FinnFest Week

FinnFest Week

It’s that magical time of the year when FinnFest is held somewhere in the world. It is a time for the Finnish-American, Finnish, and friends of Finland communities to come together to share Finnish culture. It is a time for making new connections, reuiniting with old ones, and injecting excitement into projects going on involving Finnish and Finnish-American culture. The last time Duluth hosted FinnFest, it was 2008.

If you are heading up this year or a coming year to the Duluth area for FinnFest, here is a short list of things I recommend you check out!

Coffee Visits

Coffee Visits

Before I lived in Finland, I really did not drink coffee. I maybe would have some kind of sweet coffee drink now and then, but it wasn’t a regular occurance at all. When I lived in Oulu, that changed pretty quickly. I got a tiny yellow coffee maker (the tag said it was a coffee maker for a cabin) at a thrift store and bought some Finnish branded coffee from the grocery store. I figured I may need these not for me to make coffee every morning for myself, but rather for hosting guests. What I hadn’t neccissarily seen on the horizon were two years of coffee visits with friends and family of the friendship family (kummiperhe) I was connected with through the University of Oulu, as well as with some of the friends of my university friends.

Introducing Maggie, a Minnesotan in Finland with A Sweet Sock pattern

Introducing Maggie, a Minnesotan in Finland with A Sweet Sock pattern

After high school I decided to spend a year in Finland as a Rotary Youth Exchange Student. When I got to my host community of Iisalmi, I could not believe the variety of yarn available in the supermarket. I immediately bought some purple, variegated Novita Seitsemän Veljestä and started knitting a cowl. It was so nice to live in a place where my hobby was more common and such a part of the culture. The results were also just as practical as they had been in Minnesota, an endless supply of cold weather accessories.