This Country Honors Thee

February 21, 2012 by Jennifer Emge · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Holidays 

Every third Monday in February, the US celebrates President’s Day in honor of the country’s first President, George Washington.  Obviously this holiday is US-specific, so I decided to delve into what holidays surrounding political and cultural icons other countries honor and celebrate. 

This is what I found…

  • In the Dominican Republic, they celebrate Juan Pablo Duarte Day on January 25th.  Juan Pablo Duarte was one of the founding fathers of the Dominican Republic as he assisted with gaining the country’s independence from Haitian rule in 1844.
  • In Belize, they celebrate Baron Bliss Day in honor of Henry Edward Ernest Victor Bliss who set sail for Belize, ended up with a bad case of food poisoning, and was so thankful for the care the Belizeans gave him, he left the country $2 million in his will.
  • In Mexico, the Natalicio de Benito Juárez (birth of Benito Juárez) is remembered on March 21st.  President Juarez resisted French occupation, overthrew the Second Mexican Empire, restored the Republic, and modernized the country, to name of few things…
  • In Uruguay, they celebrate Artigas Day in honor of José Artigas, the ‘Father of Independence.’  He fought for independence against Spain and Brazil, was eventually exiled to Paraguay.  He is referred to as the Primer Jefe de los Orientales (First Leader of the Orientales) and Primer estadista de la Revolución del Río de la Plata (first statesman of the Rio de la Plata Revolution).
  • In Argentina, they celebrate San Martin Day on August 17th.  San Martin is recognized as one of the Liberators of Spanish South America, and considered a hero in Argentina, Peru and Chile.
  • In Albania, October 19th is regarded as Mother Teresa Day, in honor of the anniversary of herVatican beatification.  Born in Albania, Mother Teresa identified herself by saying, “By blood, I am Albanian. By citizenship, an Indian. By faith, I am a Catholic nun.” 
  • In Barbados, April 28th is celebrated as National Heroes’ Day for those that have “given outstanding service to Barbados” as well as “contributed to the improvement of the economic and social conditions of Barbados.”

We can learn a lot about other countries simply by looking at the holidays they choose to celebrate.  For a pretty extensive list of holidays by country, go here.

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Fun Facts, Part 2

February 17, 2012 by Jennifer Emge · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Culture 

In June of last year, I wrote a piece entitled, “Fun Facts!”  Expanding on this intrigue of other countries, languages, and cultures to us outsiders, I decided to see what other “fun facts” I could dig up.

Did you know…

  • In honor of the Beijing Olympics in 2008, over 4,000 babies were named “Aoyun” meaning Olympics.  More China fun facts can be found here.
  • Russia spans 9 time zones.  And you thought keeping track of business calls to and from the East/West coasts were difficult – ha!  More Russia fun facts here.
  • Portugal is home to the first commercial wave farm, which creates and sells electricity.
  • Three languages are spoken in Algeria – Arabic, French, and Berber
  • The national sport of Argentina is Pato.  This sport originally used a live duck instead of a ball and was banned several times throughout history due to violence.
  • The most popular tourist attraction in Ireland is the Guinness Storehouse with over a million visitors each year.  With seven floors and a fabulous view, it’s no wonder it’s such a hot spot.
  • The first printing press in North America was used in Mexico in the 1539.  More interesting facts about Mexico can be found here.

What about the US?  Think you know everything there is to know about culture and history in the US?  Well, did you know…

  • The only royal palace used by a monarch in the U.S., the Iolani Palace,  is located in Honolulu, Hawaii.
  • The hottest temperature ever recorded was in Death Valley, California in in July of 1913 with a scorching 134 degrees!  Keep in mind, this was pre-global warming days too!
  • Michigan isn’t just known for its car manufacturing, but its cereal too!  Battle Creek, Michigan, also known as “Cereal City” is home to the Kellogg Company.
  • While English is the most commonly used language in the US, and it’s pretty much assumed everyone born and raised in the US is well-versed in English, the US actually does not have an official language!

Itching for more?  Here are several quizzes testing your knowledge of US history: http://bit.ly/zTHIkw

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