Travel From Home: Easter Around the World

In this special Travel From Home installment, we are traveling around the world to celebrate Easter! For many cultures within the Christian faith, Easter is an important holiday celebrating Jesus’s resurrection. From catchy music to tasty food, follow our journey around the world to share different activities related to the Easter holiday! We hope you and your kids enjoy learning about Easter around the world.

Hungary

Kellemes Húsvéti Ünnepeket

The first stop on our Easter edition is Hungary! Hungary celebrates Easter with colorful customs and unique traditions sure to fascinate children and adults alike. One such Hungarian tradition is “sprinkling”, where young men sprinkle water or cologne on young women. Sprinkling arose from the belief that water has a cleansing effect to beautify (in this case women.) Start your Hungarian Easter traditions with this quirky ritual, or just fast-forward to other holiday traditions!

Hungarian Arts & Crafts

Hungarian Easter traditions also include vibrantly painted Easter eggs. Between turquoise ribbons and intricate floral patterns, there are countless designs to choose from! Older kids will love trying their hand at painting these gorgeous eggs, which can be dyed with natural materials found around your home. Or, younger children can decorate these fun coloring sheets, which come in four different designs! Then, hang your eggs from a nearby tree or ledge to emulate Hungary’s decorated streets. 

Let’s Get Cooking

Easter dinner is best enjoyed as a family! To celebrate Easter in a typical Hungarian-style, consider adding some wonderful Hungarian Easter food to your meal. Hungary is particularly famous for its Easter dessert, so you can even cook up your own dinner, and then add some Hungarian favorites later for a sweet treat. For example, a Hungarian Easter Wreath is a type of sweet bread popular around Easter time, filled with either walnuts or poppy seed. Milk Loaf with Dried Fruits is also a hit with families due to its sugary taste. (Parents can also delight knowing it’s nutritious too!) 

Musical Melodies

Music is also a great way to learn about a culture or a holiday. Teach kids more about Hungary’s Easter traditions through musical melodies and catchy rhyme schemes. Older children will love Hungarian Easter songs like Hungarian Easter Rhymes, best for those who can understand Sprinkling and read subtitles. Finally, little ones will love listening to a Hungarian Easter song with traditional instruments! 

Germany

Frohe Ostern!

Next, let’s go to Germany as we learn about Easter around the world! In fact, Easter is one of the largest holidays celebrated in Germany. Crowds gather throughout the country to celebrate together. Beyond attending church and Easter dinner, German Eastern traditions include several activities you can now enjoy at home with your family! 

Then, learn more about the Top 10 German Easter Traditions by Get Germanized to receive a beginner’s introduction to the country. In Germany, various Easter markets spring up throughout major cities in anticipation of the holiday, offering crafts, decorations, and baked goods. On our German tour, let’s pretend we are at an Easter market as we create, bake, and spend time together! 

German Arts & Crafts

German Easter crafts include decorating colorful Easter eggs! Dubbed the tradition of “blowing eggs,” kids are encouraged to prick a tiny hole in the bottom of an egg to blow its contents out. Then, paint your dried shells any color you want, borrowing from Germany’s past patterns. Once your family has decorated their eggs, kids will love helping to decorate an Osterbaum, otherwise known as a German Easter tree! Egg hunting is also a German tradition the whole family can enjoy! (Some even say this tradition began in German.) Finally, get outside and treat your kids to a special Easter egg search with chocolates! 

Let’s Get Cooking

A German Easter dinner is also a great way to bring the family together. Luckily, the country has you covered from start to finish! Try some German Potato Dumplings for the main course and then you can choose from an array of tasty desserts. Of course, Germany Easter Bread or Hefezopf is the most popular. In addition, Easter Bunny Brioche is an adorable hit with the kids. Make a Bee Sting Cake for a sweet delight topped with honey! 

Musical Melodies

Germany also celebrates Easter with musical accompaniment. Now, your family can too! Some fun German Easter songs include Ostern im Deutschunterricht Wortschatz und Lied, a traditional tune, and Frohe Ostern!, a short way to teach kids how to say: Happy Easter!

Greece

καλό Πάσχα (Kalo Pascha)

Next, we will travel to Greece as we explore Easter around the world! Greek Orthodox Easter is steeped in tradition and is the most celebrated holiday of the year. Greek Orthodox Easter is also celebrated a little later in the month – this year on Sunday, May 2, 2021 – over a series of days called Holy Week. Holy Week starts the Thursday before Easter Sunday. Give children some background before you begin your next activity! 

Greek Arts & Crafts

Decorate Easter eggs as the Greeks do! Greece has many reasons for decorating its eggs, but you can learn more about the significance behind the color red with a video about Traditional Red Greek Orthodox Easter Eggs. Then, decorate your own eggs according to Greek tradition, which comes in all types of vibrant colors.  After your basket is complete, test their endurance with a classic Greek game: Tsougrisma!

Let’s Get Cooking

Greece is known for its wonderful Mediterranean fare. Luckily, they also have delicious Easter meal traditions!  Dine as if you’re visiting Greece and include dishes such as Spanakopita, or spinach pie, into your Easter meal. For dessert, Koulourakia, Greek butter cookies, and Tsoureki, a traditional Greek Easter Bread, are also two popular options! 

