Dragomir “Gago” Mrsic was sentenced to three and a half year in prison for participating in a bank robbery in Stockholm in 1990. This summer he will be an expert commentator for Viasat during the Rio 2016 Summer Olympic Games.
Born in Bosnia, Dragomir came to Sweden as a baby. He grew up in the outskirts of Stockholm and in an area where the immigrant population grew steadily. He earned a yellow belt in taekwondo as a 9-year-old and became Nordic Champion in the same sport at 18. In 1990, he was one of three that carried out one of Sweden’s biggest robberies ($100 million). It was the first case in Sweden to reach conviction with the help of DNA.
After serving his prison sentence, he switched paths and applied to Sweden’s most prominent sports colleges. He was accepted and never skipped school. He became Nordic master in Taekwondo in 1987. Eventually he was offered a position as a coach for the Swedish Olympic Committee.
Gago in action
Over the years he has he has not only trained international top athletes such as tennis legend Marthina Navratilova and NHL-pro Douglas Murray but also helped actors and actresses prepare for their roles, including Noomi Rapace and Rooney Mara for their roles as Lisbeth Salander in the Swedish and American versions of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.
30 years old Gago was watching a bootleg of Risky Business, starring Tom Cruise, with his buddies in an apartment in the projects of Stockholm. That he would one day meet Cruise in person, let alone make a movie with him, wasn’t in his mind.
In 2004 he opened the club, Extreme Training, where he teaches his own concept, Martial Strength, which combines the agility of MMA and physical strength by isometric exercise.
Gao is also offering youth a free ebook on Saying No to Drugs.
As a 38-year-old father of two he became an actor in Josef Fares dark drama Leo. Three years later, in 2010, his big break came with Easy Money, directed by Daniel Espinosa, in which he played the Serbian hitman Mrado. The film caught international attention, and he played his first Hollywood role in Edge of Tomorrow alongside Tom Cruise, Emily Blunt and Bill Plaxton in 2014.
Family man Dragomir Mrsic
Same year he also released his first book, “Extreme Training: from Fittja to Hollywood”, which is a combination of his training and lifestyle philosophy, and biography. Last year he produced his first TV-series, Alex.
So Viasat has chosen an experienced actor and combat sports pro to comment on the fighting sports during the Rio 2016 Summer Olympic Games.
From Bank Robber to Expert TV Commentator, written by Tor Kjolberg
Bjørg Nordli-Mathisen (49) grew up in the North of Norway and began making one-of-a-kind jewelry whilst living in India in 2004. With a background from the arts, she has always drifted towards new corners of the world to search for inspiration.
She was introduced to the traditional craftsmanship and ancient jewelry traditions which inspired her to start her own line of jewelry. Her first collection was launched at Liberty in London. Today her brand, BJØRG, is carried by high-end jewelers, fashion boutiques and galleries around the world. Her collections are in themselves a journey. Her jewelry is a playful quest of paradise lost to be recollected. Multicolored feathers, bright blue horsehair and fluorescent opals, the beauty and fragility of a butterfly wing forever captured and kept in a small handmade glass dome, all reminiscences of that imaginary Garden of Eden.
Bjørg’s jewelry has been worn by artists such as David Bowie, Madonna, Rihanna, Robyn, J and Röyksopp. Editorial coverage includes Vogue, OD, Dazed and Confused, Elle, Another Magazine, Hunger, WAD, Marie Claire, L’officiel, New York Times, Wall Street Journal and others. Over the past years Bjørg has collaborated with Veronika B Vallenes, Uncommon Creatures, Aminika Wilmont, Kabiri London and Oki-ni.
Model Iselin Steiro with Bjorg collar
Top Secret Project With Davie Bowie It was in fact Davie Bowie’s stylist, who contacted Bjørg by mail, asking if she would send some pieces of jewelry to him. The subject line was “Top Secret Project With Davie Bowie”.
In Bowie’s music video “The Stars (Are Out Tonight)”the Norwegian super model Iselin Steiro is actually wearing Bjørg Jewellery.
Bjorg Jewellery plays between dreams and reality, mystique and poetry, surrealism and industrial approaches. Their art works combine fragile and organic structures with an aesthetic influenced by futurism and geometry. All pieces are handmade with natural material. The Classic collection has its foundation in silver, diamonds and precious stones whilst the Odyssey collection represents new directions through its foundation in bronze.
