Unfortunately we don’t celebrate Easter in Japan because of religious difference.

But we have beautiful cherry blossom festivals, which occur in spring season. The festivals occur in each religion but the precise date of it depends on the weather. Southern parts of Japan usually start blooming from the middle of March. The festivals gradually move North toward the end of April. During this season news stations forecast cherry blossoms blooming and give the expected date of when the festival would be. That way people can decide when and where to go for festivals. For information on the expected festivals in 2009, please go to
http://gojapan.about.com/library/special/blsakurakaikayosou2009.htm.

The cherry blossom festivals are some of the most important Japanese representative customs. If you are considering a visit to Japan, I recommend the spring season. In a typical cherry blossom festival (It’s called Ohanami: お花見), people sit down under the trees and enjoy singing, dancing, eating or drinking, you name it! Tea ceremonies are quite often attended by traditional people at Ohanami, on the other hand, young people are more likely to focus on drinking and dancing.

The climax of cherry blossom festival is a night-time event with a lot of illumination, reflecting cherry blossoms. (It’s called Yozakura: 夜桜) It’s just speechlessly romantic and beautiful!

Cherry blossom festival is not just a party but also a special meaningful event for Japanese people. Cherry blossom is a symbol of short-lived beauty in Japan. People place high value on this traditional festival, and take this time to reflect upon their own lives. Life is short so you have to appreciate and embrace. We are taught by cherry blossoms that you should do your best to bloom in the short life you have, and proudly wither when it’s done.

As a result of the economic crisis, people feel that they cannot afford to reflect upon their own lives or even appreciate the beauty of life. Therefore, this year’s cherry blossom festival has assumed a more important role than in the previous years as it allows the Japanese to get a break from harsh reality and to momentarily escape from it.

Now if you finish reading this article, why don’t you jump in an airplane and visit Japan?

残念ながら宗教の違いにより日本にイースターを祝う習慣はありません。しかし通常春ならば桜祭り（またはお花見）が開催されます。桜祭りはいろいろな都市で開催されており、正確な日にちは気候によって左右されます。気候の違いにより大抵南の方から開花がはじまり徐々に北へと移っていきます。この時期になると大抵ニュースで開花の時期と同時に桜まつりがいつになるかの予想日を告げられます。そうすることで人々はどこにいつ行くべきかを決めることができます。2009年の告知について詳細を知りたいかたはどうぞこちらのサイトでご確認ください。http://gojapan.about.com/library/special/blsakurakaikayosou2009.htm

桜祭り（またはお花見）は、日本を代表する習慣のひとつです。もしあなたが　日本へ旅行しようと考えているならば、春に行くことをお勧めいたします。桜祭り（またはお花見）では通常、人々は桜の木の下に座り、お酒を飲み、食べて、歌い、踊ったりします。お茶の儀式などはよく伝統的な人々によって行われたり、その一方で若い人々は飲んで踊ったりをひたすら繰り返したりしていて、とてもおもしろいです。

お花見のクライマックスはなんといっても夜桜ですね。イルミネーションに包まれた桜を夜にみるのは、ただ圧倒的にロマンチックで美しく、息を呑むばかりです。

桜祭りはただのどんちゃか騒ぎのパーティではなく、日本人にとって意義のあるイベントなんです。桜ははかない美しさの象徴とされており、それゆえに人々はその慣習に重きを置いています。人々は自分自身の人生と重ね合わせ、自分の人生も桜と同様に短いことを実感します。だからこそ私たちは日々の生活に感謝し、その残された人生を大切にしていかなければならないと思いしらされます。自分の人生の花を咲かせるために、ベストを尽くし、プライドをもって散ってゆく。私たちはそういった哲学的なことを桜から教わるのです。

特に最近の経済危機のなかで、人々はそういったことを考える時間も、感謝しようとする余裕もなくなってきています。だからこそ今年の桜祭りは今まで以上に重要な役割をはたすのではないでしょうか？人々は厳しい現実から瞬間だけでも逃避して、自分の人生を振り返るための大切な時間を確保する。そういうことが大切なのではないでしょうか？

この記事を読み終えたあなたへ！日本を訪れてみませんか？

Sendo um país tão grande, as tradições de Páscoa não poderiam deixar de ser diversificadas – elas variam de acordo com a região ou religião.

