Christmas+and+Easter

=Christmas= is definitely the most important festivity in Italy. Christmas celebrates the birth of Christ, but very few people seem to remember and only wait for Christmas in order to receive and make gifts. It has become a festivity especially for consumerism. Nevertheless Christmas is still a wonderful period and people, children above all, love its atmosphere. The Christmas season in Italy goes for three weeks. In general, children are on holiday from Christmas Eve, that’s to say from the 24th, to the 6th of January. During the weeks before Christmas Day, people usually send cards, buy presents, watch Nativity plays and in particular, children go from house to house, singing Christmas carols and reciting Christmas poems. The Christmas period is usually **cold** even if there are some differences between the north and the south: the south of Italy has a wild climate while in the north it is harder and sometimes it snows. Christmas' decorations A strict feast has to be observed for 24 hours before Christmas Eve, and it is followed by a celebration meal and after that, the Holy Mass at midnight. Night time on Christmas Eve is a very exciting time for young children because it is the time when **Babbo Natale** (Santa Claus) comes to bring them gifts. The Christmas day is spent at home with the families and the relatives, chatting and eating the "**panettone**", a typical Italian Christmas' cake. Another important sweet thing is **nougat**, that can be hard or tender and both the types are yummy!
 * La Befana**


 * In Italy there is a famous proverb: "Natale con i tuoi e Pasqua con chi vuoi".**

=Easter= as Christmas, is a religious festivity, for it celebrates Death and Resurrection of Christ. It has its start on holy Thursday, when it is remembered the foot washing. During the Mass, the priest usually wash the feet of 12 of the member of his parish. The most important even though doleful day is of course Friday. It is the day of Christ's death and it is characterized by the celebration of the Via Cruces and of the Adoration of the Cross. Saturday should be a fast day, but very few Christians respect it. In the evening, there's the Easter Wake to celebrate the resurrection. It is longer than a normal Mass, because it has seven readings taken from the Bible to underline the mood of wait and prayer//.// On Sunday everybody use to celebrate Easter with a great lunch, where the main dish usually consists in baked lamb.


 * Easter Monday**

During the Easter tide Italians usually eat two kinds of sweet things, The chocolate egg and **The dove** Both the Chocolate Egg and the Dove have a very good taste, that is the reason why Italians never make a choice between the two, but always buy both of them and postpone their diets at the following day!


 * Easter tree

by Elisa, Chiara, Cristiana, Alice**