Happy St. George's Day!

I just happened to be looking on the Nottinghamshire website, looking for any last minute festivals, markets, and/or celebrations before we begin these last 7 weeks. Yes, that's right SEVEN! Sidenote, that means only 7 more laundry days of washing for 5+ hours and hang drying everything [End rant].

Anyway---I was looking on the website and came across a parade/celebration that was happening today! The celebration is known as St. George's Day, which isn't an official bank holiday here, but I think many hope it will become one someday.  April 23rd was selected to represent the day of St. George's death in 303 AD.  I went down to the market square and watched the end of the parade that was filled with hundreds of people dressed in red and white, carrying English flags.  The highlight was the two white horses with knights riding them, leading the rest of the parade. At that moment, I could tell whatever the celebration was, it showed the pride in being in English citizen.  Many people, you could tell had a few pints before walking the parade, but most smiled, waving their flags, and enjoying the beautiful day!

Leading the parade

So...the question you and I were both wondering (well, unless you're English): So what is St. George's Day? One website I read said that it was a day to celebrate the wonderful nation of England.  If you don't have time to read through the website, it basically said Scotland has St. Andrew's Day and Ireland has St. Patrick's Day....so they need to honor their own saint (aka George).  The day was recognized in 1222, so they have been celebrating for quite a while.  Many traditions become more modernized over the years, but I read that one wears a rose in his/her lapel and fly the St. George's Flag.  St. George's past is a bit of a legend and myth, as why he is well known is because he stayed true to his Christian faith, even in times of torture.  From then on, St. George has been written about, soldiers represented him on their attire, legends passed down about him defeating a dragon, and has his own chapel named after him at Windsor Castle (see our visit here almost a year ago to date).  This day is represented in varies countries around Europe and the Middle East as well.  Which seems weird to me, given England wanted a day to celebrate their own saint. I think I'm missing something here...

Lots of pride

It was definitely a neat experience, and I was glad I was able to pop down in the middle of the day to see the parade, horses up close, and see all the people representing their country well with their creative red and white outfits. 

On to the next adventure...