Fireworks, champagne, silly hats, resolutions, Auld Lang Syne, a midnight kiss, and a slowly-dropping lighted ball — these are the things Americans usually associate with New Year’s Eve.
But what about possums, pickles, and peaches??
That’s what they “drop” in North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Atlanta, respectively, according to an article about New Year’s Eve traditions on the CBS News blog. In Germany, they drop molten lead into water and try to read the future in the resulting shapes. In Romania, revelers don — gay apparel? Nope, bear skins — and dance to usher in good luck for the upcoming year. In Scotland, the celebration, called Hogmanay, lasts three days, and Edinburgh’s Hogmanay celebration includes a street march, concerts (this year, the 80s hit Pet Shop Boys are featured! I wonder if I still have time to get there…), a carnival…and lots and lots of people dressed as Vikings. Check out some other New Year’s traditions across the world in this beautiful photo essay by The Baltimore Sun’s DarkRoom.
Want to be a part of the celebrations around the world tonight? We’ve already missed a few (Happy New Year, Australia and New Zealand!), but click here to watch videos of the celebrations in Sydney and Auckland, and watch live presentations of the New Year arriving in Shanghai, Dubai, and Berlin starting at 4:00 pm Eastern time.
Here’s to a fabulous 2014, the whole world ’round!
Fireworks over Edinburgh. Photo by Robbie Shade.
International Programs 