Kokonsa’s eagerness to witness the most glorious of all Finnish festivals,
Juhannus (mid summer festival) ended him on Friday 19th July on the shores
of Joroinen, where he joined many Finns there at the summer cottage to
climax the day with Sauna, Fishing and KOKKO (Bonfire).
Actually I never dreamt that such a day like Juhannus, will come in my life
where I will find myself in the midst of peace loving Finns and have a real
taste of Finnish culture as a foreigner. But to my uttermost surprise, this
day was realized on Juhannus day which all my African friends in Savontie,
and I, will always recount with relish.
One interesting thing I found doing on Juhannus day was, when I was incredibly
told by my Finn friends to collect seven different flowers and put it under
my pillow and my future wife will be reveal to me in dream. But because one
can’t forego tradition, and due to the fact that I wanted to enjoy every bit
of the celebration, I did as directed but unfortunately for Kokonsa, I was
over slept that when Juhannus visited me in dream to tell me my future wife,
I was already joining hands with darkness in sleep so Juhannus just left me
a note and told me to try it on another summer. Hehehe.
Honestly what made me to believe that Juhannus is a great day for Finns was
when I found myself in the main city centre and met nobody on the real day.
The few ones I met were young people who had already taken the lead in the
drinking competition which Kokonssa was a potential contender. hehehe. Even
with that the smile on their faces proved beyond all reasonable doubt that,
indeed the day is a special day in the Finnish calendar.
Frankly speaking, I never pass by any Finn, without him or her saying,”Hyvää
Juhannus”. It was wonderful and I admired it a lot. But one thing I noticed
was that, most people chose to celebrate the day in their summer cottage
than been in town. Most of the clubs were closed except “Next step” where I
joined other few people there again after my enjoyment in Joroinen to bid
goodbye to the night. Interestingly, drinking was a competition on Juhannus.
Almost every Finn consumed something. I tried my best to challenge my Finn
friends but they proved to me that, “I am a child in the universe”. hehehe.
I wish the day continues and launched in Africa someday. They would have
loved it!!!!!
Yes, that also reminds me of the mosquitoes! They were unfriendly to me at all
when I went for the fishing and enjoying the Kokko. Hehe. But I was glad to
learn that Finnish mosquitoes don’t give Malaria. Hyvääää.
I believe everybody enjoyed him or herself to the fullest. However, please
bear in mind that the sun’s still shining and scorching, so in case you have
not had enough, give it what it takes to enjoy this glorious summer while it
last.
Shalom!
