vappu

Public or national holidays are special. Which would indeed explain the word “national” there. A day off from work is rarely the same in two different countries and to a new comer the excitement of a holiday rarely opens at the first sight. Different nations have different habits and it often takes years to remember them all, though the adaptation process is by far shorter than the time it takes to learn away from old ways.

First of May or Vappu for the Finns is one of the rare days that are a guaranteed day off in most of Europe. Well it appears that the Brits still ignore this celebration of workers or celebrate it by working but they are a rare exception.

In Finland nobody works on the first of May. In fact the celebration starts already the day before – shops close, champagne bottles pop their corks and children get candy and balloons and whistles and it is time for carnival.

In France most people don’t work. But instead of gathering on the streets the French pack their bags and head off to the country for a long, quiet weekend. 1st of May is THE holiday in May, which is already littered with numerous work free days. So nobody works. Except that the bakery is open, because the absence of fresh bread and croissants is in France considered a synonym to a crime against humanity. And many of the cafes are also open, just because when one has a day off, longwinded conversations among the men of the neighbourhood are a must. And then your local Maghreb trader will have his shop open, just in case you need a new hammer or a litre of milk. So where as a Nordic shopkeeper will ensure that the door is properly locked, the Parisian corner shop owner gets up especially early to ensure that all the needs of his customers are satisfied on the festive day.

Here you get flower. Lilies. Everybody buys lilies for good luck and happiness and all the other nice things you want to wish for your close ones. In Finland you get, well you, well, really you just get drunk. So whereas I got an email from a professor assigning me a presentation for next Monday, my Finnish colleagues had been celebrating for a week. I think a teacher assigning work for this sacred day would be reported at least to the president in the north, where as in France the professors think that it is yet another day for the students to progress in their work. And that is what I did. Mind you he himself was probably enjoying a long family lunch somewhere in Normandy.

I like traditions and parties but I must say I very much enjoyed the quiet streets of Paris last night. And the lonely pedestrian with lilies in his hand.

Then again, I think I would equally have enjoyed a sunny picnic in the park with a bottle of bubbly.