Shrove Tuesday

 

In Sweden and Finland the day is marked by eating a traditional pastry, called "semla" in Sweden and "fastlagsbulle" in Finland. It is a sweet bun filled with almond paste, similar to  marzipan and whipped cream or with jam instead of the almond paste. It is sometimes served in a bowl of hot milk. 

 

 

The original word "semla" used to mean the bread-part of the pastry, which has made the word evolve separately in the Swedish language spoken in Sweden and Finland. Today in Sweden semla means the Shrove Tuesday pastry, while in Finland's Swedish-speaking areas the word refers to a regular bread roll.

 

This day is celebrated in a carnival-like manner, as most of the schools and universities end their day around noon and the students and children will go out and find a hill or any place they can slide down something and where they gather to play in the snow. 

 

In cities with universities the university students usually have a big party in the evening.