Westby is a small town nestled in the rolling hills of Vernon County. Each May, Westby celebrates the town’s Scandinavian heritage with the annual Syttende Mai festival. The 47th Annual Celebration will be held May 15 – 17th, 2015.

At Syttende Mai, prepare to immerse yourself in Norwegian history and culture with traditional food, music and art. You’ll find a host of fun activities for the entire family from a kiddie parade to a living history exhibition.

If you’ve never had a chance to sample Norwegian delicacies, prepare your taste buds to be delighted. Be sure to try some rommegrot, which is a white cream pudding. It is served piping hot, usually with butter and a bit of cinnamon sprinkled on the top. Rommegrot is rich, delicious, and creamy, but don’t eat too much because you need to save room for lefsa. This Norwegian flat bread is made with potatoes, flour, butter, and milk. It requires a special lefsa iron and other tools to make including a long handled spoon for turning. Lefsa is mouthwatering hot or cold, but my family loves watching the lefsa making demonstrations, where we get to eat lefsa warm from the griddle with just a little butter. Don’t pass by the Norwegian desserts either, even though the sandbakkels, krumkake and rosettes are almost too pretty to eat.

Once your stomach is full, stroll through the Heritage tent, Arts, Crafts & Vintage Commercial tents that are open Saturday and Sunday from 8 am until 6 pm on Market Street. You’ll see Norwegian rosemaling, which is traditional decorative painting, usually on wood, that uses stylized flowers, scrolls, lines, and geometric patterns. You’ll also find intricate needlework, woodworking and weaving.

Don’t miss the big parade on Sunday, with people in traditional Norwegian dress, bands, floats and much more. Here’s a short summary of events at this year’s Syttende Mai:

Friday

• Kickoff Breakfast
• Westby Locker & Meats Cookout
• Old-Time Music Show
• Chicken-Q, Raffle and Silent Auction
• Westby High School Art Exhibit
• Westby High School Choral Concert

Saturday

• Arts, Crafts &Vintage Commercial Tents
• Bunads (Live models with Norwegian Folk Costumes)
• Frøkøst (Breakfast)
• A Walk Through History
• Westby Syttende Mai History Display
• Bicycle Tour
• Syttende Mai 5K Walk/Run & 1/2 Marathon
• Golf Tournament
• Kiddie Tractor Pull
• Rømmegrøt Eating Contest
• Syttende Mai Car and Bike Show
• Western Wisconsin Bubble Soccer
• Viking Bowl Bubble Soccer Tournament
• Tractor Pull

Sunday

• Church Services
• Arts, Crafts &Vintage Commercial Tents
• Church Dinners
• Kids Bike Race
• Westby High School Jazz Band
• Raffle Drawings
• Big Syttende Mai Parade

The complete list of events with details, locations and times can be found at: westbysyttendemai.com. You can also follow them on Facebook at www.facebook.com/WestbySyttendeMai.