In the Newspaper room in World Academy, Germany, Italy, and Japan sat around a table looking down a list of topics they planned to cover for the newspaper that week. They were throwing out ideas, and if one of the ideas was agreed on by all three of them, they would cover it.
"Alright, this is our list so far." Germany said as he picked up the list. "We have how to make candy hearts, the origin of Valentine's day, the information for the Valentine's day party, and the top ten places to take your date this Valentine's day. But we don't have a cover story yet."
"It should be Valentine's day related, because the paper is going to be handed out on the 14th." Italy said cheerfully as he munched on some snacks Japan had brought in.
"Of course, that is obvious." Japan pondered. "But what should the main topic be?"
"The newspaper already has nothing but Valentine's day information." Germany said. "What on earth is there to add?"
"We could do an article similar to what we did around Christmas." Japan said thoughtfully. "It would be interesting to see how other countries celebrate Valentine's day."
"That's a great idea!" Italy said excitably. "Let's do that Germany!"
"I guess that would work." Germany said. "So, I guess we can start with us three. What do you do to celebrate Valentine's day Italy?"
"Oh, Valentine's day at my place is the most romantic thing ever!" Italy sighed happily. "Couples give each other chocolate, flower, and go on dinners. In Verona, the city of Romeo and Juliet has a four-day celebration. In the center of Piazza dei Signori a giant red heart is painted on the street, and it's so cute, and illuminated heart-shaped lanterns are put throughout the city center. It's so pretty at night, being surrounded by all those hearts. More recently people have been putting padlocks on bridges, and throwing the keys into rivers to show that they will always be together."
"That does sound romantic!" Japan said as he wrote down the information. "Germany, what do your people do?"
"Well, my people didn't really celebrate Valentine's day until the end of World War two." Germany said. "We give out cards and chocolates, but Valentine's day is strictly for adults. A tradition during Valentine's day is to give your partner a big heart shaped ginger cookie, often with something written on them."
"Aww, that's so cute!" Italy said. "What about you Japan?"
"In my country, it is not the men who hand out chocolate but the women." Japan said with a small smile. "It is common for girls to give chocolates to friends, but when a girl wishes to give a love interest chocolate, it is common for the girls to make the candies by hand. Many people see that it is not true love if you don't make the candy by hand. However, we also have a separate holiday called white day. White day takes place on the 14th of March, and this is when men give white chocolate to the girls who gave them chocolates on Valentine's day."
"That is interesting." Germany said. "Usually men have to give out the gifts on Valentine's day. Alright, now that we have interviewed each other, why don't we go see who else we can find to interview?"
"Let's go!" Italy sang as he rushed out the door.
"Italy, wait for us!" Japan called after him as he and Germany ran after him.
The first people they came across was France and England, who were hanging out inside an empty classroom, bickering as usual.
"Excuse us, but would you mind if we interviewed you about Valentine's day traditions in your countries?" Japan asked, interrupting the arguing countries.
"Why, it would be my pleasure!" France said with a smirk. "Who better to ask than the country of love?"
"A goat." England said bluntly. "At least it wouldn't smell as bad as you."
Ignoring England's comment, France continued. "Valentine's day is one of the romantic times of year for me, even more than usual. On Valentine's day, couples show their love for each other by buying gifts, chocolates, and dinner for each other." France said with a dreamy look. "It is a day where everything is beautiful, and everyone looks there best. It is also one of the busiest times of year for me due to the tourists wanting to spend time in one of the most romantic places in the world together.
"While my Valentine's day is not as fancy as the frogs, it does focus more on the little things." England said. "While we give out candies and cards like the rest of the world, flowers are given out a little more often. Couples often have a meal together, or stay home and just spend time alone. Valentine's day is about spending time with your loved ones."
"Why, I didn't know you where such a romantic!" France said with a with a wink to England.
"Bugger off, I don't want to spend my Valentine's day with a frog." England said.
"Oh? Have you ever kissed a frog? You might enjoy it." France sand as he wiggled his eyebrows.
"I think we should move on to the next interview." Germany said as England and France started to fight again.
Walking out of the classroom, they walked over to the cooking class and looked inside. Inside the classroom, they saw Hungary and Austria rolling dough on one of the tables.
"Oh, hello Italy." Hungary said as the newspaper team walked in.
"Hello, what are you making? It smells good!" Italy asked happily.
"We are making Dobos torte." Hungary said happily. "We just finished one of the cakes a few minutes ago. Would you like a piece?"
"Yay! Of course!" Italy said as he skipped over to the cake.
"You two are also welcome to have a piece." Austria said nodding to Germany and Japan.
"No, thank you." Germany said.
"No, but thank you for the offer." Japan said. "We are here to interview people about the traditions in their countries on Valentine's day."
"Valentine's day is not as big of a deal as it is in some other countries." Hungary said as she started to roll the dough again. "Unlike some other countries, Valentine's day isn't that widely commercialized, so there isn't too much pressure. However, we still celebrate the holiday. On Valentine's day, food plays a large roll. Honey sprinkled salmon, fried vegetables and pasta, and ginger marinated filet of duck breast served with pear-chardonnay sauce is just a few of the traditional dishes we serve on Valentine's day. Other than that, we just give flowers, chocolates, and gifts."
