The people of Thessaloniki who decided, on Greek Independence Day and the Day of Annunciation, to buy portions of cod and skordalia (potato-garlic mash) were faced with massive queues.
As the video and photos from Thess show, when it was time to eat, there were many who chose to buy food from the city's restaurants, resulting in huge queues.
It should be noted that the prices for cod with garlic in Thessaloniki range from 8 to 9 euros.
The reason behind this tradition is that apart from the national holiday, March 25th is dedicated to the Virgin Mary, making for a joyful celebration in the midst of the 40-day Lenten fast, when the Greek Orthodox faithful are allowed to eat fish and oil and consume wine.
The explanation behind the specific choice of fish is very simple and comes from centuries ago, when mainland Greeks were not able to have fresh fish on this day and had to buy cheaper, salted fish.
Despite the fact that cod is not a Mediterranean fish, as it is mostly found in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean, the fish can be cured; therefore it is cheap and easy to preserve.
READ MORE: Cod and skordalia: Five taverns in Athens for this traditional March 25 dish.
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