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How To Celebrate Finland's National Book

Who can forget the first time he read the Kalevala? The epic poem of Finland, comparable to its Odyssey or King Arthur legends but dating just back to the 19th century, inspired J.R.R. Tolkien and it could move you this summer to seek out some uniquely Finnish attractions.

The 160-year-old Kalevala was compiled from rapidly disappearing folk poetry in order to give Finns a sense of national identity while they were still under Russia's thumb. Quite honestly, we haven't gotten around to reading it yet (Infinite Jest is really long!) but we gather it's about a singer named Wäinämöinen who completes feats of strength and who inspired Tolkien's wizards in The Lord of the Rings and the plot of The Silmarillion.

Celebrate this epic anniversary at Kalevala Experience Park in Kuhmo, where you can stay in log cabins and enjoy a series of free concerts for the summer of local favorites. In Helsinki, catch a special exhibit of Kalevala-inspired works at the Ateneum Art Museum, then stay at the Klaus K hotel which takes the novel's themes of the mystical, passion, desire, and envy as design motifs (and which has a family package in which the second room in a reservation is 50 percent off). As they say, when in Helsinki...

Related Stories:
· A Fresh Idea for Your Urban Getaway: Helsinki's Klaus K [HC]
· Reading One Heck of a Huge Book For One "Infinite" Summer [Jaunted]
· Could Conan O'Brien Really Be Wrong? [Jaunted]

[Photo of a Wäinämöinen statue in Helsinki: hugovk]