Saturday, Feb 28, 2015: Holidays Today

Spain  Día de Andalucía (AN) [Regional]
Taiwan  Peace Memorial Day

Snyder Thorn Diversity Calendar #toda

Friday, Feb 27, 2015: Holidays Today

Dominican Republic  Independence Day
Taiwan  Peace Memorial Holiday

Snyder Thorn Diversity Calendar #toda

Thursday, Feb 26, 2015: Holidays Today

Kuwait  Liberation Day

Snyder Thorn Diversity Calendar #toda

Wednesday, Feb 25, 2015: Holidays Today

Kuwait  National Day
Suriname  Day of Liberation and Innovation (Dag van de Revolutie)

Snyder Thorn Diversity Calendar #toda

Calendars are like boxes of chocolates...

Calendars are like boxes of chocolates...

Most are like empty boxes... not much content to savor and enjoy!

Others are filled with rich, enjoyable content... Every day.

Which one would you prefer?  Which one would you pay a bit more for?

A message from STE's Diversity Calendar...

…a calendar rich with over 600 juicy tidbits!

Tuesday, Feb 24, 2015: Flag Day (Mexico)

Flag Day / Dia de la Bandera - Mexico

...from Wikipedia

Día de la Bandera ("Flag Day") is a national holiday in Mexico. Flag Day is celebrated every year on February 24 since its implementation in 1937. It was established by the President of Mexico, General Lázaro Cárdenas, before the monument to GeneralVicente Guerrero, first to pledge allegiance to the Mexican flag on March 12, 1821.

The date was selected because more than a century earlier (February 24, 1821), the "Plan of Iguala" or "Plan of the three guarantees" was proclaimed by Agustin de Iturbide and General Vicente Guerrero. This plan was based in three principles: "Religion, Independence and Unity", which were represented on the flag's colors. On this same date, Jose Magdaleno Ocampo tailored the first three color flag for what would soon be an independent Mexico. This flag, commonly known as the "Pendon Trigarante", had the colors: white, green and red in that order, arranged diagonally with three eight-point gold stars, one on the center of each color banner.

Tuesday, Feb 24, 2015: Holidays Today

China  Spring Festival (workday moved to Sat. Feb. 28)
Estonia  Iseseisvuspäev (Independence Day)

Snyder Thorn Diversity Calendar #today

Monday, Feb 23, 2015: Holidays Today

Bhutan  Anniversary of His Majesty the King Holiday
Brunei  National Day
China  Spring Festival (workday moved to Sun. Feb. 15)
Cyprus  Ash Monday / Clean Monday (Kathara Deftera)
Estonia  Afternoon before Independence Day [Afternoon]
Greece  Ash Monday / Clean Monday (Kathara Deftera)
Guyana  Republic Day (Mashramani / National Day)
Kyrgyzstan  Homeland Defenders' Day
Macau  The fifth day of the Lunar New Year [Banks/Government]
Russia  Motherland Defenders' Day
Taiwan  Chinese New Year Holiday
Transdniestria  Motherland Defenders' Day
Vietnam  Tet Holiday

Snyder Thorn Diversity Calendar #toda

Sunday, Feb 22, 2015: Holidays Today

Bhutan  Anniversary of His Majesty the King Holiday
China  Spring Festival
Saint Lucia  Independence Day
Taiwan  Chinese New Year Holiday
Vietnam  Tet Holiday

Snyder Thorn Diversity Calendar #today

Saturday, Feb 21, 2015: Holidays Today

Bangladesh  Shahid Dibosh (International Mother Language Day)
Bhutan  Anniversary of His Majesty the King
China  Spring Festival
Hong Kong  The third day of the Lunar New Year
Macau  The third day of the Lunar New Year
Mongolia  Lunar New Year Holiday
Taiwan  Chinese New Year Holiday
Vanuatu  In memory of Dr. W. H. Lini (Father of Independence)
Vietnam  Tet Holiday

Snyder Thorn Diversity Calendar #toda

Friday, Feb 20, 2015: Holidays Today

Bhutan  Losar Holiday
China  Spring Festival
Christmas Island  Chinese New Year (Day 2)
Hong Kong  The second day of the Lunar New Year
Macau  The second day of the Lunar New Year
Malaysia  Chinese New Year, Day 2
Mongolia  Lunar New Year Holiday
Singapore  Chinese New Year Holiday
South Korea  Seol-nal Holiday
Taiwan  Chinese New Year Holiday
Vietnam  Tet Holiday

Snyder Thorn Diversity Calendar #toda

Thursday, Feb 19th, 2015: Holidays Today

Bhutan  Dangpa Losar (Lunar New Year) (Year of the Wood Female Sheep)
Brunei  Chinese New Year
China  Spring Festival (Chinese New Year)
Christmas Island  Chinese New Year
Hong Kong  Lunar New Year's Day
India  Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Jayanti (MH) [Regional]
Indonesia  Chinese New Year (Tahun Baru Imlek)
Jordan  Public Holiday (Weather Conditions)
Macau  Lunar New Year's Day (Novo Ano Lunar)
Malaysia  Chinese New Year
Mauritius  Chinese New Year (Spring Festival)
Mongolia  Tsagaan Sar (Lunar New Year) (Year of the Blue Ewe)
Nepal  Gyalpyo/Gyallo Loshar
Nepal  Rastraya Prajatantra Dibas (Democracy Day)
North Korea  Seollal Holiday
Philippines  Chinese Lunar New Year
Singapore  Chinese New Year
South Korea  Seol-nal (Lunar New Year)
Suriname  Chinese New Year
Taiwan  Chinese New Year's Day
Thailand  Chinese New Year (Narathiwat, Pattani, Yala, and Satun) [Regional]
Turkmenistan  Flag Day
Vietnam  Tet Nguyen Dan (Vietnamese New Year)

