Finland is one of the most interesting countries on the European continent.
Known as the land of a thousand lakes, it borders Sweden, Norway, and Russia. Aside from the breathtaking scenery and Santa Claus's home, there are many incredible things to see here. Here are some curiosities about Finland that you may not have known about before and that you'll definitely enjoy discovering.
Land of a thousand lakes
As we have already said, it is so called because there are more than 180,000 lakes in its territory, which means that 10% of its surface consists of water. In terms of size, they are second only to Russia. Lake Saimaa is the largest in Finland, the fourth largest in Europe and the second largest in the European Union, its length is almost 4,400 square kilometers. Finnish lakes were formed during the last ice age and therefore, despite their large size, they are not very deep. Only three lakes are more than 300 meters deep.
Coffee and dairy lovers
Its inhabitants are the largest consumers of coffee in the world. On average, each Finn drinks about 12 kg of coffee a year, which is twice as much as the Italians, three times as much as the Americans and four times as much as the British. It is also the country with the highest annual milk consumption per capita in the world; although they are equally fond of any dairy products such as yoghurts and cheeses.
More saunas than cars
While the United States has more cars than people, this Scandinavian country has more saunas than cars. This custom is part of their culture, and they usually enjoy it at least once a week. The most typical day for this is Saturday.
The Finnish language is unique
Although Norwegian, Swedish and Danish are very similar to each other, Finnish completely different. This is because it is not part of the Indo-European family, but belongs to the Finno-Ugric subfamily of Uralic languages, which also includes, among others, Hungarian and Estonian. The official languages of the country are Finnish and Swedish, although some of the population also speaks Russian, English or the indigenous Sami language.
Luxury Passport
The Finnish passport is the fourth best in the world, an honor shared with Spain, Italy and Luxembourg, and behind only Japan, Singapore, South Korea and Germany. With it, you can travel to almost 190 countries, including 188, without the need for a visa.
The happiest in the world
Despite the cold, it is considered one of the happiest countries in the world. This is indicated by the UN World Happiness Report, where it almost always ranks first. 2020 was a very difficult year due to the pandemic, and yet Finland still came out on top. Many aspects are taken into account when compiling this list, such as life expectancy, freedom or economic situation.
Land of forests
While 10 % of its surface is occupied by lakes, more than 70 % is covered by forests (which is equivalent in size to an extension similar to the whole of England or Italy). Thus, it is one of the European countries with the largest number of forests, abundant in pine, spruce and birch.
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