May Day (Vappu)!

May first (called Vappu in Finland) is one of the biggest holidays in Finland. The excitement in the air for a week before Vappu was palpable.

Last week, my Facebook feed had more than a few articles about public urination, excessive drinking and reasons why to avoid the city parks where Vappu is celebrated. I knew that our favorite park, Kaivopuisto (the park by the sea where we went sledding in the winter), would be filled with picnickers celebrating Vappu and that it could get crazy and I am NOT a fan of big crowds. Part of me thought, "how bad could it get?" and the other part of me feared it would be similar to the drunken party that was Halloween at my Alma mater, the University of Wisconsin Madison (must...not...drink...kamikazes...ever...again...) .

One of the first things I noticed the week before Vappu were the balloon vendors. And while my children begged for an enormous Angry Birds balloon, at 20 Euros ($27) a pop--pun intended--we had to forgo this Finnish tradition.

We had plans to picnic with Finnish friends at Kaivopuisto. And I have to say, while there were A LOT of people,

it was really quite tame. Everybody finds their own little piece of rock or grass and sets up their picnic.

It is customary to drink sparkling wine (or Champagne if budget allows!)  And I love that kids Joey's age run around collecting the wine bottles to turn in for a few extra Euros! 

I always find it interesting to see what other cultures prepare for a picnic. Here, salmon seems to be quite a popular choice.  We also tried Finnish potato salad and "tippaleipa" a Finnish funnel cake.  These two foods in addition to hot dogs (no buns please) are very common Vappu foods.   We brought the ever-popular Finnish salsa and guacamole!

I'm sure at this point you're wondering..."what's with all the white hats?"

These are the hats Finns receive when they graduate from high school (lukio).   While May Day is generally a day to celebrate workers in many countries all over the world, here in Finland, it has become more of a student celebration. 
High schools are not the only institutions represented at Vappu...you also see a lot of people wearing these jumpers:

The jumpers represent different universities and departments within the university and the patches all over the jumpers are from different clubs and contests (i.e. sledding, drinking...etc.). Joey covets the jumper and the hat--he says he's not leaving Finland and that he will graduate from high school here. Any Finn out there who wants a permanent house guest for the next 6 years? Of course, then there's university.... ; )

We had a fantastic day.  The weather was beautiful, the company engaging...

and then we went home to play some good old fashioned American running bases! 

Back to the steps

I knew we had to return to the Helsinki Cathedral and Senate Square in the spring.  (Remember the snowy steps back in January?)

I love the contrast of the white church against that blue, blue Helsinki sky. I've honestly asked myself many times if it is possible for the sky to be bluer here than it is at home. It sure does seem like it is.

This time, we peeked inside the church.

For a Catholic gal who's quite used to churches that are filled with religious art, the plain Protestant churches that I have visited here in Helsinki are quite stark. For example, this is my church at home:

Photo from St. Clements website.

Here is another view of the inside of the Helsinki Cathedral.  Quite a difference! 

But it's the outside of the church we were interested in anyway on this beautiful spring day.

This time, instead of sledders, the steps were filled with people eating ice cream (it was only 50 degrees Fahrenheit but hey, this is Helsinki, not Barcelona!)

By the way, for a photo hobbyist, taking photos in Finland is quite a challenge. I can never seem to escape the shadows...

Jean Sibelius...

...is from Finland and he's a pretty well-regarded composer here and, well, everywhere. You can read more about him here.

(That's his face in the background.)

Rob and I had the incredible good fortune of attending one the Helsinki Orchestra's rehearsals of works by Jean Sibelius earlier this year.

Sadly, I'm not a big fan of his music. It's a bit dark and moody for my tastes, which is odd because I studied classical music for 15 years--almost majored in music in college--and I loved playing moody Russian compositions. I thought the styles would be similar. Perhaps they are. But perhaps my tastes have changed over the years....

I am a big fan of this monument to Sibelius, however, which is located near the sea in Helsinki quite close to the boys' school.

There are more than 600 hollow steel pipes welded together by artist Eila Hiltunen.

The experience reminded me a bit of viewing Chicago's beloved "bean" sculpture in that you can stand underneath the sculpture, get "up close and personal" and feel the cool steel if you reach out to touch it. 

I miss the Bean.  I miss Chicago. 

Hey Finnish Followers...

...help a girl out!

You were all so helpful when you suggested things for us to do over the ski break, I was hoping you could give me suggestions for your favorite "can't-miss-before-you-leave-Finland" sights.

So far, we plan on visiting Turku and the Åland Islands, St. Petersburg, Savonlinna, Porvoo, Tallinn and hopefully Oulu. We also plan on fitting in a few things around Helsinki that we haven't seen yet such as the island beaches and Linnanmäki.

Give me your best "can't miss" sights!

Kittos!

Why is it so light out?

