中新网4月23日电 据香港《文汇报》报道，复活节长假期昨日展开，大批香港市民选择外游“充电”。香港国际机场昨日已被大批离境旅客挤得水泄不通，不论是航空公司柜位还是离境闸口，都大排长龙。入境处截至昨日下午5时，已有逾51.7万人离港度假，较去年同期50万为多。受日本地震及核辐射泄漏事件影响，游日团按年急跌逾半，令不少市民选择到台湾和新加坡的短线游，但亦有港人选择到新西兰旅行，花费7000多元(港币，下同)，甚至有旅客花费逾万元购买旅游套票，选择欧洲自由行。
小编：复活节对于中国人来说，可能不像圣诞节那样熟悉。但是在西方，复活节却是一个很重要的节日。明天就是复活节了，今天我们就先来了解一下“复活节”的一些知识吧！
复活节（Easter）是一个宗教节日（religious holiday）。它是为纪念耶稣基督（Jesus Christ）被钉死在十字架之后第三天复活（resurrect）的日子。因而，复活节也被称为Resurrection Day。而耶稣被钉在十字架上的那一天，就是耶稣受难日（Good Friday）。复活节象征着重生与希望。复活节是一个变动的节日（moveable feast），它是在春分（vernal equinox）月圆（full moon）后的第一个星期日。如果月圆那天刚好是星期天，复活节则推迟一星期。因而复活节可能在３月２２日至４月２５日之间的任何一天。
与复活节有关的礼物有复活节彩蛋（Easter eggs）和复活节兔子（Easter Bunny）。复活节吃的主要食物是羔羊（lamb）和火腿（ham）。
说到复活节，就必须提到一个地方——复活节岛（Easter Island）。它的得名是因为它被发现的那一天刚刚好就是复活节（1722年4月5），于是就将这个无名小岛命名为复活节岛。
The Easter Bunny 复活兔
The Easter Bunny is not a modern invention. The symbol originated with the pagan festival of Eastre. The goddess, Eastre, was worshipped by the Anglo-Saxons through her earthly symbol, the rabbit.
复活兔并不是现代产物。复活兔起源于异教的复活节。当时，耶稣的世俗象征是一个兔子，并被盎格鲁撒克逊人供奉着。
The Germans brought the symbol of the Easter rabbit to America. It was widely ignored by other Christians until shortly after the Civil War. In fact, Easter itself was not widely celebrated in America until after that time.
而德国人将复活兔带到了美国。直至美国南北战争后，复活兔才被大多数基督教人士所重视。事实上，在这次内战结束后，复活节也未在美国被人们广泛地庆祝。
The Easter Egg 复活蛋
As with the Easter Bunny and the holiday itself, the Easter Egg predates the Christian holiday of Easter. The exchange of eggs in the springtime is a custom that was centuries old when Easter was first celebrated by Christians.
与复活兔和复活节一样，复活蛋预示着复活节即将到来。当基督教徒庆祝第一个复活节后，人们开始春天互相交换复活蛋，而这已成为了人们好几百年的习俗。
From the earliest times, the egg was a symbol of rebirth in most cultures. Eggs were often wrapped in gold leaf or, if you were a peasant, colored brightly by boiling them with the leaves or petals of certain flowers.
在早期，复活蛋在许多文明中象征着“再生”。人们常常用金色的叶子包裹复活蛋，或是农民的做法：将复活蛋画得色彩斑斓，并把它和叶子或是真花瓣一起煮沸。
Today, children hunt colored eggs and place them in Easter baskets along with the modern version of real Easter eggs -- those made of plastic or chocolate candy.
在今天，孩子们到处搜刮复活蛋，并将这些蛋放到复活节篮子中。为什么呢？因为现代的复活蛋是用软糖或巧克力做的。
Egg Rolling（滚蛋活动）
In England, Germany and some other countries, children rolled eggs down hills on Easter morning, a game which has been connected to the rolling away of the rock from Jesus Christ's tomb when he was resurrected. British settlers brought this custom to the New World.
In the United States in the early nineteenth century, Dolly Madison, the wife of the fourth American President, organized an egg roll in Washington, D.C. She had been told that Egyptian children used to roll eggs against the pyramids so she invited the children of Washington to roll hard-boiled eggs down the hilly lawn of the new Capitol building! The custom continued, except for the years during the Civil War. In 1880, the First Lady invited children to the White House for the Egg Roll because officials had complained that they were ruining the Capitol lawn. It has been held there ever since then, only canceled during times of war. The event has grown, and today Easter Monday is the only day of the year when tourists are allowed to wander over the White House lawn. The wife of the President sponsors it for the children of the entire country. The egg rolling event is open to children twelve years old and under. Adults are allowed only when accompanied by children!
复活节与食物
在欧洲，因为有四旬期(复活节前４０天)的守斋的缘故，在每次复活节用餐前，都先予以祝圣；因此第七世纪时，就有祝圣羔羊的记载出现了，之后又多了油脂和火腿的祝圣。
其实四旬节守斋是禁止吃蛋类的。到了十二世纪，才开始有鸡蛋的祝圣；因此在复活节时，天主教徒会把蛋涂成红色，请神父祝圣，自己也用作礼物送给朋友，这是为什么现在复活节都要送彩蛋的最早起源。
除了鸡蛋外，还有其它食品，如奶油、乳酪、面包等的祝圣。在礼仪改革前的圣教典礼中，仍保留了羔羊、蛋、面包的祝圣经文。
在欧洲许多国家，复活主日的主餐均食羔羊肉，因为在祝圣羔羊时，可让人纪念摩西借着羔羊的血，领导以色列人出埃及，而这羔羊(后来称为逾越节的羔羊)是耶稣的预表：祂是上帝的圣洁羔羊，藉祂在十字架上所留的血，使人类得以洗净罪，脱离魔鬼的奴役。
蛋也象征春天及新生命的开始。到了基督徒的时代，更赋予了一层宗教意义：象征耶稣复活走出石墓。
而面包则使基督徒们想到耶稣是永生的活粮。在欧洲许多国家中，复活节通常会另外烤制特别的复活节面包，面包上画有基督耶稣的字样、十字架，或羔羊的图案等，以纪念基督。
复活节百合花
在复活节这一天，是到处都可以见到那漂亮的百合花的影子，迷人的百合花象征着神圣和纯洁：人们都是喜爱以在春季、复活节左右的时候寻找那盛开的百合花来代表心中耶稣基督的圣洁。而形状十分像喇叭的百合花，也正像是在大声宣扬着我们心中耶稣基督复活了的好消息。特别是白色的铁炮百合花在基督教中是被视为他们的“复活之花”，代表着心中的纯洁与神圣，绝对是是复活节中不可缺少的花卉，所以它的英文名字也就叫做Easter Lily。铁炮百合的香味十分浓郁，形状极其迷人，所以世人又称它为麝香百合。
