Scandinavia consists of the nations of Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Iceland. At the Scandinavian fest, their unique and colorful cultures are shared through song, dance, crafts (excellent crafts for kids) and of course FOOD. As a homeschooling family, this is one of the best festivals of the year, as much emphasis is placed on how life was lived two hundred years ago in these countries as well as the life of emigrees to this country. I’m sorry for those of you who missed it this year, but The Scandinavian Festival takes place again next year on April 16 & 17th at the bucolic grounds of the California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks. For a calendar of the best Family Festivals in the Los Angeles area based on lack of crowds, ease of parking, great (free) crafts and activities – go to my archived blog - Brave the Crowd and Get Thee to a Festival.
But for this fun day with no crowds, we liesurely parked the van and hit the food booths first to load up on signature dishes like Swedish meatballs with gravy & Lingonberry sauce but especially for the famous Danish dessert ~ Ebleskivers which are a delicious spherical pancake.
After we filled our bellies, Ula and I went to make head wreaths with fresh flowers, live greenery and ribbons. 
We also got a stamp in our passport. Each of the five nations symbolically sponsor 
certain crafts and at the entrance you receive a Scandinavian passport. At each craft, you learned how that craft or the materials directly relate to that nation in a fun and tactile way. 
And upon completion you get a stamp on the page with an outline of the corresponding nation.
The biggest hit for the girls is rasping and sanding their own butterknives from wooden blanks. This is a bit time intensive and warrants safety on the kids part, which is why it impressed us the most to see it at a festival. But for those reasons it empowered our kids the most. Okay, my 3 year old didn’t really have the staying power to do an entire knife, but she learned about woodworking tools. Our 6 year old on the other hand made two and went on to paint and shellac them at home. Additionally, all
the booth attendants dressed in traditional outfits of their regions. Here’s one such roving musician playing his piano violin.
There were numerous camps set up with traditional crafts like weaving, spinning, dying cloth or wool, woodworking and metal smithing. We spent alot of time asking questions and the kids were reminded of a world that existed a hundred years ago with out many of the advantages of an electrical and computerized world. And like my husband and myself, they LOVED it.
Last year the exuberance of the festival and its contagious nature seduced us into signing up to host a Danish exchange student for the summer. This year we only bought a few Swedish books to take home.
Under the big tent was dancing, music of all five lands as well as storytelling accompanied by wonderful musicians. The experience was so well-rounded. Oftentimes, we were invited to dance and learn the moves. And around 3 on a Sunday afternoon, all were invited to try out their moves around the tall Maypole erected in the middle of the campus’ grassy field.
After listening and dancing to the last band, we worked our way out through an corridor of colorful flags of Scandinavian nations and found ourselves in a circle of ALL the Nobel prize winners from these nations. Each winner was depicted on grand scale with their photo, nation’s flag and information on their contributions to the world of science and health.
The SAMI people, Scandinavian's native's live as nomads with the caribou
What the inside of their Home/Tents look like
