May 1st in France is the fête du travail, or labour day for Americans, and May 8th is Victory in Europe day.

Labour day is an excellent opportunity to think about our right to work. Our desire to contribute to society. A big contribution, or a small contribution. A contribution nonetheless. The will to help our fellow man, improve our lot and aid society. It is also a day to remember that workers should be respected and not abused. This is especially pertinent given today’s current economic climate, with companies struggling to stay afloat (see in the car industry and the well-publicised upheaval of the banking sector). While those at the helm are taking measures to save their companies so growth can recommence once the storm has subsided, it is important to make sure that the measures taken are not heavily at the expense of those with small savings and investments, and those with minimum wage jobs. These are the people that need supporting during an economic crisis. So on labour day – think about the labourers, the elbow grease of our economy!

64 years on, Victory in Europe Day is only celebrated as a public holiday in France. This is the day the last battle in western Europe was fought. Peace in Europe day. I think it’s fitting that we celebrate May 9th as Europe Day, in commemoration of the Schuman Declaration. For this long weekend some friends I took a trip up to Strasbourg. The primary purpose of the trip was to sample some tarte flambée, Alsace beer, and get out somewhere a bit more lively. Strasbourg also happens to be the home of the European Parliament, and a very pretty place indeed. Being so close to the German border we took the opportunity to visit Deutschland. To my surprise it is incredibly easy. There are no borders. No guards. No passport control. You just take a pedestrian bridge and you’re in another country. The only indication you have that you are somewhere different is that you step into a very clean, precisely organised suburb where all the street names are written in another language, and where the locals are clued in to the fact that everything is that little bit cheaper than in France. Although I only speak around 5 words of German, communication was easy through a mix of French and English. Also, for someone who comes from the UK, where you need your passport to go anywhere, passing from France, through Switzerland, and then later into Germany without once being asked to show a passport made a real impression on me. This weekend for me definitely showed European unity and togetherness, an apposite way to celebrate Peace in Europe.

So really, these bank holidays seem to me to be about celebrating those around us. Our coworkers, and our European neighbours. I certainly enjoyed an apéro in the sun with both parties.