The tranquillity of the surroundings, the astounding insulation of this old house, the 50 hour day before and the Turkish Peppar aquavit the night before meant not even the bright 4am sun could wake us up. We were the last to arrive at breakfast, the kitchen warm with the friendship of everyone Karin has gathered for today's festivities.

Breakfast was everything you'd hope for in your first Swedish morning - smoked sausage, cheese, ham, muesli and yoghurt - and Vegemite! Fid and Boo loved educating everyone in the nuances of Vegemite toast. Gab stepped it up, showing everyone how it pairs perfectly with these delicious Swedish cheeses. The local version of this is Marmalade and Cheese - loved it!

Almost as soon as the table was cleared we were into the preparations for lunch. There was some real art taking place here: Boo helped Marie out with the Salmon mousse with layers of mouse and sliced Salmon topped off with lemons and flowers from the Garden. Mia's partner was making a pickled herring dish took an hour to layer up, all starting with herring that has been pickled for over a year. The kitchen collective didn't take long to decide these dishes were all far beyond me - I washed the spuds and once I proved myself, I graduated to the snags :) 

Out in the shed, Östen had assembled a team to finish off the table and start the decorations. Boo and Marie had made pretty vases of wild flowers from the surrounding gardens. The Gotlandsdricka was starting the flow, the food started to arrive, and soon the Aquavit was on the table. Everyone with their own favourite. The most impressive to me a Norwegian bottle, Linde I think, that is matured at sea, stored in Sherry barrels, it has to cross the equator four times before being released, the back of the bottle lists the boat and courses that it has chartered. Songs broke out throughout lunch, and each time they closed with a skäl. After the first glass, I realised I wouldn't be keeping this up for long, Karin's tip was to sip instead, I took no further convincing.

Outside lunch moved on to games. The Ball and Cans turned into Air rifle targeting, and Darts stepped it up to knife throwing - here's the Viking spirit! By far the most impressive thing though was Östen's mini-keg tap, complete with compressor and refrigerator, you just drop in the keg and tap away for the next few days - brilliant!

Soon the rest of the village seemed to wake up, the little lanes between the properties were full of people making their way down to the sea, the Maypole was going up! We joined everyone down by the water where the kids had some the previous afternoon. Östen's boat it's pontoon were the perfect place for our group to set up camp. The kids couldn't resist the water taking another swim. Back from the water the are was filling with well over a hundred people from the village - you would never have guessed there were this many people around. 

Generations were decorating the pole and soon the clanging of iron on granite meant the pole was being tampered into place. A ring of villagers surrounded it and song broke out. I was swept up with the spectacle, such a lovely warm village atmosphere, I just wish I understood the words in any of the songs :) Marie and Emerson were the first of our group to join, but soon Max was in there along with little Clara and her family. We all had a ball, but you could see how thrilled the kids were to be a part of it all, a magical memory.

After the singing, the kids played amongst all the other little kids from the village before we started to head back. Back at the property, it was time to start thinking about dinner. More games went on outside, the air rifle had been calling Fid since we left. Dinner was proper Aussie fair with a wagyu rump, some Kangaroo and Chang's noodle salad, and of course more Aquavit!

By the time dinner was over Emerson and Marie got work on a flower crown and went picking a collecting of wild flowers for Emerson to place under her pillow that night. Across the road, a huge barn had been turned into the Midsommar disco. It seemed most of the village had found their way to the barn for the evening, it was still light outside just past 11pm. The girls danced to ABBA, hay bails and lounges seated those who had enjoyed too much Aquavit and at the other end, more games. The darts and Air rifle targeting were here, along with a massive 6x6" slab of pine on a work horse for a game of nails - taking it in turns to have a swing, who can sink a 3" nail first - this is coming to Oktoberfest next year, I had a ball!

Finally, the sun had sunk deep enough below the horizon there was something approximating darkness emerging by half past 11. It must be time for bed, we strolled back through the garden and plonked ourselves at the kitchen table for a final drink before bed. I can't imagine how we could ever repay Karin and friends for such a memorable and warm day - a thoroughly magnificent experience we'll never forget.