that’s a different story. Today we were just here to eat.
Luckily our careers give us the opportunity and occasion to travel quite some. Valentine’s Day last year was spent at the Peninsula Hotel in Bangkok, overlooking some fantastic fireworks reflecting to double effects in the black waters of the Chao Phraya River. This year we visited Sjömagasinet in Gothenburg, Sweden, immediately overlooking the near frozen Göta River. The differences in climate and temperatures could not have been greater.
Gothenburg is located at 57°43′ North latitude and 11°59′ East latitude meaning about three hours of flight northeast of London and much too far north for comfort for anyone preferring the tropical climate of Singapore. Luckily there are things here to compensate the endeavours.
The gourmet restaurant Sjömagasinet is one of them.
The history of the restaurant’s building is somewhat reflected in the menu but most of all, it shows to tell of Leif Mannerström’s great interest in gourmet preparation and serving of various piscatorial delights. What we chose for our Valentine’s day dinner was of course only a sample of what could be had at the restaurant.
The menu for the day is set on the day itself with not much advance notice. The availability of first class ingredients settles what the Mannerström team will work with for the day, so you can simply pop in and enjoy. If you like, you can discuss with the forthcoming staff, anything you’d like to have served from what is available in the kitchen for the day.
On the menu you can expect to find weever, plaice, pollack, halibut and herring served in classic and creative conconctions. During the Christmas season, the julbord or Christmas smorgasbord, serves up to more than sixteen types of herring.
The dishes we decided upon were what we felt right for the day. As we sat down at our table ready to enjoy ourselves, we brought with us three distinct impressions: that of the ice-cold weather of the Nordic climate, the ever present Göta River that flows just outside this restaurant and the warmth from the burning log fire that greeted us at the entrance of the restaurant, when we first came in.
Today I initially felt like the Fish Classic, a deep fried cod tail with sauce verte, lemon, asparagus and boiled potatoes. But while settling in and warming up to the mood of the place I started to feel somewhat more adventurous.
Contrary to my expectations the meat dishes seemed just as interesting as the fish and my curiosity was really aroused when I found elk among Mannerström’s Husmanskost.
I have only ever encountered a live elk once in my life, in a national park here in Sweden. These large creatures wander the vast forests of Sweden and are freely hunted for food. About 100 000 elks are shot in Sweden every year and at an average weight of about half a tonne (1000 lbs) each, it’s a lot of meat. With elk meat, the inherent problem I find is how to cook them. Apart from that they don’t exactly fit neatly into the oven, the meat is usually tough and gamey. My previous experiences of eating elk were not encouraging. But if there ever was going to be a chance I’d eat elk again then this would be the place. So elk, it was.
Fried, salted brisket of elk served with beet roots, capers and potatoes cooked in cream.
The elk briskets were tender, warm, juicy and inviting on a bed of beetroots and potatoes cooked in cream sprinkled with parsley leaves. The flavours combined and blended splendidly with one another to give a robustly warm and accommodating meal. The dish was also testament to what could be produced with basic ingredients that were none too fancy. Continue reading “Sjömagasinet’s team proves their metier beyond all things piscatorial. Gothenburg, Sweden 2009”
At the Gothenburg Opera House greeting the New Year, 2009, with a glass of champagne!
No New Year’s party in Sweden is complete without a massive display of fireworks so this year, we made it a point to go see the annual fireworks in Gothenburg, Sweden, sponsored by the local newspaper, Göteborgs Posten (GP). Continue reading “New Year’s 2009 in Gothenburg, Sweden!”
A nippy Christmas day, at -5 deg C outdoors. In the background, a gliding ferry coming to a controlled and steady halt at the jetty.
It was perfect weather with clear blue skies in the Swedish west coast archipelago today. The sea was perfectly still with not a wave in sight, save the ones created by this ferry that ferries passengers to and from the islands. Continue reading “Christmas day in the Swedish west coast archipelago”
Homemade candy is an irresistible draw at most Christmas markets. This candy stand was at the Saluhallen Christmas market. Saluhallen is a marketing hall famous for good cuts of meat and specialty cheeses, year round.
One of my most favourite things to do during the Christmas season in Sweden is to explore the various Christmas markets around the city center. Gothenburg city has about five or six major markets to explore, all within walking distance from each other, and you can spend an entire day hopping from one Christmas market or julmarknad to the other in exploration. Continue reading “Christmas marketing in Gothenburg”
Tucking in at the ‘julbord’ or Christmas buffet at Sjömagasinet, Gothenburg. This restaurant serves a wonderful variety of Scandinavian delicacies during the Christmas season and it’s a recommended restaurant to visit at any time of the year, when in Gothenburg.
