Happy Easter, Slovak style

Easter’s on the way, so the girls of Slovakia need to watch out, when the men roll out the typical Slovak Easter customs.

Water and whips feature highly in the stories my Slovak students have told me about Easter time in Bratislava. Many of my single female friends still experience the tradition of having water poured over them by brothers and male friends on Easter Monday - the nice guys let the girls get into old clothes in the bathroom first, while the nastier brothers attack while the girls are still in bed asleep! The excuse is that this ritual refreshes the girls and in fact keeps them beautiful, and they are then whipped gently with a branch to ward off evil. A nice thought, but I don't think I'd be too grateful to be woken up on Easter Monday with water and a whip.