No, I'm not a week late. It will not come as a surprise to regular readers that Easter here is celebrated at a different time. One week later in this case. So last weekend I headed off with many other colleagues to my regular holiday destination – Mekelle. Even on Friday at 6am, the excitement was noticeable on all faces as people boarded the bus with their goats, chickens, stereos and best clothes. Throughout the year, it is typical for people to donate change to small churches along the way; those contributions went up dramatically this weekend.
Like the UK, Good Friday is a holiday; as is Easter Sunday which is the end of the 55 day fasting season. 55 days? the "traditional" 40 day fasting of meat, dairy and for some people this also includes conjugal rights, was extended 15 days by a king who felt the people needed some time to think about him. Of the other common festivals (including Christmas and New Year), Easter is the biggest, being celebrated in much the same way we would celebrate Christmas. Even the last minute purchasing of sweet and biscuit collections was at every shop doorway. Not so familiar is the streets covered in discarded goat and sheep skins. For a change everyone (not just ferenji) is faced with groups of children, roaming the streets, begging for money and food.
Everyone heads off to their family home and invites friends around to eat and drink all day. It is quite common to be invited to many houses on Easter Sunday and stay for an hour. I visited four. At each house, your plate is piled high with injera and wat and a glass filled to the brim with Tella, followed by 2 or 3 cups of coffee. Everyone appeared to be watching a music festival on TV, sadly no Queen's speech or classic film.
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1 comment:
I'll save the 'Dirty Dozen' for your return!
Happy Easter!
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