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Midsummer in Helsinki - Friday, June 22, 2007, Helsinki, Finland
Martin Aas visits Helsinki for a scandinavian midsummer festival. Midsummer may refer to the period of time centered upon the summer solstice and the diverse celebrations of it around the world, but more often refers to European celebrations that accompany the summer solstice, or to Western festivals that take place in June and are usually related to Saint John the Baptist. European midsummer-related holidays, traditions and celebrations, many of which are pre-Christian in origin (although they are also called Saint John's Day festivals), are particularly important in scandinavia.
Solstitial celebrations still centre upon 24 June, which is no longer the longest day of the year. The difference between the Julian calendar year (365.2500 days) and the tropical year (365.2422 days) moved the day associated with the actual astronomical solstice forward approximately three days every four centuries until Pope Gregory XIII changed the calendar bringing the solstice to around 21 June. In the Gregorian calendar, the solstice moves around a bit but in the long term it moves only about one day in 3000 years.
Paula Koivuniemi celebrating her 60't birthday on stage
Helsinki is the capital and largest city of Finland. It is located in the southern part of Finland on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, by the Baltic Sea. The Swedish name Helsingfors is the original name of the city of Helsinki, and is still the official Swedish name for the city. Helsinki is a fabulous city to visit during the summer; It doesn’t get dark so there are plenty of time for outdoor activities and festivals.
There is a large and varied collection of museums, galleries and performance spaces. The biggest subscription newspaper in the Nordic countries, Helsingin Sanomat, is published daily in Helsinki.
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