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how to celebrate midsummer the scandinavian way
It is said that a midsummers eve should start with flowers and end in fire. After endless days of winter darkness, Scandinavians are more than glad to welcome the midnight sun that barely dips its head beneath the horizon before rising again. White nights are a time of softness and celebration, of relaxing long into the evenings. We take a look at how some Scandinavian countries choose to celebrate.
norway //
On June 21st Norwegians are the first to shrug off their winter inhibitions to make way for a festival of summer that welcomes magic and mayhem. On the eve of St Hans, Norwegians gather along the South Coast, to the pretty seaside villages for street parties, pancakes and wild strawberries in the harbor and to dress their wooden boats with flowers and branches of birch. Fires blaze well into the night and everyone soaks up the splendour of festivity past the strike of midnight.
iceland //
Hiking a volcano any time of day is an amazing experience, but hiking in the golden halo of night is something else. Icelanders sometimes choose to take a pilgrimage to climb the Hengill volcano. Step across scorched lava fields, ancient craters, and lush valleys until you reach the steamy hot springs of Reykjadalur. Sink down into the warm volcanic waters to refresh before hiking back down the slopes.
finland //
To celebrate the endless soiree of white nights in Finland, it seems that everybody rents a cottage in the forest. The midnight sun streaming through shadowy branches turns the world into an incredible place. Locals will often sit out on their porch well into the small hours or even take a boat out across the lake regardless of the stars prickling the hazy soft sky.
sweden //
While Norwegians are busy tackling blazes and blooms, down in Sweden they celebrate the White Nights with a little less Viking magic. The capital celebrates the red gold sky all night by having their open-air museum Skansen stay open late, by having al fresco dining scattered across the pavements until well past bedtime, and by having folk dancing around the Maypole on midsummers eve.
While Norwegians are busy tackling blazes and blooms, down in Sweden they celebrate the White Nights with a little less Viking magic. The capital celebrates the red gold sky all night by having their open-air museum Skansen stay open late, by having al fresco dining scattered across the pavements until well past bedtime, and by having folk dancing around the Maypole on midsummers eve.
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