Valentine's Day Trivia
Happy
Valentine’s Day, everyone!
Today
I thought I would do some research to find out how Valentine’s Day is
celebrated around the world. It’s always
exciting to visit another country and experience their traditions first-hand,
and a look into those traditions that would intrigue me enough to specifically
plan a vacation seems like a fitting task for today’s post!
When
Valentine’s Day is considered here in Canada, most people think of flowers,
chocolates, and husbands scrambling at the last minute, getting ripped off by
knowing vendors! Stores are full of
cheap, useless pink and red decorations (because, honestly, aside from perhaps
elementary school classes, who actually throws a Valentine’s Day party?), and
everyday chocolates come out in heart-shaped boxes at slightly higher
prices. It’s a fun day – I love
Valentine’s Day, but not for these traditions.
Valentine’s
Day is based upon St. Valentine, a patron saint from the 5th
century. Like so many of our holidays
and festivities, the Catholic Church has its stake in St. Valentine. Confusion exists over which “Valentine” the
day is actually named after, however, but all of the contenders fell upon heartache
and scandal. Some believe February 14th
was chosen to “Christianize” the pagan celebration of Lupercalia on February 15th, a fertility
festival with Roman roots. The modern
traditions of exchanging cards and messages began well into the Middle Ages.
Brazilians
know how to throw a party and their way of celebrating Valentine’s Day
is no exception. People gather together
from all over the country to enjoy lights and music, along with the exchange of
gifts and cards. Dancing is inevitable,
and the beautiful Brazilian samba can be heard throughout the city streets.
In
Pakistan, Muslims are not allowed to exhibit public displays of affection, so
Valentine’s Day is subdued. However, as
attitudes and cultural ideals slowly begin to change, people can be found discreetly
handing off a red heart-shaped balloon or red rose to the one they love.
Women
are the focus for Valentine’s Day in Japan, but not in the way you might
think! Japanese tradition holds that
women are the ones showering their men with gifts and love. Chocolates are among the top choice for
Valentine’s Day gifts. One month later,
though, the men celebrate White Day and must give their women even more
expensive chocolates than the ones they received in February.
Before
government banned the tradition, single French women and men used to face each
other within various homes and try to pair up.
This was known as “une loterie d’amour”.
Now, celebrations are similar to those found in North America. Rather than taking loved ones out for dinner,
though, the French prefer to cook in their homes for each other.
Australians
show us all up by exchanging expensive gifts with loved ones. Extravagant items involving silk, satin,
jewels, and gold are bought, a tradition stemming from their gold rush in the
mid-nineteenth century.
Valentine’s
Day is banned from Saudi Arabia as it apparently promotes immoral heterosexual
relations! And, to add to this
preposterous notion, anything red must be removed from gift shops after
February 14th.
And,
of course, the Italians show their love by taking their loved ones out for
pizza! Chocolates in ever-increasingly
large boxes are exchanged, as well.
For
us, the ‘tradition’ is to head out to Boston Pizza for their heart-shaped
pizzas. A portion of the sales go
towards charity, so it’s a nice way to enjoy time out as well as do something
good for others. We don’t make this an
exclusive event either – friends - singles and couples - are more than welcome to
join us! And my favorite part of
Valentine’s Day? My annual creation of
multiple handmade cards for Bryan! Lucky
guy.
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