Global Holidays and Celebrations

[Sunflower]

As for presents, I mostly got some cash and some clothes, as well as a travel-book for St. Petersburg, a film and some deodorant and soap (I may be getting a hint there?).

I don't think it's just you.  Santa Claus always does a lot of shopping for my family at the drugstore, so we always get deodorant, mouthwash, toothbrushes, etc. in our stockings along with the usual candy, oranges, and funny little gifts. 

In addition to lemon-verbena soap and a tube of toothpaste, my stocking this year had nail polish in some unusual colors (iridescent eggplant-purple and deep toffee brown) and lipstick.  I am going to be *quite* the fashion plate...

[Sunflower]

Actually, the weather wasn't the horrible thing about Christmas this year. Upon returning from mass, there was an accident across the road from our house. All over by the time we got there, but not long over at all - the ambulance drove past us, and the firemen and policemen were all still investigating.

Apparently a 19 year old girl somehow drove into the ditch next to the road, smack into the bridge-thing of a driveway going over the ditch, flipped her car, and died. There were pieces of debris all over the place. It's a complete mystery as to how it happened, because the road is good, everything was dry and good weather conditions (for a change), and there was no one else there. *sigh* The only good thing that could possibly come from this is that it may drive the government to finally fill in those ditches and put in a proper drain.

Aw, that's sad.  One of my cousins died exactly two years ago today (Dec. 26) in a car crash.  She was driving home from her mother's (my aunt, who lives in the next town over from my parents and had hosted the whole extended family for Christmas dinner the night before) on a twisty rural road.  Although the weather was good, it had been icy cold the night before, and it's possible she may have hit a frozen patch of pavement.  (Sigh.)  At least it was very quick.  But it really reminds a person to appreciate the people around you while you have them...

[StellersJayC]

I don't think it's just you.  Santa Claus always does a lot of shopping for my family at the drugstore, so we always get deodorant, mouthwash, toothbrushes, etc. in our stockings along with the usual candy, oranges, and funny little gifts. 

In addition to lemon-verbena soap and a tube of toothpaste, my stocking this year had nail polish in some unusual colors (iridescent eggplant-purple and deep toffee brown) and lipstick.  I am going to be *quite* the fashion plate...

Santa Claus loves the drugstore - and oranges. My brother for whatever reason thinks the oranges part is hilarious.

[Eich]

Santa Claus loves the drugstore - and oranges. My brother for whatever reason thinks the oranges part is hilarious.

Well, they're hard to come by in the north pole, after all.
Maybe he likes avocados, too?

[kjeks]

Christmas was kind if warm with some winds. Now it snows like it hasn't snowed in some years around christmas. Heavy blows occuring from time to time...

[Sunflower]

In the spirit of the Winter Holidays thread, this is a chance for you to discuss how you celebrate various spring holidays -- Palm Sunday, Easter, Passover, April Fool's Day, the spring equinox/Persian Now Rouz (I know that was a week ago), May Day, Beltane, etc. 

Dyed eggs, Holi colors, the Finnish custom of "virpominen" (which Minna illustrated in an aRTD bonus comic), bonfires, church bells that fly away and come back with Easter baskets, "April fish"... whatever traditions you feel like sharing, please do!

In our family, we never miss dyeing Easter eggs -- especially my father.  (Luckily, at my advanced age, I'm too old to be made to hunt for them!) 

Plus, my church always has an elaborate Easter service with lots of music and flowers and then a fancy brunch afterwards.  My bell choir will be playing an arrangement of the hymn tune from Sibelius' "Finlandia," which I'm looking forward to even if it means I have to be at church at 7 a.m. Easter Day for rehearsal.

[wavewright62]

In the spirit of the Winter Holidays thread, this is a chance for you to discuss how you celebrate various spring holidays -- Palm Sunday, Easter, Passover, April Fool's Day, the spring equinox (I know that was a week ago), May Day, Beltane, etc. 

Dyed eggs, Holi colors, the Finnish custom of "virpominen" (which Minna illustrated in an aRTD bonus comic), bonfires, church bells that fly away and come back with Easter baskets, "April fish"... whatever traditions you feel like sharing, please do!

In our family, we never miss dyeing Easter eggs -- especially my father.  (Luckily, at my advanced age, I'm too old to be made to hunt for them!) 

