The Double Ninth Festival (Chung Yeung Festival in Hong Kong, Vietnamese: Tết Trùng Cửu), observed on the ninth day of the ninth month in the Chinese calendar, is a traditional Chinese holiday, mentioned in writing since before the East Han period (before AD 25).
According to the I Ching, nine is a yang number; the ninth day of the ninth lunar month (or double nine) has too much yang (a traditional Chinese spiritual concept) and is thus a potentially dangerous date. Hence, the day is also called "Double Yang Festival" (重陽節). To protect against danger, it is customary to climb a high mountain, drink chrysanthemum wine, and wear the zhuyu (茱萸) plant, Cornus officinalis. (Both chrysanthemum and zhuyu are considered to have cleansing qualities and are used on other occasions to air out houses and cure illnesses.) On this holiday some Chinese also visit the graves of their ancestors to pay their respects. People eat Chongyang Cake on the day.
(... from Wikipedia on 2012-04-17 08:23:45)
Alaska Day is a legal holiday in the U.S. state of Alaska, observed on October 18. It is the anniversary of the formal transfer of the Territory of Alaska from Russia to the United States which took place at a flag-raising ceremony at Fort Sitka on Friday October 18, 1867 (11 hours behind St. Petersburg, Russia, half past midnight, Saturday 7 October, St. Petersburg time, Julian Calendar, or 3:30 p.m. in Sitka, 7 October).
Alaska Day is observed statewide, and is a paid holiday for State of Alaska employees. The official celebration is held in Sitka, where schools release students early, many businesses close for the day, and events such as a parade and reenactment of the flag raising are held.
(... from Wikipedia on 2012-04-17 16:32:22)
Newspaper Carrier Day is celebrated in the United States and honors Barney Flaherty, the first newspaper carrier (or paperboy) hired in 1833, as well as all current newspaper carriers. It is celebrated on September 4, the anniversary of Flaherty's hiring by Benjamin Day, publisher of the New York Sun. It is also observed by The Armidale Express, NSW, Australia, where cake is served. .[1]
(... from Wikipedia on 2012-04-17 13:17:31)
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Navratri, Navaratri, or Navarathri (Hindi: नवरात्रि; Gujarati: નવરાત્રી; Tamil: நவராத்திரி; Sanskrit: नवरात्रम्; Marathi: नवरात्र; Punjabi: ਨਰਾਤੇ Nepali: नवरात्रि; Bengali: নবরাত্রি; Kannada: ನವರಾತ್ರಿ; Telugu: దుర్గా నవరాత్రులు; Malayalam: നവരാത്രി; Tulu: ನವರಾತ್ರಿ/നവരാത്രി) is a Hindu festival of worship of Shakti and dance & festivities. The word Navaratri literally means nine nights in Sanskrit, nava meaning nine and ratri meaning nights[2]. During these nine nights and ten days, nine forms of Shakti/Devi are worshiped. The 10th day is commonly referred to as Vijayadashami or Dussehra.
The beginning of spring and the beginning of autumn are two very important junctions of climatic and solar influence. These two periods are taken as sacred opportunities for the worship of the Divine Mother. The dates of the festival are determined according to the lunar calendar.
(... from Wikipedia on 2012-04-17 22:18:44)