Countdown is now broadcast live on Government televisions from Putrajaya and the Broadcasting centre which the concert is held and Fireworks are displayed at the Petronas Towers. Sometimes marriages and weddings take place in the clubs at night of 31 December so that the people can enjoy more. In the Mercado del Puerto there is a massive “cider fight” accompanied by music. At the stroke of midnight people flock to the streets to enjoy fireworks and light firecrackers, and to eat Twelve Grapes. The main event takes place at midnight where fireworks are lit along with thousands of life-size effigies called “Año Viejo”. Most every local family creates the effigy from paper scraps, old clothes or purchases it altogether.
Dessert will often be vanilla pudding or rice cream, and there will be cakes and coffee later in the evening – commonly accompanied by a glass of cognac. Then, at close to midnight on New Year’s Day, people will go outside to send up fireworks. Fireworks are only permitted to be sold to the general public on the days leading up to New Year’s Eve, and only to be launched that night. New Year’s Eve in Hungary is celebrated with home parties and street parties, including a gathering in downtown Budapest. Champagne, wine and traditional Hungarian New Year dishes—frankfurter sausages with horseradish, lentil soup, fish, and roast pig—are consumed.
Buddhist temples ring their bells 108 times at midnight in the traditional Joya no Kane (除夜の鐘). The rings represent the 108 elements of bonō (煩悩), mental states that lead people to take unwholesome actions. In Hong Kong, many gather in shopping districts like Central, Causeway Bay and Tsim Sha Tsui. For the arrival of 2013, the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre initiated the countdown, while the fireworks display and A Symphony of Lights show were extended to eight minutes.
Auckland regularly has a fireworks display at midnight from the top of the Sky Tower. In Wellington, Frank Kitts Park is the venue for a festival including fireworks, music, and open-air film displays. Similar events occur in Hamilton, starting with a family-friendly event at Steele Park, followed by an adult-specific party at SkyCity Hamilton. Gisborne, one of the first cities in the world to see sunrise at new year also celebrates with a new year festival. The small town of Whangamata, on the Coromandel Peninsula, is a major party venue in the new year, especially for Aucklanders. In Port of Spain the tradition is to celebrate in one’s yard with friends, family and neighbors, and eat and drink till sunrise.
Board games are a great option, as they’re engaging for kids and usually take a good chunk of time to complete. You can even hand out glow sticks and turn out the lights to play some glow-in-the-dark party games. The past few months have been challenging for many of us, and New Year’s Eve is the perfect day to reflect and reset. Seriously, what better time is there to look back on all you’ve accomplished and overcome than the last day of the year? Before the clock strikes 12, grab a favorite bottle of bubbly and get ready to celebrate with these festive quarantine New Year’s Eve ideas.
Amazingly, the practice has been around for millennia, beginning with the Roman festival of Saturnalia. Lots of meaning has been attributed to the kiss over the years. In 1928 the band got a chance to do a New Year’s Eve show and closed their set with “Auld Lang Syne.” It became the show’s closing number for nearly 50 years, the remainder of Lombardo’s life. Singing “Auld Lang Syne” at midnight is done throughout the English-speaking world and beyond. Some believe that taking what is called a “suitcase walk” means they will have a year full of adventures ahead. In some South American countries, you might see some people on New Year’s Eve walking around with an empty suitcase.