Musical Melodies

Greece is also known for its traditional chants and songs important to the Greek Orthodox tradition! For example, on Holy Friday, your family can sing the Greek Orthodox Holy Friday Chant. On Easter Sunday, check out the English Orthodox Easter Chant, which gives kids a chance to understand the tradition in their own language. To sharpen your Greek skills, consider listening to Christ is Risen in Greek or some other traditional Greek Easter Music!

Story Time

Then, make children interested in orthodox Easter in Greece by telling fascinating tall tales about its beginning! Snuggle up in bed after your Easter dinner traditions, and read some Greek Easter books like The Miracle of the Red Egg, which tells a mysterious story surrounding Greece’s red egg tradition. Or, consider Catherine’s Pascha, a picture-book about a Greek girl celebrating Easter!

Ethiopia

Melkam Fasika

Leaving Europe, our next destination is Ethiopia! Ethiopian Orthodox Christians celebrate Easter, known as Fasika. Fasika occurs about a week or so later than typically celebrated in the United States and other Western countries. To give kids a background before you dive into your Ethiopian Easter, families can learn more about Easter in Ethiopia with David Rocco, who provides a brief background on its midnight mass! 

Let’s Get Cooking

Ethiopian Easter features bold flavors and options for all ages! Add some traditional Ethiopian recipes to your Easter dinner and you can ensure kids have a proper meal. Snack on vegetables by cooking gomen, or traditional collard greens. Then, there’s also a popular slow-cooked spicy chicken with a nutritious hard-boiled egg, best accompanied by some Yemarina Yewotet Dabo, translated as spiced honey bread. For vegans, there’s also a handy recipe for Ethiopian Easter bread! 

Musical Melodies

The Ethiopian Eastern celebration also highlights music as a form of worship. Snuggle up together as a family, and listen to some Ethiopian songs! Fasika (Easter) is a more traditional religious tune, while Eloi Eloi has a more upbeat sound to keep kids on their feet! 

Bermuda

Happy Easter!

Let’s cross the Atlantic Ocean and celebrate Easter in Bermuda, our next stop as we learn about Easter around the world! Easter in Bermuda is a whole weekend affair, starting with Good Friday and ending with Easter Sunday. Bermuda’s special touch also includes a Kite Festival, held at the local Horseshoe Bay Beach. Locals say the kites represent the risen Christ and use them as a celebration of the Easter holiday! Tell kids this story before preparing to make some kites of your own. 

Arts & Crafts

Then, create some Easter-inspired crafts like kids might in Bermuda. Easter lilies are very important in Bermuda Easter traditions! Fortunately, kids can create their own Easter lilies to celebrate the spring holiday! Younger children may find this tutorial easier to follow, as it involves a few simple steps and supplies like pipe cleaners. Tenacious older children and adults can try their hand at creating a kite! Honor Bermuda’s Horseshoe Bay Beach tradition by following a tutorial from a local expert kite maker. Decorate it with Bermuda’s country colors, or get creative and choose your own! 

Let’s Get Cooking

Bermuda showcases some delicious Easter recipes yearly. Incorporate some into your own Easter meal to feel like you’re dining on the island! Cod Fish Cakes are healthy and tasty, made in a mashed potato batter. Hot Cross Buns make a great dessert once dinner is over! 

Passover

Chag Pesach Sameach!

Passover is a Jewish holiday celebrated at the same time. Different from Easter, Passover commemorates the Jews’ exodus from slavery in Egypt, over the course of eight days. (Passover 2021 dates are from March 27 – April 4, 2021.) Before you embark on your Passover activities, first spend some time learning more about Passover traditions and how to set the seder plate, an important Passover ritual! All you need is a few household ingredients. 

Arts & Crafts

Passover arts and crafts are available for all ages! For preschool-age children, try coloring sheets that depict life in ancient Egypt. Older children will enjoy creating Passover plague finger puppet craft, which demonstrates one finger puppet for each of the ten Torah plagues. Either activity will help your kids learn more about Passover! 

Let’s Get Cooking

Passover also features various scrumptious dishes inspired by Jewish cuisine. If you want to try your hand at cooking for Passover dinner, consider a recipe for matzo balls, a great soup to keep you warm. Or, try some mini potato kugels, a healthier alternative to potato latkes. For dessert, whip up a few Coconut Macaroons to tie the meal together. Gluten-free diners can also participate by making some kosher almond cookies! 

Musical Melodies

Passover is best celebrated with some musical melodies! Kids will love listening to Passover music, including snappy songs from Jewishkids.com, like Seder, which explains a Seder’s fifteen steps. To teach children virtues such as gratitude, try listening to Dayenu. 

Story Time

Passover has a rich oral tradition that has been passed down through generations. Snuggle up with your little ones and try fun read-aloud activities about Passover, like What Is Passover? Grover & Big Bird’s Passover Celebration, a Sesame Street Book, incorporates familiar characters to tell a story about holiday bonding. The Little Red Hen and The Passover Matzah is also another popular option for younger children! 

Catch A Movie

Popular movies have represented the Passover process for decades. Once you’re done with your Passover-themed activities, then, curl up on the couch and watch a holiday movie together! Little kids will love cartoons like The Prince of Egypt and Shalom Sesame: It’s Passover, Grover! Movies like The Ten Commandments will be more interesting to teens or older kids. 

Happy (Virtual) Travels as You Learn about Easter Around the World

Easter and Passover holidays can be a wonderful time to reflect, connect with family, and celebrate your faith! No matter what you are celebrating this April, we wish you and your families an abundance of health and happiness. We hope you enjoyed your virtual tour celebrating Easter around the world!

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