Prague Easter Markets - Easter Eggs and Unique Bohemian Crafts Festival Traditions in Prague Praha and Czech Republic

BARGAIN SEARCH
HOTELS
AIRFARES
AUTO & RAIL

PRAGUE EASTER MARKETS
Whips and Easter Eggs

Once banned during the communist era, Prague Easter Markets are making a big comeback. The popular springtime festivals are centuries old rituals closely tied to religious festivities. The Easter markets in Prague take place at the Old Town Square and Wenceslas Square, very popular affairs with Easter craft displays comprising over 100 stalls of merchants of Bohemian crafts, including wooden toys, crystal glasses, candles, jewellery, metal craft, intricate embroidery, puppets and dolls in regional costume dresses, and especially Easter eggs, hand-painted and decorated in bright colors are a well known feature. An Easter Egg contest is held every year in Prague for the best decorated eggs.

Find the best deals on hotels and travel in Prague

The traditionally costumed local women vendors will personalize the Easter eggs with your name or a special message. And in between your shopping indulges in the barbecued sausages and Czech Pilsner beer (the Pilsner beer was essentially inverted here is named for the town of Pilson between Prague and the German border) and spit roasted pork.

Traditional Easter Customs in the Czech Republic are perhaps rather unique and indeed though provoking where the relations between men and women seem to play out in peculiar customs where young boys seem to be the terrorists of the Easter holidays.

"Ugly Wednesday" is the last day of school before the holiday when on "Green Thursday", boys take up their wooden rattles, "rehtacka" march through the town, shaking the rattles to scare off Judas who is the particular villain of the Christ story. This ritual is repeated on "Good Friday" and again on "White Saturday" when the young tricksters in a Halloween reversal stop at every house and shake their rattles until the inhabitants hand over money!

Easter Sunday

On Easter Sunday, it’s the girls turn, painting Easter Eggs "kraslice" the younger girls learning their mothers the use of watercolor paints, picture stickers, bee's wax, straw or feathers to decorate the eggs in a style copied by Faberge for his fabulous versions except in gold and jewels.

Prague Easter Market Old town square photo

While the girls paint their Easter eggs, the boys get ready for their next Easter terror tactic, making whips. The Easter whips "pomlázka" are made from braided twigs. On the Monday after Easter, the boys and men travel again through the village where the boys use the whips on girls, stopping at every house to recite Easter poems while whipping the legs of every girl or woman in the house and often customary to throw a girl into a cold water bath to chase away bad spirits. Called the “Easter Dousing” this seems to be a custom designed to prevent little angels from becoming witches. Afterward the girl ties a ribbon around the boy’s whip and gives him an egg. The boy with the most ribbons wins. The older men if too unseemly to be getting a girl’s egg and a ribbon around his whip get a shot of liquor instead. One can make assumptions of the symbolic meaning of girls handing over their eggs to boys after being whipped and dunked, and in more modern times perhaps the alcohol comes first before a woman gets whipped, and often followed by a police report, but at Easter in Prague it remains a quant custom of times past.

Whips can be purchased at the Easter Market booths should tourist boys wish to whip their wife, girlfriend or traveling companion, but this adventure seems a perilous test of a relationship, except perhaps back at the hotel with the lights low. © Bargain Travel Europe

These articles are copyrighted and the sole property of Bargain Travel Europe and WLPV, LLC. and may not be copied or reprinted without permission.

See Also:

HOME ARTICLES ABOUT US LINKS SPECIAL DEALS CONTACT
DESTINATION IDEAS England Germany Italy France Switzerland Castles Museums Cathedrals War History Family Travel Wine & Food Motorsports Romantic Stays		Bargain Travel Europe guide to Europe on a budget for vacation destinations, travel ideas and secret spots missed by travel tours.	FIND A PRAGUE HOTEL DEAL BARGAIN SEARCH HOTELS AIRFARES AUTO & RAIL Get a Eurail Pass CURRENCY CONVERTER GET A MAP
		PRAGUE EASTER MARKETS Whips and Easter Eggs Once banned during the communist era, Prague Easter Markets are making a big comeback. The popular springtime festivals are centuries old rituals closely tied to religious festivities. The Easter markets in Prague take place at the Old Town Square and Wenceslas Square, very popular affairs with Easter craft displays comprising over 100 stalls of merchants of Bohemian crafts, including wooden toys, crystal glasses, candles, jewellery, metal craft, intricate embroidery, puppets and dolls in regional costume dresses, and especially Easter eggs, hand-painted and decorated in bright colors are a well known feature. An Easter Egg contest is held every year in Prague for the best decorated eggs. Find the best deals on hotels and travel in Prague The traditionally costumed local women vendors will personalize the Easter eggs with your name or a special message. And in between your shopping indulges in the barbecued sausages and Czech Pilsner beer (the Pilsner beer was essentially inverted here is named for the town of Pilson between Prague and the German border) and spit roasted pork. Traditional Easter Customs in the Czech Republic are perhaps rather unique and indeed though provoking where the relations between men and women seem to play out in peculiar customs where young boys seem to be the terrorists of the Easter holidays. "Ugly Wednesday" is the last day of school before the holiday when on "Green Thursday", boys take up their wooden rattles, "rehtacka" march through the town, shaking the rattles to scare off Judas who is the particular villain of the Christ story. This ritual is repeated on "Good Friday" and again on "White Saturday" when the young tricksters in a Halloween reversal stop at every house and shake their rattles until the inhabitants hand over money! Easter Sunday On Easter Sunday, it’s the girls turn, painting Easter Eggs "kraslice" the younger girls learning their mothers the use of watercolor paints, picture stickers, bee's wax, straw or feathers to decorate the eggs in a style copied by Faberge for his fabulous versions except in gold and jewels. While the girls paint their Easter eggs, the boys get ready for their next Easter terror tactic, making whips. The Easter whips "pomlázka" are made from braided twigs. On the Monday after Easter, the boys and men travel again through the village where the boys use the whips on girls, stopping at every house to recite Easter poems while whipping the legs of every girl or woman in the house and often customary to throw a girl into a cold water bath to chase away bad spirits. Called the “Easter Dousing” this seems to be a custom designed to prevent little angels from becoming witches. Afterward the girl ties a ribbon around the boy’s whip and gives him an egg. The boy with the most ribbons wins. The older men if too unseemly to be getting a girl’s egg and a ribbon around his whip get a shot of liquor instead. One can make assumptions of the symbolic meaning of girls handing over their eggs to boys after being whipped and dunked, and in more modern times perhaps the alcohol comes first before a woman gets whipped, and often followed by a police report, but at Easter in Prague it remains a quant custom of times past. Whips can be purchased at the Easter Market booths should tourist boys wish to whip their wife, girlfriend or traveling companion, but this adventure seems a perilous test of a relationship, except perhaps back at the hotel with the lights low. © Bargain Travel Europe Prague & European Vacation Package Deals! Web Info Czech Tourism These articles are copyrighted and the sole property of Bargain Travel Europe and WLPV, LLC. and may not be copied or reprinted without permission. See Also: PRAGUE HONEYMOON GERMANY'S BLACK FOREST More than Ham & Cuckoo Clocks

	Privacy Legal Contact Discover Cheap Travel in Europe on a Budget with Bargain Travel Europe ©2006-07 Winged Lion Entertainment Ventures, LLC

PRAGUE EASTER MARKETS Whips and Easter Eggs

PRAGUE EASTER MARKETS
Whips and Easter Eggs