Events

Parade

Finland has tradition for one parade a year kind of thing, and for Finns it happens at Vappu, which is the most important holiday of the year. That's time for a parade.

In almost every country, May 1 is Labor Day. But in Finland it means more than that. As the most important day of the year, it is celebrated by everyone, young and old, and not just by workers.
Translated literally, "Vappu" is "the party in the spring" -- and it begins on the 30th of April. If May 1st falls on a Monday, celebrations begin on the Friday preceding Vappu.

Besides being "the party in the spring," Vappu is the official opening of the summer season. And every Finn has a reason to celebrate. The second northernmost country in the world, Finland has one of the harshest winters and one of the shortest summers -- just two and a half months long, from June to mid-August. The northern region of the country -- Lapland -- has six months of uninterrupted darkness and six months of uninterrupted daylight. An amazing place, isn't it?

For everyone, it is the marriage of spring with summer -- a Finnish carnival.

So in Finland we don't really have a tradition for parades but let us all show at the EJC2010 that 'Vappu is state of mind, not just one day in a year' and have the parade of a lifetime. Bring along your fancy costumes, juggle, model balloons, make music, unicycle or think of something else unique - the main thing is to bring the great EJC atmosphere to the streets. Bring EJC 'Vappu' to the streets.

Jugglers helping jugglers

‘Jugglers Helping Jugglers’ is a fun and an inspiring way to help other jugglers develop their ideas and projects. At this event, those who have a project they want help or advise with present their projects and then everyone else helps them by sharing their experience, knowledge and contacts.

‘Jugglers Helping Jugglers’ uses a method that is being used all over the world to develop ideas and generate enthusiasm. It is an easy way to help others, even if your time is limited. Just show up and help other jugglers for a couple of hours – or if you have a project you need help you are also welcome to present it on the day.

What kind of ideas and projects is this for? Actually there are no restrictions on this. You can bring up anything that makes your heart sing! Maybe you are looking for ways to make your local juggling convention more interesting or maybe you have a dream of making a street theatre festival in your town. Maybe you want some advise on how to set up a juggling club in your area, or you could be looking for playmates for creating your own circus company. It can be a new initiative you want to start or it can be an existing project that you want to develop and improve. Only your imagination sets the limit.

We already know that the Kaskade Magazine and some of the organisers of future EJCs will be participating with projects and we also know of a project about the benefits of juggling. And there will be more.

“But, what if I don't have a project to bring?” No problem! For ‘Jugglers Helping Jugglers’ to work, the most important thing is that normal jugglers like you show up and help others with their projects. You will be surprised at how much you know, and how much others can benefit from your knowledge and experience… and who knows, maybe you will get so inspired that the next time it will be you bringing up your dream project.