Sjömagasinet is somewhat of a tradition, and this year, we made our way back to the restaurant for our Christmas dinner. It’s all things familiar, such as the warm fireplace at its entrance and its golden candle lit interior, that makes you feel at home when you step in. A gazing sweep over the buffet spread and you begin to look forward to trying out your favourite dishes, the ones you can recall from last year.
Continue reading “Christmas dinner at Sjömagasinet, 2008”
In the middle of the city of Gothenburg, which was once a fortress, you’ll find the quiet waters of the old harbour, casting a scenic glow through the city.
Almost every year, the local Swedish newspapers report how Swedes feel absolutely stressed during the year-end festive season. But for someone who’s just back from the all too humid bustle of Southeast-Asia, I couldn’t help but feel an inner serenity when looking at the dim twilight glow of the Gothenburg sky coupled with the chilly breeze of the winter air in the northern hemisphere. Continue reading “Christmas tranquil in Gothenburg, Sweden”
Apple picking in late autumn.
The end of autumn brings about all things Apple, because it is during the late autumn that Swedish apples ripen. Walking in an apple tree garden that is ripe for the picking is so dreamy that one can’t help but spontaneously pull out all old family recipes of apple pies, apple cakes and apple buns you got.
As it happened a neighbour of ours had an unexpected abundant crop of Gravenstein this year invited us over to basically help ourselves to as much as we wanted. It sounded like too much fun to miss out on, so we of course brought home as many apples that we felt we could possibly use over the winter.
Gravenstein apples ripe for the picking.
The Gravenstein variety of apples has been around in Sweden for about 300 years. It has a wonderfully round personality, being fantastically fragrant, very juicy and of a size that fits generously into the palm of your hand. The Swedes consider this the Rolls Royce of Swedish apples and is ideal for cider but works well for pretty much anything you can do with apples.
Regardless of how westernized the Asian societies might appear today, dating someone from a different culture is dating more than just that one person, it’s an entirely different ball game.
Model: Carol Chin. Photo © by Kevin D. Cordeiro.
In this none too scientific post, my target audience is primarily western / Scandinavian males who are going to work or are working in Singapore. Since the scientific research I have been doing over the past few years has been mostly about Scandinavian top managers working in Asia, the point of view and perspective reflected will with few exceptions come from those with whom I’ve spoken. To this, I have added my own point of view as a woman and individual who has grown up in Singapore.
The dating scene in Singapore is lively
The pubs and restaurants and the social life in general encourages all kinds of human interaction in public places at all times. You are out meeting people more often than not. Most events from having breakfast at the local kopitiam (coffee-shop) to having coffee, lunch, dinner or anything in-between is a reason to meet. Technically speaking “dating” is not a problem while eventually everything around it might be.
Singapore, an easy place to blend into
A poignant surrounding factor that can cause problems when dating a girl from an Asian society is, culture. With that, comes a host of other related issues within the web of culture such as language, tradition, beliefs, religion and – food.
A spread of traditional Nonya food by the Straits Chinese. The customs and traditions of the people are as intricate and detailed as the wrappings and presentation of the food. Picture by King’s Hotel, Singapore (Khoo, 1998:130).
The culture in Singapore as well as in most of Asia is collectivistic in that sense that families are close, tightly bound, large – in some cases amounting to clans – and run by patriarchal values supported by a large, often gossipy bunch of aunties (and almost all elderly women in Singapore are called ‘aunty’) with opinions on everything and everybody.
Yet Singapore, as Asia goes, is an easier place than most other Asian societies to blend into due to its immigrant beginnings. More or less everybody came from somewhere else just a few generations ago however, well into the 20th century marriages were arranged between suitable parties, as most Asian cultures from the Indians to the Chinese, had arranged marriages as their tradition.
Today, the Singapore society at large bothers little about cross-cultural relations and interracial marriages, being currently more concerned with its falling birth-rates since 2004 (see Washington Post and the Singapore Window). Yet local to non-local relations still make interesting topics and a couple is still looked upon, observed and commented on – even by people who hardly know you.
