Music, pancakes and dancing on a bridge

On Espoo Day in August, the Gumböle home owners’ association organised a dance on a bridge in Karhusuo.

“The idea for a village event came about some years ago when we were playing with our children on a nearby bridge crossing a stream. Together with one of the fathers, we thought about how fun it would be to organise something for local residents,” says Marjaana Siivola, the main organiser of the bridge dance.

They put the idea into practice, and the bridge dance was born.

“The event was held three times, followed by a break until we organised it again on Espoo Day last summer.”

Transporting equipment to the location and setting up canopies took the most work. Participants brought chairs with them.

“Everything went pretty nicely and easily, considering that this was an event with a hundred people.”

Before the start of the event, the bridge was swept clean, electric cables were run from a neighbouring building to the bridge for the band, and a good ten litres of pancake batter was prepared. Then it was time to kick off a relaxed event for the local community, with everyone free to come and go, listen to the band play, dance to the music, chat with neighbours and enjoy some pancakes.

“The evening was a success, the weather was favourable, and many were delighted to see their friends. It was nice to bring people together,” says Siivola.

She has a tip for anyone planning to organise an event for this year’s Espoo Day:

“It’s important to enjoy the event yourself, don’t get too stressed and don’t try to make it too fancy.”

Will there be dancing on the bridge again on Espoo Day this year?

“Probably, by popular demand!”

You can register your event for the programme online. The registration opens in May. More information espoopaiva.fi/en(external link, opens in a new window)

This article has originally been published in the Espoo Magazine 1/2024.
Read other articles in the Espoo Magazine.