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Short
days and dark evenings, candles, pumpkins, bonfires and cheery celebrations
all help to lift the summer days toward the winter months.
It's
a time for religious festivals of almost every persuasion. Here
are some dates for your diary.
Ramadan
Ramadan
is the ninth month of the Muslim calendar. During this month Muslims
fast throughout the daylight hours.
At
the end of the day the fast is broken with prayer and a meal called
the iftar.
The
fast is resumed next morning, often with a large meal.
Ramadan
lasts for a lunar month, and ends with Eid ul-Fitr, a festival of
joy and thanksgiving, prayer and community.
Halloween
and All Saints Day
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Where
do ghosts like to shop? ... Boo-tiques!
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Sorry
about that. We've know some very silly jokes, but we'll try to stop
them escaping into this page!
We
all know about dressing up and pumpkins but what's Halloween all
about?
It's
short for All Hallows Eve, (the eve of All Hallows day) which is
now called All Saints Day.
Check
out our Halloween section
Turnips??!!
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a new tradition |
The
custom began in Ireland with turnips which were carved out to hold
a lighted candle to ward off evil spirits.
The
pumpkin is an American equivalent.
Because
It's larger and more colourful, it has quickly overtaken the turnip
as the favourite Halloween decoration.
Halloween
Lantern
Making
your own lantern is dead easy.
1.
Cut a good deep slice from the top of of a large pumpkin or turnip.
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| on
halloween night |
2.
Scoop out the flesh from middle, leaving the sides and skin intact.
3.
Draw a face on the outside.
4.
Draw and cut out the eyes and mouth from the outside of the scooped
out skin.
5.
Pop a candle in the middle.
6.
Light it and save some electricity.
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What
do ghosts eat for dinner? Spook-etti!
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Oops,
another one got out!
Another
American tradition that we've taken warmly to our wintery hearts
is the contentious Trick or Treat! Why not take a look at our Trick
or Treat section
But
the ghastly ghostly doings on Halloween Night go way back into the
mists of time. Have you seen our scary Ghost
section?
Diwali
Diwali,
the Hindu festival of lights, is the most popular of all the festivals
from South Asia It's celebrated by Jains and Sikhs as well as Hindus.
The
festival of Diwali extends over five days. Because of the lights,
fireworks, and sweets involved, it's a great favourite with children.
Guy
Fawkes Night
Please
to remember the fifth of November, Gunpowder, Treason and Plot.
There is no reason why gunpowder treason Should ever be forgot.
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| Traditional
Rhyme |
But
who was Guy Fawkes and why should we never forget and why does he
end up on a bonfire year in year out?
It
commemorates the day when Guy or Guido Fawkes and his fellow band
of Catholic conspirators were foiled in their plot to blow up the
Houses of Parliament, on a day when King James I was in attendance
for the State Opening.
There's
one place which consistently lacks a guy on the bonfire ... St.
Peter's School in York, where Guy Fawkes was a pupil in the 16th
century.
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