Last weekend was midsummer. It's very important and significant holiday on Scandinavian area (especially in Finland where I live).
Almost as significant as Christmas! It's joyful and exciting holiday including all it's traditions.
At midsummer we use to eat well, drink, celebrate greatly..
The certain thing why it's celebrated is that sun doesn't go down that day because we are in north. The certain traditions in midsummer are midsummer pyre and midsummer magics. Midsummer pyre is a bonfire, which is burned in every household at midsummer night when sun is almost getting down.
Midsummer magics are funny games that especially single women and children play on midsummer evening. They always are related to finding out something about your future spouse. But I will tell you about those in continue.
Anyway, I think you are more curious to know about my midsummer day so I will tell you about it.
Ok, at the very day me and my sister Kaura woke up early, 7 AM. The morning was like any other morning but we had so much things to do that we were excited to start cleaning up and get prepared fot the midsummer day. We were glad that the day was very hot and it was not raining like usually it was at Midsummer.
As always, our cousin Eruna's family were going to come visit us and eat a banquet with us. I was a little bit in a pique that Kaura got all funny and creative works like making decorations and making a bath whisk. But I got all the boring ones like peeling potatoes and cleaning the house inside...
Me enjoying the sunny day.
Mom cleaned her yard and garden and dad got his favorite job: making food.
We ate very tasty, fancy and expensive food that day. As meal we had moose steak and grilled ham, grilled corncobs, smoked salmon, mushroom sauce, salad with mint, cherry tomatoes and feta cheese, cream potatoes spiced with garlic and new potatoes from our own field.
Midsummer magics are funny games that especially single women and children play on midsummer evening. They always are related to finding out something about your future spouse. But I will tell you about those in continue.
Anyway, I think you are more curious to know about my midsummer day so I will tell you about it.
Ok, at the very day me and my sister Kaura woke up early, 7 AM. The morning was like any other morning but we had so much things to do that we were excited to start cleaning up and get prepared fot the midsummer day. We were glad that the day was very hot and it was not raining like usually it was at Midsummer.
As always, our cousin Eruna's family were going to come visit us and eat a banquet with us. I was a little bit in a pique that Kaura got all funny and creative works like making decorations and making a bath whisk. But I got all the boring ones like peeling potatoes and cleaning the house inside...
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| Kaura's decorations |
Mom cleaned her yard and garden and dad got his favorite job: making food.
We ate very tasty, fancy and expensive food that day. As meal we had moose steak and grilled ham, grilled corncobs, smoked salmon, mushroom sauce, salad with mint, cherry tomatoes and feta cheese, cream potatoes spiced with garlic and new potatoes from our own field.
Dad's making food
While after eating meal it was time for dessert. We had a very pretty meringue cake decorated with just picked blueberries and strawberries, rhubarb pie and rocky road made by Eruna's family. As drink we all 8 drank coca cola (Eruna's family have a special habit to drink much coca cola) except our dad who had some quality wine.
Yummy!
After the dessert our cousin's family went to their own summer cottage (our neighbor house) to celebrate their Midsummer evening. Eruna went there too, but since we had an idea to sleep in tent that night, she came back to our place after a while.
When she was gone, me and Kaura set up a tend that our dad found from attic. While setting up the tend, mosquitoes ate my legs full of little itchy red bumps! I should have used some insect repellent...
On the left I am setting up the tent. On right Kaura and Eruna inside the tent.
When Eruna came back it was already late evening. It was time for sauna. (*Sauna: Finnish pronunciation is a small room or building designed as a place to experience dry or wet heat sessions. -Wikipedia)
I have never liked to be in sauna because I hate the hot air, it's a bit agonizing~ XD
It was 80 Celsius degrees in our sauna and of course we had our bath whisk which we use only in midsummer sauna.
And of course when it's about the sauna it always means that we go to swim too! We live at the lake that where we own a beach and a pier. Eruna jumped straight to the water which I always wonder how she can do it.. Water is so cold, tho!) in my opinion, dipping process can take several minutes.. I hate cold as much as I hate hot...
