Hej!

Her artwork may have been too happy-go-lucky for me, but Mann is a legend in Sweden, and her vibrant, overexcited paintings show scenes from all over Scandiavia, including one painting that depicts bright and cheery visions from the Karneval in Lund. Despite rolling my eyes at the giant rear ends imposed on many of Mann’s humanlike creatures, the simple brushstrokes and vivid colors on the painting did make me more eager for the Karneval. “Sweden is fantastic!" is said to be the theme of many of her paintings, and she left me with the hope that Lundakarnavelen would also be fantastic.

I didn’t have to hope. Lundakarnevalen will always be fantastic. Even if a visitor ignored the music and the live bands, the energized students and the thrill in the air, the Karneval’s history alone is fascinating. A vital part of the campus since 1849, this year marked 157 years of “organized madness," and the madness continues to be almost entirely run by Lund University students.

Students offer to work during the Karneval on various committees, manning tents and helping behind the stage at open-air concerts, and there’s a parade each day during the festivities. In addition to the main Karneval scene, located outside near the university’s Akademiska Föreningen “castle," other events and concerts are held all over town. While it may seem like any other festival, Lundakarnevalen is a pulsating piece of history at a campus that has been around since the 1600s.