New Year celebrations in different countries.

In every country people celebrate New Year, but in each of them it looks different, because depends on their culture and tradition.

SWITZERLAND
Swiss housewives bake special bread, which is rich in butter, eggs and raisins. They also cook roast goose. Children go from house to house greeting the uccupants and receiving invitations to come inside.
THE PHILIPPINES
For Filipines it is important to have a full wallet at the start of the year. This means that it will be full for the rest of the year. The familly must be together at midnight because of they are together during this special night they will be together through the year.

GREECE
Some people in Greece play cards, hoping taht a won will bring them luck for the hole year. In addition, the Greek eat a cake with coin in it. Whoever gets the piece of cake with the coin, will have good luck.

BRAZIL
In Brazil, December 31th, is the feast of Lemenja, the old African goddes of the sea. Copa Cabana beach in Rio de Janeiro id lit by hundreds of candles. People throw presents into the sea for the goddes. It could be flowers, cigarettes, bottles of beer, even bottles of champaigne.
Not every country celebrate New Year at the same time.

CHINA
The Chinese New Year festivites are held at the end of January or beginning of February for a period of one month. During this time Chinese celebrate the ned of the winter season. Families gather at home and cover the meant to keep out evil spirits. Gifts are exchanged at midnight. Homes are filled with the sound of happy children, who traditionally receive coins in real envelopes on New Year`s Eve. For the next two weeks shops are close or people enjoy visisting friends and relatives.

SCOTLAND
In Scotland, New Year is called Hogmonay and in some villages barrels of tar are set alight and rolled through the streets. The old year is burned up and the new one allowed to enter. Scottich people belive that the first person in the New Year will bring good luck, and it`s very good luck if the visitor is dark-haired man bringind gift. This custom is called first-footing

ANCIENT EGYPT
In ancient Egypt, New Year was celebrated at the time the river Nile flooded, which was near the end of September. The flooding of the Nile was very important because without it the people woldn`t been able to graw craps in the dry desert. At the New Year, statues of the good Amon and his wife and son were taken up the Nile by boat. Singing, dancing, feasting was done for a month and then the statues were taken back to the tample.

BABYLONIA
Babylonia lay in what is now the country if Iraq. Their New Year was in the spring. During the festival, the king was stripped of his clothes and set away, and for a few days everyone could do just wjat they liked. Then the king returned in a special procession, dressed in fine rabes. Then, everyone had to return to work and behave properly. Each New Year, the people made a new start to theit lives.