Today 6 dec 2012 it's Finland Independence day :)
Finland became independent in 1917 after years of being under Russia's control. Finland's first leaders decided that Finland would become a monarchy and the king would come from Germany. But after Germany lost the war the leaders decided that Finland would become a democracy. Finland's independence was endangered during WWII. The cold war also caused problems for the independence because Finland had several contracts with the Soviet Union but wanted to be part of the western world.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finland
Finnish national anthem in three languages! Finnish, Swedish & English!
-Maamme
Oi maamme, Suomi, synnyinmaa,
soi, sana kultainen!
Ei laaksoa, ei kukkulaa,
ei vettä, rantaa rakkaampaa
kuin kotimaa tää pohjoinen,
maa kallis isien.
Sun kukoistukses kuorestaan
kerrankin puhkeaa;
viel' lempemme saa nousemaan
sun toivos, riemus loistossaan,
ja kerran laulus, synnyinmaa
korkeemman kaiun saa.
Vårt land
(the original, by Johan Ludvig Runeberg)
Vårt land, vårt land, vårt fosterland,
ljud högt, o dyra ord!
Ej lyfts en höjd mot himlens rand,
ej sänks en dal, ej sköljs en strand,
mer älskad än vår bygd i nord,
än våra fäders jord!
Din blomning, sluten än i knopp,
Skall mogna ur sitt tvång;
Se, ur vår kärlek skall gå opp
Ditt ljus, din glans, din fröjd, ditt hopp.
Och högre klinga skall en gång
Vår fosterländska sång.
Our Land
(translation from the Finnish version)
Oh our land, Finland, fatherland,
echo loudly, golden word!
No valley, no hill,
no water, shore more dear
than this northern homeland,
this precious land of our fathers.
One day from your bud
you will bloom;
From our love shall rise
your hope, glorious joy,
and once in song, fatherland
higher still will ring.
Our Land
(translation from the Swedish version)
Our land, our land, our Fatherland!
Ring out, dear word, oh sound!
No rising hill, or mountain grand,
No sloping dale, no northern strand,
There is, more loved, to be found,
Than this — our fathers' ground.
Thy blossom, hidden now from sight,
Shall burst its bud ere long.
Lo! from our love, shall rise aright,
Thy sun, thy hope, thy joy, thy light,
And higher, once, more full and strong,
Shall ring Our Country's song.
Finnish army flags
(http://i.imgur.com/hbW0p.jpg)
Helsinki
(http://i.imgur.com/YFhSM.jpg)
Independence firework in Tampere
(http://i.imgur.com/RDZuH.jpg)
Finnish winter
(http://i.imgur.com/3R1oJ.jpg)
Finnish flag, peace & love!
(http://i.imgur.com/kKeU5.jpg)
Suomi 95 vuotta! Finland 95 years of independence
(http://i.imgur.com/RFZg1.png)
(http://kuvakauppa.lehtikuva.fi/edoris?tem=dorismark&doc_id=7aa7d2286b234d1262552c5ac7e9d6cb)