Celebrating Valentine's Day In Different Ways Around The World

Blame Hallmark. Blame Hollywood. Blame Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan. Blame ourselves for following in the corny footsteps of all of the above, because where has it landed us? Knee deep in downright boring Valentine's Day gifts and rubbish teddies. It's time to shake things up.

Back in the day of chivalry and handwritten notes, a little more original thought was required. Today Valentine's Day gifts are all presented to you on a plate by all the big stores. Trouble is you get the same thing as everyone else, every single year. Need a little inspiration? Check out some of the Valentine's Day traditions from around the world...

Malaysia
For a great alternative to laborious dating websites, single ladies can follow in the footsteps of women in Malaysia and write their contact details on a mandarin orange and toss it in a nearby river or lake. The idea being that an eligible bachelor then fishes it out and calls. The only potential problem is finding a man who's willing to fish anything out of the Thames.

Brazil
Dia dos Namoradas, also known as the Day of Love, is another good idea for all the single ladies out there who get through more crushes than hot dinners. The general gist is that on the eve before the big day you write down the names of all your crushes on scraps of paper. The next morning you pick one at random and that's the one you pursue, in a non Fatal Attraction kind of way of course.

France
Now this one got banned in France a while ago but that doesn't mean it's not without merit. It's called 'Une lotteries de amour' and involves a gathering of men and women who shout across to each other from opposite-facing houses until one by one they pair up. Pros for the men are that they can ditch their partner at any point during the day. Pros for the women involve an evening bonfire and placing a curse on all the men that flaked out. It's a win-win situation.

Australia
Anyone wanting to step up the calibre of their Valentine's Day gifts should follow in the footsteps of the Aussie's. Back when gold mining brought in some serious readies and loads of men suddenly found themselves wealthier than ever before they churned out some real gems, including ornate boxes neatly packed with a satin cushion and decorated with riches, shells and ribbons. To really impress they threw in a taxidermy humming bird. Forever Friends teddy bear? No thanks.

South Korea
Considering their total division from their northern neighbours, South Korea's approach to Valentine's Day gifts is actually pretty inclusive and covers all parties - even singletons. It starts on Valentine's day as usual with all the ladies giving Valentine's Day gifts to the men. The following day all the men take the lead by giving bigger and better Valentine's Day gifts to the women. Then, a couple of weeks later, all the single people not involved in any gift giving get together for JaJang noodles. Brilliant.