"Before Christmas we celebrate Lucia Day on the 13th of December. On that day we have a little ceremony in the hall in our school. The Lucia girl has a hat with candles. She sings and has a little talk.
On Christmas time many families light up candles, sing Christmas carols and send Christmas cards. In Finland we have a Christmas tree inside. It is nice to decorate it. Many celebrate Christmas with family and friends either at home or a summer cottage.
On Christmas Eve we get the presents. Santa Claus brings them with a sledge. He has red jacket and red pants. On Christmas Eve people eat nice Christmas meal: ham or turkey and different kinds of casseroles. And of course we eat some sweets and ginger bread. Some people go to church and read the Holy Bible.
On Christmas Day, which is the day after Christmas Eve, children love to play with snow outside or play inside with the presents. Many people watch TV. And of course we eat again a lot of Christmas food.
On Boxing Day the 26th Dec we usually visit in friends and family."
Written by pupils on class 4C, Töölö Primary School.
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| 4th, 5th and 6th grade girls on the Lucia Day. |
The pictures above are taken in our school's Lucia Day Feast. Saint Lucy, or Santa Lucia, is a Christian martyr celebrated widely in Finland and the rest of Scandinavia on the 13th of December. The feast has its origins in Sweden and it spread to Helsinki at the end of the 1920s. Finland's Swedish-speaking minority has selected a nation-wide Lucia maiden since 1950. Today, festivities are held all around the country and also in many schools. According to legend, Lucy was a maiden who converted to Christianity against the will of her large family. She defied her father's wishes by refusing to marry a nobleman selected for her, and she even gave her dowry to the poor. She suffered a martyr's death in Syracuse, Sicily, on December 13th, 304 AD. Her eyes were pierced but she retained her sight, which is why she is also known as the 'bearer of light' and the saint of the blind. The red ribbon and candles in Lucia's outfit symbolise the blood she shed and the light she brings.
Unlike many other European countries, we have Christmas dinner and hand out presents on Christmas Eve, the 24st. On the 25th we usually rest and, as there's usually lots of food left, have another Christmas dinner (and a third one on Boxing Day, and a fourth one...). Some people also go to church and bring candles to their loved ones' graves. Our traditional Christmas dinner includes ham or turkey, casseroles (carrot, potato, swede), potatoes, steamed peas, and a red salad called 'rosolli' made of chopped beetroots, carrots and apples or potatoes. Some people also serve raw spiced salmon and mushroom salad, for example, depending on the family. We also eat sweets, chocolate and ginger bread, and drink glögi, hot and spicy mulled wine or non-alcoholic juice with cinnamon, ginger, cloves and orange zest.
Here is a traditional ginger bread recipe for you to try out!
1 dl tummaa siirappia
1 dl sokeria
2 tl kanelia
1 tl inkivääriä
1 tl neilikkaa
125 g voita tai margariinia
1 muna
4,5–5 dl vehnäjauhoja
1 tl soodaa
Kiehauta siirappi, sokeri ja mausteet. Lisää rasva ja hämmennä, kunnes se on sulanut. Anna jäähtyä haaleaksi. Sekoita odotellessa sooda vehnäjauhoihin huolellisesti. Lisää siirappiliemeen muna ja sitten jauhoseos. Sekoita hyvin. Peitä taikina kelmulla ja anna kovettua jääkaapissa mielellään yön yli.
Kauli taikina jauhotetulla leivinpöydällä 3–4 mm levyksi. Ota taikinasta muotilla pipareita ja nosta ne leivinpaperoidulle tai jauhoripotellulle pellille. Paista 200-asteisessa uunissa 7–12 minuuttia piparien paksuudesta ja koosta riippuen. Anna jäähtyä ja koristele luomuksesi tomusokereilla.
1 dl molasses
1 dl sugar
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground clove
125 g butter
1 egg
4-5 dl flour
1 tsp baking soda
Place molasses, sugar, butter and spices in a saucepan and bring to boil. Set aside to cool. Add the egg. Mix baking soda with flour and add to the mixture. Wrap dough in a plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator overnight.
Roll out the dough, on a well-floured surface, into as thin a sheet as possible (approximately 3mm thick). Cut the dough into the desired shapes by using special gingerbread biscuit cutters. Bake at 200 degrees Celsius for 5 – 8 minutes, until the biscuits begin to brown slightly around the edges.
