Halloween by Maria Zurita

 

Known as Halloween or Night of the Dead, is a holiday celebrated primarily in the United States. The origin of this festival is the day of the Celtic legend octubre.La 31 ensures that the best thing was to try, no matter the cost to have it because of not agreeing with this spirit he would use his powers to "trick" that would curse the house and its inhabitants

I do not celebrate Halloween in my country that is not held me so I could not get used to this lag everyone tradiccion years. But people usually dress up.

The All Saints' Day is a Catholic tradition.

Bank Holidays

Now that we are in a global economical crisis, we are hearing that politics and bussinessmen are thinking of changing the job calendar in Spain. They had a look in the British work system and their Bank holidays. What is a bank holiday? Here there is a free translation of the article in EL PAIS last Friday. Every holiday is on Monday in the United Kingdom. Therefore, their ideal target is to avoid long free days in that country and also a worker can always enjoy the holidays in the weekdays, they never happen on Saturday or Sundays. There are only two exceptions: Good Friday and Holy Monday. Christmas Day and the Boxing Day, on 26th December, only change if they are at weekends. So, if Christmas Day is on Saturday a year, the next two consecutive days are then on Monday and Tuesday. But, if Christmas Day is on Wednesday, the holiday is on Wednesday and Thursday, that means that it is the only chance to have the longest period of holiday of the year ( the Spanish typical "puente" ). Thus, Christmas and Good Friday are the only public holidays ( for everyone ) and the rest of free days for workers are Bank Holidays. That name comes from a decission taken by the Bank of England in 1834. They decided to shorten the holy days from 33 free days to four days ( Good Friday. 1st May, 1st November- Day of All Saints- and Christmas Day ). But the tradition of moving the festivity to a Monday started after a law of Bank Holidays in 1871. Although we may have the feeling of having more free days in Spain than in the UK, the fact is that the figures are similar as the holidays are moved to a Monday instead of at weekends. There are nine Bank Holidays in England and Wales in 2011: Christmas Day, Good Friday, New Year's Day, Holy Monday, 1st May, Boxing Day, Spring and Summer bank holidays- the days of the start of that season ). There is also an extra Bank Holiday to conmemorate the Prince William's wedding. Actually, there will be another extra bank holiday in 2012 to celebrate the 60th Anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II kingdom, on 5th June. Besides, the word "holiday" has a singular definition. If you take the law by its word, workers only have the right to take their holidays at Christmas and Good Friday, in spite of the fact that most of them do not work in bank holidays. Anyway, every holiday and free days are regulated in each coompany and any holiday or free day are within the 5,6 weeks of vacation a year. The company has their right to take money of the worker's wages or to cut down the worker's holidays because of the number of Bank Holidays. Grandma needs new dentures To eat the crust on pizza Been taken out by her daughter Because she thought she oughta The kids are eating Snickers Because they're so delicious Then there's sticky fingers And mother loses her knickers Bank holiday comes six times a year Days of enjoyment to which everyone cheers Bank holiday comes with a six pack of beer Then it's back to work A-g-a-i-n Barbecue is cooking Sausages and chicken The patio is buzzing And neighbors they are looking John is down the fun pub Drinking lots of lager Girls and boys are on the game And all the high streets look the same

It's Halloween Week

THE STORY OF HALLOWEEN

Halloween is one of the oldest holidays with origins going back thousands of years. The holiday we know as Halloween has had many influences from many cultures over the centuries. From the Roman’s Pomona Day, to the Celtic festival of Samhanin, to the Christian holidays of All Saints and All Souls Days.

Hundreds of years ago in what is now Great Britain and Northern France, lived the Celts. The Celts worshipped nature and many gods, with the sun god as their favorite. It was “he” who commanded their work and their rest times, and who made the earth beautiful and the crops grow.

The Celts celebrated their New Year on November 1st. It was celebrated every year with a festival and marked the end of the “season of the sun” and the beginning of “the season of darkness and cold”.

On October 31st after the crops were all harvested and stored for the long winter the cooking fires in the homes would be extinguished. The Druids, the Celts priests, would meet in the hilltop in the dark oak forest ( oak trees were considered sacred ). The Druids would light new fires and offer sacrifices of crops and animals. As they danced around the fires, the season of the sun passed and the season of darkness would begin.

When the morning arrived the Druids would give an ember from their fires to each family who would then take them home to start new cooking fires. These fires would keep the homes warm and free from evil spirits.

The November 1st festival was called Samhain. The festival would last for 3 days. Many people would parade in costumes made from the skins and heads of their animals. This festival would become the first Halloween.

During the first century the Romans invaded Britain. They brought with them many of their festivals and customs. One of these was the festival known ass Pomona Day, named for their goddess of fruits and gardens. It was also celebrated around the 1st of November. After hundreds of years of Roman rule the customs of the Celtic’s Samhain festival and the Roman Pomona Day mixed becoming the major fall holiday.

The next influence came with the spread of the new Christian religion throughout Europe and Britain. In the year 835 AD the Roman Catholic Church would make November 1st a church holiday to honor all the saints. This day was called All Saint’s Day, or Hallowmas, or All Hallows. Years later the Church would make November 2nd a holy day. It was called All Souls Day and was to honor the dead. It was celebrated with big bonfires, parades, and people dressing up as saints, angels and devils.

But the spread of Christianity did not make people forget their early customs. On the Eve of All Hallows, Oct. 31, people continued to celebrate the festivals of Samhain and Pomona Day. Over the years the customs from all these holidays mixed. October 31st became known as All Hallow Even, eventually All Hallow’s Eve, Hallowe’en, and then Halloween.

The Halloween we celebrate today includes all of these influences. Pomona Day’s apples, nuts, and harvest, the Festival of Samhain’s black cats, magic, evil spirits and death, and the ghosts, skeletons and skulls from All Saint’s Day and All Soul’s Day.