Germany is regarded the birthplace of modern day Easter icons such as Easter bunny and Easter tree. German kids were told of an "Easter hare" that hid eggs and chocolates for children to find on Easter Sunday. German immigrants to America -- particularly Pennsylvania -- brought the tradition with them and spread it to a wider public.
The tradition of egg tree is also popular in Germany. The eggs used for cooking Easter meals are not broken but are emptied by blowing the contents into a bowl through pinholes at either end of the egg. The hollow eggs are then beautifully decorated and hung from shrubs and trees during Easter week.
In Germany, the Lent season is preceded by a carnival called Fasching. In Fasching parades in the city of Cologne, people wear masks and giant-sized papier-mache heads, sometimes twice the size of their bodies. In some villages people hold an Easter walk or ride in memory of the walk Jesus took to His death.
Another unique custom associated with Easter in Germany is the "Easter fire." For the fire, all Christmas trees are collected and burned in a special place, making a huge fire, clearing away the last signs of the winter and preparing for the spring.