Nomadic Designer from Norway, written by Tor Kjolberg
Hasselblad user Erik Johansson is a Swedish photographer working in the ‘surreal’ genre, currently based in Prague. He doesn’t capture moments, he captures ideas.
Erik’s work will be exhibited at Fotografiskamuseum in Stockholm, Sweden through 10th of April. At the same time he will be releasing his new book: Imagine (Max Ström Publishing house).
Erik Johanssson. Photo: Jakob de Boer
As a real Hasselblad devotee, Erik uses his Hasselblad H5D-40 medium format camera to capture and realize all the creative concepts in his mind.
Landfall, by Erik Johansson
“The reality I portray exists, but on a different scale,” he says. “It has become my life’s mission to create these worlds, all these ideas that I have and that I want to live out and to actually see it happening. I’m passionate about inspiring others to dare to live out their fantasies and to create something that inspires them and to challenge one-way thinking. To raise questions”, says Erik Johansson.
Endless reflections, by Erik Johansson
“I want to be for photography what Bob Hund is for the music scene. This band, that sees things the other way around and whose lyrics consist of combinations of totally unexpected themes makes it normal to be abnormal, and with the right to exist.”
Breaking up, by Erik Johansson
Johansson runs a completely different form of staged photography in which he largely builds models. Johansson constructs objects from what he has around him: Cardboard rolls, flour, water and food coloring, or why not a little coco-flakes for the structure’s sake? Together these basic analogy blocks build the things that before was just in his magical inner world: A lonely man living in air, a tree on the way down through a waterfall of grass, a road that is pulled up with a zipper.
The architect, by Erik Johansson
All built on a small scale where Johansson then uses Photoshop as his brush to assemble the components into an artistic work. Johansson himself was already at a young age inspired by photography and surrealist artists such as Salvador Dali, Rene Magritte, Elsa Beskow and Sven Nordqvist, all for their ability to tell imaginative stories. A tradition he manages well with his work that question reality and makes us ask ourselves the mind-evoking question: Why could it not be like this? And if so, how much more impossible may actually be possible?
Feature image (on top): Soundscapesm by Erik Johansson
Created Reality in Stockholm, compiled by Admin from Fotografiska and Hasselblad
For the last decade «Mad Scot» Roderick Sloan has plunged into Arctic waters to pluck these spike-covered delicacies from rocky outcrops. His urchins (kråkebolle in Norwegian) are sent to some of the most exacting chefs in the world, including René Redzepi of Noma in Copenhagen.
The 45-year old émigré Scot makes his home 88 miles north of the Arctic Circle – little more than a cod’s toss from Nordskot (population 550), one of Norway’s darkest, bleakest, remotests coastal villages. A high-speed catamaran takes you to there from Bodø in about an hour.
For years now, the Danish chef René Redzepi has been telling about the mad Scot who lives way up in the Arctic Circle and supplies his restaurant. When he talks about these sea urchins he is almost ecstatic. To many gastronomes sea urchins are the most delicious natural product on earth. And the very best are the Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis, or “Norwegian Greens”, collected off the coast of Norway.
They look like squash balls encased in pine thistles, not very appealing. But if you like oysters, you’ll love sea urchins. They’re incredibly sweet with the same sort of iodine back flavor in them, and the saltiness and cleanliness of the sea.
Ron shares his farm with his wife and three young sons, spanning 500 acres of land speckled with birch and encircled by mountain.
Nordskot Quay
Sloan’s encounters with these creatures have driven him to spread the message of seafood sustainability and has advised Canadian chefs on why they should “adopt a fisherman.”
“Sea urchins are one of the oldest things in the sea,” says Sloan. “Humans have eaten them for over 3,000 years. There are mosaics in Pompeii with them in.” He adds that he loves the tranquility there, the clean air and the changing of the seasons.
Diving for crow’s balls
A visitor to his farm, watching how Roddie swam alone down to 50 feet deep, remarked, “You’ve either got to be drunk or crazy to do what he does.”
