Easter is a great time for celebration with the family and of course eating your entire weight in chocolate! Do you like to eat it all on Easter Sunday or build up a stash for the following weeks? In the rest of the world there are so many Easter traditions that you really won’t have been expecting. Want to find out more about the wackiest easter traditions? Well, you’re in the right place!
The wackiest Easter traditions
new zealand
The first tradition isn’t what you would exactly call being in the spirit of Easter and is certainly one of the wackiest Easter traditions. When many of us think of Easter traditions and symbols, what comes to mind are chocolate eggs and cute bunnies. Well on Easter Sunday in New Zealand, we hope the Easter Bunny isn’t around because he would be public enemy number one! People head to the countryside and try to shoot as many bunnies as they can, to clear away ‘pests’ from farmland. More than 20,000 are killed each Easter Sunday. Poor bunnies!
Czechia (or the Czech Republic, no one knows what to call this country anymore!)
In Czechia on Easter Monday men will whip women with a colourfully decorated stick. Right now, you are probably pretty worried about this tradition! Don’t worry, it isn’t as bad as it sounds. They don’t seek to hurt the women, simply tap them on the leg or shoulder. It is said that doing so will bring the women health and good looks in the following year. We would have thought that to send flowers to a loved one would be a nicer way to wish someone good luck for the year! It’s fair to say that this is not a tradition that will catch on elsewhere. If I were a Czech lady I would be keeping inside on Easter Monday!
Papua new guinea
Whilst chocolate wouldn’t be a sensible idea in the roasting hot country of Papua New Guinea, the traditional Easter product in Papua New Guinea will surprise you! Here, tobacco is the guilty pleasure of choice. On Easter Sunday, the churches are full of trees covered in tobacco and cigarettes, which are then handed out after the service!
PHILIPPINES
Here, there is a practice whereby devout Catholics walk through the streets beating themselves with bamboo sticks and some even cut their backs with a blade! They believe that this helps to purify them and take away all of their sins. It has to be said that the Catholic Church does not try to promote this tradition, but their words seem to fall on deaf ears.
HUNGARY
In many towns and villages in Hungary, Easter is celebrated women dressing up in traditional clothing who then have water thrown at them. Whilst this may not be comfortable, one would rather that than getting whipped like in Czechia! To find out more about Easter in Hungary, take a look here.
POLAND
In Poland on Easter Sunday a knob of butter is shaped into a lamb to create the originally named ‘butter lamb. This is one of the Easter traditions that dates back hundreds of years and it was made to ensure that the devil was not present at the dinner table. How did they believe this worked? Well, because a lamb was the only form which he couldn’t take. Simple when you know why isn’t it?
france
In the town of Haux, every Easter Monday the residents create an enormous omelette made up of over 5200 eggs! 1000 residents come together to watch the omelette being cooked in an incredibly large pan and then they eat it together. Which would you rather? Eggs in this omelette or a chocolate egg? A tough call!
GREECE
In most of Greece, Easter is fairly usual affair, with fireworks celebrating the arrival of Easter Sunday at midnight after a traditional mass. The wackiest Easter traditions are seen on the Greek islands. On Corfu they hurl clay vases, which thankfully they don’t contain our flowers, out of the window on Easter Saturday (video above, 1:48). Whereas in Chois two rival churches hold a fake battle using firework rockets. Now that we would all love to see!
Would you like to go and visit any of these countries at Easter to see any of these traditions for yourself? Are there any unusual Easter traditions where you are from? We would love to hear about them!
One Easter tradition that is sure to bring a smile to your loved one’s face is sending Easter flowers. Send flowers abroad or nationally with FloraQueen and you will make their Easter even more special!
