TOPIC: HOLIDAY

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HOLIDAYHoliday in British English means a period of a week or more spent away

from work or school. British people have about 4 weeks’ paid leave from their jobs. They stay in Britain for their holiday, US, Indian, Europe, the Far East are popular destinations of British people.

BANK HOLIDAYS IN THE UK

In addition, there are various traditional local holidays in Scotland, Northern Ireland that are determined by the local authorities there.

THE NEW YEAR

New Year’s Eve is on 31 December, the last day before the New Year begins. People often go to parties, bars, restaurants or meet outside in a big square. Trafalgar Square is an attractive location with people in London. Just before midnight, people look at the clock, and together they count the last ten seconds before the New Year begins: “ten, nine, eight…”.

TRAFALGAR SQUARE BIG BEN

An old song, Auld Lang Syne, is often sung at midnight. It is about remembering old friends.

Many people drink a glass of champagne, light some fireworks, or dance until the sun comes up.

At this time of year, a lot of people make New Year’s Resolutions. They decide to do something different to be a better person.

The shops are very busy in January with January sales. This means things are cheaper than before Christmas, so it is a good time to buy winter clothes.

The first time people see friends in the New Year, they usually say “Happy New Year”.

VALENTINE’S DAY

Valentine’s Day started over two thousand years ago, as a winter festival, on 15 February. On that day, pagans asked their gods to give them food fruit and vegetables, and strong animals.

When the Christians came to Britain, they came with a story about a man called Saint Valentine. The story is that the day Valentine died, he sent a note to his lover, a daughter of a man working in the prison, and at the end of the note, he said: “Your Valentine”. He died on 14 February, so the date of the festival changed from 15 to 14 February, and the name changed to Saint Valentine’s Day.

In the early 19th century, when the post office started in Britain, people started to send valentine’s cards to the person they loved on 14 February. They send each other Valentine’s cards, but often they do not write their names inside: they just write “Be me Valentine”, or “From your Valentine”. It is a kind of game.

EASTEREaster is the most important festival in the church

year: more important than Christmas. It begins with Good Friday, the Friday before Ester. In the Christian religion it represents the day on which Christ died. It is a bank holiday in Britain. Easter is now a Christian festival but the word : ‘Easter’ comes from ‘Eostre’, the pagan goddess of spring.

Easter Day is the Sunday after the first full moon after the first day of spring(21 March). It is different every year, always between 22 March and 25 April.

The Easter cards often had baby sheep, rabbits or birds on them because many animals and birds are born in the spring.Eggs are an important part of Easter because they mean spring snd new life. One Easter tradition is ‘egg rolling’.

People often give chocolate Easter eggs as presents. Some eggs are empty, others have small chocolates inside; some are very small, some are very big. Some mothers and fathers tell their children that the Easter Rabbit bring the eggs and

hides them in the garden. The children

must go outside and look for them.

Many people eat hot cross buns at Easter. These are small loaves of bread, made with fruit and spices, and they have a cross on top.

There is an old song about them:

Some women and girls decorate hats, called Easter bonnets. They put lots of spring flowers on them , and wear them in Easter bonnet parades.Easter Monday is a holiday for everyone, so a lot of people watch some sport, or go out for the day.

LENT is the 40 days from Ash Wednesday to Easter, the most serious period in the Christian year. During Lent, Christian did not eat meat or rich foods. Today, some people stop eating something they enjoy.

ASH WEDNESDAY is the first day of Lent. Traditionally, Roman atholics go to church on Ash Wednesday and their foreheads are marked with ashes as a sign that they are sorry for their sins.SHROVE TUESDAY is the day before Ash Wednesday. ‘ Shrove’(past tense of ‘shrive’means to obtain absolution for one’s sins by confessingmand doing penance.

PANCAKE DAY is known as Shrove Tuesday. It was traditionally allowed to be made between the ringing of a curfew bell in the morning of Shrove Tuesday and its ringing again that evening. It became known in some parts as the ‘Pancake Bell’.Originally, pancakes were eaten to use up milk and eggs, which traditionally were not eaten during Lent. Some people in Britain know the day only by the name ‘Pancake Day’ and some are even aware of the day’s connection to Lent.

PANCAKE RACESOn the Pancake Day, Pancake races are held in villages and towns across Britain. The tradition is said to have originated when a housewife from Olney was so busy making pancakes, that she forgot the time until she heard the church bells ringing for the service. She raced out of the house to church while still carrying her frying pan and pancake.

APRIL FOOLS DAY is in April 1st. A day when people play practical jokes on each other. The jokes and their victims are called April fools.

May Day

- May day is the first day of May, which has been marked in Britain for many

centuries by outdoor events held to celebrate the arrival of spring

- In Britain, traditional events on or near May Day include dancing round the maypole and choosing a May Queen.

- May Day is not necessarily a holiday in Britain, but since 1978 there has been a bank holiday on the Monday closest to 1 May, called the Early May Bank Holiday.