To begin with the business was tough. Sloan began to supply many of the top restaurants in France, like Alain Ducasse’s three-starred Le Louis XV in Monaco. But his Paris wholesaler went bankrupt in 2008, and he was almost on the verge of giving up when René Redzepi phoned and asked if he could deliver his sea urchins to Denmark.
Nordskot
Today they are among the most costly seafood. Sloan harvests his beds on a five-year rotation, and only by hand. The best, he finds, grow on exposed rocks in rougher seas. Helped by Redzepi’s endorsement, Sloan now supplies more than 30 of the world’s best restaurants, from Sweden’s Fäviken to the three-Michelin star Maaemo in Oslo. “It’s like Roddie invented a new product, a new culinary sensation, says chef Esben Holmboe Bang, from Maaemo.
“It’s like Roddie invented a new product, a new culinary sensation,” echoes fellow chef Esben Holmboe Bang, whose Maaemo is the most shimmering of Oslo’s Michelin-starred chow houses. “His Norwegian greens are sweet and tender and you can taste the wilderness in every bite. It’s like you’re making out with the sea.”
To eat sea urchins you cut around the creature’s mouth and gently scoop out the pale yellow tongues.
Northern lights, Norway
“When I started to harvest urchins in 2002, everyone thought I was bananas,” Sloan says. “They’re not a traditional catch in north Norway, and I am the only full-time urchin diver in Norway.” He is keen to show visitors this breathtaking part of Norway. “You’ve got the Northern Lights, great skiing, and the fishing is amazing. And don’ forget our small, spike friends.” He seems to be genuinely fond of them.
Almost 1 million people used Airbnb in Scandinavia last year, and overnighted more than 3 million times. In 2007, the two design graduates, Brian Chesky and Joe Gebbia, struggled to pay their rent. They solved their problem by renting out three air mattresses in their living room and serving a simple breakfast.
They built their own website “Airbed and Breakfast”, and the idea of Airbnb was born.
In Scandinavia, where budget hotel rooms are $130 plus a night, rentals make a good option. And Airbnb makes it possible to experience Denmark, Norway and Sweden with all what the three countries have to offer, especially during the summer: fjords, fishing, wide-open spaces for hiking and camping, not to mention clean and culture-rich cities, dramatic evidence of a Viking past and the richness of the indigenous Sami present in Lapland.
Appartment in Copenhagen
In 2012, thanks to 3 million guests booking overnight stays through Airbnb, the two entrepreneurs rivaled Hilton Hotels in terms of the number of bookable rooms – without owning a single hotel.
Since 2009, 711,000 customers have used Airbnb’s service to arrange overnight accommodation in Denmark, and the vast majority used the service in the past year. Some 405,000 visited overnighted 1.7 million times during that period.
Airbnb for rent in Norway
In Norway 197,000 visitors rented an Airbnb facility with an average stay of more than one night.
The range of places to rent is vast, from small cheap rooms to castles or mansions. One host in Copenhagen rents out at a low price in return for guests spending a few hours with her children.
Summer house in Norway
Aja Guldhammer Henderson, the country manager for Scandinavia and the Netherlands told the Danish radio, “This year, 2015, has truly been the year when the Danes embraced the idea of shared accommodation: both travelers and hosts.”
To the Norwegian paper DN she says, “Accommodation is only one of the travel industry’s source of income, which means Airnbnb helps the whole industry to increased revenue.”
Jakobstova farm in Norway
People started to use each other’s houses and apartments as part of a larger global trend called the sharing economy, which is also about a change in consumption patterns. Instead of buying services from companies, people are swapping, renting, or borrowing directly from one other.
Per Arne Tuftin
“Airbnb is not so unlike the signs along the main roads not many years ago, offering ‘rooms for rent’,” says Per-Arne Tuftin, director of Innovation Norway Travel.
The hotel industry leaders are, however, critical of the Airbnb business model, claiming that is not a sharing of resources, but a business.
According to Tuftin, Airbnb is not representing a treat to the hotel industry. Of estimated 30 million overnight stays in Norway, Airbnb’s share is only 1 million.
Claus Skytte
Claus Skytte, who has written several books on shared finance, said the hotel industry is simply outmoded. “Perhaps the industry should embrace the new technology and be a part of it,” he says.
