les pâques

les pâques en France

• Palm Sunday, le dimanche des rameaux, people take palm branches to the church to be blessed by the priest, le prêtre.
• The palm branches will be burned the following year to make ashes for ash Wednesday, le mercredi des cendres.
• Le dimanche des rameaux is the start of la semaine sainte, Holy Week.

les cloches volantes

• Church bells do not ring between Good Friday, vendredi saint, and Easter Sunday, dimanche de pâques.
• In the old days, it was said that the bells grew wings and flew to Rome in that time to be blessed by the Pope, le pape.
• It was said that the bells brought chocolate treats for the children on their way back to the church.

le lapin de pâques

• The tradition of the Easter bunny originated in Germany.
• Some regions of France follow the Easter bunny tradition, but it is not as common. American influence has made the Easter bunny well-known.
• Children prepare nests, les nids, for the Easter bunny to fill with chocolate eggs and candy

la chasse aux oeufs

• On Easter, children participate in an Easter Egg Hunt.
• Originally, adults hid hard-boiled eggs that were colored with vegetable-based dye.
• Today, adults hide chocolate eggs for children to find.

l'agneau pascal

• The traditional Easter meal consists of lamb, l'agneau, and fresh vegetables.
• For dessert, people typically serve the first strawberries of the season, or a nest-shaped cake.