Plus, my church always has an elaborate Easter service with lots of music and flowers and then a fancy brunch afterwards.  My bell choir will be playing an arrangement of the hymn tune from Sibelius' "Finlandia," which I'm looking forward to even if it means I have to be at church at 7 a.m. Easter Day for rehearsal.

I'm living in a Jewish household (even though I personally am not) so have been getting ready for Passover. Here in New Zealand, though, Passover is an autumn holiday, and the harvest festival Sukkot takes place in the spring.  You are supposed to eat all of your meals outside in a special semi-enclosure during Sukkot, but here the weather is always particularly unsettled at that time of year.  The candles (if they stay lit) blow hot wax across the table and onto any sundry guests you may have over.
There are very few Jews in NZ, however.  There is one shipping container of kosher-for-Passover goods brought into the country, and here in Auckland long queues form on the Sunday before Passover at the 2 synagogues, where they each set up a small shop.  Because Passover usually overlaps Easter, we usually don't get to indulge in the hot cross buns and chocolate eggs the rest of the country enjoy.  But we *do* get to enjoy the four-day weekend, as Good Friday and Easter Monday are statutory holidays.
We also commemorate (not celebrate) Anzac Day on 25 April, and this is also a statutory holiday.  This is our holiday to remember those who have fallen in war, and it is taken very seriously indeed.  Timed to commemorate the landing of the Anzac forces at the battle of Gallipoli in 1915 (centenary this year!), this is only this year been Mondayised.

[Haiz]

My family is so incredibly non-religious (or 'strictly atheistic', as I like to call it) so we hardly follow any religious traditions. Norway is spoiling us by giving us the entire week+monday free, and my mom's favourite hobby is to leave the country at every possibility...... so we have a tendency to either visit one of my family sides (the norwegian side in Finnmark, czech one in Brno) or to explore some foreign country (like northern ireland last year).

(fun fact, it takes about the same amount of driving, and crossing the same amount of countries, to visit both my czech family and my northern family. It's about two days in the car, and to czech we drive through denmark and germany, and for finnmark we drive through sweden and finland - not only do they have better roads, but also better/cheaper food in their stores. i love that finnish black syrup bread. love it)

Norwegian easter is conventionally celebrated (not by us, apparently) by going to the mountains and ski for a week, reading detective novels (for some reason??), cover everything in yellow chicken decoration (usually created by the family's kindergartener), painting eggs, and getting a paper egg full of sweets. Also, these:

honestly the most important part about norwegian easter. They also cause much controversy by appearing in the store wayyyyy before it's actually easter, sparking discussions on whether or not it's treason to eat them already.

Traditional Czech easter is mean. I haven't been in czech often enough around easter time to really participate, but the girls are supposed to paint eggs, and boys are supposed to make braided whips out of willow twigs. Then the girls will carry the eggs in a basket or something, and the boys will hit them with the whips while they recite easter poems to get eggs. ABSOLUTELY HORRENDOUS.
I was once waken up wayy to early (probably 10AM) in the morning just to be (gently) hit by such a whip, and I think I started crying.

[mamioja]

Nice to have this thread, I was wondering where to post my easter greetings...

For those of you, who are nor familiar with Finnish "virpominen":
“Virpominen” is an old finnish tradition. where kids (mostly girls) dress up as witches (or bunnies/cats nowadays) and go from door to door with willow branches decorated with colorful feathers, silk paper or whatever looks nice. They say a chant to wish the recipient good luck and prosperity and give the branch. In exchange kids get candy or money.

Actually it is a mix of finnish traditions. From eastern orthodox church comes the blessing and willow branch (which are actually blessed at church, I believe). The return gift is given a week later. Easter is very important celebration in their religion.
In western (paganish) tradition witches or “trulls” (= envious spinsters) roam around at easter, stealing cattle-luck (cutting hair or pieces of skin from neighbor´s cattle) and having a meeting for all witches at “kyöpelinvuori” (dancing, casting evil spells or whatever). 
Some people disapprove the mixing and find it religiously offensive or regard it shameful begging, but most understand it is only a fun thing to do at easter.

This “virpominen” is to wish you all the good luck for the coming year and is totally lacking all religious intent. It is also totally free since you only get it virtually.

