Cultural Events
If you’re looking for cultural and religious
events then Corfu is just perfect. Corfu has various cultural
and religious events all year round. Each event has its special
attribute to the Island. The most common and spectacular event
are: Easter, the Carnival, Clean Monday, the Anniversary of the
Unification of Ionian Islands, the feast of Saint Spyridon (our
Patron Saint). In addition to these events, there’s also local
cultural events.
Corfu has the most festive Easter then the
rest of Greece. On Good Friday several processions take place
all day long carrying a cloaked funeral bier, people follow it
with lit candles. On Easter Saturday the first resurrection
takes place. Everyone gathers at a near by town square to see
unforgettable tradition. The locals place jugs filled with water
on their window sills and on the railings of their balconies.
Then at 11 o’clock they are smashed on the ground into thousands
of pieces. If you pick up one of the broken pieces and you take
it home it is said that you have good luck all year round.
On this same day a little before midnight
once again everyone gathers at another near by square and at
midnight the resurrection takes place, church bell ring
throughout Corfu town , candles are lie ant the sky is soon set
ablaze in a an extravagant firework show. People greet each
other with “Hhristos Anesti” (Christ has risen) and the reply
“Alithos Anesti “( Christ is truly risen). The lent is broken by
eating red-dyed eggs and mayiritsa (lamb soup from offal)
.Easter Sunday is spent with family singing and dancingand
feasting on roasted lamb accompanied by the red-dyed eggs. The
greeting for the day is once Hhristos Anesti and Alithos Anesti.
The eggs are cracked while this greeting is said and the person
remaining with the uncracked egg will have good luck.
Carnival – Another Greek custom that dates
back to ancient Greece. This custom is linked to Dinysios, the
God of the wine sand it took place in the spring to ensure a
bountiful and a prosperous breeding of the animal stock.
Now this custom slowly progressed in Corfu
and was enhanced by the Venetian influences. The first parade
takes place in Corfu7, Town on the first Sunday of the Carnival
with a procession of floats and various people dressed in
costumes, this is done to commence the festivities and to set
the atmosphere for the Carnival. On Tsiknopempti (the last
Thursday of the Carnival) the Taverns fill with songs relating
to the occasion. People sing, drink, eat and celebrate. The
streets fill with streamers and confetti. The Climax of the
celebrations take place on the third and final Sunday with the
procession of King Carnival, who is bought to trial for his sins
of the previous year and is sentenced to death by cremation so
that all evil dies with him. After his cremation his will is
read music and dancing follows. The real traditional Carnival
takes place in the villages and in the countryside. The
villagers disguise themselves from head to toe, often as women
and dance together to music that the local band plays.
Traditionally these disguises allowed women to have fun without
being recognized. The cremation of King Carnival follows
accompanied again by much eating and drinking before the 40 day
lent which proceed Easter.
Clean Monday or Kathari Deftera , it marks
the first day in Lent ( 40 days before Easter). It’s customary
for every one to go out to the countryside or to the beaches and
have family picnics and fly kites. On this picnic no dairy
products or meat are eaten only seafood, vegetables and dry
food.
The feast of Saint Spyridon , a saint from
Cyprus, is celebrated on December 12. He is the Patron Saint of
Corfu. It is believed that he has saved the island by performing
miracles such as, the expelling of the plague from the island,
saved the Island from the second great siege of Corfu which took
place in 1716. He’s also the Patron saint of potters.
Varkarola.or Barcarole it is the most
significant feast during the summer. It takes place on the 11th
of August. The inhabitants celebrate the defeat of the Turkish
fleet by the Venetians. The bay of Garitsa is flooded with boats
filled with choirs and singing cantades( taditional romantic
songs from the twenties) and at the end the sky is illuminated
with a fireworks show.
The Anniversary of the Union, On May 21st
1864 the unification of the Ionian Islands with the rest
of Greece became official. Every year on the 21st of
May the people of Corfu celebrate this unification with dances
and great banquets.
Besides the above mention well known
festivals, there’s also a few local festivals called “Paniyiri”
Each village in Corfu has at least one. And of course there’s a
lot of dancing and singing.
Pie Festival, this one takes place just above
Agni Bayiot starts on the 1st of September the
locals and the local baker donates huge pies or Pittes to the
festival. Another famous Paniyiri is the Strinillas
Pantokratoras festival. This one lasts almost a week, with
pilgrimages to the monastery at the top. There’s late night
dancing for 2 days it’s held on the 6th and the 7th
of August.
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