My favourite book

This is the presentation and the essay of my favourite book One flew over the cuckoo´s nest by Ken Kesey.

EASTER

Easter is the time of springtime festivals, a time to welcome back the Tulips, the Crocuses and the Daffodils. Its a time of new suits, new dresses and patent leather shoes. In Christian countries Easter is celebrated as the religious holiday commemorating the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the son of God. But the celebrations of Easter have many customs and legends that are pagan in origin and have nothing to do with Christianity.
Of all the symbols associated with Easter the egg, the symbol of fertility and new life, is the most identifiable. Originally Easter eggs were painted with bright colors to represent the sunlight of spring and were used in Easter-egg rolling contests or given as gifts.
The Easter bunny has its origin in pre-Christian fertility lore. The Hare and the Rabbit were the most fertile animals known and they served as symbols of the new life during the Spring season. In the Czech Republic a tradition of whipping is carried out on Easter Monday. In the morning, males whip females with a special handmade whip called pomlázka. The pomlázka consists of eight, twelve or even twenty-four withies (willow rods) and is usually from half a meter to two meters long and decorated with coloured ribbons at the end. It must be mentioned that while whipping can be painful, the purpose is not to cause suffering. Rather, the purpose is for males to exhibit their attraction to females; unvisited females can even feel offended. The whipped female gives a coloured egg to the male as a sign of her thanks and forgiveness. A legend says that females should be whipped in order to keep their health and fertility during whole next year. In some regions the females can get revenge in the afternoon when they can pour a bucket of cold water on any male. The habit slightly varies across the Czech Republic.

More about Easter you can find on http://easter.indiaserver.com/

Czech Republic hit with floods

Parts of Eastern Europe including heavily hit Czech Republic, have been hit with severe flooding, prompting a state of emergency and forcing evacuations in some areas.
The state of emergency affects seven of the Czech Republic's 14 regions, including the hard-hit Usti region in the north and the South Moravian region.
The northern city of Hrensko, on the border with Germany, was completely immersed in water and sealed off by police as the Elbe River continued to rise.
According to the CTK news agency, rescuers in the western Czech town of Keslie near the border with Germany were searching for a 6-year-old boy believed to have fallen into the swollen Svatava river.
The flooding, which started last week, was caused by quickly melting snow in the Czech mountains and rain in most of the country. In 2002, floods devastated a large part of the country, killed at least 16 people and caused more than $3 billion in damage.
In 2002, floods devastated a large part of the Czech Republic, killed at least 16 people and caused millions of dollars in damage.

Bird Flu Hits Czech Republic

Czech Republic, (AHN) - Authorities in the Czech Republic have confirmed their first case of the H5N1 bird flu virus.
Tests at a UK-based EU reference laboratory have confirmed a dead swan found in the Czech Republic had the highly pathogenic H5N1 bird flu virus, reports Reuters.
It is the first confirmed H5N1 case in the Czech Republic. The swan was found last week in Hluboka nad Vltavou in the south of the Czech Republic.
Further tests are being carried out at the EU reference laboratory in the UK.
The European Commission has proposed additional aid to farmers in member states hit by a drop in egg and poultry consumption due to bird flu outbreaks.
Thirteen EU countries have now confirmed outbreaks of bird flu, which has killed more than 100 people in Asia since 2003.
All of the central European country's neighbors - Germany, Austria, Poland and Slovakia - have reported H5N1 cases in dead birds.

New Year´s Day

Not all countries celebrate New Year at the same time, nor in the same way. This is because people in different parts of the world use different calendars. Long ago, people divided time into days, months, and years. Some calendars are based on the movement of the moon, others are based on the position of the sun, while others are based on both the sun and the moon. All over the world, there are special beliefs about New Year.
On New Year's Eve, many people hold parties which last until late into the night. It is traditional to greet the new year at midnight and celebrate the first minutes of the year in the company of friends and family. People may dance, sing, and drink a toast to the year ahead. After the celebrations, it is time to make new year resolutions, and these are a list of decisions about how to live in the coming year. Horns are blown at midnight, and people hug and kiss to begin the new year with much love and happiness.
In Europe, New Year was often a time for superstition and fortune-telling, and in some parts of Switzerland and Austria, people dress up to celebrate Saint Sylvester's Eve.

The word Christmas comes from the words Cristes maesse, or "Christ's Mass." Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus for members of the Christian religion. Most historians peg the first celebration of Christmas to Rome in 336 A.D.
Christmas is both a holiday and a holy day. In America it is one of the biggest event of the year (especially for kids), and for members of the Christian religions it is an important day on the religious calendar.
Christmas is a time for Families, Fun, and Festivities! A time of family gatherings and holiday meals. A time for Santa, stars, and singing carolers. A time for ornaments, gifts, and twinkling lights. Of sleigh rides, hot cocoa, and gingerbread cookies.

Christmas Traditions Around the World

Christmas Stories and Traditions

Christmas Recipes

More about Christmas...

Saint Nicholas

In these days before Christmas, we can celebrate the feast of Nicholas as a time to refocus on Jesus. Saint Nicholas Day (December 6) was the traditional day for giving gifts to children. It is still the day on which children receive gifts from St. Nicholas.

Who is Saint Nicholas?

Was Saint Nicholas a real person?

Is Saint Nicholas still a Real Saint?

Compare Saint Nicholas and Santa Claus

St. Nicholas Symbols

Saddam trial hears first witness

Saddam Hussein's trial has heard its first witness testimony, from a now deceased former Iraqi intelligence officer on a pre-recorded video.
Wadah Ismael al-Sheik investigated the 1982 assassination attempt which triggered the alleged massacre in Dujail upon which the trial is based.
The trial has been adjourned for a week, until 5 December.
A defiant Saddam Hussein and seven co-accused were in court. All eight deny charges of murder and torture. The prosecution says 148 people, mostly men, were killed in the largely Shia town, some 60km (35 miles) north of Baghdad, after a failed assassination attempt against the former leader. In his testimony, taped before his recent death from cancer, Mr Sheikh said about 400 people were detained after the ambush, which was estimated to have been carried out by between seven and 12 assailants.
A day after the attack, whole families were rounded up and taken to Abu Ghraib prison in Baghdad, he said. A year later they were moved to another detention centre in the south of the country, Mr Sheikh added.

"I don't want you to alert them! I want you to order them. They are in our country. You are an Iraqi, you are sovereign and they are foreigners, invaders, and occupiers."

Saddam Hussein