Happy New Year to one and all!

Today we took a New Year's Eve stroll around the fabulous Hyde Hall. Amazing colours. Great sculptures too. We don't have many New Year traditions in our home. We sometimes have a wet and windy bbq on the beach, often visit family, eat too much and watch in the New Year.

Apparently, New Year traditions include;

Spain ..... eat one grape in time with each chime of the clock, to secure 12 months of happiness in the coming year.

Brazil ..... throw white flowers into the ocean as an offering to Yemanja, the Goddess of the Sea, hoping she will grant wishes for the coming year.

Denmark ..... throw kitchenware at your friend's and neighbour's doors.

Scotland ..... first-footing. Make sure the first person to set foot into your home is tall, dark and handsome.

Ecuador ..... gather your family outside your home and set light to a scarecrow.

Ireland ..... put mistletoe under your pillow before you go to sleep on New Year's Eve to give you luck in love in the coming year.

Chile ..... welcome the new year in the local cemetery, not for luck but to be reunited with lost loved ones.

Italy ..... throw furniture out of your window. In Naples people have been known to throw items ranging from old toasters to fridges from their balconies.

Philippines ..... dress in polka dots to guarantee wealth in the coming year. Apparently, roundness is thought to signify prosperity, so on New Year's Eve locals surround themselves with round shapes by wearing polka dots, filling their pockets with coins or by eating round fruits.