The Holiday Season: Perhe ja ystävät (friends and family)

Me baking pulla
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This entry is long overdue.  Ever since the end of the Lapland tour,  Christmas has been in the air.  Finns begin the Christmas SPirit time alot earlier then Canada.  Its true the Christmas tree and decorations don't come until November Actually the CHristmas tree doesn't come in until the 24th of December),  but people are talking about Christmas and the shops have their Christmas themes starting in October.  I suppose its because,  unlike America,  there aren't really any celebrations in the fall.  So Finns have no "distractions" such as Halloween and Thanks Giving to divert their attention from the uncoming joyful seasons of love.  For myself,  Christmas has been one of the main focuses of the earlier period of my exchange.  Finland is Christmas land afterall.

pulla
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However an important celebration which comes some time before Christmas is the Finnish Independance Day - December 6th.  Finland became independant in 1917 however they've had quite alot of hardship since - trying to stay independant.  Most notable of course is the difficult times of the Winter War and the Continuation War which took place while the rest of Europe was being torn apart by World War II.  The solemnity of the celebration of Finland's independance is a reminder that it was not acquired easily and that the resulting losses are no laughing matter.  Of course,  it is not an unhappy time of the year,  simply a time to acknowledge the price of freedom.

again
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It is customary to put up candles on the windowsill,  eat reindeer or moose stew,  play music,  and watch TV.  Yes,  thats right,  on independance day the president invites special guests to her palace in Helsinki.  Everyone from embassadors to pop music idols is invited.  In fact, anyone who does something significant for Finland can be invited.  People watch this on television and compare the different costumes and dresses worn by the guests.  Many of the embassadors wear national costumes.  I was very intrigued by the Icelandic embassador's national costume.  It was so different and I don't know much about Iceland but it definitely made me curious about the culture.  Other than that,  we had a cheese and wine luncheon in the evening and that was that.  No parades,  no fireworks,  no crazy people with blue and white painted faces making fools of themselves in the streets.  It seems,  unlike North America,  independance is not so far back as to have forgotten the bloodshed.

Seija taught me how to bake
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Christmas is,  as those who celebrate it know,  a time of family traditions.  It is therefore bound to be the time when exchange students miss their home most.  However,  I found I have family here which was comforting and I had an excellent Christmas celebration despite the odd pang when thought of my own family traditions came to mind.  Much of this family resides in Kouvola - my host parents' hometown.  Or at least that's where I met most of my family. We spent some time at my host father's parents' home.  I also met his sister there and her husband and children.  They are very nice people and they live in Helsinki.  They have two sons and one daughter.  The eldest is only five or six I think though I'm not sure.  Eevi,  the daughter is the youngest and she is very shy but she seemed to warm up to me at my last visit.  I learned that Finns often let their babies sleep outside - doesn't that sound like mistreatment to you?  But at my last visit to Kouvola,  Eevi was sleeping outside all bundled up in her stroller.  Apparently,  children sleep better outside.  In fact,  when Kirsi,  her mother,  started to  dress Eevi up for the outdoors,  she enthusiatically said "nukkumään!" which means "lets sleep!".    How often do you hear children say that?

my gingerbread house
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I have had a good time getting to know my new family.  Seija my host father's mother has taught me to bake pulla and pipari which are both traditional deserts.  Pipari is like a gingerbread cookie but thinner and harder (actually "pipari" means cookie but it is used especially to mean gingerbread around Christmas time).  Pulla is baked all year round but Christmas seems a special time for it.  It resembles a cinamon roll.  Its alot of fun to make.  I've also made gingerbread houses.  So,  as you can tell,  there has been alot of sweet eating this Christmas season.

joulutortu- another typical Christmas desert
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I will leave Christmas celebrations for another entry since I spent Christmas in Ristiina.  See you soon