O Brasil tem uma grande população católica, então a Semana Santa é comemorada pelo país com procissões e rituais semelhantes aos de outros países católicos – mas tornados únicos pelo contexto no qual acontecem. Os católicos apresentam peças de teatro ao ar livre nas quais atores representam a ressurreição de Jesus, e frequentam a missa de Páscoa no domingo.

Porém, como eu nunca experienciei uma Páscoa católica, prefiro descrever a Páscoa que eu venho vivenciando nos últimos 20 anos como parte de uma família luterana não extremamente religiosa.

As preparações para a Páscoa na minha família começam com várias semanas de antecedência, com a crianças preparando coelhinhos de papel na escola e pintando ovos da forma mais colorida que conseguem. Elas não escondem a felicidade toda vez que acordam e o coelhinho deixou um chocolate ao lado da sua cama.

A Sexta-Feira Santa é um dia de refletir e orar. Não devemos falar muito alto, correr ou escutar música alta. Não comemos carne e temos peixe de almoço. (E parece que o país leva isso a sério: até o Mc Donald´s tem um Mc Fish especial para a Sexta-Feira Santa...) É um dia de paz e todos estão contentes por poder permanecer em casa.

O Sábado de Aleluia é um dia cheio de expectativas. À noite, as crianças deixam uma cenoura para o coelho. Pela manhã sempre está comida até a metade – acho que o coelho nunca sente muita fome...

No Domingo de Páscoa as crianças acordam sabendo que têm um desafio pela frente: encontrar os ninhos de Páscoa cheios de ovos de chocolate. O coelhinho é esperto e sempre deixa um mapa e instruções. As crianças se divertem: o ninho pode estar em cima de uma árvore, embaixo da terra ou até mesmo dentro do seu próprio armário. O único problema é quando os ninhos demoram a ser achados, pois dependendo do lugar onde estão escondidos, os chocolates estão totalmente derretidos quando são encontrados.

O café da manhã é sempre um momento especial, porque para nós, a Páscoa é um momento de estar com a família. Então comemos waffles caseiros, frutas e é claro, chocolate, enquanto rezamos e agradecemos por tudo o que somos e temos.

O resto do dia é passado com a família – tios, primos e avós, todos celebrando os momentos de Páscoa. Na segunda-feira a vida volta ao normal – exceto que pelo menos neste dia, as crianças podem levar chocolates de lanche para a escola.

Being such a big country means that the Easter traditions vary a lot, according to the region - or religion.

Brazil has a huge Catholic population, so the Semana Santa (Holy Week) is observed throughout the country with processions and rituals similar to those of other Catholic countries, yet made unique by the specific context in which they happen. The Catholics have special open air plays where actors represent the resurrection of Jesus and masses in churches on Easter Sunday.

But as I have never experienced a Catholic Easter, I prefer to describe the Easter that I´ve had for the past 20 years in a Lutheran – yet not super religious – family.

The preparations for the “Páscoa” (Easter) in my family begin a few weeks in advance. The kids prepare cute Easter Bunnies made of paper in school, paint eggs in the most colorful way they can and are very excited every time they wake up and there is a small chocolate beside their beds.

The “Sexta-Feira Santa” (Holy Friday) is a day to think and to pray. We are not allowed to talk loudly, run or listen to loud music. We don´t eat meat and usually have fish for lunch. (The country takes it seriously: even Mc Donald´s has a special Mc Fish offer for the day) It is quite a peaceful day and everyone is happy that we can stay at home.

