Valentine's Day

I found this video on youtube which I thought was quite funny, enjoy!





« Be my Valentine! »

Although Valentine’s Day was nearly 3 months ago, I chose to write about this day because the subject is delightful and joyful and I think we need more of these days in a world where many things seem to go wrong!
Every February 14 all around the world, people give flowers, chocolates, gifts to their beloved ones to celebrate the love they share. But where does this tradition come from and who is Saint Valentine?
One legend says that Valentine was a priest who lived in Rome in the 3rd century. When Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed marriage for young men. Valentine defied Claudius and continued to perform marriages for young lovers. When Claudius discovered his actions, he decided that he’d be put to death. According to another legend, Valentine actually sent the very first “Valentine” greeting himself. It’s said that Valentine was in jail and that while in jail he met and fell in love with a young woman. Before his death he wrote her a letter and signed it “From your Valentine”, an expression that is still used today. Although the truth about Valentine legends is vague, all the stories told about him emphasize his appeal as a sympathetic, heroic, and most importantly, romantic figure. By the Middle Ages in England and France, Valentine became one of the most popular saints.
So now we can ask ourselves why the 14th of February? Well first of all, some legends say that Valentine’s Day is celebrated in the middle of February to commemorate the anniversary of his death or burial (which probably occurred in 270 A.D). Around 498 A.D, pope Gelasius declared February 14 Saint Valentine’s Day and later, during the Middle Ages, it was commonly believed in France and England that February 14 was the beginning of bird’s mating season, which added to the idea that the middle of February – Valentine’s Day – should be a day for romance.
Around the 17th century in Great Britain, Valentine’s Day became more and more popular. By the middle of the 18th century it was common for friends and lovers in all social classes to exchange some gifts of affection or handwritten notes. As a result, by the end of the century printed cards began to replace written letters due to improvements in printing technology.
Nowadays Valentine’s Day is still celebrated by an exchange of gifts. People usually get their partner something romantic, like a weekend trip, or a dinner at the restaurant, or jewellery – for women AND men – and I even found a website explaining how to propose on Valentine’s Day, where its creator was explaining how he did his own proposal. Valentine’s Day is definitely the lovers’ day. It celebrates the love we feel for someone, many people wait for Valentine’s Day to declare their love to their loved one. Flowers stay the best-seller gift on Valentine’s Day, especially red roses that stand for love. Roses are among the best Valentine's Day gifts that manifests the purpose of the celebration in a better manner. Roses have been Valentines Day Roses and also traditional Valentine's Day gifts presented by lovers to each other.
In New Zealand as Valentine’s Day is during summer time, people are going for outdoor activities together or to islands like Waiheke, etc. Valentine's Day in New Zealand is celebrated by visiting attractive places, exchanging cards and gifts, dining out and spending quality time with one's beloved.
Valentine’s Day around the world! All around the world Valentine’s Day is celebrated in different ways. Here are some examples.
In Italy they have a very popular Valentine’s Day gift; it’s a chocolate Baci Perugina it’s a small chocolate covered with hazelnut which contains a small piece of paper with romantic quotes in 4 different languages.
Japanese people celebrate Saint Valentine’s Day in a very unique way. Chocolates, for Valentine’s Day, are divided into two categories:
• Giri-choko
• Honmei-choko
Giri-choko are given to the men that are either colleagues, bosses or just friends. But Honmei-choko is known as the “love chocolate”, the young ladies give the second category of chocolates to the man who is in her dreams and who will hopefully be in her life. Valentine’s Day cards are not that much used in Japan, they’re not very common.
Valentine’s Day in Zimbabwe has seen ups and downs in the recent years due to an unstable market economy. Many Zimbabweans are pretty poor so the last couple of years, Valentine’s Day has simply been another dull and sad day and understandably love was the last thing on their minds. But earlier in times of more stable economy, Valentine’s Day was full of flowers, chocolates, parties and gifts. The common gifts exchanged were chocolates, perfumes, flower bouquets and even jewellery!
Valentine’s Day in Estonia is called Sobrapaev, in English it means Friends’ Day. The young Estonians spend this day with friends, there’s an exchange of gifts between the friends. They usually celebrate this happy day in friends’ houses with some wine and good food. The little ones are also part of the festive environment! They make crafts – sometimes – at school. The crafts can be simple as they can be very elaborate and are given with Valentine cards.


I hope you enjoyed knowing a little bit more about this beautiful day! Happy Valentine's Day everyone!