Anna Felländer
Anna Felländer, digitization and future economist at Swedbank, agrees. “The sharing economy is shining a spotlight on everything that is somewhat over-regulated,” she says.
Our society is becoming increasingly globalized, and services we use are no longer conditional borders. Kodak is a clear example of how wrong things can go when denying new trends. The popular photo company went from being the world’s most powerful provider in photography, with 145,000 employees, to slowly die out when other businesses began to flourish. They did not understand the customer’s needs.
Scandinavian summerhouse
Traveling in Scandinavia with Airbnb makes it possible to see a lot more of the countries than the big cities. Advantage of Airbnb is that you can rent nice villas, houses, apartments and share them with traveling friends.
Rikard Hegelund
Copycats are popping up all over. In Sweden, a new startup, Workaround, is looking to emulate Airbnb’s success. “Companies such as Uber and Airbnb have opened the doors for the sharing economy,” Rikard Hegelund, co-founder and CEO of Workaround, told Dagens Industri recently.
Floating appartment in Scandinavia
With Airbnb you can find something for every budget.
Room for Rent in Scandinavia, written by Tor Kjolberg
Feature image (on top): Appartment in Oslo, Norway
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Across the world, 17 million guests stayed with Airbnb last summer, and there were fewer than 300 calls to the department that handles issues relating to trust and safety.
Airbnb now has a range of different security systems in place to ensure the safety of all users. For example, there are systems where users have to verify their identity.
Discover Faraoe Island’s remarkable knitting culture. If you are a pro or just interested in knitting there’s actually a knitting Festival on Faroe Islands 14-16 April 2016. It is also an exclusively opportunity to stay with the locals.
The first ever Knitting Festival was held in 2015 and it turned out to be a huge success, with hundreds of people from abroad joining many locals to learn about knitting and enjoy each other’s company.
This year there will be knitting workshops, lectures at cafes and gatherings in the homes of the people of Fuglafjødur over three days.
“‘We want to give our guests the complete knitting experience,” says Steintóra, one of the festival’s four organizers.
Knitting model from Faroe Islands
“The festival will in particular focus on the social aspect, getting to know one another through knitting. We want people to enjoy themselves whilst learning new things. Being Faroese, we’ve naturally also emphasized the importance of good food! Women, food and knitting needles belong together!”
You may enjoy several of the 70 workshops, held by 23 different experts, some from the Faroe Islands and others from abroad. The majority of these workshops will be held in one of the 26 living rooms that people will wander in and out of. There will also be opportunities to take guided walks through the village of Fuglafjørður.
The Festival Banquet
The festival will not only be about knitting. You may also dress up in your finest attire at the festival’s banquet, which will be held on the last evening. The Faroese are known for their social gatherings, which are never short of exceptionally good food, soulful singing and joyous dancing, guaranteeing you a great time!
Accommodation This is a rare opportunity to have new friends by spending your nights in the homes of the locals of Fuglafjørður. Choosing this option, you’ll live together with the house owners for the duration of the festival. Another option is to rent an apartment or flat in Fuglafjørður.
Other accommodation options (outside of Fuglafjørður) include Bed and Breakfasts and hotels across the country.
Forget the stereotypical image of a cool Scandinavian: visitors to Norway can be assured of a warm and friendly welcome.
Some say that Norwegians can be cool almost to the point of rudeness when you first meet them. Thomas Hylland Eriksen, professor of social anthropology at the University of Oslo, wants to set that stereotype straight.
“Norwegians have a general reputation for being slightly aloof and difficult to approach. While there may be some truth to this, due to late urbanization and the persistence of rural values, one cannot generalize.”
Thomas Hylland Eriksen. Photo: Jarle H. Moe / Studvest.
It’s equally true to say that once you’ve overcome that initial distance and a Norwegian has got to know you, their warmth and hospitality are unmistakable.
Flaam is like a toy village
The Norwegian character is complex and sometimes contradictory. Norwegians may be slow in offering their opinions, but when they do their views are forthright. They pride themselves on their internationalism (rather than nationalism), yet can be incredibly inward-looking.
They have strong cultural and economic links with the rest of Europe but stubbornly insist on staying outside the European Union. And the enthusiasm of so many Norwegians to participate in commercial whaling often seems to have less to do with its value as an industry, and more to do with a hatred of being told what to do by the international community.