The Saturday, in Portuguese called “Sábado de Aleluia” is a day full of expectations. At night, children leave a carrot for the Bunny. In the morning it is always half eaten – guess the Bunny is never very hungry…

On Sunday, the “Domingo de Páscoa”, the children wake up knowing that they have a challenge awaiting: finding their nests full of chocolate eggs. The Easter Bunny is clever, and leaves a map and instructions. It is always a nice time for them – sometimes the nest is on a tree, sometimes under the ground or even inside their own closets. The only problem is when it takes them a long time to find the chocolates, because depending on where they are hidden the chocolates are totally melted when they are found.

The breakfast is always a special moment, because for us, Easter is all about sharing and being with the family. So we have house made waffles, fruits and, of course, some chocolate - while we pray and are thankful for everything we´ve got.

The rest of the day is spent with the family: aunts, cousins, grandparents, all celebrating the joyous moments. On Monday life is back to normal – except that for once, the children are allowed to take chocolate as their snack in school.

Pâques est avant tout une fête catholique très répandue en France, où messes et processions religieuses ont lieu partout. Mais Pâques est aussi un jour de joie où familles et amis se retrouvent et profitent de ce moment de fête pour savourer mets délicieux et bien évidemment, beaucoup de chocolats.

Quelques mots sur Pâques

Pâques est avant tout une célébration existant dans la religion catholique et judaïque. Les deux célébrations diffèrent quelque peu dans leur interprétation et organisation, mais au final les deux religions célèbrent la même chose : la résurrection du Christ.

Contrairement à beaucoup d’autres pays, et à part dans quelques régions françaises et d’Outre-mer, le Vendredi saint n’est pas un jour férié. Le seul jour férié pendant les fêtes de Pâques reste le Lundi de Pâques. Mais les festivités de Pâques coïncident généralement avec les vacances scolaires ; de quoi donner aux enfants encore plus de temps pour manger des chocolats.

Que les festivités commencent !

D’accord Pâques est une fête religieuse mais je pense que ce qu’en retiennent surtout les gens, et les enfants en particulier, sont les repas interminables avec de nombreux plats et notamment l’agneau pascal. Mais avant tout, Pâques ne serait pas Pâques sans des tonnes de chocolat. Comme dans tous les pays nous avons aussi le fameux lièvre Pascal qui nous amène à tous (même aux adultes ; il n’y a pas d’âge pour être gourmand après tout !) de nombreux chocolats. Mais sans doute parce que nous, français, sommes très gourmands, il n’y a pas que les œufs en chocolat que l’on réclame à Pâques, mais aussi les poissons en chocolat (en référence au poisson d’avril du 1er avril) et bien entendu les cloches en chocolat.

Et oui, voici une légende de Pâques quasiment propre à la France. La légende veut que les cloches de toutes les églises partent à Rome le soir du Jeudi saint où elles se font bénir par le Pape. Le matin de Pâques, les cloches reviennent en carillonnant pour annoncer leur joie après la résurrection de Jésus. Mais avant de partir de Rome, elles se sont chargées d’œufs de Pâques qu’elles laissent sur leur passage dans les jardins.

C’est pourquoi en se levant les enfants découvrent autant d’œufs dans leurs jardins ou appartements. Mais attention, car les cloches sont parfois très farceuses.

Et pour tous ceux qui aiment blaguer, voici une petite blague de Pâques à l’humour très français :

Le Petit Jésus rentre de l'école avec son relevé trimestriel, et Marie l'examine :

Mathématiques : 3/20 "multiplie les petits pains et les boissons"
Chimie : 5/20 "change l'eau en vin pour amuser ses petits camarades"
Sport : 4/20 "marche sur l'eau pendant les épreuves de natation"

Marie, très en colère, regarde Jésus et lui dit :

"Et bien, mon garçon, tes vacances de Pâques, tu peux faire une croix dessus !"

Joyeuses fêtes de Pâques à tous!

Easter is above all a very wide-spread Catholic feast in France, where masses and religious processions take place everywhere. But Easter is also a day of enjoyment where families and friends meet and take advantage of this festive moment to savor delicious dishes and of course, a lot of chocolates.

