When Traditions Are Crazy!

Singlehood- People throwing cinnamon on your 25^th birthday is a kind of ritual for the natives of Denmark. However, the only condition that needs to be satisfied is not being in a relationship. Anyone who is single after turning 25 gets a cinnamon makeover on every birthday and if you turn 30 without any progress you get pepper thrown on you. I bet you wouldn’twant to know how that would feel? Or do you?

The tooth fairy-Greekreplaces the popular tradition of placing a fallen tooth under the pillow for the tooth fairy to take it away. The kids in Greece toss the tooth onto the roof of their homes. It is attributed as a sign of good luck.

Monkey buffet festival- Thailand hosts a lavish buffet festival especially for macaque monkeys, every last Sunday in the month of November. Fruits,vegetables, snacks and sweets a wide range of options to choose from is available to the monkeys ready to feast on the food. It is considered as a sign of good luck.

A horrific alter ego of Santa Claus- People in Austria celebrate Krampusnacht, a night before December 6. Krampus is referred to as the bad Santa who run through the streets and scares the children into being nice. It is potrayed a half goat and half demon. People dress like him on this night and celebrate the festival, they dink and eat is just have fun(Its a kind of a Christmas celebration).

Elongated necks- have been a trait of beauty among the tribes living in Thailand and Africa. And to achieve this girls are made to tie brass rings round their neck, for years. It coils their neck and cause it to stretch more than its natural elevation. Girls as small as 5 years old are made to wear the rings to achieve the unrealistic beauty standards.

Break it through Polterband- Polterband is a ritual before a wedding in which close friends, family, relatives are invited as in an informal gathering. All the guests are bestowed with responsibility of creating a complete destruction in the place by breaking all the dinner wares, vases, bowls except for glasses.After a complete ruckus has been created, the couple is supposed to clear the broken stuff. It is meant to teach the couple significance of unity and hard work. And prepare for the upcoming challenges.

Celebration with the dead- Toraja is an ethnic group living in Indonesia. They believe in different kind of relationship with the deaceased person. After a person dies the body is embalmed and put in one corner of the use, until a funeral is arranged . The people in the house treat the corpse as a sick person who seeks care. All sorts of comforts and amenities are provided as the people believe that the soul is still around for some time. A funeral is usually a expensive affair withhin the culture and may last upto eleven days. After the burial of the corpse, bodies are exhumed to be cleaned every three years. The dead are brought back to the village, dressed up and paraded through the village to meet the living relatives and freinds. It is believed to strengthen the bond between the life and death.