In our country parties, dinners, fireworks and yellow underwear abound. It is common to see, from the windows of some offices, chopped papers are thrown, documents from the old year that are no longer useful and that are thrown into the air as a sign of farewell to the old year that is ending. The human being is a species that is governed by cycles:seasons, years, months... and the symbols of renewal and rebirth associated with these dates are inevitable. But customs vary according to the society in which they occur and there are countless examples of this, as we will see below in the following note:
One of the first inhabited territories to receive the sun of the new year is Pitt Island, on the east coast of New Zealand. At the turn of the year 1999 to 2000, a farmer from the village, which has only 55 inhabitants, sold to the New Zealand government, for 104 thousand dollars, the emission rights of sunrise in the hills of his property. Q>
The patriotic sheep farmer turned down an offer made twice by the US network CNN. But he believes that the government of his country made a bad deal:the hills of the region where he lives usually wake up covered by fog.
The last place on earth to celebrate the start of the new year is the Pacific island of Samoa.
The custom of eating twelve grapes at midnight emerged in Spain in 1909, after a bountiful harvest was attributed to New Year's Eve by King Alfonso XIII. There are even those who take the time to make a list of 12 wishes, one for each grape. In other countries like the Dominican Republic, if the person has had a bad year he goes to the beach and goes into the sea with his back turned so that all the bad luck goes away.
There is a place in the United States where New Year's Eve is celebrated every night. It is the "Pleasure Island", a night park of Disney World in Orlando. At midnight, all visitors go to the central street, count down and celebrate New Year's Eve.
New Year is considered the happiest day all over the world. It makes a lot of noise. the bugle, drum, bass drum is played, fireworks are launched, shouts are made. According to ancient Eastern traditions, evil spirits go away with noises. Another custom is to throw buckets of water through the windows to ward off the evil eye, and fall backwards into the waves of the sea when the clock strikes midnight.
Haiti and the Sudan celebrate their independence day on January 1.
The Authority for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice (APVPV) has banned the celebration of the new year in some provinces of Saudi Arabia.
New Year's Eve in Myanmar (Burma) it is marked by a lot of fun, since it is when the Thingyan Festival takes place and a huge water war disputed in an all against all by the population, as in the carnivals here in Lima, although definitely less aggressive and disrespectful . The idea is to start the year with a "washed" soul.
In the Philippines, round shapes symbolize the format of coins and are associated with the idea of prosperity and wealth. Thus, during the new year it is very common for people to dress in polka dot patterned clothes and serve round foods during dinner, this to ensure great abundance in the coming year.
In Denmark they have the custom of breaking crockery on the doors of neighbors who, instead of getting upset, are happy about this strange show of affection. The family that ends up with the most broken plates, glasses, and cups in their front yard is considered the luckiest, as the pieces symbolize that they have many loyal friends. In addition to breaking plates and glasses on neighbors' doors, people in Denmark jump out of their chairs – all together – when the clock strikes midnight.
In Bolivia they carry out several rituals for the New Year, such as leaving three stones at the entrance to attract health, wealth and love, as well as hiding coins in the middle of cakes and sweets so that whoever finds them has a year full of luck. Another tradition is the straw dolls that hang outside the residences to attract good luck, they also wear yellow underwear to attract fortune or red to attract love.
In Germany, every year a short film called “Neunzigste Der Geburtstag” is broadcast on television about a lady who spends her 90th birthday alone. The classic was recorded in 1963 and is repeated every year on New Year's Eve.
In Ireland, single women put Mistletoe –Viscum album– under their pillow on New Year's Eve to ward off bad luck and attract a future husband.
In Ecuador and Peru, villagers make straw dolls –usually representing political figures and celebrities– that are burned at the turn of the year to destroy all bad luck and negative energy from the previous year.
In Talca, Chile, the New Year's Eve party takes place in the city's cemeteries, whose doors open to the population exactly at 11 p.m. to celebrate the new year " accompanied” by all family and friends, including those who have already left.
In the US, the custom is to kiss someone – be it a husband, friend, boyfriend or a complete stranger – to attract true love and ensure a full New Year of joy, also to erase bad memories of the past.