It’s hard to think spring when snow continues to rear its ugly head, but on April 30, it was hot at the American Swedish Institute‘s Valborgsmässoafton celebration, Cocktails at the Castle. Guests celebrated like a Swedes with smoked sausages and red cabbage, a bit of caramel corn, a cocktail or two, and indulged in some birchwood plaque decoupage design.
Local bands Teenage Moods, Dan Mariska and the Boys Choir, Zac HB, plus DJs from Slipmats Radio performed on stages indoors and out … fire dancers mingled amongst the crowds (safely!) … two talented wood carvers chopped logs into pieces of art and actors spontaneously preformed “Hamlet” in the mansion. In addition to live entertainment, cozy couches and fire rings in the grass, and traditional food prepared by the onsite restaurant, FIKA, ASI hosted a Yelp Photo Hunt. And for those who rode in on two wheels, Angry Catfish Bicycle Shop + Coffee Bar provided safety checks.
This is an event not to be missed – the next incarnation (the Hot Shop Herring Glass Blowout) takes place Thursday, July 25. Cross your fingers that Gustav, the mechanical Hahla horse, will still be waiting patiently like an old wooden horse should.
