bombons et mais: dia dos namorados

Agora no Brasil, dia 12 de junho: Dia dos Namorados.

Today in Brazil they celebrate a special day: Dia dos Namorados. Which is literally "Lovers' Day" but also known as "Boyfriends'/'Girlfriends' Day"), It is the equivalent of Valentine's day. So why on June 12 instead of February the 14th? Probably this is because it is the day before the Festa Junina (Saint Anthony's day*), known here as the marriage saint (when traditionally many single women perform popular rituals, called simpatias, in order to find a good husband or boyfriend). Couples exchange luxury gifts, bonbons or chocolates and sent cards or flowers. In Brazil they do not celebrate the February 14's Valentine's Day like the rest of the world. Main reason for this is a commercial, since it usually falls in the same period as Carnival. And like everybody knows: you can spent your money only once. And they were spending like crazy yesterday in the shopping centre it was chaos.


*=
Saint Anthony of Padua or Anthony of Lisbon, O.F.M., (born Fernando Martins de Bulhões; c. 1195 – 13 June 1231)[1] was a Portuguese Catholic priest and friar of the Franciscan Order. Though he died in Padua, Italy, he was born to a wealthy family in Lisbon, Portugal, which is where he was raised. Noted by his contemporaries for his forceful preaching and expert knowledge of Scripture, he was declared a saint almost immediately after his death and proclaimed a Doctor of the Church in 1946. (source: wikipedia)


futher reading:
http://www.history.com/topics/valentines-day