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Finland is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the west, Russia to the east, Norway to the north, and is defined by the Gulf of Bothnia to the west, and the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea across Estonia to the south. Finland covers an area of 338,455 square kilometres (130,678 sq mi), with a population of 5.5 million. Helsinki is the country's capital and largest city, but together with the neighboring cities of Espoo, Kauniainen and Vantaa, it forms a larger metropolitan area. Finnish, the native language of the Finns, is among the few Finnic languages in the world. The climate varies relative to latitude, from the southern humid continental climate to the northern boreal climate. The land cover is primarily a boreal forest biome, with more than 180,000 recorded lakes.

Finland was inhabited around 9000 BC after the Last Glacial Period.The Stone Age introduced several different ceramic styles and cultures. The Bronze Age and Iron Age were characterised by extensive contacts with other cultures in Fennoscandia and the Baltic region. From the late 13th century, Finland gradually became an integral part of Sweden as a consequence of the Northern Crusades. In 1809, as a result of the Finnish War, Finland was annexed by Russia as the autonomous Grand Duchy of Finland, during which Finnish art flourished and the idea of independence began to take hold. In 1906, Finland became the first European state to grant universal suffrage, and the first in the world to give all adult citizens the right to run for public office. Nicholas II, the last Tsar of Russia, tried to russify Finland and terminate its political autonomy, but after the 1917 Russian Revolution, Finland declared independence from Russia. In 1918, the fledgling state was divided by the Finnish Civil War. During World War II, Finland fought the Soviet Union in the Winter War and the Continuation War, and Nazi Germany in the Lapland War. After the wars, Finland lost parts of its territory, including the culturally and historically significant town of Vyborg, but maintained its independence.

Finland largely remained an agrarian country until the 1950s. After World War II, the country rapidly industrialised and developed an advanced economy, while building an extensive welfare state based on the Nordic model, resulting in widespread prosperity and a high per capita income.Finland joined the United Nations in 1955 and adopted an official policy of neutrality. Finland joined the OECD in 1969, the NATO Partnership for Peace in 1994, the European Union in 1995, the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council in 1997, and the Eurozone at its inception in 1999. Finland is a top performer in numerous metrics of national performance, including education, economic competitiveness, civil liberties, quality of life and human development. In 2015, Finland was ranked first in the World Human Capitaland the Press Freedom Index and as the most stable country in the world during 2011–2016 in the Fragile States Index, and second in the Global Gender Gap Report. It also ranked first on the World Happiness Report report for 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2021.

Foods in  Finland :

(1) Karjalanpiirakka (rice pies) : 

Karjalanpiirakka are a very popular pastry in Finland originally from the region of Karelia. The rye crust is traditionally filled with rice porridge and topped with egg butter. It is eaten in Finland for breakfast, as a snack, and even served at weddings.

(2)Ruisleipa (rye bread) : 

Rye bread may be nothing new to you, but Finland's version is genuine 100% rye bread made from unique Finnish yeasts to give it a dark, dense character. This bread is one of Finland's staple foods and a part of Finns' cultural identity for thousands of years. Leavened rye breads are often dried into thin crisp for open-faced sandwiches or to be snacked on with butter.

(3) Leipajuusto (bread cheese) : 

Known as Finnish squeaky cheese in the US, Leipajuusto is a fresh cheese traditionally made from cow's beestings - rich milk from a cow that has recently calved. It's often served alongside coffee or with cloudberry jam.

(4) Kalakukko (fish pie) : 

Kalakukko originates from the Finnish region of Savonia. It is traditionally prepared with rye flour, seasoned with salt, and filled with fish, pork and bacon. When the bones of the fish soften, the meat and fish juiced cook throughout the bread in the oven for hours to result in a moist filling.

(5) Korvapuusti (cinnamon buns) : 

Translating to "Slapped Ears" in English, Korvapuusti is a Finnish cinnamon roll and type of "Pulla," a Finnish sweet bread traditionally served with coffee. Delicious, fluffy dough is made into milk using fresh yeast and lots of ground cardamon.

