This time last year I posted an article about best places to eat for Valentines Day. I’m not sure where my head was at as I have never been a fan and would much rather celebrate a Dowhatiwant or Lookafternumberone Day, but then I do that every day anyway.
There are more meaningful International Days in Feb to celebrate, such as 'World Day of the Sick', 'World Cancer Day', 'International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation', 'Congenital Heart Defect Awareness Day', 'V-Day' (that’s V for Vagina, not Victory) and my favourite, 'Singles Awareness Day' (S.A.D.), Hmmm to be honest they sound as depressing as Valentine’s Day.
You’ve guessed it, I’m chronically single and loved up couples flaunting their PDA make me sick, but even if I had a partner, the commercialism and price of chocolates and flowers would still make me anti this lamest of days. FFS it’s not even a holiday! The only good thing about it is that there are specials on chocolates in the supermarkets the following days
V DAY FACTS
- 14% of women send themselves flowers for Valentine’s day. WTF?!
- 1 billion Valentine’s cards are sent worldwide, second only to Christmas
- Men spend twice as much as women on Valentine’s day.
- Women purchase 85% of all Valentines
- 11% of proposals happen on Valentine’s day
- Teachers will receive the most Valentine’s Day cards, followed by children, mothers, wives, sweethearts and pets (yes, pets) - Suicide hotlines receive twice as many calls on Valentine’s day - please don't do this, call a friend, go out for a drink, love yourself and do something fun
We really don’t need another special day on top of Christmas and Birthday to buy the person we love something or show them affection, there are 362 other days of the year to do this, and the prices are 400% cheaper than leading up to 14th Feb. However if you feel you have to do something and have someone special in your life with a dark sense of humour that shares your dislike of Valentines, or know someone that just makes you want to vomit, here are some cheap anti-Valentine ideas:
1. T-Shirt - $21.
2. Banner - $28
3. Pin – $10
4. Heart Cookie Cutters - $5.99
5. Nail Stickers- $4.25
6. Nope Ring - $17
If you don't want to appear a cheapskate and have a little more money to spend then how about taking your loved one (and that could be just yourself) somewhere to escape the hype. Here are some countries that hate V Day as much as you:
NORTH KOREA
North Korea is the perfect place for avoiding Valentines Day because the date is already dedicated to the late leader Kim Jong-il, on a public holiday known as Generalissimo Day (celebrating the day Kim Jong-il was posthumously awarded the title of Generalissimo - the country's highest honour).
IRAN
What better place to go than where they have banned it entirely. In 2011, the Iranian regime outlawed Valentines Day, including symbols of hearts, half-hearts, red roses, and any activities promoting the day
SAUDI ARABIA
Like Iran, V Day is a no-no, and all products relating to the ‘holiday’ are banned - including the colour red. In 2014, five Saudi men were sentenced to 32 years in prison and received 4500 lashes for holding a Valentines Day party with "drinking, dancing, and unrelated women"
JAPAN
What, Japan? The land of Hello Kitty and cherry blossoms? Believe it or not, there is a loud and proud group of Valentines Day haters in Japan, where the birth rate is low and singledom is high.
MALDIVES
That romantic looking place of glistening lagoons and white-sand beaches? Yup. The tropical paradise has the highest divorce rate in the world, with 11 divorces per 1000 people every year. According to United Nations figures, the average Maldivian woman goes through three divorces before the age of 30.
UZBEKISTAN
The formerly Soviet country has no love for Valentines Day, with the national newspaper once describing the holiday as the product of "forces with evil goals bent on putting an end to national values". In a documentary that aired on state television in 2013, the day was blamed for everything from religious extremism to terrorism.
PAKISTAN
FINLAND
A country to stay away from if you are an anti-V Day person is SOUTH KOREA
In South Korea, the 14th of every month marks a romantic holiday of some sort. That’s 12 presents to prepare. Black Day, celebrated on April 14th is the one aimed primarily at single folks. Singles will come together and eat Jajangmyeon, a noodle served with a black bean sauce. They also dress in black, wear black accessories as well as black nail polish. It isn’t all gloomy though; think of it as an annual support group where people eat and talk about their singlehood… until they pair up and become a couple. Geez everyone makes out that it's a bad thing being single. If I go to SK it will be in October.
What will you be doing for V Day?
brb