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What special holidays are celebrated in Germany?
When are working hours and when is recovery time?

The calendar year in Europe is for 365 days, unless it is a leap year, than it is 366 days. Generally it takes place from 1st of January to the 31st of December. Each year includes 12 months, each month takes between four and five weeks.

Between the standard work weeks of five-day lays the weekend of two days. Saturday is a day off in many industries and is therefore counted with the weekend. Sunday is a day of rest. On this day, there is the legal requirement that no worker may be employed. There are exceptions in special occupations like hospitals, restaurants or certain industries.

If you visit a school or university you are usually having a huge holiday during the summer months of about six weeks. There are also small holidays in spring, autumn and winter. Due to legal regulations employees have at least 24 days of holiday each year if they are working five days a week.

Due to the long Christian tradition in Germany there are many religiously motivated holidays. At many of these holidays, such as Christmas and Easter, the people do not go to work and the shops are closed. Even people of other faiths do not have to work or go to school on these days. They are celebrated traditionally in the family circle. In addition, there are national bank holidays such as May the 1st (Labor Day) or 3th of October (Day of the German unity).

On the first Sunday after the first spring full moon Easter is celebrated in Germany. At Easter we celebrate the death (Good Friday) and resurrection (Easter Sunday) of Jesus Christ. Good Friday and Easter Monday are public holidays. 40 days after Easter Sunday, so always on a Thursday, Ascension Day is celebrated. 50 days after the Easter Sunday is Pentecost, the feast of the Holy Spirit. Corpus Christi is a Catholic feast day and therefore only celebrated in Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Hesse, North Rhine-Westphalia, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland. It takes place 10 days after the Pentecost. On August 15, the Assumption Day will take place that celebrates the receiving of Our Lady into heaven since 813 in Germany. At the 1st of November commemorate the Catholics in Germany to the martyrs on All Saints Day. Also this holiday is a bank holiday only in the above-mentioned Catholic states. On 24., 25. and 26st of December Germans celebrate Christmas and the birth of Jesus Christ. Only the 25. and 26.12. are public holidays.