Swedes and Danes party on the ferry: what is this phenomenon?
Every weekend, Swedes and Danes let loose together aboard a small ferry crossing the Øresund, the stretch of water between the two countries. There’s cheap beer, sausages and live music on board, and that’s enough for (middle-aged) partygoers to really let their hair down on Fridays and Saturdays.
Anders Hojberg Kamp, a reporter for Vice, boards the ferry to find out what this party boat is all about. He seems quite impressed: for the equivalent of ten euros, you can sail back and forth endlessly on the boat until ten in the evening—and the boat is basically a brown café. Alcohol is very expensive in Sweden, so it’s mainly the Swedish passengers on board who really get stuck in. A live band plays in the galley, there’s a smoking area where everyone crowds together, and because the boat rocks so much, after a while you can no longer tell whether your unsteady steps are caused by all those cans of Tuborg beer or by the waves of the Øresund.
Complaining
Normally, Swedes joke about Danes, while Danes grumble a little about Swedes—more or less like Belgium and the Netherlands, or Canada and the United States. But on the boat, it’s all about camaraderie. Despite the minor language differences, everyone understands one another, and after a few beers, these competing nationalities turn out to get along perfectly well. Food is also handed out on board: if you’ve booked a package, you get a sandwich with two sausages, or some smørrebrød. And everyone dances together and sings along to the music.
Party on the ferry
Could it be an idea to throw a party like this on one of the ferries across the IJ? Or liven up Rotterdam’s water taxi with beer and sausages? In Denmark and Sweden, it’s a huge hit at any rate. When the boat docks in Denmark for the last time that evening after sailing back and forth for a few hours, most partygoers disembark to continue drinking in Denmark.
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Source: Vice
