Pfingsten - Pentecost/Whitsunday

Pfingsten is celebrated on the 50th day after Easter and marks the coming of the Holy Spirit and is the birthday of the worldwide church. Unlike Christmas and Easter there are no traditions on Pentecost which are common all over the country. To most people this is nothing but a welcome long weekend - note that Whitmonday is a public holiday. The schools will close for a week or two and the time around Ascension and Pentecost is a busy travel time.

Some rural areas have their local customs. The best known is the presentation of a Pfingstochse (Pentecost ox) - on this day the cattle is sent out to pasture for the first time and the strongest animal is decorated with a straw wreath, flowers and ribbons. "Frilly as a Pfingstochse" has become proverbial for a person who has dressed up too much and without taste.

The peony (Pfingstrose) is a typical and popular garden flower that blooms around Pentecost.