Valentines Day Holiday

Celebration Around The World

Facts - Go to page 1

The Valentines Day Holiday is the second most celebrated holiday in the world after News Years Day! The holiday has been blended in with local cultures. Find out in this second page, some quirks to the Celebration of Romantic Love

A Mistake Becomes A Custom

Valentines Day was introduced in the Far East, in Japan, in 1936 as a marketing exercise targeted to foreigners. But it seems an executive lost something in translation and it ended up with women making gifts of chocolate, candy and greeting cars to men on February 14, while men returned gifts on March 14! This custom of exchanging gifts a month apart is still the common practice.

This Valentines Day holiday custom is also common in South Korea where women give men chocolates on Valentines Day, while on White Day, March 14, men return non-chocolate candy.  Men and women who did not receive any gifts go to a restaurant to eat black noodles on Black Day, April 14! Isn't that the cutest holiday custom.

Brazilians have Special Magic Rites

Here's some surprising facts about the Valentines Day holiday in Brazil.

Brazilians do not celebrate Valentines Day, as it falls too close to their wonderful Brazilian Carnivale, either a week too early or a week just after their Carnivale. 

This alone has made the Carnivale a tourist attraction for those wishing to avoid the obligations of the Valentines holiday.

Brazilians do have a holiday for Lovers on June 12.  It seems, single women perform magic rites called "Simpatias" to help them find a good husband.  Here are a couple of cute ones:

• On separate pieces of paper, write the names of partner candidates, and pop them folded into a dish of water at midnight of June 12. Include a folded blank piece of paper too. In the morning, the fully opened paper will disclose the name of the future husband.  It's problematic if the blank sheet is open - it either means you won't be married or the name is unknown.
  
• Here's one that sounds like Ouija...At midnight on June 12, tie a thread to a wedding ring. Anyone's will do. Hold onto the thread with the ring dangling into the middle of an empty cup, and ask how many years you'll have to wait to be married.  The ring will begin to move just like a pendulum. Be sure to count the number of times it hits the cup - that will be the answer, each time the ring touches the cup will be a years wait.  I suspect it will be a good idea to have a tiny narrow cup.
  

Malaysians are Arrested for Celebrating Valentines Day

Malaysia, although a secular country, has an influential Muslim Shariah Court. The religious authorities decided that this celebration of easy romantic love was Christian nonsense and that Valentines Day would be banned.  There was a national campaign warning couples to "Mind The Valentines Day Trap".

More than 100 couples were arrested by police and charged on Valentines day in 2011 for defying the ban against celebrating this holiday.

To find out more about this holiday, read how February 14 came about to become Valentines Day.

Leave Valentines Day Holiday to explore the hundreds of delicious romantic and easy dinner recipes!