hot cross buns & cod fish cakes

Growing up, Good Friday has always been a day of fasting & observance with the 3:00 pm Good Friday Service that culminates in the giving out of hot cross buns. The nursery rhyme I learned as a child, always comes to mind on this day.
Hot cross buns, Hot cross buns
One a penny, two a penny, Hot cross buns
If you have no daughters, give them to your sons
One a penny, two a penny, Hot cross buns

Here in Bermuda things are done a bit different. The Good Friday Service takes place at 7:30 pm to allow for Bermuda's traditional kite flying during the day. Originally, the kites would not be flown until after 3:00 pm but now the day begins with families & their kites at parks & beaches, weather permitting of course.

Why kite flying & why on Good Friday? It all started when a local Sunday school teacher had trouble getting his students to understand & visualize Christ's Ascension into heaven & so launched a kite shaped in the likeness of Christ to better demonstrate what he was trying to get across. While Ascension is known to take place 40 days after Easter, the kites are now flown on Good Friday. The traditional Bermuda kite's frame still emulates the shape of the cross reflecting what Good Friday is all about. Some kites have long tails, available in various different colours & sizes.

Another Good Friday tradition, along with hot cross buns is cod fish cakes. Families here are busy prepping the night before indulging in creating batches of cod fish cakes. That was MsStopYourNoise's answer when I asked her yesterday what her plans were. Today she brought over some of her homemade fishcakes & hot cross buns. They were delish. Thanks MsStopYourNoise for sharing your country's traditions with us!