Easter is just like Christmas, the holiday is very traditional and religious-based. There is no Easter bunny, no egg hunts, no jelly beans, just family time and traditions. The Easter celebration actually started alot earlier than I expected. The teachers at my school have been making crafts and decorations for weeks, then on Wednesday they started painting eggs. The students got very creative and painted some beautiful eggs.
Some of the crafts that the kids at my school made.
Painting the eggs. They use regular paint and put designs on them.
One of the teachers gave Maria, one of the English teachers, some eggs to paint and decorate. Maria is an amazing artist so she did a great job on the eggs. When she brought them in, she first told the other teacher that she forgot them and the other teacher almost had a heart attack because they needed them for the next day. Then Maria pulled out her beautifully painted eggs and the other teacher laughed, knowing that she had been fooled. At my school it is a big competition to see which teacher can come up with the most interesting craft to sell and who has the prettiest table. The teachers hide everything until the day of the Thursday Bazaar so that none of the other teachers will see. Its a friendly rivalry.
They tend to celebrate Easter more than they do Christmas. The teachers and students sell their crafts plus baked goods in the Center of the town the Thursday before Easter. The money that they get goes to their class, for either supplies, a trip, etc. Here are some pictures from the center. Each class gets their own table to sell and children from both primary schools and the high school were there selling things. It is events like this when everyone is in the Center and all the coffee shops are full that I finally see how many people actually live in Resen.
2nd grade class- Yes this teacher made aprons with eggs on it for her students to wear. She is very crafty.
1st grade class
3rd grade class
On Friday, it was beautiful day so Irena and I went for a walk. She showed me where the women's monastery of Jankovec is located. When I first looked up Resen in my Macedonian travel guide the only thing I could find was that there is a women's monastery in the village right outside/more like next to Resen. "It is the first women's monastery to be brought back to life after several decades of neglect during communist times. Sister Kirana, who heads the best group of fresco painters alive today in Macedonia, brought the nuns to the rundown 16th century monastery in 1998. They have done alot of work to it since then and their skills as fresco artists are in high demand throughout Macedonia."
Irena said that right now there is only one woman who lives there. The day we went we could not get inside, but now that I know where it is I will go back and try to take more pictures.
On Saturday, I went to the pazar in the morning and there was a lady selling pansies. I bought 7 pansies plants for 100 denar, a little over $2. She had them in a box; they were not in little plastic containers like you would normally find at Home Depot or Lowes, they were just sitting there in their own dirt. She picked out 7 for me and then put them in a plastic bag and that is how I got to carry them home. I also had to go and buy a hanging flower box to put over my balcony and a bag of dirt because I knew they had to be planted today.
I now have a nice place to sit outside and put my feet up to read a book or just look at the view.
Saturday evening, a little before midnight, everyone goes to church to celebrate the holiday. I arrived a little after 11pm and everyone was standing outside with lit candles. It was a pretty sight to see. Then there was some music and at midnight everyone cracks eggs. Families color eggs red, to represent Christ's blood, and then they crack them tip to tip. If your egg breaks you have to give it to the other person. It symbolizes luck and good health for the rest of the year.
I could not get a picture of people cracking their eggs, but this is a poster that someone painted at the municipality for the Easter celebration in the center.
I had a nice and quiet Easter day at home and I got to Skype the family while they were down at the river visiting Nana and Grandaddy. Now it is back to school tomorrow to start a busy week after a quiet and relaxing 4 day weekend.
They tend to celebrate Easter more than they do Christmas. The teachers and students sell their crafts plus baked goods in the Center of the town the Thursday before Easter. The money that they get goes to their class, for either supplies, a trip, etc. Here are some pictures from the center. Each class gets their own table to sell and children from both primary schools and the high school were there selling things. It is events like this when everyone is in the Center and all the coffee shops are full that I finally see how many people actually live in Resen.
On Friday, it was beautiful day so Irena and I went for a walk. She showed me where the women's monastery of Jankovec is located. When I first looked up Resen in my Macedonian travel guide the only thing I could find was that there is a women's monastery in the village right outside/more like next to Resen. "It is the first women's monastery to be brought back to life after several decades of neglect during communist times. Sister Kirana, who heads the best group of fresco painters alive today in Macedonia, brought the nuns to the rundown 16th century monastery in 1998. They have done alot of work to it since then and their skills as fresco artists are in high demand throughout Macedonia."
On Saturday, I went to the pazar in the morning and there was a lady selling pansies. I bought 7 pansies plants for 100 denar, a little over $2. She had them in a box; they were not in little plastic containers like you would normally find at Home Depot or Lowes, they were just sitting there in their own dirt. She picked out 7 for me and then put them in a plastic bag and that is how I got to carry them home. I also had to go and buy a hanging flower box to put over my balcony and a bag of dirt because I knew they had to be planted today.
Saturday evening, a little before midnight, everyone goes to church to celebrate the holiday. I arrived a little after 11pm and everyone was standing outside with lit candles. It was a pretty sight to see. Then there was some music and at midnight everyone cracks eggs. Families color eggs red, to represent Christ's blood, and then they crack them tip to tip. If your egg breaks you have to give it to the other person. It symbolizes luck and good health for the rest of the year.
I had a nice and quiet Easter day at home and I got to Skype the family while they were down at the river visiting Nana and Grandaddy. Now it is back to school tomorrow to start a busy week after a quiet and relaxing 4 day weekend.
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