As long as I can remember, I have always been a proud Finn. My parents always told me that if you are born in Finland, you have won the lottery, and I truly believe it. But what makes Finland such a great country? Nature, people, sauna, and sisu.
There is no direct translation for the word sisu, but it means inner strength, resilience, and the ability to keep going even when things get tough. For me, sisu is visible in everyday life – whether it’s walking to school in freezing temperatures or working hard to achieve your goals. It’s not about winning easily; it’s about not giving up.
When it comes to Finnish festivals, I think the best one is Midsummer. My friends and I have this one Midsummer tradition where we (of course) go to the sauna and swimming (multiple times). In the sauna, we (and I literally mean this) beat each other with a vihta (sauna whisk), and there is always one so-called “military general” who does the beating. We pretend that the sauna is like a “military torture camp.” Yeah, don’t ask… We actually had a friend from Israel who got to experience our Midsummer, and he said that he’s definitely coming again, so it can’t be that bad.
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