This year instead of going to all the Christmas markets, we went to only the best (and most local): Hågelby park. It is less crowded and has more local and handmade items than the other Stockholm-area markets. We had some nice conversations with the cheese seller and the meat seller; it turns out the beef and goat for sale were grazed on the nature reserves – we may have biked or hiked by these very herds! There were some great crafts, and some were soft and light and small enough to bring in a suitcase to Canada. This year they opened up the 4H farm for goat and sheep petting, and lots of small kids were wandering in among the ungulates. They also had pony rides on their array of sturdy Nordic ponies. Very early in the day one little chestnut pony went on strike and WOULD NOT BE MOVED, even for treats. They had to unload the kid and take all the tack off so chestnut pony could have a day off. Solidarity, chestnut pony!
Bright and crisp -8 C at 11:00 AM 
Chestnut pony before she went on strike 
This fuzzy thicknit stepped around the ring with dozens of kids 
It was so birght with the sun on this angle I could not keep my eyes open 
There were little warming fires all over. Graham wasn’t cold, and resented posing next to one because he smelled like smoke afterwards 
Moomin window display 
Estate pheasants enjoying winter provisions 
We came home to a lunch of fried ‘fire cheese’ from a local farm, salad, and spicy fruit buns
Hågelby is as rad as ever. Sadly Alice the Hågelby cat passed away this Fall, but it seems her colleagues are keeping up the pest control duties because things seemed as normal in the farm yard. One exception was that there were pheasants eating from a poultry feeder. Maybe they were a new addition, or maybe Alice just kept them up on the roofs and the rafters so we never saw them. Their two dwarf pigs passed on this year as well, and the 4H club is taking up a collection to acquire a new small (ha!) herd.