Eruna just jumped to the water and I suffered a little eternity!
We came from sauna and it was time for the climax of the whole midsummer! And now I'm talking about the midsummer pyre! We lighted up our bonfire and it turned out to be at least 5 meters tall and it was very beautiful! Like a Christmas three.
As I mentioned before about 'midsummer magics' well I ca't explain it well with these poor English skills of mine, so I borrow some text from other sites:
There are various magical tasks and tricks for young girls (and boys) to perform on Midsummer Eve in order to know whether they would soon be married or to get a glimpse of their future spouse.
There are plenty of different tasks, but we use to do only two of them. The first goes like: if you pick up 9 wild flowers and put them under your pillow, you can see your future spouse in your dreams. The second goes like: if you throw the bath whisk on the roof, it's head points you which direction your spouse comes from. These tasks are funny even though I'm not superstitious. This midsummer tells me that my spouse comes from south-west and I saw Bastille from One Piece in my dream... We went to sleep very late, it was 4 AM o'clock. At night me, Kaura and Eruna went walking to outside. It's always very quiet at midsummer night, when people are all celebrating or sleeping. We went to a motor road and it was silent and empty. It was exciting and scary to sit middle of it. When we heard some cars coming from far in the forest, we ran to hide. We cut through our uncles just fielded field and run as fast as we could! It was so scary and fun! Some midsummer magic tells that if you run through a field naked at the midsummer night the first who comes to you is your future spouse. Ps: No, we were not naked. x'D
After the dessert our cousin's family went to their own summer cottage (our neighbor house) to celebrate their Midsummer evening. Eruna went there too, but since we had an idea to sleep in tent that night, she came back to our place after a while.
When she was gone, me and Kaura set up a tend that our dad found from attic. While setting up the tend, mosquitoes ate my legs full of little itchy red bumps! I should have used some insect repellent...
When Eruna came back it was already late evening. It was time for sauna. (*Sauna: Finnish pronunciation is a small room or building designed as a place to experience dry or wet heat sessions. -Wikipedia)
I have never liked to be in sauna because I hate the hot air, it's a bit agonizing~ XD
It was 80 Celsius degrees in our sauna and of course we had our bath whisk which we use only in midsummer sauna.
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| We are in sauna. |
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| This is what we do with bath whisk. |
And of course when it's about the sauna it always means that we go to swim too! We live at the lake that where we own a beach and a pier. Eruna jumped straight to the water which I always wonder how she can do it.. Water is so cold, tho!) in my opinion, dipping process can take several minutes.. I hate cold as much as I hate hot...
Eruna just jumped to the water and I suffered a little eternity!
We came from sauna and it was time for the climax of the whole midsummer! And now I'm talking about the midsummer pyre! We lighted up our bonfire and it turned out to be at least 5 meters tall and it was very beautiful! Like a Christmas three.
As I mentioned before about 'midsummer magics' well I ca't explain it well with these poor English skills of mine, so I borrow some text from other sites:
There are various magical tasks and tricks for young girls (and boys) to perform on Midsummer Eve in order to know whether they would soon be married or to get a glimpse of their future spouse.
There are plenty of different tasks, but we use to do only two of them. The first goes like: if you pick up 9 wild flowers and put them under your pillow, you can see your future spouse in your dreams. The second goes like: if you throw the bath whisk on the roof, it's head points you which direction your spouse comes from. These tasks are funny even though I'm not superstitious. This midsummer tells me that my spouse comes from south-west and I saw Bastille from One Piece in my dream... We went to sleep very late, it was 4 AM o'clock. At night me, Kaura and Eruna went walking to outside. It's always very quiet at midsummer night, when people are all celebrating or sleeping. We went to a motor road and it was silent and empty. It was exciting and scary to sit middle of it. When we heard some cars coming from far in the forest, we ran to hide. We cut through our uncles just fielded field and run as fast as we could! It was so scary and fun! Some midsummer magic tells that if you run through a field naked at the midsummer night the first who comes to you is your future spouse. Ps: No, we were not naked. x'D
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| My future spouse! xD |
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