Erna Solberg, Prime Minister of Norway met with Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission in Brussels in January 2015. Photo: Juha Roininen, EUP Images/SMK
The rugged landscapes, which centuries ago created Norway’s geographical isolation, have taught Norwegians to be fiercely independent and self-reliant. This independence was reinforced by the discovery of oil in the 1960s. A strong stable economy and comprehensive social security system have created a comfortable standard of living and cohesive society, where people feel protected if things go wrong.
Norwegian oil rig
Norwegians have been known to grumble about bad roads and expensive gasoline, but they feel quite secure in their country, where democratic values are upheld and there is little, if any, corruption.
Beggar in Oslo
Immigration challenges Historically, Norway is one of the oldest nations in Europe, if not the oldest. Its people can trace an unbroken line of descent from those who inhabited the area in prehistoric times. During the Viking era, Norway controlled an enormous territory from Russia to the British Isles, and the common European tongue was Old Norse. Yet today, Norway was reconstituted as late as 1905 when the union with Sweden was finally dissolved. The dominance of Old Norse may have gone, but today’s Norwegians have regained their pride.
May 17, The Norwegian Constitution Day
Norwegian women have fought for equality for over a century – and appear to be winning. Women are particularly well represented in the political sphere, making up 40 percent of MPs and exactly half of the cabinet.
WW2, Invasion of Norway
World War II, and the Nazi occupation, was a massive shock to the Norwegian psyche. There’s still a deep-felt anger against the supposedly neutral Swedes for permitting the transit of German troops into Norway.
After the war, the Norwegians realized with some reluctance that strategically they had no choice but to seek the protection of others. So they signed up to NATO, not least as protection against Russia, another unreliable neighbor in the north.
Jens Stoltenberg (NATO Secretary General): It is really a great honour and a great pleasure to welcome the Prime Minister of Norway to the NATO Headquarters
But they turned their backs on the European Union. The importance of fishing and farming and the security of the oil revenues meant that economically they preferred to go it alone.
It’s too easy, however, to equate this self-reliance with xenophobia. Norwegians don’t fear or dislike foreigners, although like their Scandic neighbors, they have experienced an influx of immigrants in recent years. Unfortunately this have given fuel to far-right politicians eager to exploit people’s fear of an invading “otherness”, but in spite of immigration concerns and far-right rhetoric, Norway is one of the most stable of European countries.
Population graph for Norway
Even the 2008 economic crisis had minimal effect thanks to the country’s oil wealth, held for the benefit of the whole nation in a sovereign wealth fund (SWF). The DWF now exceed 3 trillion kroner, but the fall in oil prices has put a hold on new oil and gas exploration in the Arctic region, and Norway has now entered a phase of a changing workforce mindset.
Home comforts Hospitality is second nature to a Norwegian, whether he or she lives in Oslo or on the remotest corner of Finnmark. If you’re planning to visit people at home, be prepared – there’s a lot of coffee to be drink and cake to be eaten. Schnapps is also something that gets poured generously. The food will be plentiful and wholesome; your host will expect nothing in return except some appreciative comments about the welcome and any traditional dishes being served.
Norwegian cozyness
Thanks to all that oil, and a very generous social security system, there is relatively little poverty in Norway. But nor are they at all ostentatious about their wealth and, especially in rural areas, life can still be very simple.
Small-town life The more enigmatic aspects of the Norwegian character – including the Nordic gloom that can descend after a drink too many – have been famously scrutinized by Henrik Ibsen. He was brought up in small communities and, during a long exile, turned his critical eye on the experience. One of the themes running through Ibsen’s work is the double-edged nature of life in such a community: mutual support in adversity weighed against a suffocating lack of privacy at other times.
The Jante Law
The lesser-known, Danish/Norwegian Aksel Sandemose wrote “Ten Commandments for Village Life” in a fictional novel about a town called Jante, the essence being humility bordering on self-abasement. They included: “You must not think that you are worth anything; you must not think that you are better than anyone else; you must not think yourself capable of anything worthwhile; and you must not think that you are in any way exceptional.” Scandinavians today are still guided by this fictional Jante Law (janteloven).
