If you grew up in Minnesota and studied a foreign language in high school, you probably know about – and likely visited – Concordia Language Villages near Bemidji. I did. I remember the French class trip up to the camp – the bus ride from Duluth, girls packed into a rustic cabin, and, most of all, the food! Actually that’s really all I remember. I’m sure we did crafts, sang songs, and spoke French, but, really, all I remember was eating yogurt and muesli for breakfast – two foods that we definitely didn’t have at my house.
And over 30 years later, I’m studying Swedish – taking classes at the American Swedish Institute, watching Swedish television, listening to Swedish music…and I’m back visiting Concordia Language Villages twice a year, this time at Sjölunden. How amazing that as an adult there is a place in Minnesota where you can emerge yourself in a language. Yes, there are crafts and a lot of singing. And brilliant teachers, and many friends.
My family doesn’t quite understand why I take a long weekend, or a whole week of work off, to vacation at “Swedish camp”. But they just haven’t tasted the food!
