Valentine Trivia

Where did Cupid come from?
Born of Greek and Roman mythology. The son of the
Goddess of Love- who the Greeks call Aphrodite, and the Romans refer to as
Venus. The Goddess of Love, as you can imagine, is very beautiful and people
fall in love with her extremely easily! So it’s no surprise that her son Cupid is
incredibly cute, mischievous, and has a talent for making people feel love for
each other.   He is a young child who looks an awful lot like an angel, and the reason probably
is because, like an angel, he symbolizes the way people just “innocently” fall in
love!

Why are so many Valentines in the shape of a heart?
Since the beginning of time, people have always said that the feeling of love
comes from your heart. Why would they think this? Well, when you feel love for
somebody, it makes your cheeks flush rosy-red, and your heart beat fast! People
who have fallen in love often feel an extra happy feeling inside their chest- right
where their heart is.

Historical Valentine Trivia

• Valentine's Day is only celebrated in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, France, Germany, India, Russia, Australia and the United Kingdom.
• England's King Henry VIII declared Valentine's Day a holiday in 1537.
• In the 17th century, it was thought that eating a hard-boiled egg and pinning five bay leaves to the pillow each night would cause a fair maiden to dream of her future husband.
• Many couples take or renew their wedding vows atop the Empire State Building in New York City due in large part to the romantic comedy, Sleepless in Seattle.
• The old saying, "To wear your heart on your sleeve" comes from the Middle ages when young men and women drew a name from a bowl to see who their Valentine would be, and pinned it on their sleeves for one week.
• The telephone was patented by Alexander Graham Bell on February 14, 1876.
• Poor Captain James Cook, the English explorer, was murdered on Valentine's Day in 1779 by Hawaiian natives. It was his third visit to the Pacific islands.
• Sir Alexander Fleming introduced penicillin to the scientific community on Valentine's Day 1929.

• The Taj Mahal in India is considered the most fantastic gift of love ever given. Built by Mughal Emperor Shahjahan as a memorial to his wife to died in childbirth, it took 20,000 workers from India and Central Asia 22 years to complete.
• Approximately three percent of pet owners give Valentine's Day gifts to their dogs and cats.
• Online Valentine's Day sales will tally over $650 million from purchases of food, candy, flowers and gifts. Of that amount, $45 million will be spent on food, chocolate and wine.

• Forty percent of the world's almonds and 20% of the world's peanuts are used by chocolate manufacturers for Valentine's Day Candy.
• When the pilgrims landed in America, sugar was a rare commodity and so confections such as marzipan, sugar plums and other delicious sweets were considered special gifts to receive.
• Over 35 million red, heart-shaped boxes of chocolate will be sold this year.
• Men claim to prefer to received chocolates as a Valentine's gift; women prefer dinner.
• About eight billion candy hearts are made for Valentine's Day each year.
• Since the Aztec empire, chocolate has been considered an aphrodisiac used in the pursuit of love.
• Casanova, who enjoyed the title of "The World's Greatest Lover," ate chocolate to make him virile.

Visit the wikipedia entry for history and information on Valentine's Day