Bonfire Night or Guy Fawkes Day: what is the story behind this British observance?
Guy Fawkes Day, also called Bonfire Night, is a British observance, celebrated on this day, November 5, commemorating the failure of the Gunpowder Plot of 1605. But what is its […]
Some fascinating facts you probably don’t know about the Day of the Dead
First: did you know that the Day of the Dead has a history older than Christmas? Historically, Jesus of Nazareth was born in the year 1 A.D., despite some the […]
Some creepy real events that actually happened on Halloween
For some of us, October 31st is the most fun day of the year. And, for others, it’s the spookiest. Bad things always happen on Halloween, in a variety of […]
12 Ways Halloween is celebrated around the globe
In America, people associate Halloween with pumpkins, costumes, candy, and spooky stories or ghosts but, around the world, it could be a little different. The holiday might look slightly different […]
Why the Halloween colors are black and orange?
Probably, we tend to take holiday colors for granted, not giving them too much thought since they’re simply ingrained in our culture. And It’s usually pretty obvious what colors go […]
The curious history behind some popular Halloween traditions
Now a night of frolic especially for children in America but now also all over the world, this autumn holiday is actually a mix of old rituals remembering the dead […]
Vintage photographs from a 1930s Halloween
By now we know that Halloween is a festival with ancient origins that is celebrated on October 31st. Traditionally linked to the Anglo-Saxon world, westernization and globalization have now led […]
Some Halloween urban legends that refuse to die
We’ve all heard the scary stories. And Halloween would be nothing without the tricks and, above all, wouldn’t be fun without a scare or two. That’s the allure of the […]
The season before winter is “Autumn” or “Fall”? :)
The trees are turning, the weather’s getting cooler, laughing pumpkins are back—it’s fall! No, that one English friend tells you: it’s autumn. So how did two completely unalike words come […]
Mabon (?) and the Autumn Equinox
Not everyone knows that the Wheel of the Year is a set of eight seasonal celebrations spaced approximately 6-7 weeks apart through the year, which mark a combination of Solstices, […]
Harvest Moon: September’s Full Moon
September is the month of the Harvest Moon, sometimes also referred to as the Wine Moon or the Singing Moon. This is the time of year when the last of […]
Historical Regatta: in the Grand Canal the ancient Venetian maritime tradition between races and historical re-enactments
The Historical Regatta is the most traditional among the venetian events. It is a show that, each year the first Sunday of September, brings the ancient boats of the glorious […]
Ferragosto: history, traditions (and curses) of one of the most beloved holidays in Italy
Celebrated on August 15, the so called Ferragosto may well be considered the height of the Italian summer: many Italians still take their summer vacation around this time, with the […]
August 10th: the tears of Saint Lawrence and the night of the shooting stars
In August, as Earth’s orbit crosses the dust ejected by the comet Swift-Tuttle (the largest object known to repeatedly pass by Earth) provides a fabulous spectacle for viewers on Earth. […]
The fascinating story of Nocino, the witches’ liqueur.
Patron saints. Every Italian town has one and a local public holiday for celebrating their heavenly protector. In some italian regions, San Giovanni Battista or John the Baptist, is venerated […]
The albumen of St. John: a curious Italian tradition
John the Baptist is the most depicted saint in art of all centuries. His night has always been considered magical and prodigious, probably because it immediately follows the summer solstice […]
St John’s eve: ancient rituals to mark midsummer
Saint John’s Eve, starting at sunset on 23 June, is the eve of celebration before the Feast Day of Saint John the Baptist. The Gospel of Luke states that John […]
The best pictures of creepy Easter Bunnies scaring of innocent children~
Easter is a bizarre holiday with pagan origins and lot of bizzarre traditions in Europe, but not only. The dead returning to life. Bunny shaped chocolates. Painting and hiding eggs. […]
Why do we have Easter bunny and Easter eggs?
All the fun things about Easter have pagan roots, and It is not a coincidence if the most widely-practiced customs on Easter Sunday are associated to the rabbit (“Easter bunny”) […]
Święconka: the Polish Easter tradition artfully assembles symbolic foods, from bread to lamb-shaped butter.
The Polish people are very religious. Most of them are Roman Catholics. For centuries, during the 40 days before Easter (Lent) the Polish people fasted: they ate no meat, butter, […]
The ancient pagan origins of Easter
Easter: a secular culture celebrates the spring equinox, whilst religious culture celebrates the resurrection. In religious (and obvious) terms, Easter is a holiday celebrated by millions of people around the […]
Some surprising things you (probably) didn’t know about Good Friday
Have you heard of the theory that it storms on Good Friday in the afternoon between 12 p.m. and 3 p.m.? The Christian belief is Christ’s crucifixion occurred on this […]
Costumes, dancing, and food: Malanka is Ukraine’s biggest party
In Ukraine, Malanka is much more than a party: it’s one of the oldest, happiest, most vibrant days of the year in local culture. It is a folk holiday celebrated […]
March, 17: It’s St Patrick’s Day!
All we known that March 17 is St Patrick’s Day, a cultural and religious holiday celebrated every year in Ireland and by Irish communities around the world. The celebration marks […]
The “100 Giorni”: the official countdown to the final High School state examination
What in Italy is called “100 giorni”, is the official countdown begins to the final High School state examination and its traditions are repeated by students in many areas and […]
29/30/31 January: the Merla days (hen blackbird), according to tradition are the coldest days of the year ~
It was a very, very cold Winter. That year the month of January put every effort to live up to his reputation as a freezing, windy month. The snow was […]
La Giubiana: a curious tradition linked to the last Thursday of January in Northern Italy
A great fire that will illuminate the darkness, with the hope that it will burn well and quickly so as to drive away the winter and propitiate the year that […]
Chinese New Year 2020: the year of the Golden Rat. History and traditions of a millenary festival.
Two days ago, on January 25, the new year began according to the traditional Chinese calendar, a holiday period that will end on February 8, with the start of the […]
How do people celebrate New Year around the world?
Even if people celebrate New Year in a number of ways, on 31st December, the festivities hit all places across the world at slightly different times too, due to the […]