| A Few Swift Rounds Of Vappu Talk |
|
|
| By Nina Lah | ||||||
| Wednesday, 10 May 2006 | ||||||
|
Vappu, or Walpurgis Night, is the holiday you don’t want to miss.
 One of the main holidays of the season, it’s a great excuse to have fun. But different people celebrate it in different ways. 65 Degrees North journalist Nina Lah interviewed Petteri, a Finnish technical student; Natalie Smous, a single Finnish-Dutch kindergarten nurse; and Maarit Räisänen, a mother in a Finnish family with two children, to see what they thought about Finland’s biggest party.Petteri: “This year was mostly just partying then trying to recuperate then partying some more. Also I like to go and watch the technical freshmen take a little dive into the pond at Rauhala. Or at least have a picnic there.”  Natalie Smous Natalie: “I started already on Friday. I went to sing to a karaoke bar and next day we went out dancing. On Vappu eve we went to see some band in club Teatria. We sat on a patio outside the bar and afterwards went to the park, where all the students were. I decided we should get a bottle of champagne. And we did!” Is that typical? Natalie “Yes, bubbly wine is typical.” Maarit Räisänen spent Vappu in a different way again. Maarit: “We decorated the house, bought balloons and party streamers (serpentiini), drank sima (a drink made from water, sugar, yeast and raisins) and ate doughnuts (munkki).” How do you usually celebrate vappu? Petteri: “I usually go to at least one of the evening parties arranged by the technical guilds: typically Jälkiuitto, which is the first actual party of the Vappu season.” Natalie: “For example last year I had a foreign boyfriend and he was not interested in Vappu and drunk people, so we were playing tennis on Vappu eve. So for me this year’s Vappu was totally different than last year’s. This year I did more things.” Maarit: “It’s mostly a drinking holiday and of course students celebrate it a lot. Now, when I have children, I don’t want to go to the city because everybody is drinking alcohol. We usually decorate our home with balloons, eat typical Vappu things, and sometimes we go to eat at a restaurant.” Does it actually mean anything? Petteri: “It means the biggest party of the year, sunny weather, seeing my friends and maybe grilling some sausages. In general, partying.” Natalie Smous: “First day of May is Labour Day. It’s for the workers and represents what they want but on the other hand it’s also for the students.” So it’s basically for everybody? Natalie: “Well, more for students. I see them everywhere with their colourful suits on, drinking. Vappu means that spring is finally here. It’s the first time you eat ice cream, have a picnic in a park. It’s party time.” Maarit: “It’s a workers and students holiday. To me, Vappu doesn’t mean a lot, because I have always been at work during it. Now that I have a family – well, it’s also a family holiday. We go to the city to see all the people and buy a balloon and cotton candy and ice cream. And of course with the children we decorate the house, blowing balloons. For Vappu, people often drink wine and beer for many days and that is what I don’t understand.” What do you think of the way May Day is celebrated nowadays in Oulu? Petteri: “I think it’s nice.” Natalie: “Honestly, I think there is a bit too much drinking. I live in the city and from Thursday on I saw drunk people in the streets, especially the students.” Maarit: “Students party for many days. This year they started on Wednesday already, continue on Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday and some ended it on Monday. Students get together and go swimming to a lake or a sea, at least some do. And this year they had a sauna on the beach. They also wear their student overalls and white graduation hats.” Lastly, can you describe Oulu Vappu ? Petteri: “At least when it’s a good Vappu it’s sunny, fun and dirty. During that time usually the snow has just recently melted or still is melting so after the winter it’s still dirty.” Natalie: “Happy loud people, nice sunny weather, many people in the city, people in funny clothes, everybody buys balloons, drinks mead and bubbly vine and people meet outside bars on patios.” Maarit: “Graduation hats, mead, doughnuts, tippaleipä (sweet May Day biscuit), balloons, party streamers and ice cream. It’s also the time when leftist people march together. In the last 10 years the march has been very small but 10 or 20 years ago it was very big and it was in every city.” This photo report shows the choicest bits from Oulu's Vappu, 2006.
|
||||||
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
