Easter in Greece

Easter day today in Greece! (28th of April this year, every year it is a different date)
People eating lamp and cracking red eggs.
Easter holidays are very important for people in Greece. (Ιf we had to compare Christmas with Easter, Easter is more important than Christmas here.) Lent (not eating meat, eggs, diary products and fish) starts 40 days before Easter but most people fast the Holy Week(a direct translation would be Big or Long Week), one week before Easter. Schools are closed this week as well as the next one after Easter. Every day of the holy week is very important and people go to the church.
In Holy-Big Thursday children are singing the carols holding a wooden cross decorated with flowers. I remember the days when I used to go and sing, my grandmother would make me a very beautiful cross decorated with flowers from her garden and then with my friend we would go to so many houses of our relatives to sing.
In Holy-Big Friday we go to the church very late in the night(4 o clock) and with the epitaph (special canopy that represents the tomb of Christ) decorated with flowers, which many men carry it because it is heavy and we walk around the island while singing anthems until we go back to the church.
The Lent ended yesterday midnight and we ate a special food with meat and then we cracked the red eggs. I am so happy that finally after a long time I am home and get to spend Easter with my family and friends, I hadn't been home since summer. Of course being home wouldn't feel the same if I didn't write here and going swimming.
I hope you are all doing well and I wish you health and Kalo Pascha(Good Easter)!

the cracking of the red eggs
the epitaph
people walking with the epitaph in the night

 

Thank you for sharing your Easter with us! Your Easter is much like mine, we also fast during lent, give up eating meat on Wed and Fridays. I also give up something for Lent. This year it was Ice Cream, my Easter Sunday was April 21st. Enjoy your Easter and time with friends and family!

 

When my sister asked her kids their thoughts on what they should give up for Lent, my niece replied that she would give up vegetables

 

Good one pnp

Thanks for sharing Arielh

 

Thank you for your wishes sanddollar15. I have had a very good time here and I am sad to leave tomorrow. But in two months I will be back.

Pnp that was so funny!

 

Arielh, I really enjoyed you shearing your Easter holiday with us. It sounds very nice. Thanks for writing to us about it.

 

Nice pictures and thanks for sharing your Easter with us. Here in the US it is almost the same. I do have a question... are ALL of your eggs red? Why is a red egg important?
Thanks

 

Hello!! In Greece, Greeks paint red eggs because it symbolizes the blood of Jesus Christ. That's why it's so important.

 

Thank for the answer. The blood of Jesus that makes perfect sense. I should have figured that out. Hummm... I think my family should also dye our Easter eggs as they do in Greece. Thank you for sharing.

 

Yes exactly that's why we paint them red. Though before I looked it up I also didn't remember what the color symbolizes as we do it as tradition for so long and rarely we think about the meaning. Some people even pain them other colors but the red ones are the traditional.
Also the cracking of the red eggs it is said that it is the symbol of Jesus's resurrection.

 

Oh I've been to Greece some years ago and luckily had the chance of witnessing Greek Easter. I love all the Greek customs and holidays but my favourite so far is easter. The food and desserts are just amazing! You are also celebrating Thanksgiving, I suppose? I'm planning a trip to Greece on April in order to buy property in Athens and hope I can catch the easter. Would be great to have some tsoureki and souvlaki