FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WOWO) – Spring is here and Easter is fast approaching. What is your favorite Easter candy? What is your least favorite Easter Candy? What do you plan to do on Easter weekend? In Fort Wayne, there are many things to do and places to eat if you do not plan on cooking a big meal at home.
Elitedaily.com and uselessdaily.com provided a few interesting and little-known facts about the holiday.
- The tallest chocolate Easter egg ever made was in Italy in 2011. It stood at 34.08 Feet and weighed 15,873.28 pounds.
- 12 of the 50 States in American recognize Good Friday as a holiday.
- The act of painting Easter eggs originated in Ukraine. It is called pysanka which involves using wax and dyes to color the egg.
- The term Easter gets its name from Eastre, the Angle-Saxon goddess who symbolizes the hare and the egg.
- There used to be a tradition churches observed that resembled the game “hot potato.” The priest would toss a hard-boiled egg to one of the choir boys. The boys would toss the egg among themselves and when the clock would strike 12, whoever had the egg was the winner and got to keep the egg.
- Americans buy more than 700 million marshmallow Peeps during Easter.
- More than 16 million jelly beans are consumed by Americans each year during Easter. That is enough jelly beans to circle the earth three times.
- 76% prefer to eat the ears of their chocolate bunnies first. 5% eat the feet first and 4% eat the tail first.
- Every year over 90 million chocolate bunnies, 91.4 billion eggs and 700 million Peeps are produced in the United States.
- It is estimated that $14.7 billion is spent in total for Easter in the United States each year. That averages to $131 per household.
- Half of the states in the U.S. banned the dyeing of chicks on Easter.
- Florida holds the largest Easter egg hunt. 9,753 children search for 501,000 eggs.
- The traditional Easter egg roll at the White House started back in 1878 with President Rutherford B. Hayes.
In surveys conducted by candystore.com, Americans were asked what their favorite and least favorite Easter candy was.
Top ten best Easter candies:
- Cadbury Mini Eggs
- Chocolate Bunnies (Hollow)
- Reese’s Peanut Butter Eggs
- Lindt Chocolate Carrots
- Robins Eggs from Whoppers
- Kinder Joy Eggs candy
- Jelly Beans (Gourmet/Naturally Flavored
- Foil-wrapped chocolate eggs
- Skittles-filled Easter eggs
- Sour Patch Easter Bunnies
World’s worst ranked Easter candy:
- Cadbury Crème Egg
- Bunny corn
- Peeps
- Chicks & Rabbits
- Solid chocolate bunnies
- Jelly Beans (General)
- Chocolate crosses
- Carrot Cake Hershey Kisses
- Jordan Almonds
- Fluffy Stuff Cotton Tails
As far as Jelly Beans go, the favorite flavors of Americans varies. Buttered Popcorn came in as the favorite followed by Cinnamon, Black Licorice, cherry and watermelon.
If you are looking for something to do Easter weekend, Fort Wayne has many things to do according to Visit Fort Wayne.
- “Hundred Acre Wood” winter garden exhibit on April 21 & 21 at the Foellinger-Freimann Botanical Conservatory
- Fort Wayne Tin Caps game on Saturday April 20 at Parkview Field
- Ft. Wayne’s Farmers Indoor Market on April 20 at Parkview Field
- Art on Broadway: Spring Edition on April 20 at The Hedge
- Comedy Night with Howard G. on April 20 at the Fort Wayne Comedy Club
- Cars & Coffee at the Plaza on April 20 at the Auburn Cord Duesenberg Automobile Museum
- Ben Butler on April 20 at the First Presbyterian Theatre
There are also plenty of restaurants open on Easter if you don’t want to cook this year.
Area establishments providing brunch for the holiday:
- Junk Ditch Brewing Company: Brunch from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Black Canyon: Brunch from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Granite City: Brunch from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
- Proximo: Brunch from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
- Teds Market: Brunch from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
- Solbird: Brunch from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
- Tolon: Brunch from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
- Eddie Merlot’s: Brunch from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
