Happy Easter - Kalo Paskha

Easter (Old English: Ēostre; Greek: Πάσχα, Paskha; Aramaic and Hebrew: פֶּסחא‎ Pasḥa,) is the central feast in the Christian liturgical year.^[1] According to the Canonical gospels,Jesus rose from the dead on the third day after his crucifixion. His resurrection is celebrated on Easter Day or Easter Sunday^[2] (also Resurrection Day or Resurrection Sunday). The chronology of his death and resurrection is variously interpreted to be between AD 26 and 36, traditionally 33.

Easter marks the end of Lent, a forty-day period of fasting, prayer, and penance. The last week of the Lent is called Holy Week, and it contains Good Friday, commemorating thecrucifixion and death of Jesus. Easter is followed by fifty-day period called Eastertide or the Easter Season, ending with Pentecost Sunday.

Easter is a moveable feast, meaning it is not fixed in relation to the civil calendar. It occurs during the spring, in March or April; the method for determining the date of Easter Sunday is complex, based on lunisolar calendar.

Easter is linked to the Jewish Passover by much of its symbolism, as well as by its position in the calendar. In many European languages, the words for "Easter" and "Passover" are etymologically related or homonymous.^[3] The term "Pascha", from the same root, is also used in English to refer to Easter.

Easter customs vary across the Christian world, but decorating Easter eggs is a common motif. In the Western world, customs such as egg hunting and Easter Bunny extend from the domain of church, and often have a secular character.

Easter in Leonidio

A unique and spectacular Easter custom has been revived in the small town of Leonidio in Arcadia Prefecture, southern Greece.
At the stroke of midnight on Easter Sunday, the sky will be lit up by hundreds of multicolored hot air balloons that will offer a captivating spectacle as they rise into the horizon for 30-40 minutes before burning out or disappearing over the sea or the nearby forest.
They are handmade by the local people and the town's five parishes compete with each other to keep up in the air as many balloons as possible for the longest period of time.

The streets of Greece and Greek Orthodox communities throughout the world ring with happy voices sharing Chroniá Pollá! - Easter Wishes...

Easter time, from the carnivals that come before the Lenten fast through Holy Week and the celebrations of Easter, is a special season in Greece.
Greek Orthodox Easter 2011
Since the date of the Greek Orthodox Easter is based on a modified Julian calendar and the Western world uses the Gregorian calendar, the festivities sometimes do not usually occur at the same time as other Christian Easter celebrations.
Sometimes the two dating systems happily collide, however. In 2011 Greek Orthodox Easter is celebrated on the same day as Easter in the Western church this year — on Sunday, April 24 — although marked by unique traditions that make Easter in Greece different than Easter celebrations in other lands.
http://www.chiff.com/a/easter-greece.htm
http://www.holidaycorfu.org/greek_easter/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/orttodox/galleries/72157624112535297
http://youtu.be/LEFOfcw0hzY