The Hebrew month of Tishrei falls during the months of September and October on the Gregorian calendar. Since the 12-month Jewish calendar follows the lunar year, its months are a few days shorter and thus its holidays vary year to … Continue reading →

Korean Thanksgiving Day is called 추석 (chuseok) or 한가위 (hangawi), celebrated on August 15 in the lunar calendar. The literal meaning of 추석 is an autumn evening, and 한가위 means ‘big’ (한) and ‘the middle’ (가위), representing a big day in the middle of August. Continue reading →

中秋节 【zhōng qiū jié】 or Mid-Autumn Festival is held on the 15th day of the 8th month in the Chinese lunar calendar, which this year falls on September 8th. This festival is celebrated in China and several other Asian countries, … Continue reading →

8월 15일은 광복절입니다. August 15th is Korean Independence Day. Korean Independence Day is called 광복절 (gwang bok jeol) in Korean, which commemorates the liberation of Korea from 35 years of Japanese colonization in 1945. 광복 (gwangbok) means ‘the restoration of … Continue reading →

This August 15th in Greece, business and schools will shut their doors in honor of Κοίμηση της Θεοτόκου the Dormition of Theotokos (Theotokos means literally god + childbirth, but is usually translated as the Mother of God). This day commemorates … Continue reading →

Only five more days until the Tour de France, the most important cycling event of the year. This year, the tour begins in Leeds in Great Britain and four days later, arrives en France, the birthplace of competitive cycling (the first … Continue reading →

Shavuot שבועות, the Festival of Weeks, is the second of the three major pilgrimage festivals with both biblical and agricultural significance (the other two are Passover פסח and Sukkot סוכות). Shavuot is celebrated for two days and occurs on the 6th of the Hebrew month of Sivan סיון, which this year falls on Tuesday, June 3rd, 2014 and ends at sundown on Thursday, June 5th, 2014. This holiday is the culmination of a seven-week period, counting the 49 days between the second day of Passover פסח and the first night of Shavuot שבועות. Continue reading →

More and more, travelers are choosing to stay as a guest in someone’s home (hébergement chez l’habitant) using sites such as Gîtes de France or BedyCasa. Aside from the cheaper costs compared to hotels, staying in someone’s home has the definite … Continue reading →