Aino lives in Lapland, in northern Finland, where she loves to walk along the cliffs and climb down to where the waves burst upon the rocks. When her conceited brother, Youkahainen, brags that he is the strongest, handsomest, and best singer in their village, Aino reminds him that their village is small. Youkahainen scoffs, but when he hears of a minstrel in Kalevala whose singing can turn iron into water and winter into summer, he impulsively straps his harp into his sleigh and dashes off to challenge him, even though it is said that the other minstrel, Vainamoinen, is a wizard.
After many days, Youkahainen returns home in a humble oxcart, covered with mud. He says that when he challenged Vainamoinen, the wizard cheated by casting a spell that turned…
