YEREVAN, Armenia, July 23 (Xinhua) — Armenians had a cooling-off day by splashing water on Sunday, to celebrate a holiday known as Vardavar, widely observed 14 weeks after Easter.

Although the event was observed by the Armenian Apostolic Church as the Transfiguration of Christ, it has its roots deep in the pagan past of Armenia before the adoption of Christianity in 301 AD.

The holiday, once marked as a tribute to Astghik, the pagan goddess of water, beauty, love and fertility, is now celebrated by drenching each other with water.

On Sunday, it was very common to see people dousing complete strangers and unsuspecting passers-by with buckets of water. The festival is particularly popular among the youth as it is the day when everyone is allowed to pull water pranks and get away with it.

The festival comes at a perfect time for the residents of the Armenian capital as hot weather conditions often force many to stay inside.