- Maypole is a tall decorated pole which people dance around during traditional May Day celebrations in Britain

- May Queen is a pretty girl who is chosen in a town or village to be the central figure of traditional May Day celebrations in Britain. She wear a crown of flowers and may be driven through the streets on an open vehicle

Hallowe’en

- The pagans who lived in Britain two thousand years ago celebrated their New Year on 1 November. Then the Christians came and people celebrated ‘Hallowmas’, a three- day festival between 1 October and 2 November. 31 October was called All Hallow’s Eve, and slowly the name changed to Hallowe’en.

- In November, winter is near, and hundreds of years ago people believe that bad spirits, like ghosts, came in the winter

- They wanted the bad spirits to go away, so they made fires outside and used big autumn fruit or vegetables to make jack o’lanterns

- Some people think jack was a nightwatchman who had one of these lighs

- Another thing people did, to make the spirits go away, was to dress like witches and ghosts

- People often put up decorations for Hallowe’en parties, and play game. The decorations are usually black and orange

- One Hallowe’ en party game is called ‘bobbing for apples’.

- In Canada and the USA and sometimes in Britain, children go ‘trick or treating’

Guy Fawkes’ Day

- 1604 the King of England was James I and a protestant. Many people did not like him because they were Catholics and wanted a Catholics king.

- A Catholics called Guy Fawkes and his friends, had a plot to kill King James and his government when he opened Parliament in London on 5 November 1605

- Parliament decided that Guy Fawkes and the other plotter had to die

- In January 1606, when people heard the news that the plotters were dead, they made many fires in the streets to celebrate. King James was alive and well

- Every year on 5 November in most parts of Britain, people build a big fire outside with all the deal leaves and old pieces of wood they do not want. The fire is called a bonfire

Christmas At Christmas , people remember when Jesus Christ was born and the Jesus Christ was born and the Christian religion started ,Jesus was born in the town of Bethlehem ,about two thousand years ago. The people who followed Jesus ‘ teaching were the first Christians .

Jesus Christ

Today , Christmas is very important time in the Christian year , but it is also important to those who do not go to church .It is a time for buying and giving presents , having parties , and being with friends .

Church

People start to get ready for Christmas in late October or early November .Shopkeepers decorate their shops with lights ,trees and other decorations , and shoppers start to look for presents. Shops get very busy and stay open later .People with family and friends in other countries often send them cards and presents , and everyone begins to make plans for the coming holiday .

Tree

In the middle of December , most families buy Christmas trees ,put them inside the house ,and put colourful decorations ,on them .They also send cards to friends and family .The cards say things like ‘Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year’ or ‘Season’s Greetings’. These two traditions [the trees and the cards] both started in the middle of the nineteenth century.

Many children learn about the baby Jesus at school. Somtimes they do a play about the story and sing Christmas songs , called carols , for their mothers and fathers , Many children have Advent calendars with little doors for each day the child opens a new door and inside there is a picture or a chocolate.

Chocolate

Many children have parties at school , and many adults have parties at work in December. Most people have 25 and 26 December off work ,and many have a week off, from 25 December to 1 January. They usually spend this time at home with their family or visiting their family who live far away .

The Chirstmas holiday begins on 24 December ;Christmas eve .People often stop work early and have drink together .or finish their Christmas shopping They cover the presents in special paper ,and put them under the tree.

Children leave a stocking for Santa Claus when they go to bed .Santa Claus is a big man with white hair and red clothes who brings presents for children during the night .If the house has a fireplace ,the children sometimes leave their stocking

by the fire because Santa Claus comes down the chimney.

Santa claus

Mothers and fathers tell children that Santa Claus only comes when they are sleeping ,but they do not usually sleep very well . If they are good children ,he leaves present in the stockings. Some children leave a drink and a mince pie for Santa and some vegetables for his animals.

Many people go to church at midnight on Christmas eve ,They hear the Christmas story and sing carols.

Christmas day [25 December ] is a holiday ,Children usually wake up very early .They look in their stocking to see what Santa put there for them . After breakfast they open their other presents around the tree.

Christmas dinner is in the afternoon and is the biggest meal of the day . Before they start to eat , people pull crackers .The crackers make aloud noise ,and have a

small game and paper party hat inside .

Christmas dinner

At three o’clock many people in Britain turn their television on because the Queen says “happy Christmas “ to everyone.

A lot of people go for a walk in the afternoon or play with their new games .

In the evening , people eat cold meat , and Christmas cake., fruit and nuts ,but they are usually not very hungry because of their gig dinner. Boxing day [26 december ] is also a holiday in Britain ,but many shops now open on this day .In the 19th century ,rich people gave boxes to their workers on Boxing day ,with Christmas present inside.

Christmas cake

Another British Christmas tradition is the pantomime .

A pantomime is a kind of play with a children ‘s story and lots of music and songs .There is usually a man who wears women ‘s clothes and play an old woman . ‘ Children like pantomimes because they can often go with their school or their family .

The Christmas season ends on the twelfth day after 25 December ,which is 6 January ,most people take down their Christmas trees and decorations by this date , and some people think it is bad luck not to do that.