Anh Does Scandinavia - Third Season

A thousand years ago, the Vikings descended on Europe.

They took what they could and settled where they liked.

Today, their descendants

are often described as the happiest people on earth.

I've always been fascinated by Vikings,

so I'm going to take us on a quest

to find the Nordic secret to happiness.

Welcome to Scandinavia.

I'll be riding...

Keep going, buddy.

..running...

Frothy green water!

..and rowing...

OK, now you're out of pace.

..through the magnificent fjords and the capitals of style...

It's alright. Airbag.

..on my search for happiness.

Yeah. Ooh!

Let's do it!

I'll be playing their games...

Oof!

..tasting local delicacies...

So that's the eye.

..and meeting the people who live on top of the world...

I like this bit.

..in the happiest place of all.

Group hug, come on.

My Scandinavian adventure begins in the northern wilderness.

In the depths of the Dark Ages,

the locals left this place and took to the seas

in search of more land and better trade.

So began the Viking age.

Viking voyages would take months,

and in between pillaging and plundering,

the warriors invented games to stay battle-ready

and amuse themselves.

These days, people still get to relive the good old times.

And they do it with games like these.

This one's called the spider.

And it's really hard.

Well done!

It looks like a lot of the games

are related to strengthening for war and for battle.

Yeah, of course - it's strength game, it's fastness, it's agility.

And... some are just for fun.

In the winter, it's very cold. You have to move to stay alive.

First up, a strength game.

Gronquist is going to attempt to carry four people.

Go, Gronquist! That's 350kg.

So close.

Close.

OK, well, I guess it's my turn.

I can carry my own three kids, so what's one extra?

Lift. Ah!

Yeah! That's better.

I can do that.

I'll just kidnap one dude.

And the all-time classic....

Look at the size of his little finger!

That's the finger of a winner.

..a Viking ripping my face off.

Fight!

Oh, my cheeks!

Ceasefire!

This looks easier. At least I got these guys to help me.

Oh! Oh!

I had sun in my eyes. Rematch, rematch.

Rematch. Change sides.

This is embarrassing. I've gotta win something.

This time I'm gonna try the underarm grip.

Yeah.

You're going down.

Yeah! Oh!

The underarm grip!

Whoo, whoo, whoo!

One, two, three - ost!

The Vikings are taking me for their post-games ritual.

So usually you fight each other and then you jump in here

and sort of get naked with each other?

Yep.

That's about it. Warm the sore muscles.

Yeah, sure.

So is a sauna really that healthy for you?

Yeah, it's very good for your health.

It's very hot in here, and then you get out of the sauna, and it's cold.

It's good for your heart, to work it.

From hot to cold.

Oh, that's the point of it.

Well, I gotta say, guys,

this is the first time I've been room this small

with nine naked people.

So far. Cheers.

Hooray!

It's good. It's good.

Alright. Let's head out for a swim, alright?

As the saying goes, if a sauna can't fix it, nothing will.

Whoo! Yee-hah!

That feels great!

Scandinavia is renowned for its gorgeous forests.

It's not just the scenery -

there's also plenty of fascinating wildlife -

beaver, wolverines, wolves...

..and of course, the mighty moose.

I'm in the beautiful Swedish countryside

to meet a gentleman famous around these parts called 'The Mooseman'.

Hello, Leffe. Hello, Anh - let's go to the moose!

Let's go.

Uh-huh.

Yep. Yep.

Moose in the wild are unpredictable -

they'll either run away or trample you to death.

Like many people in Sweden, Leffe used to hunt them.

I don't like it, so 10 years ago,

I say to myself, "No. No more hunting."

And then I started to build this farm.

And you really look after them, don't you?

Every day. Three times per day.

And they trust me and I trust them, so we're like a family.

So when I have my babies in May, I be with them from the first minute,

beside the newborn baby and the mother.

And she trusts me 100%.

So you'll sleep with them? I sleep with them.

I sleep beside the mother and the newborn baby.

Through the night? Yeah. The whole night.

Even if it's cold, you put a blanket on? Yes.

Sometimes it can be minus,

so that's why after three weeks,

I can call the babies, and they come to me before the mother.

It's amazing.

Leffe's work gives tourists a chance

to experience just how gentle moose can be.

'Cause you give 'em a kiss all of the time, don't you? Yes!

And, uh... these, they love,

and the... Holger, up there in the forest, he loves it best.

He loves you kissing him? He loves it.

Sometimes I say he kiss better than my wife.

Don't say anything.

Don't say anything. Don't tell your wife that.

No, no. No, no.

Leffe wants to show me his favourite -

Holger, a nearly 600kg male.

Is this the one you kiss? Yes!

Yes. So...

Baby. Mwah, mwah.

Ooh!

Ooh!

Mwah!

He loves 'em.

Yeah.

The moose aren't always this chummy.

In mating season, nature takes over,

and the male moose are ready to fight for their female.

But now, in a few weeks, he also be very angry.

And what happens when they're angry?

If I walked up to them, what would happen?

They... they kill you. They take their antlers.

I'll just stay here, then. Yeah, yeah. You stay here.

Yeah, that's much better.

So in September, they only drink water and run off to females.

Yes.

When I was young, I run after girls also, but I always eat something.

Happiness experts say

people who work outside with animals are the happiest of all.

Wow.

I think they're right.

That is warm now.

So, Leffe, how do you say 'cheese' in Swedish?

Ost. Ost? Ost.

One, two, three. Ost!

That was great. You like it?

Yeah.

Leffe is inviting me back to his house

to try a traditional Swedish lunch.

Very nice house. OK, welcome.

Sit down, please. Oh, smells good, too.

This is my wife, Ilona. Hello. Hello, Ilona.

Welcome.

Actually, I've heard a lot about you.

Have you? Yeah.

Yes, you kiss much better than my moose.

Oh, did he say that?

Yeah, he...

Yeah.

The moose doesn't stand a chance, is what he... said.

Mmm! Mmm, delicious.

You like it?

Mmm, really good.

Actually, it is Swedish moose stew.

It is.

Really? And there is mushrooms in it and...

There's not your moose, though? No, no. No, no.

Wild moose. Wild moose. Uh-huh. Wild moose.

Wild moose, yes.

It's not a cousin of Ludwig or anything like that?

Oh, no. No, no.

No relationship. No, no. No, not at all.