Fragments of session 9 - Leuven Easter traditions and plans for the holidays Teacher Easter reminds me of my childhood when we went to my grandmother's. There too the entire family gathered to pray and we went to church almost every day : on White Thursday, on Good Friday, on Silent Saturday and on Easter Sunday (twice!). For most of my pupils church services have become something they're not very familiar with as their parents no longer go to church. Here in my family, we go to church on Easter Sunday for the main service. My husband plays the organ in church , so he goes there every Sunday and he takes the three eldest boys with him (although they do no like it !!), while I stay at home with Pieter and Bram. We can't take Pieter to church because he won't sit still and I know other people get embarrassed by the noises he makes. But Eulalia, we're rather exceptional because we still go to church regularly. What a difference with your country ! Ann (back to top) Students   The Easter Holidays are my favourite holidays. Because Easter means that my 2 sisters and my brother search in the garden for Easter eggs. My parents started this tradition when we were still very young and as usual they will drop eggs in our garden and when we wake up on Easter Sunday, we all go in our pyamas looking for eggs in the garden. But as usual I go to Italy during the Easter Holidays. Every year I go skiing with the same friends without my family but with an organisation. It's 10 days and when I come back, my grandmother and grandfather come to our place and then we eat a whole meal and for dessert, we eat Easter eggs in chocolate. Katrien (back to top) When we wake up the first thing we do is look for Easter eggs. normally they lie in the garden , but the last few years , the weather was not good, it was raining, so the easter bunny dropped them in the house. my mother is the easter bunny at my home. then we go to church. after that we go to my grandmother with the whole family. Ellen (back to top) But now I'm too old to search the eggs so I hide them myself for my little brothers! Charlotte (back to top) At Easter I always have to go to church in the morning and then we have a party at my grandparents' house with all my uncles, aunts and cousins. In the past, I liked searching the eggs, but now I'm the one who hides the eggs for my little cousins. Some people also have an Easter tree, like a Christmas tree, but with little eggs and other decorations instead. Hilde (back to top) Children also paint hard boiled eggs to decorate the house with. When I was young my mum and I always had an Easter tree, it's nothing special, it's just some branches in a vase in which we hang up our painted eggs. I loved to paint eggs... We don't celebrate Easter that much anymore, we used to do it, but now we don't anymore... Last Easter my grandparents came, we had a lot of fun, I don't see them that much because they live in the Netherlands, so when they come it's always fun! Monique (back to top) I hope that my parents still go and hide the eggs in the garden, because I like it. It is a pity that chocolates make you so fat... Tine A. (back to top) My parents never let me get up before 9.30 so I wouldn't notice anything. At 9.00, I heard the bells of the church and I used to think that the sound came from the Easter bells .I'm looking forward to hide the chocolate eggs for my children when I grow up. As I already said, I'm going on a vacation trip to Spain the first week of Easter Holidays. I'm really looking forward to this because we went there last year and we had a great time!! Klaas (back to top) At Easter I'm having a family party on wich I go looking for chocolate easter eggs in the garden of my grandmum. When I was a child I loved that. I had a lot of fun with my cousins, we did a contest of finding the most Easter eggs. The morning before we go to the family party, I go looking for eggs at home and then we go to church, where I sing with my choir. I like that holiday, because I like chocolates. Elien (back to top)