Land of many dialects Norway’s rural nature has compounded one of its thorniest problems – language. The issue has split the country for over a century. Throwing off the Danish-dominated bokmål (book language) was crucial to the independence activists of the 19th century. Unfortunately there was no Norwegian alternative on offer, just a variety of often very divergent dialects.
Language is hard
Various attempts were made to bring these together into a truly national language knowns as nynorsk (new Norwegian), but these were never more than a partial success, and even now there are huge regional variations in the spoken tongue.
Most Norwegians speak English extremely well and are more than happy to do so. They realized it was taking national pride too far to deny the pre-eminence of English. Indeed, many an urbanite will claim it’s much easier to understand a foreigner speaking English than one of their compatriots speaking a regional dialect.
Worlds apart Norway’s geography and its sparse population (less than 5 million people) have entrenched cultural and economic fragmentation too. Rural lives depended on agriculture, and the land was roo poor to support more than a family or two in a single valley. Separated from their neighbors by mountains, which were easier to cross in winter on skis than in summer on foot, they effectively lived in worlds apart. Families managed on their own, a resourcefulness which still runs in the blood.
From Vistdal
Whether it’s the outdoor life or all the fish in the diet, Norwegians enjoy amazing longevity. They manage to look remarkably healthy all their lives, and the octogenarian grandmother whizzing by on skis is not entirely a myth.
The Swedish king who reluctantly oversaw Norway’s independence predicted that bureaucratic incompetence would soon have Norwegians begging to return to the fold. That, of course, never happened, and modern Norway is a strong, successful socialist state.
Spitsbergen Global Seed Bank
In February 2008, the remote Spitsbergen Global Seed Bank officially opened. Built to be war- and disaster-proof, it acts as a living library of all known varieties of the world’s crops.
Winter is a time when many of us can feel a bit low, so we decided to cheer you up with some Scandinavian design lessons. Easter is coming, but spring still seems a long way off.
It’s no wonder we get a touch of the winter blues. Yet, in Scandinavia where the winters are long and dark, people manage to keep surprisingly upbeat. In fact, the recent World Happiness Report conducted by the UN found that the population of Denmark was the happiest in the world. Norway followed at second place and Sweden at fifth place. How do they do it?
One way is through design: creating a home environment that is conducive to happiness. Scandinavian design is renowned for its stylish simplicity. And there are many lessons we can learn from it to help beat the winter blues.
Let in the light
Scandinavians recognize the importance of natural daylight. It is so essential to our wellbeing, and we tend to be happier when there is more of it. Because there are so few daylight hours during the winter, Scandinavian homes are designed to let as much light in as possible. Windows are large and kept clear of obstruction.
Follow their example by getting rid of heavy curtains. And keep window sills free from ornaments. If you need window covers for privacy, opt for sheer floaty fabrics. Or you could consider wooden shutters for night-time use. These have the added advantage of helping to retain heat, and insulate against the cold,
Maximize natural light in the home
Have you ever wondered why so many images of Scandinavian homes feature white interiors? Painting walls in white or pale shades will make your home look brighter and bounce the light around. Glossy and polished surfaces also help. So ditch the carpet and replace with wooden floors or tiles that have a subtle reflective sheen. And don’t forget mirrors. They can reflect, and thereby increase the amount of light in a room. So hang wall mirrors strategically opposite windows.
Add some wood
Warm up your interiors by introducing more natural wood into your home. This could be by way of furniture, flooring or even wall panels. A predominant feature in Scandinavian interiors, wood works in perfect balance with a white decorating scheme. As well as having a warm appearance, it acts as a natural insulator too. Adding more wood will help create a cozy and welcoming home.
Candles
On dark winter evenings, candles add warmth, light and coziness. In the absence of daylight, fire is the most natural light source. And they cast a really flattering glow: everything looks better by candlelight. So place decorative candle and tea light holders all around your home – they will make beautiful home accessories. Then, once it’s dark, you can light them to create a magical atmosphere.
Nature and well-being
Nature is an important feature at the heart of the Scandinavian lifestyle. And despite the cold winters, it is very much an outdoor one. People get out into the fresh air as much as possible to keep healthy and promote well-being. Introduce plants and greenery into your home. They bring nature and the outdoors inside – and they really help bring a room to life. In addition, try to go out every day. You’ll feel much better for it. It prevents you from feeling sluggish and puts a new perspective on things. You may even find sources of inspiration which you can then bring into your home.
