Easter in Santorini
Santorini Insider
06/04/2018
Easter is the most important religious holiday of the year in Greece. Colored by the customs and traditions of Santorini, scents and flavors, Easter in the beautiful island is simply one of a kind. Preparations for Easter include white-washing the houses and yards, decorating the churches with flowers and cooking various delicacies.
In all villages of the island, there is a procession of the Epitaph on Good Friday. Under a solemn atmosphere, a procession starts from each church carrying the Epitaph, people singing a religious lament hymn, holding candles. The most spectacular of all is the one at the mountain-top village of Pyrgos, where no less than 25.000 candles are lit by the villagers, lining the rooftops, the meandering streets, the Old Castle and the path of the Epitaph’s procession, in a magnificent spectacle that seems to blaze up the entire village. And as Pyrgos towers over the rest of the island, it looks like a huge flickering crown in the darkness. A truly unforgettable experience!
Source: Studio Phosart
On Holy Sunday, people go to the church at midnight to get to Holy Light. That time, many fireworks explode in the sky giving the happy message of the Resurrection of Christ. Food is the center of Easter Sunday festivities, with delicious traditional tastes to enjoy, apart from the roast lamb. Preparations start in many households at the crack of dawn, but it’s worthwhile since the Easter meal is the culmination of all the festivities and brings families, even villages, together with lots of colorful singing and dancing that last till late in the afternoon.
