Here are a few traditions that happen on our little island during Easter…

Barbados celebrates the Oistins Fish Festival every year during the Easter weekend. This festival is held to honour persons that have contributed to and/or worked in the fishing industry of Barbados.

Oistins Fish Festival

The Oistins Fish Festival has a street fair that starts on Easter Saturday and ends on the evening of Easter Monday. At this street fair you will find vendors selling local arts & crafts, children’s toys and an array of tasty food. There are also competitions such as fish boning, climbing of the grease pole, and the fishermen racing their boats. This event is great for locals and visitors alike to go and watch. There is also cultural entertainment such as steel-pan and tuk-band.

Kite flying is also quite popular at this time of year. It is traditional for Barbadians to make their own kites using coloured tissue paper or old plastic bags, twigs or pieces of wood and strips of old cloth for the tail otherwise know as the “bull”. The “bull” is what creates the loud buzzing noise while the kite is flying. In recent years the Government implemented restricted areas where kites cannot be flown, mostly due to the fact that they are in the path of airplanes or near to high voltage power lines.

Kite flying

There is kite competition that is held at the Garrison Savannah on Easter Monday to showcase Barbadian’s kite making ability. Kites of all descriptions can be seen from the smallest to the largest and the unusual.

Another tradition at this time of year is hot cross buns. These are spiced sweet buns made with currants or raisins marked with a cross on the top. These are usually eaten on Good Friday at breakfast time. The cross on the bun is to represents the cross of the crucifixion of Christ and the shape of the bun represents the rock that was removed from the front of the tomb when he was resurrected on Easter Sunday.

Hot Cross Buns

There is even a rhyme about hot cross buns.

Hot cross buns, Hot cross buns,
One a penny, two a penny,
Hot cross buns.

Happy Easter from the Island Gold Realty Team!

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