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/db/0f/0a/db0f0a50b22e4cf8cab4b49dc4c0169c.jpg

[Armchair Survivalist]

In Sweden, we have Valborgsmäss (Walpurgis night) on 30 April. Great bonfires are lit, people meet and listen to choirs singing songs celebrating the arrival of spring.

[Viisikielinenkantele]

I live in a catholic area so Easter is a big thing here. I am atheistic but nevertheless sing in a church-choir just because I love the music. We will sing on Good Friday, Easter Night and Easter Monday in church. The hardest will be getting up to sing at 5 am at Easter Night... but the ceremony is lovely, candles are the only light allowed and outside will be a huge bonfire before church. On Easter Sunday many families will bring special sweet bread ("Osterfladen") to church where the loaves got blessed.
On Easter all families with kids hide painted boiled eggs and chocolat-eggs and -bunnies in the garden and the kids search for them. Well if the weather is good, when it is snowing (this is very likely), then we will hide them in the house. In the afternoon we will have Easter-lambs (a sweet cake).
School-holidays last two weeks, one week before Easter, one week after. The working population has free days on Good Friday and Easter Monday.

[Aprillen]

Easter in Sweden is not generally a very religiously-coloured holiday these days, except in religious families, I suppose. People decorate their homes with branches of sallow or birch (or other pretty kinds) decked out with brightly coloured feathers. We eat a lot more eggs than during the rest of the year, and it's traditional to paint them with water colours. We sometimes used to dye them with onion skins, which turns them a beautiful mottled golden brown colour. I've been saving onion skins for a while now...

The Swedish name for daffodils means "easter lily", so they are usually associated with Easter, even though Easter usually falls too early in the year for them to actually be in bloom until a few weeks later.

Kids are usually given Easter eggs, which are painted cardboard eggs in various sizes filled with sweets and chocolates. Lately we have started getting a lot of chocolate bunnies and things (bunnies haven't traditionally been a big part of our Easter imagery, but all things American tend to seep in.) I usually get myself a Kinder egg for Easter.

Unlike the other big holidays in Sweden, there isn't any particular food associated with Easter, except for the eggs and the candy. People just eat the food they like.

When I was a kid, all the little girls dressed up as "Easter crones" (witches) on the Thursday before Easter and went around wishing people a happy Easter and begging for sweets. The occasional rare boy came along too, but mostly it was the girls. We had painted our own Easter greeting cards that we offered people in exchange. This doesn't happen as much any more -- people are getting leery of letting their kids going around unsupervised, ringing strange people's doorbells, I guess.

A personal spring tradition of mine (not connected with Easter) is to go out and pick the new green nettle shoots when they appear (using gloves!) and make nettle soup. Nettles are chock full of vitamins and minerals, but they also have an unfortunate tendency to absorb other less wholesome substances from the soil and environment where they grow, so you have to find spots far away from traffic and other pollution. It has a rich flavour that is reminiscent of spinach and kale, but has its own special texture.

[Vafhudr]

Well in Northern Canada Easter candies have been up and selling at the store since the beginning of march, if not earlier, so they aren't exactly a novelty at this point. Easter will go largely unnoticed. Most people I talked to could not even tell me when it was going to happen. Spring equinox, though, was a big deal, since we have finally emerged from the darkness of winter (4 hours of daylight is a bit rough on the system). There is a festival going on though that is kind of in the spirit of spring called the "Long John Jamboree". Since I was working, I was unable to go, but it is your standard outdoor activity fare - contests, cabane a sucre, ice sculptures, stuff like that.

[Chizu]

Where I come from - Bulgaria, we start spring with Baba Marta (Grandma Marta) on the 1st of March where we put around our wrists or on our jackets red and white woollen ornaments for health and luck.


For Easter we usually boil eggs, paint and decorate them as we wish. However we must always have a red egg which is coloured first and it is kept all year till next Easter. The red egg is then broken to see if the spring and summer will be fertile for fruits, vegetables etc. The newly painted eggs we use to battle with. Whoever manages to go through most eggs without breaking his will have most health and success in the year.

[DancingRanger]

Ooh, this is a cool thread.

Currently I am not actually able to celebrate as I want, but if I had my way, there would be much singing and dancing. I'd plan out a festive get together and cook lots of food.