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Valentine’s Day Around the World – Traditions and Customs

Valentine’s Day Around the World – Traditions and Customs

Australia
During the Australian gold rush period, miners who were suddenly in possession of money from the new-found wealth of the Ballarat Mines were willing to pay a princely sum for elaborate valentines and merchants in the country would ship orders amounting to thousands of pounds at a time. The most extravagent Australian valentines were made of a satin cushion, perfumed and decorated in an ornate manner with flowers and colored shells. Some might even be adorned with a taxidermied humming bird or bird of paradise. This treasure, contained within a neatly decorated box, was highly valued, being both fashionable and extremely expensive.

Austria
Austria has some rather obscure courtship customs that may or may not be associated with Saint Valentine’s Day. Nonetheless, it is customary for a young man to present his beloved with a bunch of flowers on February 14.

America
In the United States of America, there have been many varieties of cards given over the course of the years, some of which have often been rude or even quite cruel in their humor. In the times of the Civil War, cards were flagged with rich colors accompanied by patriotic and/or political motifs. Early American valentine cards were especially lithographed and hand-colored, beautiful and distinctive in design, produced with intricate lace paper and decorated with such ornaments as beads, sea shells, cones, berries and all manner of seeds. Cards were also available decorated with seaweed or moss, in addition to dried and/or artificial flowers, all of which were attached to a string which was pulled and could then be suspended, thereby creating a three-dimensional picture. Many early American cards were imported from abroad, given the poor quality of American paper at the time which was not particularly suitable for embossing. Today, American children usually exchange valentines with their friends and there may even be a classroom party.

Britain
The poets of Britain have probably penned the majority of the best-loved romantic verses associated with Saint Valentine. Different regions of the nation celebrate their own customs to honor this day, although the sending of cards and gifts of flowers and chocolates is standard procedure throughout the entire country. One uniform custom is the singing of special songs by children, who then receive gifts of candy, fruit or money. In some areas, valentine buns are baked with caraway seeds, plums or raisins.

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Kitzbühel – Austria

Kitzbühel – Austria

The historic Tirolean town of Kitzbühel has two claims to fame which combine to make it a major attraction for skiers and non-skiers worldwide. One is the stunningly picturesque town itself; the other is the greatest World Cup downhill ski race in the world. Kitzbühel is quite simply the perfect medieval setting for the ultimate winter jousting match: the Streif descent on the celebrated Hahnenkamm.

Kitzbühel has it all, except altitude. The skiing, which includes the nearby villages of Kirchberg and Jochberg, as well as a separate area, the Kitzbüheler Horn, is extensive, the après-ski formidable, the visual impact dramatic, but at 760 m the resort is worryingly low.

During the lean snow years of the 1980s, this caused considerable anxiety. After being forced to cancel the Hahnenkamm in 1964, 1988 and 1993 due to poor snow conditions, the Kitzbühel Lift Company installed artificial snow-making equipment to provide total coverage along the Streif and Ganslern runs, and the resort has subsequently built up a considerable armoury of snow cannon. Continue reading Kitzbühel – Austria

St Stephen’s Cathedral

St Stephen’s Cathedral – Wien

The stones of St Stephen’s Cathedral are silent witnesses to the joy and hope, the grief and anguish of generations of Catholic families.

The cathedral takes its name from the ‘cathedra’ or bishop’s seat, symbol of the chief pastor and teacher of the local Church. In the cathedral, parish communities find a sign of their fellowship with each other and the expression of their unity with the Church throughout the world. The cathedral is therefore not only an important place for those who use it regularly, but for the whole city of Brisbane as it provides a sanctuary and an oasis of green that invites people to rest awhile.

History of The Cathedral

Building a cathedral often takes centuries. In addition, the great cathedrals of the world rarely follow a single style. They bear the marks of every century as people added, embellished or replaced part of the cathedral in their own style. The changes of style themselves are witness to a living tradition of faith in that place.