Tomorrow is Shrove Tuesday, AKA Pancake Day here in UK. Many towns and villages have a tradition of pancake races (over a short course, but you do have to toss the pancake en route!) I wondered if there were any similar traditions in other countries. (We will just be eating ours with lemon juice and sugar.)

The silliest I can think of is St. Patrick's day. If you don't wear green everyone pinches you! OUCH.

I grew up in Chicago. It is Paczki Day! It is a filled Donut day. They have strawberry with whipped creme ones that are sooo good.. I miss a good donut in Florida!!

No, we don't. When we lived in England my elder daughter had pancake races at school - cold pancakes and the lightest pan mums could provide - great fun.

I went to the Carnival in Maastricht (with our photoclub) a couple of times- straight northerners being teased by the locals in the south about our accent. Officially it starts at Sunday at 11.00 am, but there's a parade on Saturday and the festivities go on continuously. We left at Sunday evening as everybody had to go to work, but that was the middle of the party for most people. it was great fun and I managed to take a lot of pictures and avoid the rivers of beer :)

It sounds like a fun time. Enjoy the panckes.

Some here in the US do pancake suppers, mostly as fund raisers. I don't know of any other fun things like races! And of course since it is the beginning of Lent, many choose something they love and "give it up" for the duration, until Easter. Hugs. Nan W

No pancakes here but we have "Fasching" (carnival) actually. That starts at the 11th of november (> 11.11.) and ends at "Aschermittwoch" (>ash wednesday; 2 more days then it's all over until november).
Last Thursday was "schmutziger Donnerstag" (dirty thursday? LEO has no translation!) thats when the women have the power and go around with sciccors and cut the ties of all men who are so careless to wear a tie instead of a bow tie *lol*
Today is Rosenmontag (rose-monday) and tomorrow the "Faschingsdienstag" (my LEO-dictionairy gives "pancake day" as translation *lol*). Many towns have their own carnival parade and the biggest ones are today in the area around Cologne (they get really crazy there ;o).
The alemannic fasching (in the south of Germany and switzerland) is more traditional. They have very old costumes and all the firgures have a special intent (that's the ones in the pic).
The big parades from Cologne and Mayence and Düsseldrof you can watch live in the television. Better than standing in the cold for hours ;-)
Greetings, Bettina

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2 comments

by spendlove 11 Feb 2013

I love the idea of "dirty thursday"!

by jrob 11 Feb 2013

How very interesting.....although I fear the masks and certainly wouldn't want to be holding children when they come by! I love the cutting of the ties! ;)