A few words on Easter

Easter is a celebration existing in the Catholic and Jewish religions. Both celebrations differ a little in their interpretation and organization, but in the end, both religions celebrate the same event: the resurrection of the Christ.

In contrary to many other countries, and except in some French and overseas regions, the Good Friday is not a holiday. The only free day is Easter’s Monday. But generally, Easter festivities coincide with school holidays; which means even more time for children to eat chocolate.

Here are the festivities!

OK, Easter is a religious feast but I think what people mostly keep in mind , and especially children, are the endless meals with numerous dishes, of which the traditional Easter lamb. But above all that Easter would not be Easter without tons of chocolates. As in any other country, we also have the famous Easter hare who brings to us all (even adults; because there’s no age limit to be greedy after all!) plenty of chocolates. But maybe because us, French people, are very greedy, chocolate eggs are not the only candies we ask for at Easter. We also have chocolate fishes (these refer to the 1st April French trick: stick a fish made of paper on the back of people) and, of course, chocolate bells.

Yes, again, here is an Easter legend proper to France. The legend says that bells from all churches leave for Rome on Thursday evening to get blessed by the Pope. They leave from Rome on the Saturday evening tinkling to announce their joy after Jesus’ rebirth. But before leaving Rome, they were loaded with lots of chocolate eggs that they drop, on their way back to churches, in gardens and houses. This is why, when getting up on Easter Sunday, children find that many eggs. But be careful, because sometimes bells can be practical jokers.

Here are a few Easter jokes written by children. Hope it makes you smile.

Is it true that bunnies have good eyesight?
Well you never see a bunny wearing glasses, do you?

Why is a bunny the luckiest animal in the world?
It has four rabbits' feet.

Why does the Easter Bunny have a shiny nose?
Because the powder puff is on the other end!

Happy Easter to everyone!

The imagery around Easter is all about new life, new growth etc – and in the Northern Hemisphere this all fits. In the Southern Hemisphere however, Easter falls in autumn – the leaves are falling from the trees, the days are getting shorter, the nights are getting colder and Daffodils couldn’t be further from blooming in the garden! This doesn’t seem to stop us Kiwi’s though, and in the same way we put fake snow around the windows at Christmas in an attempt at creating our very own “white Christmas” (despite it being 30degrees outside!) all the cards, emails, and advertising surrounding Easter consistently stays with pictures of daffodils and yellow baby chickens, and of course rabbits.

New Zealand does not really have the tradition of painting eggs and decorating trees and gardens with them like you see in many parts of Europe. Kiwis do however LOVE the chocolate eggs and bunny rabbits that seem to fill the stores and it is traditional for many families to leave a little selection of Easter eggs for children to wake up to on Easter Sunday morning.

In recent times, it would seem the most commonly discussed Easter topic in New Zealand is gardening. Yes, you read that right, gardening. Let me explain… Stemming from NZ’s more Christian history, it is illegal for retailers and most of the hospitality industry to open on either Good Friday or Easter Sunday (except in many of the tourist towns like Taupo or Queenstown). Historically this is because these are such important religious days for the Christian faith that it was made law that everyone should be at home with family and able to go to Church. In modern-day NZ, more people want to use this long weekend to socialize with friends, go shopping or… get all their gardening done before winter sets in! In what many people see as a controversial decision, many garden supply stores continue to open on these religious days as they know that these two days present the opportunity for them to make a LOT of money. As the penalty fine is relatively small, most of these garden retailers would rather pay this and remain open to make the most of the biggest money-making weekend of the year! This issue makes the news every year in NZ, and yet the laws remain in place – why?! Perhaps because despite our country turning away from the religious aspect of these traditional festivals, everyone still appreciates the extra day’s holiday!

