Studying and Living in Finland LUT Alumni Experience by Aisulu Harjula

Vappu, the May Day Celebration

For me Vappu is a traditional picnic in the city fortress on 1st of May and visiting a cozy home-furnished cafe there. This year it has been also a new experience of performing in the Vappu concert in a choir.

I sang on the Vappu-concert in the Carpe Diem choir which I have attended since January. It has been a really nice, pleasant and a new experience for me. The stage is located in Pusupuisto (Kissing Park) of Lappeenranta, and there are many open air concerts.

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Vappu is a Finnish holiday, the celebration of May Day. It is also a spring festival in Northern countries. The Vappu day is like a carnival for everyone – people dress brightly, go outside and celebrate the holiday. In Lappeenranta student Vappu celebration (in the old manner – Wappu) is the longest in Finland – it starts already from mid April with intensive two-week celebration activities.

Wappu program includes:

  • thematic parties such as toga party (everyone dresses in a toga), Finnish 70s music party, sitsit party (also sittning – people gather in restaurants at long tables, eat and sing drinking songs),
  • music concerts of choirs and metal bands,
  • challenges for first-year students (fuksitehtävät) and painting student guilds’ logos on pavement in the student campus,
  • sauna parties – wooden sauna is even placed near the university’s main entrance,
  • concerts and picnicking in the city fortress for everyone on 1st of May.

FotorCreated3It is also my first Vappu which I celebrate as an employee, not as a student anymore so it feels a bit like missing those fun student days.

1782436_749571651753642_20678394846119214_oThis is my student Vappu in 2014

And this Vappu the student union magazine Aalef has published my first written in Finnish -article about Kazakh New Year that happened this March (blogpost). This is so nice! =) =) =) FotorCreated.

Cover photo is from LUT instagram.

About The Author

Researcher at LUT, Master of Economics, LUT & GSOM Saint Petersburg State University. Focus on Strategy, Innovation and Sustainability. Background in natural sciences.