An antique Smigus Dyngus box found in
a junk shop. Photograph: Oginia Tabisz If you're heading over to eastern Europe for a spring break this weekend you may be in for a surprise. The Poles take Easter very seriously - it is the most important event in the Catholic calendar - with processions, fireworks, bell ringing, blessings and religious rituals bringing the country to a
standstill.
So, should you find yourself taking a walk on Easter Monday, perhaps after one sugared lamb too many, don't be fooled into thinking the festivities are over just yet. This is Smigus Dyngus day or Wet Monday, a day where, in short, you are likely to get wet. And we're not talking a token splash here.
It is a Polish custom that on the Monday after Easter boys lie in wait for girls and sprinkle them with water. According to tradition the more a girl gets soaked the more likely she is to get married. Cue water pistols and brimming buckets.
This curious and much-loved custom is thought to be of Pagan origin symbolising spring cleansing and purification. Another theory is that it represents the renewal of the sacrament of baptism after Christ has risen. It is also associated with the legendary prince Mieszko I, who was baptised in 966 on Easter Monday and is credited with indoctrinating Christianity in Poland.
Whatever its origin, it is not a tradition to be ignored. Brought up on a diet of old wives' tales and superstitions - drop a knife and someone hungry will turn up, scratch your right nostril and you will have an argument, dream about earth and someone will die - all promptly ignored, Smigus Dyngus was one quirkycustom just too good to miss..
Joyously relished in my family it often involved intricate planning the night before, strategic positioning of watering cans and kitchen utensils, occasional voluntary dunking in the shower and inevitably ... tears. Usually my mother's.
Every year we swore to stop this ancient Polish tradition on account of, well, being adults and saving the DVD player, but somehow we just can't help enjoying the childish delight of shouting Smigus Dyngus (shmigoos dingooos) over and over, especially when you have sprung an unsuspecting non-Polish guest. And if you think one family's aquatic frolics could not possibly be embraced by an entire nation, think again.