From fast to feast

The beginning is quite sad. Good Friday is time for meditation, time of silence and sacrifice. Most people refrain from eating meat, many restrict the food they consume to bread and some very basic dinner like potatoes (without meat, of course) or a vegetable soup. However unpleasant it may seem, it really increases the joy of eating the following day. Saturday is already a merry holiday (although still meatless in most houses) on which we go to the church to have our Easter food blessed during a short celebration. In our little baskets decorated with green leaves or flowers symbolizing the spring we bring a symbolic amount of eggs, bread, ham and a lamb-shaped cake (lamb is the symbol of Christ arisen) which we will share and eat after wishing each other Happy Easter during the festive breakfast on Sunday morning.

Mystery solved

Sunday begins for many with a resurrection mass in the early morning. Others (including myself) sleep in first, eat an exquisite breakfast consisting of above mentioned ingredients and lots of horseradish, and then go to the church. Of course we decorate eggs in many different ways, where I come from, we eat eggs cooked in onion peelings and we sculpt ornaments on the brown-red eggshells. Before they are ready to be eaten, however, the eggs need to stay for a while in this onion extract. And they should get there cracked. So the egg fight mentioned in the title does not really include throwing raw eggs at each other but knocking cooked eggs against each other. The winner is the “toughest” egg, the one that cracks last (or rather the person who had it because even the toughest egg ends up cracked in the onion water ).

Wet wet wet

If Easter is warm and sunny it is a great tradition, if it’s cold (and it can be still very cold in March in Poland) it turns into a nightmare – the so-called lany poniedziałek or śmigus-dyngus - the Easter Monday custom of dousing young women with water, as my Oxford dictionary nicely puts it. Meanwhile it is not only young women who are victims of this custom, the innocent tradition that began with sprinkling young ladies with a bit of perfumed water developed into regular water fights in the streets and it is indeed highly inadvisable to go outside on Easter Monday. But as I said, when it is hot a bit of water fight might actually be great fun and a huge relief.

So, if you’re up to some egg and water fighting but most of all you want to experience nice family atmosphere and eat lots of yummy food, come to Poland during Easter!

Come tutte le altre festività italiane anche la Pasqua è un esempio di tradizioni e riti specifici. La Pasqua italiana si svolge in tre giornate, il Venerdì Santo, la Domenica di Pasqua e il Lunedì di Pasquetta, così che, in occasione dell’arrivo della bella stagione, si può già pensare di organizzare un’escursione (gli Italiani amano andare al mare il Lunedì di Pasquetta per un pranzo a base di pesce!).

Durante il Venerdì Santo si svolgono numerose processioni in cui le statue di Gesù crocefisso e la Madonna vengono trasportate sulle spalle o esposte sulle piazze principali. Spesso si svolgono anche delle parade in costume. Come simbolo di pace durante queste manifestazioni, nelle chiese e nelle case vengono raccolti ed esposti ramoscelli d’olivo o palme. Collocandosi alla fine della Quaresima (che tradizionalmente rappresenta quaranta giorni di digiuno) il giorno di Pasqua è anche un giorno di festeggiamenti e un’ottima occasione per concedersi del buon cibo.

Il cibo è un elemento centrale e nonostante il detto “Natale con i tuoi, Pasqua con chi vuoi”, gli Italiani amano riunirsi anche nella Domenica di Pasqua per gustare insieme i cibi pasquali. Nonostante questi varino di regione in regione si possono trovare dei piatti comuni a tutte o a molte regioni. Ecco i principali.

1. Colazione di Pasqua
Le famiglie delle regioni centrali preparano solitamente un cesto per la colazione di Pasqua. Questo cesto contiene la torta di Pasqua, il capocollo, del vino bianco e uova sode decorate con colori appositi dai bambini. Durante il sabato che precede la Pasqua, si va in chiesa per la benedizione, secondo un rito cattolico, di questi cestini.

2. Pane e torte
Sotto il periodo di Pasqua il pane si arricchisce. Esistono diversi esempi di pani e torte pasquali. Gli ingredienti più usati in ogni caso restano formaggi, pancetta, olive, uova e burro.

