SAINT GEORGE'S DAY

Saint George's Day is the feast day of Saint George and the National Day for England.  It is celebrated by various Christian churches and by the several nations, kingdoms, countries, and cities of which Saint George is the patron saint. Saint George's Day is celebrated on 23 April. St George's Day is known as the Feast of Saint George by Palestinians and is celebrated in the Monastery of Saint George in al-Khader, near Bethlehem. It is also known as Georgemas.Besides the 23 April feast, some Orthodox Churches have additional feasts dedicated to St George. The country of Georgia celebrates the feast St. George on 23 April and, more prominently, 10 November, which currently fall on 6 May and 23 November, respectively. The Russian Orthodox Church celebrates the dedication of the Church of St George in Kiev by Yaroslav I the Wise in 1051 on 26 November, which currently falls on the Gregorian 9 December. UNESCO declared this day the International Day of the Book, since 23 April 1616 was the date of death and possibly anniversary of birth of both the English playwright William Shakespeare (according to the Julian calendar) and the Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes (according to the Gregorian calendar).23 April is also the anniversary of the St George Dragons Rugby League Football Club. The St George club coincidentally played their inaugural NSWRL first grade match on St George's Day, 23 April 1921 at the Sydney Sports Ground in Australia.In the General Calendar of the Roman Rite, the feast of Saint George is on 23 April. In the Tridentine Calendar it was given the rank of "Semidouble". In Pope Pius XII's 1955 calendar this rank is reduced to "Simple." In Pope John XXIII's 1960 calendar the celebration to just a "Commemoration". In Pope Paul VI's revision of the calendar, that came into force in 1969, it was given the equivalent rank of a "Memorial", of optional use. In some countries, such as England, the rank is higher. St George's feast is ranked higher in England and in certain other regions. It is the second most important National Feast in Catalonia, where the day is known in Catalan as La Diada de Sant Jordi, and it is traditional to give a rose and a book to a loved one. Under the state atheism of former Eastern Bloc countries, the celebration of Saint George's Day was historically suppressed.

KENT'S APPLE WEEKEND

Kent is famous for his apples and "hops"...

THEME: Apple juice.
WHO/WHAT: The apple juice is very famous in Kent; it's made with an antique cider press; and they can drink the farm's delicious cider.
There are three principal group of apples: dessert apples, cooking apples and cider apples. The population's proverb is "An apple a day keeps the doctor away"
PERSONAL OPINION: I admire this new way of using apples. I think this is very good for the economy of Kent and for the trade.