Travel Destination Blog

The New Year is around the corner! How are you going celebrate it? Do you have traditions that will make it more interesting?

Meeting the New Year in a foreign country can make it unforgettable, since here you can get introduced to different and new customs. In some countries you can even come across odd, but funny ones.

So, let’s travel in some countries and see where people spend the best New Year.

Colombia is known for its unique New Year customs. They have a tradition of preparing an effigy of a person representing the old year or so called Año Viejo. On the New Year’s Eve evening all the members of the family write on a sheet of paper a bit of bad luck they had in the old year. When burning Año Viejo on the fire, people start reading out their lists of bad luck aloud. In this method the Colombians get rid of the bad things of the old year, and meet the New Year in a happy way.

In Austria you can come across different traditions that have a long history. Their New Year is known as Sylvesterabend. They make a punch of cinnamon, sugar and navy wine so as to honor the saint. On the New Year’s morning groups of children visit houses and sing carols.

In Malta you can come across an interesting tradition of sprinkling of lime. During this ceremony people come out of their houses and sprinkle some white lime on their thresholds. They do this because white lime is considered to be a symbol of purity that signifies a new beginning. People in Malta have another New Year tradition too. They organize carnivals, and festivities. The New Year carnival includes parades, pageants, and masquerades.

Eating 12 grapes, 1 for each month of the year is an old tradition of the Cuban people. They also believe that taking a shower before the New Year Eve will bring good luck to the household. The Cuban people have also another original custom for the New Year. On the New Year Eve they dress up and walk around their houses, carrying empty suitcases. They do it for welfare and success in the coming year.

People in Denmark have an odd tradition of breaking old dishes, by throwing them at their house thresholds. It is a good sign to have the entrance full of old broken dishes, since they symbolize good relationship, and many friends throughout the year.

Italy is unique in its traditions. In the New Year, Italians light petards and fireworks. In this way they hope to drive away evil. They also have an odd tradition of throwing old possessions out of the window, trying to forget past misfortunes.

A unique New Year custom has stayed with Greece from the early ages. It is called Vassilopitta or St Basil’s cake. A gold or silver coin is hidden inside the cake, and the one who finds the coin will have much luck in the coming year. They greet the new year with children singing carols and The first visitor to step into the the house on New Year’s Day is believed to bring good luck and welfare to the family.

So, fill the New Year with various traditions to make it more fun!

Have a unique New Year!

Photo: © krisdecurtis
Photo: © cormack13

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