Juhannus: How Midsummer Weekend Is Celebrated In Finland; Best Of Finnish Cultural Practices
And then I experienced the Finnish – Lappish Winter. That was a game changer for me….
Juhannus.
I can still remember clearly my first day in Finland. It was in Autumn. Being someone who grew up in a very hot climate, I instantly fell in love with the coolness that Autumn brought as I stepped out of the Airport. And then I experienced the Finnish – Lappish Winter. That was a game changer for me. Nevertheless, I am a lover of snow. In fact that, and “Hämärä” (blue-ish white evenings) are the only things I love about the extreme cold winter days. One of the many consolations I had was that each passing day of winter brings me closer to Summer, and most importantly; to the Midsummer weekend.
You see, here in Lapland Finland, winter is usually characterized by short daylight. Some days, the sun only comes up for only about 2 – 3 hours. So we find ourselves longing for Midsummer weekend and all it’s goodness. During summer time in Lapland, most days are fully bright with very little or no darkness. Actually there are days that the sun never goes down. How beautiful and amazing it is!
Midsummer Weekend, which is called Juhannus in Finland is usually a fun weekend. That is actually when summer holidays start and offices and schools are closed. Everyone is enjoying the weekend with family and friends either at home or in the cottage (mökki in Finnish). Most families spend the whole Midsummer weekend or at least Midsummer Day (Juhannus Päivä) at the summer cottage. The streets are always so quiet. I remember my first Juhannus in Finland. There was no one in sight on the street and I wondered where everyone went. Now I know.
Creative Commons. Copyright Hansenit
These cottages are located in the forest. Finnish forests are so clean, peaceful and relaxing. The air is just so clean and refreshing. Anyone that has been to the forest in Finland would understand what I mean. It has such a captivating effect on you and you just want to be there again and again. At the cottage, the activities for the day include fishing, drinking (for most people), cooking, forest walking, Laavu trips and grilling of sausages, and so much more. I do have a blog post on Laavu titled: A Marriage of snow, fire and sausages. Click here to Read it.
Have I mentioned “Lettu”? These are easy to make pancake-like delicacies served with jam and whipped cream. They are one of the many goodies eaten on Juhannus päivä (and also on some regular days). They are sooo good! I just had 2 of those today. Absolutely the best!
The highlight of the day for me was the awesome feeling of walking right out of the sauna into the terrace. I have tried doing that in winter and it was so extreme. But that cannot be compared to the crazy Ice swimming (Avantouinti) me and my friends did last winter. Crazy, is the best word to describe it. I have a Blog post and filmed the Video of us dipping ourselves in ice cold water made by cutting a hole into the frozen lake. Yeah, crazy!
Ice Swimming! Foreigners Trying Crazy Things Finns Do
Happy Midsummer Everyone! Hyvää Juhannusta kaikille! Have fun!
Love,
Olivia ❤
PS: Below is the craaazy Ice Swimming (Avantouinti) post I mentioned earlier.
Trying Crazy Things Finns Do In Winter: Ice Swimming (Avantouinti)
Enjoy!
Written by Olivia Kumpula
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