BE OUR GUEST: SWEDEN HAS CHICKENS, BUT NO POLAR BEARS

Say Sweden and many people might come to think of famous sportsmen or pop groups. Some will more likely think of tall, blond, girls and vodka. Yet, others will connect Sweden with its two state-of-the-art automobiles -- Volvo and Saab.

The image of Sweden may vary from one person to another, but there are always prejudices and myths that are not -- and never will be -- correct.

I know for a fact, I'm Swedish.

Let me introduce myself. My name is Claes Claeson and I'm visiting Cape Girardeau as a part of a Rotary Group Study Exchange program from Sweden to Missouri. We (ie one team leader and four team members) will during a period of five weeks visit some 10 cities in the south and southeast of the state to learn more about the American society in general; schools, system of justice, religion, tourism, health care, business, communications, sports, entertainment and recreation.

These kind of exchange programs are probably the best way to create a greater understanding for other cultures and patterns of life. And this a small, but important, effort to establish friendship between people around the world, and thereby giving peace more of a chance in an unstable world.

One of the most remarkable questions I've had so far was forwarded by a female school teacher:

"Do you have chickens in your country?"

I was so taken by surprise that I forgot to give her the most appropriate answer to such a dumb question:

"No, ma'm, they were all killed in duty during the Second World War..."

There are many similarities between Sweden and USA, some of them are the outcome of a Swedish immigration wave that swept over the country in the late 1800's. Approximately one million Swedes went west to start a new life in North America.

I am delighted of having the opportunity to enlighten the readership of the Southeast Missourian with information on Sweden -- and hopefully put a few things right.

The first issue has already been dealt with: Yes, we do have chickens. But we don't have polar bears running the streets, another question to the team members. Our climate is similar to Missouri's, with the exception of last summer which was a freak -- 100 Fahrenheit for six weeks in a row.

No, all Swedish girls are not tall and blond. My fiancee, Sharon, fits, however, in this description pretty well, but she is surprisingly not from Sweden. She is British.

Many of you may know that "smorgasbord," "ombudsman" and "gratis" are originally Swedish words. Let's include another world to the English-Swedish glossary: Window.

It all began when the wikings started to build permanent homes for themselves in the 900's using stones and rocks and hay roofs. In the center of the house they had a campfire. To enable the air to circulate in these rather dark and damp houses, squares were carved out on one or several walls. The wikings called them "vind-oeja", which means an eye for the wind. When the wikings went on their voyages around Europe they brought the tradition of the wind eye -- that later became windows.

Of some reason many people believe that Sweden is a socialistic state. Not true. High tax? Yes, indeed. In some cases more than 50 percent. Most of our health-care system is financed by taxes and our public hospitals are mainly of high standard. And everybody are free to choose a private doctor, but to a slightly higher cost. The privatization of former governmental owned companies, eg telecom, post administration, airports, railway, has come a long way.

It is unique that a country of Sweden's size (approx nine millions) has come up with as many successful sportsmen and artists. On the tennis court we have stars like Bjorn Borg, Mats Wilander and Stefan Edberg. Our national ice hockey teams has through the years exported more professional players than any other country in the world to the NHL. And last, but not least, the soccer team, that caught the bronze medals in the World Cup last summer.

The first Swedish pop group in the Billboard charts was Blue Swedes back in 1973, followed by ABBA, Roxette and most recent Ace of Base from my home town, Gothenburg.

Sweden's two car manufacturers, Volvo and Saab, are considered to be safe and exclusive in the American market. My family do represent the both: I work within the Saab Group and my brother is an engineer based in Phoenix, Arizona, for Volvo. I can ensure you that we have some interesting debates at the family dinner table!

Our latest export success story is the Absolut vodka, spelt the Swedish way without an "e" in the end. It's fame has actually made it impossible for other companies to use the word absolut in their advertising. Absolut is registered as a trademark of the Swedish vodka. Amazing -- but absolutely true~!

The team from Sweden will be in the state of Missouri for another three weeks, wearing blue club jackets with the Rotary emblem on the chest pocket and speaking English with a strong Scandinavian accent.

Don't hesitate to approach us in the street if you have any questions about Sweden -- or just to say hello.

Claes Claeson is a member of the Group Study Exchange Team from Sweden, sponsored by Rotary International.