This document describes Greek customs and traditions during Holy Week and Easter. It discusses visiting churches each night leading up to Holy Wednesday. On Holy Tuesday, Greeks paint eggs red and watch a crucifixion reenactment. On Good Friday, young boys sing sad songs about the crucifixion. Women decorate epitaphs with flowers for processions. On Holy Saturday, little girls sing songs about resurrection while carrying flower-decorated baskets to give eggs, sweets, and money. On Easter Sunday, families enjoy roasted lamb, kokoretsi, salads, eggs, pastries, and wine to celebrate resurrection.

1. Customs during the holy Week.
We are going to the churches every night until Wednesday.
The morning of Holy Tuesday we are painting the eggs, usually in red color.
The same night we are going to the church to watch the crucifixion of Jesus
Christ.
On Friday morning the young boys are singing to the neighbors a sad song
about the crucifixion and the death of Jesus.
The women decorate with many kinds of flowers the epitaphs.
The same night we are following the epitaphs from the church to the central
square for the holy Gospels and then we are returning to the church until the
end of the Mass.
One of the flower for the decoration of epitaph is from the tree as you can see
and we call it pasxalitsa or pasxalia which mean Easter in Greek.
Next morning, on Saturday, the little girls are singing to the neighbors, door by
door, songs about the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

2. The are holding little baskets on their hands, which are also decorate with many
flowers and usually we are giving to them eggs, sweets and money.
On Saturday night we are going to the church to celebrate the resurrection
of Jesus Christ, holding in our hands candles. Little children used to hold in
their hand candles very nice decorated this night.
After church at middle night we are returning to our
Then, and we are eating a kind of soup with vegetables and lamb’s liver, heart,
lights and intestines

3. On Sunday, the day of Easter our main menu is the lamb on the spit or roast
And one of the most delicious snack for Greeks, the kokoretsi.
Of course many kind of salads, egg salad, red edds, cookies, tsoureki and good
wine or tsipouro and ouzo there are in every Greek easter table!
By Ann Magkiosi –Principal of Nursery Rizario School
------------------------------------