Weather & geography in  Finland   :

Finland, the sixth largest country in Europe, occupies an area of 338,312 sq km (130,622 square miles) — about twice the size of the United Kingdom. Its coastline, excluding indentations, is 1,100 kilometers long. Finland is bordered on the east and southeast by the Russian Federation, on the west by Sweden and the Gulf of Bothnia, on the north by Norway and on the south by the Gulf of Finland. Most of the country is low but not necessarily flat. Because the soil (mainly moraine deposits from ice age glaciers) is very thin the topography reflects the contours of the Archean bedrock. Elevations greater than 640 meters (2,100 ft) are found along the northwestern frontier with Norway, and in the extreme northern region of Lapland. Most of Finland’s 60,000 lakes, comprising 10% of the total area, lie in the southern half of the country and provide important waterways and log floating routes. An extensive and imposing archipelago, reaching from the Russian border on the south, westward to the Aland Islands and there northward, provides an important fishing and vacation area known for its magnitude and grandeur.Another impressive physical feature and natural resource of Finland is its forests which cover 65% of the land area (the highest percentage in Europe). The forests of Finland are mainly coniferous; a limited area in the south and southwest contains hardwood deciduous trees. In Lapland, the spruce and pines disappear and dwarf birch usually forms the timberline.

Per day Cost in  Finland :

How much money will you need for your trip to Finland? You should plan to spend around €125 ($148) per day on your vacation in Finland, which is the average daily price based on the expenses of other visitors. Past travelers have spent, on average, €28 ($33) on meals for one day and €30 ($35) on local transportation.

History of  Finland :

The History of Finland begins around 9,000 BC during the end of the last glacial period. Stone Age cultures were Kunda, Comb Ceramic, Corded Ware, Kiukainen, and Pöljä cultures . The Finnish Bronze Age started in approximately 1,500 BC and the Iron Age started in 500 BC and lasted until 1,300 AD. Finnish Iron Age cultures can be separated into Finnish proper, Tavastian and Karelian cultures. The earliest written sources mentioning Finland start to appear from the 12th century onwards when the Catholic Church started to gain a foothold in Southwest Finland.Due to the Northern Crusades and Swedish colonisation of some Finnish coastal areas, most of the region became a part of the Kingdom of Sweden and the realm of the Catholic Church from the 13th century onwards. After the Finnish War in 1809, Finland was ceded to the Russian Empire (excluding the areas of modern-day Northern Sweden where Meänkieli dialects of Finnish are spoken), making this area the autonomous Grand Duchy of Finland. The Lutheran religion dominated. Finnish nationalism emerged in the 19th century. It focused on Finnish cultural traditions, folklore, and mythology, including music and especially the highly distinctive language and lyrics associated with it. One product of this era was the Kalevala, one of the most significant works of Finnish literature. The catastrophic Finnish famine of 1866–1868 was followed by eased economic regulations and extensive emigration.

In 1917, Finland declared independence. A civil war between the Finnish Red Guards and the White Guard ensued a few months later, with the Whites gaining the upper hand during the springtime of 1918. After the internal affairs stabilized, the still mainly agrarian economy grew relatively quickly. Relations with the West, especially Sweden and Britain, were strong but tensions remained with the Soviet Union. During the Second World War, Finland fought twice against the Soviet Union, first defending its independence in the Winter War and then invading the Soviet Union in the Continuation War. In the peace settlement Finland ended up ceding a large part of Karelia and some other areas to the Soviet Union. However, Finland remained an independent democracy in Northern Europe.In the latter half of its independent history, Finland has maintained a mixed economy. Since its post–World War II economic boom in the 1970s, Finland's GDP per capita has been among the world's highest. The expanded welfare state of Finland from 1970 and 1990 increased the public sector employees and spending and the tax burden imposed on the citizens. In 1992, Finland simultaneously faced economic overheating and depressed Western, Russian, and local markets. Finland joined the European Union in 1995, and replaced the Finnish markka with the euro in 2002. According to a 2016 poll, 61% of Finns preferred not to join NATO.