Accepting invitations
It is good to be able to answer to your invitation as soon as possible after you have received it. With formal invitations there usually is a dead-line mentioned to answer by, but about a week before would be appropriate if not on the invitation card. And latest the day before if you. were invited personally or by phone to more informal gatherings. It is always polite to tell if you are coming or not. And even if having to cancel very late, it is better to tell than forget about it. People understand that things do happen
Visiting someone’s home is not that difficult, as most Finns are quite generous and hospital but a few things might be good to know. Nowadays with the all the time busier lifestyle you are best to acknowledge your visits in advance, but not long time ago you pop in just to say hi un announced and you were still invited in to have at least some coffee with accompaniments, if not even a meal. Still today most Finns take pride in their hospitality and treat you to their best they have at hand at the time. And do not be surprised of the amount of things you might be served, even when arriving impromptu. The Finns are great to expect the unexpected and are well prepared.
If you’re invited into a home, remember to take your shoes off!
It is okay to take indoor-shoes with you to change with and wear indoors. A lot of women do take a second pair of shoes to wear when visiting or in bars, restaurants and clubs. So take extra precautions to check that your socks are in good condition when visiting someone’s home, no holes in your socks with toes sticking out or any unpleasant odours that fill the house when removing your shoes!
Take off coat in the hallway
Outdoor clothing such as coats, jackets, scarves, gloves are to be taken off upon arrival in the hall and remain there during your visit. Normally you are helped to get your clothes arranged onto hangars by your hosts.
There is an old Finnish custom to bring rye-bread and salt with you when you for the first time visiting someone’s new home so that the will never run out of the necessities salt and bread as they used to be life necessities and salt was quite expensive in the old days, an old way to wish good luck with their life moving into their new home.
I have even heard of an old tradition to also at the first visit to a new home to hide a small coin somewhere in the house with out the owner’s knowing about it to bring even better financial luck. As a foreigner you are not supposed to necessary bring them with you when visiting a new home for the first time, but do be surprised if you are given them when you have moved into a new home, or finding an old coin hidden somewhere in your house.
If you are invited in a home for dinner or such, you might want to bring a gift to the hosts. Suitable visiting gifts are flowers, chocolate and sweets, a bottle of a nice wine or something special from your own country. If you are giving a bouquet of flowers, As the winters normally are quite cold, the wrapping around the bouquet usually consists of several layers of newspaper and is not very pretty to hand over, you are supposed to take the flowers out of their wrapping before handing them. The exception is when the single rose or bouquet is nicely wrapped in see-through cellophane-paper, that can be left on.
Well this seems to be an awkward thing to determine how long to stay when. I would say that it depends on how well you know your hosts and also the type of occasion you have been invited Also how many people are present at the same time. The more people the lesser time you might get away with, better to keep in mind, a shorter time is always better than not turning up at all, and even worse to not tell at all that you are not coming if invited.
The Finns are quite keen on thanking each other and as you are leaving you are to give thanks to the hosts. You are also supposed to thank your host for any refreshments or food you have been served when finished, and you may also say thank you a second time when you are leaving the premises. And the next time you see your hosts, you are expected to remember to thank them once again.
After having visited someone’s home you are always expected to thank you afterwards, if the visit was informal by just a phone-call or saying it the nest time you see the person you visited at work, or if it was a formal occasion you are expected to send a thank you card, and depending on the occasion even flowers might be appropriate. Another possibility is to send the flowers after the occasion if you did not bring them with you when visiting.
If you have been visiting someone’s home, then you are expected to invite your hosts “back” to you in turn, it means that you invite them to your home, or to a restaurant. You kind of take turns in inviting each other, one at my place and the second at your place.
Hosting social events
The guests are to be welcomed by the hosts at the door,
When you are given a gift it is customary to open the wrapping as soon as possible with the giver still present as you are expected to show your present. This is considered as part of the entertaining of the guests.
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