Why not 1 May for May Day?

I guess it will be another pont next week Greatnan before the 8th May holiday. Mind you we will need a day of rest after the election!
I do think Sunday elections are a good idea though, the turnout in our village was over 90% last week.

I fell victim to the 'pont', Mamie. I left home at 7.45 so I could be first in the queue at the tax office in Thonon when they opened at 8.30, and duly paid for about four hours parking. Of course, I had forgotten that they would be taking Monday off because there was a public holiday on Tuesday. When I got home I realised I could file my tax declaration on line anyway! Still, the route to Thonon is very scenic and I was able to take a two hour very steep walk on the Col de Cou on the way back.

Yesterday was our village celebration for May day. Most of our commune went out together for a walk together followed by a picnic where we took along food to share. There were loads of other groups out enjoying the sunshine and the countryside. If it fall on a weekend then that is just too bad, but on the other hand most people took Monday off to make a long weekend.

I had to tell my DD who'se spent a lot of her career in other European countries, that she did have to go to work yesterday. She wondered why someone had scheduelled a meeting for a holiday until I told her it was NEXT Monday!!

annobel I think that Wally must have been stationed in India at some time as I remember him talking about it when we had one of our afternoon chats,he is a very knoweledgeable man and it is so interesting to talk to him,its close to home as DS2 is in RAMC but is leaving the service as soon as his post in careers office is over.

Where I live, in Oxford, there are celebrations on May 1st, not on the Bank holiday - choir singing on top of Magdalen tower at 6 am then morris dancing and celebrations around the city centre. Unfortunately these days the pubs are open all night so the atmosphere is not the same, and unsuitable for children. When I was young I decorated my school boater with cherry blossom and had a great time, having done my paper round first and going to school after. For us it would have been better to have a day off on the actual day. I don't go any more, having no wish to mix with drunken students (grumpy old woman!).

Sorry, I meant May 7th. It is always the nearest Monday after May 1st.

We have MayDay on May 1st this year in Australia. I'm thinking of going on the march in Brisbane: our Labour party is pretty demoralised right now, so it will be interesting to hear what people on the march have to say.

One year the bands played all the music from Brassed Off. It was great. This year it might as well be the death march!!!(The Queensland State Government not only lost power a couple of weeks ago, but also lost most of their seats: there are 7 left out of a chamber of 89)

My mother used to do the washing in a corrugated tin tub with a dobby stick, which had three legs and she twirled the clothes around with them. She also used 'dolly blue', bleach and starch. They were wrong out on a mangle which was about 5' tall - I used to enjoy turning the big wheel. She also had a washboard to put the clothes on to be scrubbed - in the 1950's they were used as musical instruments - for skiffle, I think.
There was a lot less washing to be done then, because we had just two outfits - one for school and one for weekends. Now, I have seen my grandchildren change their clothes three times in a day, always putting the discarded clothes to be washed, rather than bothering to hang them up again.

There are three public holidays in May in France, and if they fall on a weekend it is just too bad - nobody gets a day off in lieu.

Interesting, glamma. I assume that 'dobbying' comes from 'dhobi' - a laundryman in India. Was your old gentleman in India during the war? My late uncle had an inexhaustible supply of anecdotes about his service (in the medical corps) there.
Happy birthday to Mr glamma. Cheers

Annika The man who lives at the end of our Vale is 95 to-day he is a fabulous charactor and is altogether with everything he does he even does all his own washing he calls it doing his "dobbying" a term he used during the war he say's.So at the week-end we are having a party for him in the rear garden (if the rain stays off)it will be joint celebration as mr glammas b/day tomorrow so cake all around by our house,all welcome.

Seems to work in most other places that have 1 May as a bank holiday! Just think it is an example of a positive 'tradition' that is manipulated for political /financial /convenient reasons. Does not matter to me re my day to day life as not working f/t & understand it gives a 'long' weekend but maybe a mid week holiday would be good occasionally!

Seems to work in most other places that have 1 May as a bank holiday! Just think it is an example of a positive 'tradition' that is manipulated for political /financial /convenient reasons. Does not matter re my day to day as not working f/t 7 understand it gives a 'long' weekend but maybe a mid week holiday would be good occasionally!

When I was a little girl my dad told me that May 1st was a bank hoilday in honour of his birthday ... and I believed him, bless him , he would have been 95 today. I still miss him he had a great sense of humour.

Until I saw this post I had forgotton it was a bank holiday next week there are so many now I don't know where I am

I don't see the point of a 'Bank Holiday' being in the middle of the week much better for most people if its tagged onto a weekend.. and , what Anagram said

But then if it fell on a weekend it would have to be moved anyway....