Could we really, truly, finally be nearing the end of this horrible year? Yes!!!

We are just a few weeks away from ushering in a new year. So I wanted to go ahead and wish you all a Happy New Year and a big fat “don’t let the door hit you on the way out” Bye Bye 2020!

So most of us will be celebrating differently this year. This will be the first time in years that I will be at home rather than off on an adventure. It will be weird and feels like a bad start to the new year. But I am just glad to be celebrating in any way, shape, or form THE END OF THIS YEAR!

One thing we sometimes forget, but this year has reminded us of, is that we are still very much a global village. We all suffered through this global pandemic. No one was immune to it. And although we may speak different languages and practice different traditions, we are all similar in many ways no matter where we live.

So with that in mind, I thought it might be fun to share some of the ways that others around the world welcome in the new year.

Columbia (South America): people carry empty suitcases around their block or down their street in hopes of a travel-filled new year. Hey, I’m game to try it this year!
Ecuador: people release negative energy from the last year by creating scarecrow figures that represent notable figures, such as politicians and celebrities. At midnight, they set these scarecrows on fire as a cleansing for the new year. I like it!
Denmark: On New Years Day, people throw old plates and glasses against the doors of their family and friends to banish bad spirits. At midnight on New Year’s Eve, they jump off chairs to “leap” into the new year to bring good luck.
Speaking of housewares, in Naples, Italy, people throw old furniture and possessions off their balconies. It’s not unusual to see toasters, chairs, irons, and even small refrigerators on the ground. I once threw an old computer off a parking garage deck (rather than worry about deleting everything on it) and it did feel good!
Scotland: their new year’s celebration is called hogmanay. bonfires are burned and big fireballs on poles are paraded around to symbolize the sun and purify the new year. the first person to enter a home in the new year is supposed to bring a gift for good luck. Food and whiskey are considered the best gifts. Okay, so that definitely is going on my list. BTW, the featured image for this post is a Scottish hogmanay.
Spain: It is customary to eat (12) grapes at midnight during each stroke of the clock striking midnight. Each grape symbolizes good luck for one month of the new year. Traditionally, people gather in main squares and at parties to eat their grapes together and wash them down with a good bottle of cava. I’m down with eating juicy grapes and drinking sparking Spanish wine!
Brazil, Bolivia, Ecuador, Mexico, & Venezuela: So here’s a weird one. people wear special underwear on New Year’s Eve that features yellow if you want money, white if you want peace and joy, green for well-being, or red if you want love in the new year. So I guess I’m going shopping to find multi-colored undies so that I cover all my bases.
Greece: People hang an onion on their front door as a symbol of rebirth and purity for the new year. Parents wake their children on New Year’s Day by tapping them on the head with an onion.
And while most of us think of watching the ball drop over Times Square as the U.S. New Year’s Even tradition, in Idado, people gather for the big potato drop. Literally. Crowds up to 50,000 gather to watch a big potato drop out of the sky at midnight.

Click here to learn more about New Year’s celebrations around the world!

There are also foods associated with New Year’s and good luck. As mentioned, twelve grapes are consumed at midnight in Spain. In Turkey, pomegranates are shared. If you find this fruit on your doorstep on New Year’s, it is believed you will be blessed with good luck and good fortune in the new year. All the more so if you place that same pomegranate on someone else’s doorstep. In Japan, eating soba or long noodles on New Year’s will bring a fulfilling life. The noodles are associated with strength and resilience. In Bulgaria, a borek (cheese-stuffed baked pastry) is eaten only on Christmas and New Year’s Eve. Symbolic items are also wrapped in the baking foil to bring the recipient prosperity or health, etc. In Nigeria, it is taboo to eat poultry on New Year’s Eve as it will bring you poverty and bad luck. Instead, people eat lentils for prosperity and good luck. In Germany and Ireland, cabbage is consumed for good luck and fortune. My favorite is Japan. And while it is a Christmas tradition, not New Years, I feel it worth mentioning for the weird factor. Thousands of Japanese do not celebrate Christmas with a traditional home-cooked meal but with KFC. Yep, Kentucky Fried Chicken. It is HUGE there. Orders are placed two months or more in advance for the colonel’s secret recipe chicken and all the fixin’s!

Click here to learn more about New Year’s food traditions around the world!

Southerners also eat certain foods to bring good luck in the new year. My grandmother and great aunts have always served us this New Year’s Day meal for good luck and fortune: