Happy Easter!
On the occasion of the Easter holidays, we would like to share with you 8 fun traditions to celebrate Easter around the world ...
Indeed, Easter is not limited to a few days of holiday, intended to eat chocolate bunnies and little eggs in liqueur; It is also an important religious holiday which is accompanied by all kinds of traditions and customs.
Below is a selection of the most impressive, fun and interesting Easter traditions from around the world.
1. Kites in Bermuda
This Easter, the people of Bermuda are aiming high, making kites their favourite pastime during the holiday. Bermudans make their own kites using intricately patterned wooden sticks and colorful paper. All completed with a special fabric, called Hummers, which produces a humming sound, aka the sound of Easter in Bermuda. Everyone comes together to fly their magnificent achievements or head to Horseshoe Bay Beach to attend the annual Kite Festival on Good Friday.
2. Police stories in Norway
In some parts of the world, Easter is all about crime: "Påskekrimmen" is the Norwegian tradition consisting of reading, watching and listening to crime stories and crime thrillers during the Easter holidays. The whole country appears to be on hold, as publishers and radio and television stations produce murder stories, which even milk brands associate with by printing stories on their packaging.
3. Easter nest hunting in Germany, Switzerland…
In Germany, Switzerland and many other countries, the practise of the hunt for Easter nests is a custom celebrated by children and even some adults. These are actually baskets or boxes, filled with bunnies or chocolate eggs, candy and toys, believed to have been hidden by the Easter Bunny himself.
4. Water battles in Poland
Nothing symbolizes Easter as much as a friendly water fight. In any case, this is what the Poles think when they celebrate "Śmigus Dyngus" (wet Monday. In the old days, it was mostly young single men looking for young girls to marry, but now almost everyone takes part in the water fight.
5. The egg hunt in France…
Eggs are tied to Easter just like gifts are to Christmas. People colour and decorate the eggs, then hide them and uncover them, they try to roll them in the grass as quickly as possible, they bang them together to see which ones will break last or, quite simply, they eat them.
6. Flying clay pots in Greece
Watch out for the flying pottery on the Greek island of Corfu. On Easter Saturday, at 11 a.m. sharp, the people of Corfu throw clay pots from their balconies. The tradition dates back to the 16th century, when people threw all their old, unnecessary items out the window in order to welcome the New Year - broken pots are supposed to scare away evil spirits and mark a new beginning.
7. The distribution of pretzels in Luxembourg
Luxembourgers celebrate "Bretzelsonndeg" - Pretzel Sunday - In Luxembourg, pretzels are puff pastry, sweet and covered with almond glaze. On said Sunday, the boys offer a pretzel to the girl they like. If the girl accepts the treat, the boy will be allowed to visit her on Easter Sunday and will receive an egg in return. If all of this occurs in a leap year, the roles are inverted, and it’s the girls’ turn to hand out pretzels.
8. Halloween in spring - Sweden
Sweden and some of its Scandinavian neighbours celebrate Halloween in the spring. On the Thursday before Easter, the children dress up as witches and go door to door asking for candy. Children usually offer decorated willow branches or pictures to adults in exchange for a few treats. The tradition grew out of a legend that said Swedish witches travelled to Blåkulla (legendary island where the Devil held his Earthly court) before Easter to party with the devil. To make sure the witches don’t come back, the Swedes light big bonfires on Easter Sunday.