A total stranger, when least you want to hear things
Anyone can step-up to you and start asking very personal questions, such as the woman who serves you coffee at the local kopitiam (coffee shop). One Swede observed that he from morning to morning got lower prices on his coffee obviously to soften him up for some reason. The price on his morning kopi-o (coffee, black) ran from the ang-moh (Hokkien word to mean ‘Caucasian’) price of more than $1 SGD, down to the local friends’ price of 40 cents. Flattered by the close fren price he was still unprepared for the attack. The conversation went like:
Coffee Lady: Sir, where you from?
Swede: Sweden (*one raised eyebrow*)
Coffee Lady: You how old?
Swede: Eh? Around fifty …
Coffee Lady: You got chirrun?
Swede: Eeeh?? Yes
Coffee Lady: How many?
Swede: Eeeeeh?? .. well, two …
Coffee Lady: You here for business or wat
Swede: Yes
Coffee Lady: You got your own business
Swede: Yes, in fact I do …
Coffee Lady: You earn how much?
Swede: Ehm, well yes …
Coffee Lady: You here for gerfren (girlfriend) ah?
…
After the questions had been satisfactorily answered and the coffee lady had figured out whether the Swede would be in the market for a meeting with any one granddaughter, niece, daughters of friends, third cousin’s neighbor’s friend’s daughter or some other eligible young woman that was felt was lagging behind in her family career of getting married and having children and needed a push in the right direction, the coffee price eventually went right back up again to the normal solid $ 0.80 SGD.
To the utter embarrassment of the younger generation, aunties can also have no qualms about inquiring about family relations and trying to set up meetings even in the very presence of the persons in question. They will happily talk right over your head as if you were not there. If you think of this as a most well meaning tradition based on the collective nature of the Singapore society you might get used to it and react on it in the proper way, which is to give evasive answers and a friendly smile. I think of it as having its roots in a kampong (village) tradition where everybody knew and cared about everything and everybody. So eventually you will be dating the whole family whether you like – or know – it, or not.
Sarong Party Girls (SPGs)
The collectivism leads to another aspect of cross-cultural dating, its social implications. Even if social gossip may not affect a foreigner with a possible time limit to his stay, there will be a social pressure from family, friends and perhaps even total strangers that might cause problems for the local woman.
The different Singaporean sub-cultures are different in this respect about social pressure and each will have varying degrees of open-mindedness towards foreigners in the family.
Some Swedes I have interviewed for my research were well aware of the concept of SPGs. This is a loose expression for a local woman who would consider dating a foreigner in much the same way as a western girl would i.e. with no immediate plans of getting married to him as soon as possible and not even asking to be paid to do so. In Singapore the SPG label implicates questionable moral or worse, as in bad business sense on the part of the woman, in a society where arranged marriages were the norm not more than a generation ago.
First, meet her parents. Then …
Picture by Lily Khoo, from The Straits Chinese (Khoo, 1998:94):
… meet her family, whom you will also be dating whether you know it or not. As an example, this old picture shows 4 generations of a family, gathered to celebrate the 80th birthday of the family patriarch. The scenes are surprisingly similar around for example Chinese New Year up until today. (Picture: Khoo 1998:39).
So while dating a local woman is not impossible, the foreign male should remember that he is out on uncharted territory. In Asia, you are not approaching only a person but whole a culture and a mindset that is as with all values are so set as to be invisible for those who share it while to the outsider will appear suddenly and out of nowhere as a glass wall at night.
Rather than to be discouraged, there is in fact plenty to gain in dating cross-culturally. There are new ideas and perspectives to discover and share. A key to smoother relations is to begin with understanding that it isn’t just a pretty face you are meeting.
References
Brrrrr! My first toe-dip of the season, and possibly my last.
Missing the warm beaches at Singapore’s Sentosa Island. It would take quite a lottery win for me to go swimming in the sea this summer if the weather doesn’t let up! Outfit: A white crochet halter neck dress by BCBG Max Azria.
This island in the western Swedish archipelago has its own tradition on Midsummer’s, where it was here that the Society of Arbores literally brought back forests and green life.
For a number of decades every century, as long as anyone can remember, huge shoals of herring used to suddenly appear along the western Swedish coast. It is said that the sea was so full of herring that they could hardly find space to swim amongst themselves. During winter the fishermen could cut a hole in the ice and the herring would pour up onto the ice by themselves. While this might be of a slight exaggeration, the thing was that year after year the herring did indeed come back, by the millions. The most important periods were between 1747-1809, and then in 1877-1904. Continue reading “Midsummer’s Day 2008, in the Western Swedish archipelago”