Joen yo

Actually yo is misspelled in the title and everywhere else on the blog because I can't figure out how to use international alphabet symbols. The "o" should have two dots over it. This is one of the "impossible to pronounce" combinations in the Finnish language. And I'm certain half of the words contain it or the reverse "oy" which is even more impossible to pronounce. Also "joki" means river, and "joen" means "river's" or "of the river." Please don't ask me where the "k" in joki went! But actually this blog is not about spelling or language. Recently there was a two-day event in Joensuu called "River's Night"--thus the large banners hanging along the main shopping street which is actually a walking street. This was an occasion for many performances of different types, agriculture displays, forestry displays, displays by community service groups, and an expanded market. The whole town turned out it seemed. Can you imagine all the stores being closed with so many potential shoppers on the streets? Most stores open at 9 and close at 6. Stores close at 2 or 3 on Saturdays. And no exceptions were made for this occasion. Of course the ice cream kiosks, coffee shops, and bars were all open. It was a nice event. We missed an opportunity to set up a display about the church because we didn't know about the community service displays. But we saw many people we knew and enjoyed our time there.