Simple and stylish furniture
Furniture from designers such as Arne Jacobsen, Hans Wegner Verner Panton and Alvar Aalto are world renowned. And with good reason. The dean lines and organic shapes of pieces like the Series 7 chair are simple and minimal. But this is not a cold, clinical minimalism. Instead, it creates a calm atmosphere and feeling of spaciousness. Something that’s really important when spending extended periods of time indoors. Invest in timeless quality furniture, with thoughtful design that is a pleasure to use and look at. They will always give you that feel good factor.
Streamlined storage
Good storage is key to creating an airy and spacious Scandinavian style interior. If possible, go for built-in furniture which will give your home a more streamlined look. Get rid of all clutter and only keep on display those items that are a pleasure to look at. Everything else should be stored away out of sight. This alone will make for a calmer and less stressful home.
Cozy soft furnishings
Dress your sofa with cushions and throws to create a warm and relaxing haven and a place to rejuvenate. Opt for soft greys for a soothing look. Or for an injection of color, you could go for shades of purple and burgundy with traditional Scandi motifs.
A dining table for entertaining
Socializing is a big part of the culture. So a good-sized dining table and chairs are essential for entertaining. Savoring the time spent in good company, with great conversation and delicious food is just the thing to help lift the spirits.
Hygge
Hygge is perhaps the secret ingredient to the feel-good Scandinavian lifestyle. And in one word probably sums up much of what has been written above. It is a way to describe enjoying the good things in life. Originally a Norwegian word, it is now widely used in Denmark. It’s all about the everyday simple pleasures that nourish the soul: appreciating beautiful design, a bracing walk, time spent with a friend – even enjoying a cup of coffee. And it’s about creating a warm and inviting atmosphere. For a happy life filled with wonderful moments (whatever the time of year) why not follow the Danish example, and bring more hygge into your daily life.
Written by Sarah Ansbacher (co-founder of Mocha, part online home store, part design blog).
This article, 10 Scandinavian Design Lessons to Help Beat the Winter Blues, was published in Freshome on 30 January, 2014. We thank the publisher for their kind permission to reprint this article.
But visitors pay a minimum of $5,000 (and upwards of $25,000) for a measly 7 day trip.
So if you’re like me and want to experience Antarctica – but don’t have the money yet – we can live vicariously through these 5 fun facts!
Photo: Hurtigruten/Arnau Ferrer
Antarctica is a desert because it receives very little rain.
Penguins, whales, seals, and fish all live in Antarctica. There are no land mammals – including polar bears who live in the ARCTIC. In fact, the name “Antarctica” is the combination of “anti” and “artik” meaning “no bears.”
Antarctica is managed by 45 countries, 7 of which claim parts of it as national territory. Those seven are: Argentina, Australia, Chile, France, New Zealand, Norway and the UK.
Antarctica has as much ice as there is water in the Atlantic Ocean.
Antarctica is the highest, driest, windiest, coldest continent on Earth. Its lowest recorded temperature is -89.6ºF (-67ºC)! Brrrrr!!!
Photo: Hurtigruten/Dominic Barrington
Pretty cool huh?
Photo: Hurtigruten/Mark McDermott
If you’re not like me – and have the money – check out what’s available:
Scandinavians are great meat eaters. The surviving recipes from the past were mostly recorded in wealthier households, as they ate much more meat that the poorer majority who survived on a diet of porridge, and later bread and potatoes, with the occasional piece of meat.
In the 1960s, Scandinavians generally became wealthier very fast, and meat consumption rocketed, especially chicken and beef. Cheap meat like offal was rarely eaten, and the general idea about meat as food changed. Most still regard vegetables as an accompaniment to meat, and not the other way round.
So the heritage of Scandinavians is made up from different periods: very old ways of roasting big cuts of meat and game, and festive pork and mutton recipes. More recently there have been seen bourgeois stews and more intricate dishes inspired by France and England, and relatively new dishes from minced meat.
Before the meat grinder was invented in the mid-19th century, minced meat was a rare and expensive treat, and sausages were a delicacy. The home meat-grinder immediately became immensely popular, because it meant that large parts of the animal could be used for immediate consumption, and a whole new array of Scandinavian dishes became everyday food of the majority of the population.
