Feliz Dia Del Amigo

Every year, Brazileños celebrate Valentine's Day on June 12th instead of February 14th in honor of Saint Anthony, the patron saint of matchmaking and marriage. St. Anthony was a Portuguese monk who died in the 13th century. This holiday is known as Dia dos Namorados or literally the Day of the Enamored. Traditionally, many women perform rituals called simpatias in order to find a good husband or boyfriend. On this day many couples exchange gifts, chocolates, cards, and flowers. The celebrations in Brazil often consist of lavish parties and stunning costumes, and Dia dos Namorados is no exception to this tradition.

If you happen to be here on June 12th during your Brazil travel you may find that shopping centers are crowded with people buying gifts for their sweetheart. Think of it this way, you get to celebrate two days of love in one year. Buy your beloved a cool tour around Brazil, or try traditional Brazil cuisine and have a night out on the town. There is no easier place to find an activity or gift that your significant other will love. Personally, gifts from the heart are the best, and if you both love to travel than a trip to a nearby town or a romantic night in a hotel would be perfect.

Valentine's Day of February 14th is generally not celebrated at all in Brazil for both cultural and commercial regions. It also falls very close to Carnaval, a major holiday in Brazil, long regarded as a holiday of debauchery.

Another exception is in Colombia where Valentine's Day is celebrated every third Saturday of September, and "secret santa" like gift exchanging is popular. Throughout the rest of South America, February 14th is a quite popular day to celebrate love and is known as Dia del amor y la Amistad or Amigo secreto.

Dia Del Amigo

National Friendship Day is celebrated on August 1 every year. Although I had never heard of it I think there's a need for such a holiday. It doesn't need to be another of these "I like it because I get off work" holidays. Rather it should be a day to spend some time remembering some of the friends from the past. All the way from grade school to high school to workplace, we have all had friends. Friends have not only made our lives more pleasant, but I can think of many who have helped me over the years.

So when and where did National Friendship Day start? The official day was proclaimed by the U. S. Congress in 1935. You could come up with quite a few reasons the celebration was started during that time period. It was a little over a decade after WWI and there were still hostilities, and mistrust between countries. (unfortunately the same is true in these times). There was also a need (as there is today) to band together helping each other in times of financial distress.

Although you can send gift baskets, cards,etc., the best way to celebrate this holiday is simply write a letter or email to a friend (past or present). August 1 has already passed but this is a holiday you could celebrate at any time.

The author is a retired chemical engineer who in retirement has become the chief and only cook and bottle cleaner in the family. After watching hundreds of cooking shows and reading thousands of cookbooks I am generating and publishing my own plus lots of other already published recipes, mostly pre WWII. I do this on my website which also includes cryptogram puzzles, reform political commentary, auction stuff and UFO (Used Furniture Outlet). We live near Hecla, PA but this is a different UFO. Hope you like the recipes and that you will visit my site to find the over 1,000 recipes (and rising) free of charge. I hope you will click on some advertising links while there to help me maintain the website and continue to make it grow.