In Finland, there is this thing called juhannus. A few years ago, our former colleague Hetta described it like this:
Well, Midsummer – or juhannus – as it is called in Finnish, is one of the most important public holidays in our calendar. It is celebrated, as you probably guessed, close to the dates of the Summer Solstice, when day is at its longest in the northern hemisphere. Finland being so far up north, the sun doesn’t set on juhannus at all. Considering that in the winter we get the never ending night, it’s no surprise we celebrate the sun not setting.
So what do Finns do to celebrate juhannus? I already told you we flock to our summer cottages, but what then? We decorate the cottage with birch branches to celebrate the summer, we stock up on new potatoes which are just now in season and strawberries as well. We fire up the barbecue and eat grilled sausages to our hearts content. We burn bonfires that rival with the unsetting sun. And we get drunk.
If that isn’t vivid enough, this video may help:
And because the celebration is just so… celebratory, it’s easy to lose your phone.
So here are a few ways to prepare yourself for a party that lasts all night.
If you lose your phone, you’re going to need this so make sure you have it written down somewhere safe.
This makes your life a lot easier if your party goes too well and it’s pretty simple on any iOS device. Just make sure you’re using a strong, unique password for your iCloud account. Unfortunately on an Android phone, you’ll have to use a third-party app.
Enjoy being with your friends and assume that they’ll get the pictures you need to refresh your memory. And while you’re out you can give your phone a quick internal “clean” with our free Boost app.
[Image by Janne Hellsten | Flickr]
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