What is Sweden: Fika
In Sweden we sure love our Fika or as it is called in other countries, Coffee Break. Sweden is one of the countries that drinks the most coffee. A big reason for that is my, Sika and Janne the Director’s consumption of this wonderful beverage.
This morning I met up with Sika at his apartment to have some coffee before we went to the coffee house to meet Janne, to have some more coffee. Later I went to a meeting where I had.. that’s right, more coffee. It would have been rude to say no. And just so you know, this was all before noon.
But over to my actual topic. Swedish coffee brand Gevalia has launched a campaign in the United States to promote the Swedish “fika”. It is always interesting to see how other countries portray Swedes, but in this case it is a Swedish company that is portraying Swedes.
The weird thing about this commercial (besides the kicking of the butt) is that the actor who stars in it as the Swedish guy Johan, is NOT Swedish. I mean he can’t be! He doesn’t sound Swedish at all, his accent is way off what we actually sound like when we speak English. I mean, he doesn’t even pronounce FIKA, the only Swedish word in this commercial, correctly.
The identity of the actor is still a mystery, despite the effort of various online forums to solve it. Most of them think he’s German. Me, I would say his accent is more like a “Norwegian with a Danish mother who spent two summers in Germany as a kid”.
If you know who “Johan” in the commercial is, please let me know, I want to solve this mystery! In the meantime, it is time for my evening coffee break, also known as kvällsfika here in Sweden!
More What is Sweden? from Lunki and Sika
What is Sweden: Dennis Camitz
What is Sweden: Men with Balls
What is Sweden: Rotten Fish
What is Sweden: A Socialist Country?
What is Sweden: The Proudness of the Swedes
What is Sweden: Vampires and girls with Dragon Tattoos
What is Sweden: The Final Countdown
What is Sweden: Noomi Rapace
What is Sweden: Movitz!
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