Juhannus
Räyskälä - Finland :: 23/24 June 2006 :: photos by Claudio Santori
Juhannus
Juhannus 2006, my first Juhannus in Finland with Hospitality Club people. Midsummer, celebration of summer. Camping or Rock Festival? Camping ;)
 Trying to fit everything in |
 Jenni and the 17yo Toyota |
 Räyskälä |
 Iso-Melkutin lake |
 Juhannus 2006 - 4589 |
 Tomi |
 Jenni and Juanita |
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 Army Tent |
 Midsummer cheap tent |
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 The Sauna Project |
 in the lake |
 clear water |
 Steffi |
 Alcohol |
 Don |
 is the toilet working? |
 Keijo, Elise, Pulina, Mikaela |
 Kliment |
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 Juhannus 2006 - 4633 |
 Juhannus 2006 - 4634 |
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 Pulina |
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 hard wokr |
 wood for the sauna |
 Juhannus 2006 - forest |
 Bananas |
 wood for heating the stones steffi Keijo Juanita Don |
 Stela |
 Don |
 Vera |
 Egor |
 Juanita |
 Juhannus 2006 - 4679 |
 Steffi and Kliment |
 Juhannus 2006 - 4684 |
 Mikko |
 Sauna is working |
 Jenni |
 lakeside |
 Jenni |
 Tomi is fixing the toilet |
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 camping sauna |
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 Juhannus 2006 - 4734 |
 building the camping sauna |
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 fire |
 23.00 |
 the camp |
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 Steffi and Sami |
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 Proposing |
 the time is 00.30 |
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 Claudio and Elise |
 Sami and Stela |
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 Eeva |
 2.52 |
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 Juhannus 2006 - 4am |
 Juhannus 2006 - 4am |
 10.32 still sleeping |
 Hangover |
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 good morning |
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 Don is still sleeping |
 Goodmorning |
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 me and Juanita swimming in the lake |
 The morning shower |
 eeva swimming |
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 beautiful clouds |
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 Jenni |
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 the model |
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 Marieke |
 Elise |
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 Filip |
 Army tent |
 Juhannus 2006 - 4925 |
 Juhannus 2006 - 4927 |
 Alcohol ;) |
 Sudoku |
 Kilment and Steffi |
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 Nikol |
 Tanning |
 Marieke |
 Keijo |
 Juanita |
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 Frisbie |
 Monika |
 Filip and Monika |
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 Sami and Stela |
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 Henri |
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 clouds |
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 Mikko ja Tomi saunassa |
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 real finns |
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 Tomi in the lake |
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 Juhannus 2006 - 5012 Tomi Mikko and Juanita |
 Dutch girl |
 leaving |
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 sunset |
 who's in the toilet? |
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 Juhannus 2006 - 5055 |
 Lavatanssit! elise ja Mikko |
 Jenni ja Henri |
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 Juanita ja Mikko |
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 Juanita and Henri |
 Vera and Tomi |
 Monika and Filip |
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 Steffi and Don dancing |
Juhannus from wikipedia
In folk magic, still well known but no longer seriously practiced, midsummer was a very potent night and the time for many small rituals, mostly for young maidens seeking suitors. Will o wisps were believed to be seen at midsummer night, marking a treasure.
Midsummer in Finland is celebrated a lot more intensely as in Sweden. A great many people get indecently drunk and happy. It is also an occasion where many people are looking for a relationship (often rather short one). The statistics of the number of people drowned and killed in accidents are morbidly counted every year while the number of assaults also peaks. It's also common to start summer holidays from the Midsummer day.
Who was there...
Claudio (claudios), Jenni (jennikatariina), Johanna (juanita), Marieke (miepie), Tomi (tenetsi) and Vera (tenetsivera), Egor, Nikol (nyckey) and Steffi (miniputzi), Jukka (jukkas) and Eeva (eevajohanna), Viivi (viivi80), Don (theriel), Kliment (kliment), Elise (elsis), Pulina (pulina) and the 42 camels, Mikaela, Sami (bbwolf) and Stela (nenna), Henri (hsainio), Keijo (echostain) and Mikko, Sami (the underage boy ;)
Missing people: the singing couple ;)
Message from Tomi
Moi!
Thank you all of you who bothered to come and have this adventure to wild wild nature on the backlands of Finland. It was amazing that were were so many enthusiastic Juhannus spirits there. True magic of white night of midsummer.
Indeed, I remember this as the greatest Juhannus so far. Next year we'll build a bigger sauna for all 30 people at same time ;)
Remember the smell of pine trees, fresh air, the blue reflections of sky in the Lake Iso-Melkutin, smoke from campfire, hot löyly from sauna, wild dancing with rhythms of humppa, valssi, tango, jenkka, polkka and many others in lavatanssit played by Tanssiorkesteri Jermut, beautiful music and singing by our performing couple from Czech, high prices in local store, sun warming you on the shore of a lake, lake cooling you off while swimming and diving in crystal clear water, cold beer and sprits, wonderful and sometimes not so wonderful culinary experiences, sound of passing aircrafts, exciting encounters with local population who approached fearlessly the intruders, new friends, wonderful people... it was a great weekend. Let's do it again next year :) But let's recryte more people with cars :)) Or better yet, let's have a bus!
Thank you Claudio for such great photos. I try to add few photos in the gallery as well when it works.
And if you got some kind of enthusiasm about going to nature and enjoy the unlimited possibilities of wilderness in Finland, you can always ask me where to go, what to do, I can see if I can help.
Special thanks for all tireless sauna builders and heaters who made it possible to have a rather wonderful, yet absurd experience.
Tomi