{"id":4697,"date":"2018-02-13T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2018-02-13T05:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.oxfordseminars.com\/blog?p=4697&preview=true&preview_id=4697"},"modified":"2018-02-13T17:28:51","modified_gmt":"2018-02-13T22:28:51","slug":"fall-in-love-with-travel-valentines-day-around-the-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.oxfordseminars.com\/blog\/fall-in-love-with-travel-valentines-day-around-the-world\/","title":{"rendered":"Fall in Love with Travel – Valentine’s Day Around the World"},"content":{"rendered":"

With Valentine\u2019s Day almost here, it\u2019s time to make those last minute dinner reservations, or buy those chocolates you were supposed pick up. Or, maybe it\u2019s time to get comfortable on the couch and get caught up on Netflix.<\/p>\n

But\u00a0what if you\u00a0want to try something new this\u00a0Valentine’s Day and celebrate in a whole new way? You\u2019re in luck because different countries around the world celebrate a wide variety of holidays both similar to and vastly different from Valentine\u2019s Day. ESL teachers abroad have an opportunity to celebrate them all.<\/p>\n

See how Japan<\/a>, China<\/a>, and Spain<\/a> celebrate Valentine\u2019s Day:<\/h2>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

Valentine’s Day in Japan<\/a><\/h2>\n
\"Valentine's<\/a>

A couple taking a walk in a traditional Japanese garden<\/p><\/div>\n

Japan<\/a> celebrates Valentine\u2019s day differently than in America. Rather than one holiday where you go out for a romantic dinner or give gifts to your partner and your friends, the Japanese divide the holiday into two separate days.<\/p>\n

The first, Valentine\u2019s Day is noticeably different in that only women give gifts to celebrate the holiday. Women will typically purchase or make chocolate for their husbands or partners. Chocolate may be given to male friends, colleagues, or employers as well.<\/p>\n

The second holiday, \u201cWhite Day\u201d is celebrated on March 14th and reverses the gift and chocolate exchange. On White Day, men give chocolate and other gifts to women to show thanks\u00a0for the chocolate they received on Valentine\u2019s Day. As the name suggests, white chocolate is an especially popular gift on White Day.<\/p>\n

\"Valentine's<\/a>

Chocolate is a very popular Valentine’s Day gift in Japan, much like it is in the US.<\/p><\/div>\n

Like in North America, Valentine\u2019s Day and White Day are also important for businesses. Many hotels and restaurants offer special packages and promotions to celebrate the holidays. Between the two days, the country spends almost $100 million USD on chocolate alone.<\/p>\n

More about Valentine’s Day in Japan:<\/p>\n

Japan National Tourism Organization<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

USA Today<\/a><\/em>
\n<\/a><\/p>\n

Valentine’s Day in China<\/a><\/h2>\n
\"Valentine's<\/a>

China celebrates Valentine’s Day, as well as many other romantic holidays, like the Lantern Festival.<\/p><\/div>\n

If you thought Japan\u2019s two Valentine\u2019s day holidays sounded great, then China<\/a> should be even more to your liking. China has several romantic holidays throughout the year, with many competing for the title of \u201cChina\u2019s Valentine\u2019s Day.\u201d<\/p>\n

One such holiday is the Qi Xi Festival, which occurs on the 7th day of the 7th month of the lunar calendar. Today, the holiday is celebrated much like Valentine \u2019s Day, with couples exchanging gifts or\u00a0going out for a romantic dinner.<\/p>\n

The origins and traditional celebrations of the holiday, however, are much more varied. The holiday originated with a Chinese folktale about\u00a0a goddess, Zhi Nu, who married a mortal farmer named Niu Lang. However, Zhi Nu\u2019s mother disapproved of their marriage and took her daughter back to heaven. The folktale centers on Niu Lang\u2019s quest to get to heaven and reunite with his lost love.<\/p>\n

Some of the traditional celebrations of the holiday include: hanging wild flowers on ox or cow horns (to honor the old ox god who helps Niu Lang travel to heaven), or offerings of food to Zhi Nu.<\/p>\n

\"Valentine's<\/a>

Releasing lanterns into the air to bring good luck in both romance and everyday life<\/p><\/div>\n

Another holiday often referred to as “China\u2019s Valentine\u2019s day” is the Lantern Festival. Held on the 15th day of the Lunar New Year, the Lantern Festival sees participants release bright colored lanterns into the air as a symbol of good luck and romance. Festivities are held throughout the country and include large parades as well as smaller family gatherings.<\/p>\n