When we first arrived in Helsinki, Sam would wake up several times a night and wonder what time it was. It was dark until past 9 in the morning and got dark again at 3:30 in the afternoon. He was very confused and never knew when he was supposed to be sleeping and when he was supposed to be awake. :)

Now, he can't understand why he has to go to bed when it is so bright outside and it feels like 2 in the afternoon. So I told Rob he should explain (with the help of some produce) why it is light out so late into the evening--because I certainly couldn't do it! (I'm not quite sure why they added the plum, though.)

For those of you following along back in the States, the suns starts streaming in our apartment at about 5:30 a.m. these days and, eventhough it sets at about 9:15, it is still light out until 9:30.

So after we get the kids in bed, with the light of day in the window over my shoulder, I've started making plans for Midsummer here in Finland. We hope to rent one of the famous mökkis (summer cottages) Finns speak of so frequently. Apparently, Helsinki clears out in June and July as people head en masse to the countryside to relax and get closer to nature.

More musings on life in Helsinki...

With the nicer weather, we are spending more and more time at parks and playgrounds. 

Today, as I watched the many, many, MANY children playing in our neighborhood park, I started thinking about the benefits of this kind of unstructured, outdoor play for children. 

But let me back up just a bit.  Why are kids outside so much in the first place? 

My personal opinion is that being outdoors is a Finnish core value. Finns are great lovers of the outdoors--no matter what the weather. I mean, consider outer clothing for children (see blog posts here and here). It is designed to make it possible for children to...be outside, get dirty and have fun.

Rob writes about recess for students in one of his latest blog posts. Joey and Sam have 2 -3 recesses each day.  Many of the kids I see at the playground are there with a preschool, kindergarten, daycare or grade school. When a daycare takes a group of kids to the playground, it isn't just a brief visit. Kids are there for a long period of time. They play in the sand. They play on the playground equipment. They sled in the winter. They run.  They climb.  Being outside is an important, substantial part of their day.

As I watch kids play, I can see many benefits of this kind of play.

First, kids here are very creative in their play. I think my kids are creative.  And, I am a park mom. I take my kids to playgrounds and open green space a lot--but they usually rely on ME to direct their fun:

-Sharks and minnows? I'm the shark.
-Hide and go seek? I'm the seeker.
-Just plain running around and playing on the equipment? "Mom, look at me. Mom watch what I can do. Mom, look how fast I can..."

But today, I watched several Finnish kids as they played. One took a play broom and swept the footprint for a house into the pebbles of the playground. Another took the broom and attached it to one of the tricycles set out for kids to use and fashioned a sort of primitive street sweeper. Still another child used the broom in a more typical setting and swept out the little house at the top of the slide.

(On the flip side, I rarely see Finnish parents playing with their children on the playground.  I guess there is a fine line!)

Second, I notice a lot of children with incredible upper body strength and really well-developed gross motor skills. I've watched many kids shimmy their way up the frame of the swingset and dangle from the bar on top that holds the swings.

Obviously a third benefit is the socialization they get from so much unstructured play time. I rarely see kids fighting at the playground. I see them take turns. I see them share. I see these playground skills reflected in daily, adult life on public transportation, while waiting in line at the Posti or the grocery store...pretty much in everything I do here. After all the adults were once children on the playground too!

I think it's important to add, by the way, that there isn't tons of supervision and adult intervention on the playground either.  In fact, I think in the U.S.,  all of our rules would take the fun out of a typical day at the Finnish playground!  I can hear it now..."too many kids/not enough supervision; not enough structured activity; kids are getting too dirty; it's too dangerous to climb to the top of the swingset...no climbing allowed...too spinny, kids will throw up."  (I actually heard this last one when I helped design a playground in Chicago--the kids wanted a tire swing, but I was told NO NEW tire swings will be added to Chicago playgrounds.  They make kids throw up.) 

"Ah phooey" is all I have to say!   

Spring has sprung

It's finally feeling a bit like spring here in Helsinki. 

The crocuses have been blooming for a while, the daffodils and jonquils look like they are ready to open any day.  There are buds on the trees, the temperature is in the high 40s and low 50s, it is raining and puddles are everywhere! 

We've turned in the snow pants in these here parts for rain pants. 

In fact, Lily has an entire rubber ensemble from head to toe. She's even got rubber mittens!

Since the ground at the park is mostly coarse sand/small pebbles, I'm all for this garb. It gets pretty messy after a few hours at the park and I can pretty much hose her down (well her clothes at least) as she walks in the door.

By the way, Finns' rain suits are much better looking than Lily's. Lily's suit was pulled together for mere Euros at various second hand stores in town. Most kids I see in our neighborhood have matching pants and coats (or, for younger kids, an all in one suit) and they reflect the Finnish design aesthetic, much more so than Lily's plan Jane mismatched rubber suit!