People of Albania eagerly await the New Year’s Eve as it is a day of celebrations, amusement and a time to spread good cheer and happiness all around.
Arrangements for ushering in the New Year start much before December 31. If you are new to Albanian culture or a traveler who happen to be in the city for welcoming the New Year’s Day then you will find that there is no better time than the eve of the New Year to witness the aura of joy and buoyancy engulfing the entire city. The New Year is welcomed with much pomp and splendor.
Time To Spend With Family and Friends
Merrymaking with loved ones, including family members, community people and close friends is integral to the celebrations on the New Year’s Eve in Albania. People relax with their families and have a gala time. Albanians mostly prefer to stay indoors in order to avoid traffic and party crowd on New Year’s Eve. Watching television and especially comedy shows on the eve is a key tradition followed for welcoming the New Year. Comic shows are the favorite on New Year’s Eve as it helps people keep up a smile on the last day of the year. House parties are a common sight as people prefer to ring in the New Year only with their special ones being close to them.
Feast Forms An Integral Part Of New Year’s Eve Celebrations
Special feasts are organized on the day which gives families and close relatives to bond over dinner and discussions related to the memories of the bygone year. Dinner lasts for hours on the eve and includes special delicacies that are normally not prepared for regular meals. People rustle up the best food on New Year’s Eve in the belief that they would get to enjoy heavenly delicacies all round the next year. Traditional dishes include the roast, steak, pork, lamb, beef and oven-baked turkey. Dinner also features a Turkish savory called the “kadaif”, and different types of salads and dairy products. Delicacies are served with high quality wine, beer and raki to make the evening before the New Year’s Day more special and memorable.
Fireworks fill up the Night Sky On New Year’s Eve
No celebrations for welcoming the New Year on the eve can ever be complete without burning crackers and exploding fireworks. People come out in huge numbers on the streets of Albania to watch the fireworks show. The sight of colorful fireworks filling uo the midnight sky with all bright hues makes for a splendid image. People raise toasts and uncork the bottle of champagne as they find dazzling fireworks brightening up the night sky.
Greetings are exchanged at the stroke of midnight
The traditional celebrations of welcoming the New Year in Albania also include wishing and exchanging sweet greetings as soon as the clock strikes midnight. People get busy in wishing each other a bright new year filled with prosperity, happiness, good health and joy. Phones calls are made and text messages with beautiful New Year greetings and wishes are sent out to dear ones.