Christmas in Finland

Finnish people clean their homes well before Christmas and prepare special treats for the festive holiday season. Fir trees are cut and taken to homes by sleds on Christmas Eve and are decorated beautifully. A sheaf of grain, nuts and seeds are tied on a pole, which is placed in the garden for the birds to feed on. Only after birds eat their dinner, the farmers partake of their Christmas dinner. Christmas dinner traditionally begins with appearance of the first star in the sky. Candles are lit on the Christmas tree, which is decorated using apples and other fruits, candies, paper flags, cotton and tinsel. Just before the Christmas festivities begin, people visit the famous steam baths and dress up in clean clothes for the Christmas dinner, which is usually served at 5 pm to 7pm.

Christmas gifts may be exchanged before or after the dinner. Children do not hang up stockings in Finland but Santa visits the household with about half a dozen Christmas elves to help him distribute the presents. The main traditional dish of the Christmas dinner is boiled codfish (soaked beforehand in a lye solution for a week to soften it) served snowy white and fluffy, roast suckling pig or a roasted fresh ham and vegetables. It is accompanied by allspice, boiled potatoes, and cream sauce. Children go to bed right after dinner while adults chat and drink coffee until about midnight. Christmas Day services begin early at six in the morning and people visit families and reunions are arranged on this day. Star Boys tour the countryside singing Christmas songs and everybody wish each other "Merry Yule."