On top of these two holidays, China also celebrates the Western Valentine\u2019s Day on February 14th.<\/p>\n

But what if you\u2019re single on Valentine \u2019s Day? China has you covered. Singles Day is held every November 11th and is the world\u2019s biggest day for online shopping.<\/p>\n

Singles Day started out as a sort of protest holiday against Valentine\u2019s Day, but has become a day for huge online shopping discounts similar to Black Friday or Cyber Monday in the US, but bigger. According to the Guardian<\/a>, Singles Day shoppers spent over $25 Billion USD in 2017. The day also includes a live countdown show with celebrities and musical performances. The show has drawn over 400 million viewers, 3 times the viewership of the Superbowl.<\/p>\n

More about Valentine’s Day in China:<\/p>\n

QZ.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

The Culture Trip<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

South China Morning Post<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

The Guardian<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Forbes<\/a><\/em>
\n<\/a><\/p>\n

Valentine’s Day in Spain<\/a><\/h2>\n

Like China, Spain<\/a> celebrates many different variations of Valentine\u2019s Day and similar holidays. The difference is that not all of them are celebrated across the country. Instead, different regions of the country have their own unique holidays, traditions, and customs.<\/p>\n

\"Valentine's<\/a>

Marzipan figurines are a popular gift given during Valencia’s Day of Saint Dionysius.<\/p><\/div>\n

One of these regional variations is the Day of Saint Dionysius celebrated in Valencia on October 9th. This holiday is livelier than your average Valentine\u2019s Day in North America. The Day of Saint Dionysius replaces dinner and chocolate with parades and colorful costumes. There are some similarities though. Giving gifts to loved ones is still commonplace, with marzipan figurines being the traditional gift of choice for many couples.<\/p>\n

\"Valentine's<\/a>

Books and roses are often given on Saint George\u2019s Day in Catalonia.<\/p><\/div>\n

Another of Spain\u2019s regional variations on Valentine\u2019s Day is Saint George\u2019s Day, held on April 23rd throughout the region of Catalonia. This holiday sees lovers buy each other a variety of gifts, the most common being roses and books.<\/p>\n

More about Valentine’s Day in Spain:<\/p>\n

Spain Attractions<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Fall in love with travel this year<\/h2>\n

Valentine\u2019s Day, like many holidays, appears in many different forms around the world. There are also many similar but unique holidays with their own interesting histories and traditions. Whether you\u2019ve got plans for Valentine\u2019s Day, or you\u2019re celebrating Singles Day, there\u2019s too much to see in this world to limit yourself to just one place and one holiday tradition.<\/p>\n

Celebrate your love of travel this year. Go abroad<\/a> and explore a different country and culture. You may fall in love all over again.<\/p>\n

Ready to teach English abroad and to travel the world?<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n

Download our Course Guide<\/a><\/h3>\n<\/p>\n

Sign up for a free information session about teaching ESL overseas<\/a><\/h3>\n<\/p>\n

Find a TESOL\/TESL\/TEFL course near you<\/a><\/h3>\n<\/p>\n

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With Valentine\u2019s Day almost here, it\u2019s time to make those last minute dinner reservations, or buy those chocolates you were supposed pick up. Or, maybe it\u2019s time to get comfortable on the couch and get caught up on Netflix. But\u00a0what if you\u00a0want to try something new this\u00a0Valentine’s Day and celebrate in a whole new way? […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":30,"featured_media":4761,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[76,315,25,343,64],"tags":[86,8,148,133,91,102,443],"class_list":["post-4697","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-asia","category-food-abroad","category-life-abroad","category-travel","category-western-europe","tag-china","tag-culture","tag-holidays","tag-japan","tag-spain","tag-travel","tag-valentines-day"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.oxfordseminars.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4697","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.oxfordseminars.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.oxfordseminars.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.oxfordseminars.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/30"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.oxfordseminars.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4697"}],"version-history":[{"count":18,"href":"https:\/\/www.oxfordseminars.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4697\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4769,"href":"https:\/\/www.oxfordseminars.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4697\/revisions\/4769"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.oxfordseminars.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4761"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.oxfordseminars.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4697"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.oxfordseminars.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4697"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.oxfordseminars.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4697"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}