Buffalo, NY is the Dyngus Day capital of the world. Dyngus Day is the Monday after Easter and a day when people celebrate Spring, Polish pride and the end of the lenten season. You don't have to be Polish to celebrate Dyngus Day
Many of my Polish friends will be out celebrating Dyngus day tonight. Here in Buffalo, this Polish tradition seems to be getting stronger and stronger every year. If you have your pussy willows and your squirt guns ready, then you are probably ready for Dyngus Day
April 25, 2011 We had a chance last Dyngus Day to interview somoe of the guys from the band Those Idiots
Looks like they have been busy in the 'off season" putting together a theme song for today's Dyngus Day parties here in Buffalo.
April 25, 2011 Dyngus Day is an old Polish tradition of celebrating the end of lent on the Monday after Easter with a large buffet of Easter foods like ham, kielbasa, fresh baked goods and eggs. Lots of dancing and celebrating. And it’s also a day when the boys chase the girls with pussy willows and sprinkle them with water.
Why pussy willows? They’re one of the first “budding” plants of spring. According to Polish legend.....a litter of kittens fell into a raging river while chasing butterflies. The mother cat sadly sat at the edge of the river crying, realizing there was nothing she could do, but the willows heard her cries and they swept their branches into the water, the kittens grabbed ahold of the branches and held on tightly until they were brought to the edge of the river and safety. Every spring from that day on the willows sprouted fur-like buds where the kittens had clung to the branches.
They say that 1 in 3 people in Buffalo has a Polish connection. Polish traditions run deep here in Buffalo. From the Broadway Market to our Polish churchs to Dyngus Day, we embrace all things Polish
