THE WEEK OF GREECE
Myrto Maria 28 marzec Two of the most important traditional holidays in Greece are Christmas and Easter. Here are 2 customs that accompany each holiday and make these days unique! CHRISTMAS CUSTOM: St Basil’s Cake is prepared for the dinner of New Year’s Eve. This cake, called vasilopita in Greek, is dedicated to Saint Basil, who is the Santa Claus in the Greek tradition and brings the gifts to children that first night of the year.Traditionally St Basil’s Cake has a golden coin inside. The person who finds this coin in his piece is considered lucky for all the coming year. EASTER CUSTOM: The Orthodox custom is to dye Easter eggs a deep red color. The red represents life, victory and the blood of Jesus Christ. At Greek-Orthodox Easter parties, a game called tsougrisma is commonly played using the red dyed eggs. A quick lesson on how to play tsougrisma: Each player selects a red egg and finds an opponent. One person has to say, “Chistos Anesti” (Christ has risen)... The other replies, “Alithos Anesti” (Indeed He has risen). The person who said “Christos Anesti” taps the end of his or her egg lightly against the end of the opponent’s egg. (The goal is to crack the opponent’s egg.) The player who successfully cracks the eggs of the other players is declared the winner and, it is said, will have good luck during the year.