June 21st :  Mid-Summer Night in Finland
Article by Maria Johansen

Maria Johansen, a UNWA member working with WHO in Bangladesh, is from Finland, and briefs us about Mid-Summer’s Night, June 21st, one of the most important national holidays in Finland, and the rest of the Nordic countries….

Summer begins in June. It starts the migration from the cities to country cottages on lakesides for weekends and holiday weeks.

Weather permitting, summer means being outdoors, grilling and smoking food and picking herbs from the garden. In summer, the sauna is in constant use. A Finnish holiday maker takes a dip in the lake straight from the sauna, finishing the session with sausage and beer.

The country is at its best in the summer time – and Midsummer, the last weekend in June, is the biggest of the summer celebrations. The reflection of lakeside bonfires in the water, combined with good food, makes a perfect evening: there is sausage of course, special midsummer cheese, crepes, smoked fish... The first strawberries ripen and delicious new potatoes, no bigger than a finger tip, appear in summer. These are served hot with butter and fresh dill. Tender rhubarb is the season’s fruit for pies.

Finland is a wonderful country to visit - and summer is the time to visit. I strongly recommend visiting the Lake area and Lapland to see the Midnight Summer around the middle of June when the sun does not go down at all.

And being in Finland in the summer also means enjoying the wonderful countryside. If you like hiking, you can do The Tour of a Bear 80 kilometers in beautiful nature. For further information, please, check at: http://www.finlandforyou.com or http://www.kuusamo.fi