"That sounds nice." Germany said as he took notes.
"This cake is so tasty!" Italy said.
"Thank you!" Hungary said.
"What about you Austria?" Italy asked.
"In my country, we also give out chocolates and gifts." Austria said, pushing his glasses back into place. "During Valentine's day, men show their love by presenting their lover with a bunch of red roses or tulips. The women mostly give out chocolates. Due to the fact that music is a large part of the culture in my country, there are many music concerts and dances to go to. It is a very good time to go out and listen to music with your lover."
"Thank you, this was very informative." Japan said.
"Well, shall we move on?" Germany said.
"Do we have to?" Italy whined. "This cake is so good; I want another piece."
"We can come back later." Germany said firmly.
After they left the kitchen, they bumped into Russia in the hallway.
"What are you all up to?" Russia asked.
"Interviewing Valentine traditions in different countries." Italy said. "Would you mind if we interviewed you?"
"I don't mind." Russia said with a shrug. "Valentine's day is a rather new holiday in my country, as it only became popular around the early 1990's after the fall of the USSR. While not a national holiday, it is very popular among my people. It is pretty simple as men give red roses to their girlfriends and women give chocolate to the men. Cards are also very popular."
"Great, thank you." Germany said.
"If you want to interview some more people, I believe I saw Spain in the gardens." Russia said and with a nod, he went on his way.
Continuing on their way, the trio exited the building and walked to the gardens. The gardens where behind the school, and the greenhouses were located there. There was also a butterfly garden and a hedge maze. Looking around, Germany spotted Spain exiting one of the green houses.
"Spain, do you mind if we interview you about what you do for Valentine's day?" Germany asked as he caught up to Spain.
"No, I don't mind. What do you want to know amigo?" Spain asked cheerfully.
"What traditions does your country have for Valentine's day?" Japan asked.
"On Valentine's day in my country, it is common for people to go dancing and go out for dinner. Flowers and cards for lovers are exchanged, but anyone can show their love for each other. I guess my people don't do too much different from a lot of other countries." Spain said.
"Thank you." Germany said.
"Any time." Spain said and with that he walked away.
"It seems that we're getting the same answers over and over." Italy said with a frown.
"Yes, I noticed that." Japan said. "We should interview two more people then start writing the article."
"Who should we interview?" Germany asked as they walked back into the building.
"I saw America go into the gymnasium earlier, maybe he would let us interview us." Italy suggested.
"Alright, let's get this done." Germany sighed.
A few minutes later, they entered the gym and saw America and Canada sitting on the bleachers. Canada seemed annoyed and America seemed to be apologizing. As they got closer, they made out what they were saying.
"I said I was sorry. It's not like I was aiming for the roof in the first place." America said.
"Yeah, well I wouldn't mind so much if you didn't get the rest of the basketballs stuck on the rafters trying to knock the first one down." Canada huffed.
"It's not my fault!" America said.
Looking up, Germany noticed that there were no less than fifteen basketballs stuck in the rafters. Just then, Canada noticed them.
"Oh, hey guys. What brings you here?" Canada asked.
"We're interviewing different traditions for Valentine's day for different countries." Italy said cheerfully. "Would you two mind if we interviewed you?"
"Not a problem dude." America said happily.
"Canada, why don't you go first?" Japan asked.
"Oh, we can both answer you at the same time. We are very similar in the way we celebrate Valentine's day." Canada said. "For a start, we exchange flowers, chocolate, and gifts like everyone else. But in the school's kids are really into Valentine's day."
"Yeah, in our school's kids, especially younger kids, will hand out candy for the whole class. For the younger kids, the holiday is more about candy than love." America continued.
"Valentine's day is heavily commercialized, so it is a big deal. Going out with your lover is one of the many things you can do." Canada finished.
"Wow, you guys are really alike in that aspect." Germany said. "Is there any difference between you two?"
"I'm not sure." America said with a shrug.
"I'm too lazy to find out." Canada said.
"Thank you, I hope you find a way to get those basketballs down." Japan said.
"Later, dudes." America said with a grin.
A few minutes later, Germany, Italy, and Japan sat down at their desks in the newspaper room.
"Well, that was fun." Italy said cheerfully.
"It was interesting." Japan said as he gathered up his things.
"Oh, are you leaving?" Germany asked.
"Yes, I have to meet up with my boss." Japan said. "I'll see you tomorrow." Japan said as he walked out the door.
"I guess I'll head home too." Italy said.
"Wait, um, I have something for you." Germany said as he pulled something out of his bag.
"Huh, what is it?" Italy asked as Germany handed him a small box. Opening he box, he was surprised to see a small ginger heart that said, "Be My Valentine."
"Happy Valentine's day Italy." Germany said, his face turning red.
A/N: Ok, I know this is early, but I have a lot of school work to do and I finally got some free time. Nothing much to say, just some fun facts about what different countries do for Valentine's day. Happy Valentine's Day.