3. Piselli
Come segno dell’arrivo della primavera, i piselli compaiono sulle tavole degli Italiani accompagnati da pancetta o prosciutto e prezzemolo. I piselli sono il contorno principale il giorno di Pasqua.

4. Agnello arrosto
Come in molti altri paesi cristiani l’agnello è un importante simbolo pasquale (in Polonia, per esempio, si porta in tavola del burro a forma di agnello) e la pietanza principale per il pranzo di Pasqua. Una delle specialità più famose è il cosciotto d’agnello arrosto.

5. Cappelletti in brodo
Dopo l’abbondanza della colazione e del pranzo della Domenica di Pasqua, per cena ci si mantiene leggeri con l’immancabile brodo di carne e cappelletti.

6. Colomba
È il principale dessert sotto le feste pasquali e il regalo più comune che si può ricevere quando si decide di invitare qualcuno al pranzo di Pasqua. Si tratta di un dolce a forma di colomba, ricoperto di zucchero e mandorle.

7. Uova di Pasqua
I bambini italiani non attendono impazienti il coniglietto di Pasqua (l’usanza non esiste in Italia) ma non vedono l’ora di mangiare un po’ di cioccolata e di scoprire la sorpresa all’interno dell’uovo di cioccolata che ricevono la mattina di Pasqua.

Sources:
http://italian.about.com/lr/easter_in_italy/9654/1/
http://italianfood.about.com/od/holidaydishes/tp/aa032906.htm

Like all holidays in Italy, Pasqua is an event rich in rituals and traditions. The Monday following Easter, la Pasquetta is also a holiday throughout Italy, so if traveling be prepared for another day of repose (Italians usually go to the seaside for a fish-based lunch).

Solemn religious processions are held in many towns on the Friday before Easter and sometimes on Easter Sunday. During the processions statues of the Virgin and Jesus may be paraded through the city or displayed in the main square. Parade participants are often dressed in traditional ancient costumes. Olive branches and palm fronds are held in the processions and used to decorate churches. While the days before Easter in Italy include solemn processions and masses, Easter is a joyous celebration and one of the most important points, as we are in Italy, is food.

Since Easter is the end of the Lent season, food plays a big part in the celebrations. Traditional Easter foods include lamb or goat, artichokes, and special Easter breads that vary from region to region.

Although there is the old Italian saying "Christmas at home and Easter with whomever you wish", Easter is an occasion for families to reunite around a well-set table. Traditions vary greatly from place to place but here you can find a top selection of Italian Easter food.

1. Easter breakfast
Families from Italy’s central regions prepare a nest for the Easter breakfast, containing holy Easter bread, salami, wine and colored boiled-eggs. They usually go to the church on the Saturday before Easter to let the nest be blessed with a catholic ritual.

2. Easter breads and pies
These are not the standard breads one buys day-to-day in Italian bakeries, but rather something more: Breads that contain cheese, sausage, salami, a lot of butter and even hard-boiled eggs.

3. Fresh peas
Fresh peas are one of the most eagerly awaited signs of Spring in Italy, and no Easter table is complete without them. The most classic Italian way of preparing peas is with pancetta or prosciutto and parsley.

4. Roast lamb
The lamb is a central feature in the Christian religions and many Christian cultures prepare lamb shaped dishes during Easter (i.e. Polish butter lamb). In Italy the leg of lamb is a typical Easter lunch dish.

5. Easter Soup
It´s the classic beginning to Easter dinner, usually made with an equal amounts of beef and lamb and cappelletti (small rounds of pasta stuffed with meat, cheese or vegetables)

6. Colomba
This dove shaped breads are often given as gifts. It´s made with almonds, sugar and egg whites.

7. Chocolate eggs
Italian kids won't wait for the Easter bunny. Instead of that we have lots of other sweeties, for instance chocolate eggs, which usually come with a surprise inside.

Sources:
http://italian.about.com/lr/easter_in_italy/9654/1/
http://italianfood.about.com/od/holidaydishes/tp/aa032906.htm