Vappu

International patterns can be discerned behind most of our festivities, but these foreign influences have, with time, been moulded into a true Finnish tradition. May Day is a case in point. Finnish Vappu combines such varied influences as the international workers' movement, European celebrations of spring, the traditional springtime revelry of Scandinavian students, the modern street carnival and the Finnishstyle enthusiasm for drinking. These ingredients all go to create a truly homespun Finnish carnival. On Vappu, every Finn celebrates the spring regardless of the fact that it may still be snowing. (Karjalainen, 2001) It may here also be told that the center of Helsinki city looks awful the next morning, ful of garbage. Nowadays, the town tries to clean the city in the early morning hours as fast as possible. The enxt day being the celebrations of 1st of May with many outdoor concerts as well as some political meetings.