When we began to put together a list of venues that were hosting a New Year’s celebration this year, I totally thought there were going to be a ton of them. Not so. Still, we found a few (see bottom of page). We also found a bunch of fun trivia about New Year’s Eve. Enjoy!
- The song traditionally sung on New Year’s, “Auld Lang Syne,” means “times gone by”.
- Black eyed peas, ham, and cabbage are considered good luck if you eat them on New Year’s Eve or Day because it is believed they will bring you money.
- Lobster and chicken are considered bad luck because lobsters can move backward and chickens can scratch in reverse, so it is thought these foods could bring a reversal of fortune.
- In Italy, people wear red underwear on New Year’s Day to bring good luck all year long. The tradition dates back to medieval times.
- Time Square New Year’s Eve Ball was first dropped in 1907 after there was a fireworks ban. The original ball weighed 700 pounds and featured 100 25-watt bulbs. Much different to the ball we know today! The concept of dropping a ball to mark time dates back to the mid-1800s in England. One of the earliest time-balls was the one atop the Flamsteed House of the Greenwich Observatory along the River Thames. Starting in 1833, it was lowered every day at exactly 1 p.m. to signal the time to sailors and Londoners who could not afford clocks and watches.
- New Year’s wasn’t always celebrated on January 1. The earliest New Year festivities date back about 4,000 years. At that time, the people of ancient Babylon began their new year in what we now call March. They would have an 11-day festival to celebrate the beginning of spring and the fact that crops were being planted for the coming year.
- January is named after Janus, the god with two faces, one looking forward and one looking backward. He is the god of beginnings, transitions, gates, doors, passages, and endings.
- Ancient Persians gave New Year’s gifts of eggs, which symbolized productiveness.
- The first recorded New Year’s celebration dates back 4,000 years to Babylon, when the first moon after the spring equinox marked a new year. In 46 B.C., Julius Caesar created a calendar with Jan. 1 as the first day of the year, partly to honor Janus, the month’s namesake.
- The tradition to kiss at midnight isn’t a recent invention. According to old English and German folklore, the first person you come across in the new year could set the tone for the next 12 months.
- To ensure a year of good luck, firecrackers and noisemakers became tradition in order to scare away any remaining evil spirits and to ensure a brand new start.
- 2,000 pounds (907kg) of confetti are dropped on the crowd in Times Square at midnight.
- At midnight on December 31, Buddhist temples all over Japan ring their bells a total of 108 times to symbolize the 108 human sins in Buddhist belief, and to get rid of the 108 worldly desires regarding sense and feeling in every Japanese citizen.
- In Mexico, New Year’s Eve is celebrated, by eating a grape with each of the twelve chimes of a clock’s bell during the midnight countdown, while making a wish with each one.
- In some cities of Colombia, Cuba and Puerto Rico, there is a tradition of making a male doll that is stuffed with memories from the past year, all dressed with the clothes of the outgoing year and is called Mr. Old Year. At midnight, the doll is set on fire symbolizing erasing of the bad memories.
- In Greece, a gold or silver coin is baked into a cake, called a vassilopita. The person who receives the piece of cake with the coin inside is said to have luck the rest of the year.
- Until 2006, the Space Shuttle never flew on New Year’s Day or eve because its computers couldn’t handle a year rollover.
- In an effort to reduce drunk driving, every New Year’s Eve the AAA will tow your car and give you a lift home for free, even if you’re not a member (not available in all states)
New Year’s Eve Party with Rodney Todd
Frisk Pub | 117 North Jefferson Avenue, Eatonton
Frisk Pub will be serving Prime Rib Dinner beginning at 5:00pm on 12/31/18, cost is $24.00 including Non-Alcoholic Beverage. Reservations are required and limited for the Prime Rib dinner. Music by Rodney Todd and Friends starting at 7:30.
Come join the fun and enjoy a great meal. Full Menu available without reservations.
New Year’s Eve Family Celebration
9 p.m. to 1 a.m.
Ritz Carlton, Greensboro
Count down to 2019 with the New Year’s Eve Family Celebration by dancing the night away with live musical entertainment from The Tams in the Ballroom. Enjoy a cash bar serving up cocktail favorites and complimentary passed hors d’oeuvres throughout the evening. Guests will also enjoy a festive, complimentary champagne toast at the stroke of midnight to ring in the New Year. Resort-casual wear is suggested, and the celebration is complimentary for resort guests of all ages.
New Year’s Bash 2018
10 pm
The Tavern | 119 S Wayne Street, Milledgeville
Get your tickets now for our annual New Years Bash! $30 pre-sale, $35 at the door. This price includes: OPEN BAR all night. (Includes top shelf), entry, champagne toast at midnight. Doors open at 10pm. 18 to party, 21 to drink. j IKON spinnin the dance tunes. Room discounts at local hotels for guests.