New Year's Traditions
From Around the World Ecuadorians burn away
past bad luck and scare away
future bad luck by burning a paper-
stuffed scarecrow outside of their homes. For each of the final 12 seconds of the year,
reveling Spaniards will gobble
down one grape for good luck
in every month of the new year. Danes ring in the New Year
by breaking old dishes on
the doorsteps of friends
and family. Chileans include their
lost loved ones in their New Year's
celebrations by visiting cemeteries
and setting up chairs next to their graves. New Year's in Greece looks more like
Christmas in other parts of the world,
complete with the Greek Santa Claus,
gifts exchange and caroling. The color of a person's New Year's underwear
in this region of the world is thought to
increase fortune or even bring
more love and happiness.