Have You Heard About Vappu Festival in Finland? Well, let me enlighten you quickly and simply. Vappu festival is one of the many celebrations in Finland which dates back to as early as the 1700s and finds its roots in memory of Saint Walpurga of the Catholic Church. The celebrations begin on the evening of April 30th which is “Vappuaatto” and extends to the 1st Day of May. Although Vappu is celebrated by all and sundry, the day is particularly fueled by students clad in their traditional Vappu overalls (haalarit) and white caps (ylioppilaslakki) awarded upon graduating from high school. 

Students during Vappu carnival in Jyväskylä Finland. Photo Credit: ESN Jyväskylä.

Also, most Finnish families usually visit the parks or some kind of events or have picnics with family friends and relatives. One of my favorite things about Vappu is the array of delicacies that are associated with the celebration. There is the special doughnuts called “munkki”. I remember the first time I tasted it. It does taste good (well of course, it’s coated around with sugar), and it is quite soft on the inside.

The very best of munkit I have eaten are those traditionally made either at home or by a reputable bakery. I recently made a Video on my Channel where I was trying some Finnish goodies, and this was one of them. It was so much fun to shoot!. :). Watch it below:

Finnish Munkit (plural) are usually accompanied by a traditionally fermented mead known as “Sima” whose main ingredients are lemons, brown sugar, and raisins, among other things.

And then there is the tippaleipä, that is “funnel cake” in English. I remember the first time I saw these, I was very skeptical about eating it because it really looked funny to me. Looks like the person who made them was in a hurry. Surprisingly, it does taste good. :D.

Another popular addition to the day’s plate of food are sausages. There are small ones called “nakki” which are boiled or bigger ones called “makkara” which are mostly roasted.

Now as a foreigner who has been living in Finland for 4 years and has experienced Vappu celebrations each year, I must say that one of the things I have noticed about Vappu is the high amount of alcohol consumption on these days. Vappu Eve and the actual Vappu day are heavily characterized by people in festive moods accompanied with partying, drinking and hanging out with friends.

In all honesty, being that the Finnish culture and society is not particular popular for high notch excitement and exuberance, I find Vappu festivals to be very exciting and interesting. It is indeed nice to see people in a joyful, vigorous and cheerful mood.

Hei, I can not end this write up without a shout out to Amanda. Haha! Amanda is a statue in Helsinki who kinda gets a lot of attention during happy celebrations like this. What is the story behind this? Well let’s leave that for another day.

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