SWEA Toronto brings Swedish Christmas Fair to Regent Park

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Recently, The Swedish Christmas Fair 2022 hosted by SWEA Toronto took place in Regent Park at 585 Dundas St East. The Swedish Christmas Fair attracts thousands of people each year who come to experience Swedish Christmas food, design, folk art, crafts, and traditions. The admission was free.

Members of the community enjoyed Swedish food at the Café, the Lucia procession, the Swedish Folk Dancers and Singers, the Book Corner, and the vast selection of Swedish design products and folk art for sale.

Lisa Quondamatteo, President of SWEA Toronto, spoke to our own RPTV Reporters Jabin Haque and Victoria Nanneti about this year’s Christmas fair in Regent Park.

Jabin Haque — What are expecting to see this year?

Lisa Quondamatteo — This year there will be Swedish food that you can buy or bring home, a lot of candies because Swedes love candies, we have Swedish design items, things like candles and kitchen towels, lots of folk art, crafts from leather work, we also have books in Swedish, we sell Glogg which is a very particular and special Swedish Christmas drink that is a mulled wine which has all kinds of spices and it’s served warm and you drink it with a ginger bread cookie, then we also have a big café that serves all kinds of Swedish food, as well as performances, we have the very traditional Lucia who is a huge even in Sweden every year on the 13th of December and children sing Christmas carols, and then we have folk dancers, we have tons of things happening here this weekend and it’s free.”

Jabin Haque — Why do you think this event is important to Regent Park community and beyond?

Lisa Quondamatteo — We bring thousands of people to this Christmas Fair every year so I think it is just nice for people to see this beautiful community and I think is good for Regent Park to have a nice cultural event that is free and everybody can come and the Regent Park community can experience some Swedish culture and traditions, so I think is a win-win for both of our communities.”

 

 By Fred Alvarado Fred is a community journalist with FOCUS MEDIA ARTS CENTRE

 

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