FEBRUARY 2006

Happy February, everyone!

This month we'd like to focus a bit on the magnificent flavors of Scandinavian cooking! We've teamed up with New Scandinavian Cooking to feature a fantastic Swedish chef, Tina Nordström. Read more about her culinary adventures and exceptional cooking throughout Sweden below!

Also, enjoy a culinary memoir from this past summer's adventures in Sweden. Mouth-watering descriptions of what can be experienced on a trip with Svea Adventures!

We've found out from the Scandinavian Tourist Boards that there are still some great deals on airfare out there - but you have to act fast to take advantage of them! Have a look below and let us know if we can help you with an airfare quote!

It's time to plan for and look forward to the summer! Another 6 weeks of winter have been predicted so let's all bundle up and dream away to warmer weather and that trip of a lifetime!

- Linda, Alex and the rest of the Svea Adventures Team

NEW SCANDINAVIAN COOKING GOES TO SWEDEN

Do not miss the current season of New Scandinavian Cooking airing on PBS now. Together with Chef Tina Nordström, you will learn about Swedish food, history and culture. Tina will take you around Sweden on a culinary journey that will bring us far up north to where the Sámi people are herding reindeer and all the way to the southern, sunny Island of Gotland.

The TV series takes a close look at Swedish traditions such as the smorgasbord and the infamous crayfish party. You will also learn about the rich drinking traditions and discover how you can use liquor in your food as a flavour enhancer and how you can flavour your own liquor.

A Fresh Approach

New Scandinavian Cooking with Tina brings a truly fresh approach to cooking. Traditional Scandinavian raw materials and modern recipes are combined to create delicious meals that are fun and simple to prepare.

Tina is the host of the most popular cooking show in Sweden. She has a very personal and direct cooking style, and we expect old and new viewers of the show to fall in love with her instantly.

Much More Than a Cooking Show

Our chefs and guides demonstrate their brilliant culinary art within a cultural and entertaining context by taking the viewer on an eye-opening voyage across the Scandinavian countryside with their custom designed, portable kitchens.

Filming the series with Tina Nordström was completed last summer. The grand premier was in September (in New York). Check the TV-guide for information about the schedule for your local station. The show is also available on multicast channel Create.

Learn more about Tina Nordström at New Scandinavian Cooking!

GOOD AIRFARE DEALS ARE STILL AVAILABLE!

GoScandinavia.com informs us that there are still great deals to be made on airfare! But hurry up - there are deadlines!

SAS – Scandinavian Airlines - is offering low fares to most destinations in Scandinavia including Finland. Enjoy big savings when you book by February 28, 2006. Fares are each way from $469 + taxes and are based on required round trip purchase. www.flysas.com

Icelandair is offering city packages including air and two nights hotel to Copenhagen, Helsinki, Oslo and Stockholm starting at $725 + taxes. Iceland packages including air and two nights hotel start at $649 + taxes. www.icelandair.com

Finnair is offering a special fare of $650 + taxes on departures from Boston to either Stockholm or Helsinki in the summer. Flights need to be booked and purchased by March 31, 2006. www.finnair.com/us

Contact Svea Adventures today to get an airfare quote through our friends at Nordic Saga Tours!

ADVENTURE TRAVEL IN SCANDINAVIA WITH WILDERNESS GOURMET FLAIR

When you think of Scandinavia, what is the first thing that comes to mind? Is it the simplistic and functional concept of Scandinavian design, or maybe the ancient myths about the Vikings? Perhaps it is the impressive Ice Hotel in Jukkasjarvi, or the funny alphabet with dots? What about wood-burning saunas or the vibrant red color of the Dala horse?

For some people, the thought of Scandinavia brings impressive landscapes to mind. Wide open vistas with no one else in sight. Free flowing rivers with salmon and forests filled with moose. Magnificent mountains topped with glaciers and abundant wildflowers and that never-ending midnight sun.

Then, there’s that great taste of Scandinavian cooking… grandma’s traditional meatball recipe, those must-have cinnamon buns at the mandatory “fika” break, pickled herring with potatoes at Midsummer and those crazy crayfish parties in August. How about the smoked salmon, the reindeer jerky and the hand-picked, wild blue berries from the forest?

What if you could combine some of the most impressive aspects of Scandinavia – the natural landscape and all its abundant flavors – in one serving?

Picture yourself hiking through a road-less wilderness, in the mountains of central Sweden. Along the river, you find a perfect lunch spot in a haven of wild blue berries. Your guide unpacks fresh-caught, salted Arctic char and starts a camp fire. Grill your own fish over the open flame, and combine it on a soft, traditional flatbread with new potatoes, red onions and crème fraiche. The aroma is intense and the views are tough to beat.

Further north in Lapland, as you hike your way down the trail overlooking Lake Tornetrask and its remote mountain backdrop, it’s time for another wilderness gourmet feast for lunch. You watch closely as your guide cooks up a typical Lapland souvas with smoked reindeer meat and red onions. In a soft wrap, you combine the reindeer, a juniper berry aioli and lingonberry jam. The flavors are heavenly.

Down south, just north of the capital city of Stockholm, you glide gently in your kayaks as you explore the outer islands and coves of this magnificent archipelago region. You find a perfect lunch spot on a sandy beach and enjoy smoked salmon and new potatoes to the sounds of the sea and the views of tall ships on the horizon. The sun barely sets at this time of year, and there’s no rush to get back to the island inn. On second thought, the sauna is waiting, and you still need to decide if you’re going for the smoked whitefish or the seafood medley at wonderful the sea side restaurant. It’s a rough life.

There is such a thing as typical Scandinavian, and fresh culinary delights combined with breath-taking views, fresh air and great company can be considered just that. The best is yet to be discovered and Svea Adventures invites you to take part in adventures you never thought were possible, in places you didn’t know existed. For great outdoor adventures and culinary journeys into the Scandinavian kitchen (or bringing the Scandinavian kitchen with you on the trail…) contact us today or visit our website - www.sveaadventures.com! Horseback riding, hiking, sea kayaking, self-guided biking, multi-activity adventures and great food are all on the menu for this upcoming summer. The most difficult part is deciding which trip to do first.

Featured Trips:

Raven's Eye Hiking Adventure

Arctic Summer Hiking Adventure

Archipelago Sea Kayak Adventure

SCANDINAVIAN SPECIALTY STORES ACROSS THE US

Find a store close to you and explore the wide variety of Scandinavian specialty foods and ingredients - gingerbread cookies, creamed caviar, Swedish meatballs, cinnamon buns, picked herring and much more! Pick up a colorful dala horse or a pair of comfortable wooden clogs while you're there!

Ingebretsen's Scandinavian Gifts & Food - Minneapolis, Minnesota
The Nordic House - Oakland, California
Scandia Butik - Breckenridge , Colorado
Traditions International - Estes Park , Colorado
Scandinavian Touch - Lahaska , Pennsylvania
Scandia Food & Gifts Inc - Norwalk , Connecticut

Simply Scandinavian - Portland, Maine

TRIP OF THE MONTH!

RAVEN'S EYE HORSEBACK ADVENTURE - 6 days / 5 nights

We ride through the mountains and valleys of a remote corner of west

central Sweden, close to the border of Norway. Endless wilderness awaits us

with numerous mountain tops above tree-line, and no one else in sight for

days. You’ll find free flowing streams and rivers, trout-filled lakes and all

the fresh air you can handle. This adventure gives “off-the-beaten-path”

a whole new meaning, and you’ll soon understand why this is one of

our personal favorites.

Departure Date:
June 19-24, 2006

Price:

$1775/person

Read more about Raven's Eye Horseback Adventure!