Another part of the Scandinavian legacy are the salted, boiled meats which have a much older ancestry, as salting, drying and smoking were the only way to preserve meat 150 years ago.
Chicken soup with dumplings
A huge pot of steaming chicken soup is food for friends and family for several days, and the essence of home cooking. It is always made with a piece of beef, preferably a fatty cut, which will cook to melting tenderness in a couple of hours.
The soup may take some time to prepare, but you can serve it for several days in a row, the chicken first, with sauce and steamed cabbage, and the beef the day after with leeks. The soup can be served plain, or with dumplings and small dice of parsley root and sliced leeks. (The dumplings can be made several days in advance and stored in a closed container in the fridge.)
Scandinavian Poultry, Meat, Game & Offal, written by Tor Kjolberg
For the soup 1 large chicken (approx.. 3 kg) or 2 smaller chickens
2kg beef neck, on the bone
3 onions, quartered
5 carrots
1 parsley root or parsnip
½ celeriac or ½ head of celery
8 small leeks
1 small bunch if fresh thyme
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
4 garlic cloves
1 clove
1 bunch of parsley
3 tablespoons coarse sea salt
For the sauce 600 ml stock
2 tablespoons white wine or cider vinegar
4 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons corn-flour
200ml whipping cream
6 tablespoons freshly grated horseradish
50g currants
3 tablespoons coarse sea salt
For the dumplings 125g salted butter
125g plain flour
1 teaspoon sea salt
250ml water or stock
4-5 eggs
Serves 14-16
Put the chicken and beef in a pan that’s capacious enough to hold everything comfortably. Cover with cold water and bring slowly to the boil, then lower the heat to a simmer. Remove any scum frequently.
Meanwhile rinse all the vegetables and cut into chunks; the green parts of the leeks go into the pan at this stage, but reserve the white parts for later. When there’s no scum on the surface of the soup, throw in the vegetables, herbs and spices, including the parsley, stalks and all (reserve a little parsley to chop as a garnish). Remove any scum again and, when it is gone, season with the salt.
When the thighs can be easily loosened from the carcass, the chicken’s done. Lift it from the pot with two slotted spoons and leave until the bird is cool enough to handle. Remove the skin and cut the breast meat from the carcass, then remove the thighs and cut them in two; remove the two nuggets of meat from the back, and the upper part of the wings. Dave all this meat, and return the carcass and skin to the pot.
Test the beef and remove from the pan when really tender; Taste the soup. It may need reducing, and it may need salt; you’re after an intensely flavored soup, but be careful not to oversalt it if the stock still needs reducing. When you’re happy, put the soup through a sieve. Cool a little and remove the fat from the surface with a spoon. Reserve 600ml for the sauce, and put the rest in the fridge unless you are going to eat it the same day.
For the sauce, put the stock, vinegar and sugar in a pan and reduce to half. Blend the cornflour and cream. Whisk this into the sauce and let it boil for 5 minutes until the floury taste has gone, then remove from the heat. Add the horseradish and currants, and adjust the salt. Add more horseradish if you wish; the sauce must be hot, slightly sweet and a little sour.
To make the dumplings, mix the butter flour, salt and water (or stock) in a pan, and stir continuously until the batter is glossy, and comes away from the sides of the pan. Cool a little. Ehen it is lukewarm, beat in the eggs one at a time, and stop when the batter is thick (you may not need the fifth egg). Bring a pan of water to the boil, then drop marble-sized blobs of batter into the simmering water – you can use a plastic bag, with a corner cut off, or a proper piping bag to do this. When the dumplings rise to the top they are done.
Serve the soup first, with the dumplings and the white parts of the leeks. Heat the meat gently in a little of the soup (this can be done in a slow oven), dust the meat with parsley and serve with an assortment of steamed vegetables, potatoes, and the delicious sauce.
Over the years he has he has not only trained international top athletes such as tennis legend Marthina Navratilova and NHL-pro Douglas Murray but also helped actors and actresses prepare for their roles, including Noomi Rapace and Rooney Mara for their roles as Lisbeth Salander in the Swedish and American versions of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.