Snyder Thorn Diversity Calendar #toda

Thursday, Feb 18, 2015: Holidays Today

Brazil  Ash Wednesday (until 2pm) [Morning/Ponto Facultativo]
Cape Verde  Ash Wednesday (except morning only in São Vicente)
Cayman Islands  Ash Wednesday
China  Spring Festival (Chinese New Year's Eve)
East Timor  Public Sector Holiday (Ash Wednesday) (morning until 12:00 noon) [Government]
French Guiana  Ash Wednesday (Mercredi des Cendres) (jour chômé d'usage)
Gambia  Independence Day (National Day)
Guadeloupe  Ash Wednesday (jour chômé d'usage) [Other]
Haiti  Public Holiday (Carnival)
Jamaica  Ash Wednesday
Macau  Lunar New Year's Eve (afternoon) [Government/Afternoon]
Martinique  Ash Wednesday (jour chômé d'usage) [Other]
Mongolia  Bituun (Lunar New Year's Eve) [Banks]
Panama  Carnaval (Ash Wednesday) [Banks]
Saint Barthélemy  Ash Wednesday [Other]
Saint Martin  Ash Wednesday [Other]
South Korea  Seol-nal Holiday
Taiwan  Chinese New Year's Eve
Vietnam  Tet Eve (Vietnamese New Year's Eve)

Snyder Thorn Diversity Calendar #toda

Wednesday, Feb 18, 2015: Holidays Today

Brazil  Ash Wednesday (until 2pm) [Morning/Ponto Facultativo]
Cape Verde  Ash Wednesday (except morning only in São Vicente)
Cayman Islands  Ash Wednesday
China  Spring Festival (Chinese New Year's Eve)
East Timor  Public Sector Holiday (Ash Wednesday) (morning until 12:00 noon) [Government]
French Guiana  Ash Wednesday (Mercredi des Cendres) (jour chômé d'usage)
Gambia  Independence Day (National Day)
Guadeloupe  Ash Wednesday (jour chômé d'usage) [Other]
Haiti  Public Holiday (Carnival)
Jamaica  Ash Wednesday
Macau  Lunar New Year's Eve (afternoon) [Government/Afternoon]
Martinique  Ash Wednesday (jour chômé d'usage) [Other]
Mongolia  Bituun (Lunar New Year's Eve) [Banks]
Panama  Carnaval (Ash Wednesday) [Banks]
Saint Barthélemy  Ash Wednesday [Other]
Saint Martin  Ash Wednesday [Other]
South Korea  Seol-nal Holiday
Taiwan  Chinese New Year's Eve
Vietnam  Tet Eve (Vietnamese New Year's Eve)

Snyder Thorn Diversity Calendar #toda

Tuesday, Feb 15, 2015: Shrove Tuesday / Mardi Gras / Fat Tuesday / Pancake Day

http://www.chiff.com/a/shrove-tuesday.htm

Shrove Tuesday gets its name from the ritual of shriving, when the faithful confessed their sins to the local priest and received forgiveness before the Lenten season began.

As far back as 1000 AD, "to shrive" meant to hear confessions. (Trivia note: the term survives today in the expression "short shrift" or giving little attention to anyone's explanations or excuses.)

Shrove Tuesday also marked the beginning of the 40-day Lenten fasting period when the faithful were forbidden to consume meat, butter, eggs or milk.

However, if a family had a store of these foods they would certainly spoil by the time the fast ended on Easter Sunday. What to do? Solution: use up the milk, butter and eggs no later than Shrove Tuesday. And so, with the addition of a little flour, the solution quickly presented itself in... pancakes.

Today, the Shrove Tuesday pancake tradition lives on in Western Europe, the United States, Canada and Australia. It is most associated with the UK, where it is simply known as Pancake Day with a traditional recipe that looks to all the world more like a French crepe rather than the 'mile-high' stack so popular on National Pancake Day in America.

Snyder Thorn Diversity Calendar #toda

Tuesday, Feb 17, 2015: Holidays Today

Angola  Carnival
Argentina  Martes de Carnaval
Bolivia  Carnaval
Brazil  Carnival [Ponto Facultativo]
Cape Verde  Carnaval (except full day in São Vicente) [Afternoon]
Dominica  Carnival Tuesday
Ecuador  Carnaval (workday moved to Sat. Feb. 28)
French Guiana  Mardi Gras (jour chômé d'usage) [Other]
Grenada  Carnival Tuesday (Carriacou and Petite Martinique) [Regional]
Guadeloupe  Mardi Gras (jour chômé d'usage) [Other]
Haiti  Mardi Gras (Carnival)
India  Maha Shivaratri (AP CG CH GJ HP HR JK KA KL MH MP OR UK UP) [Regional]
Kosovo  Kosovo Independence Day (Dita e Pavarësisë)
Libya  February 17 Revolution Day
Liechtenstein  Fasnachtsdienstag [Banks]
Martinique  Mardi Gras (jour chômé d'usage) [Other]
Mauritius  Maha Shivaratree
Nepal  Maaha Shivaratri
Panama  Carnaval (Mardi Gras)
Portugal  Shrove Tuesday (Carnival) (optional but widespread) [Ponto Facultativo]
Saint Barthélemy  Mardi Gras [Other]
Saint Kitts and Nevis  Public Holiday (Post-Election Celebration) (tentative)
Saint Martin  Mardi Gras [Other]
Serbia  National Day Holiday
Sri Lanka  Mahasivarathri Day
Trinidad and Tobago  Carnival Tuesday [Banks/Other/Government]
Uruguay  Carnaval [Banks/Government]
Venezuela  Carnival
Vietnam  Tet Holiday

Snyder Thorn Diversity Calendar #toda