‘This Night Is One Minute Longer Than Other Nights of the Year’
Eating fruit, wearing traditional outfits, and surviving the Moscow cold: Prep Year students from Vietnam, Iran, and Ghana talk about the New Year traditions in their countries and their plans for the celebration in Russia.
Mary Sarfo, 31, from Ghana
On New Year’s Eve in Ghana, it is usually cold, dry, and windy with temperature of about 15 to 19 degrees. During this time, families visit each other with foodstuff, cakes, champagne, and other gifts wrapped with a touch of both Christmas and New Year.
Personally, I love customised items that represent my culture as African, so I like to wear my traditional outfits—from head wraps to African print sewn clothes
I think that being cladded in African clothes fascinates people around me because I get good attention and great compliments whenever I wear them and I love it.
Hieu Nguyen Dinh, 21, from Vietnam
On New Year's Eve in Vietnam, we often give each other candies and chocolates. In my city, Hanoi, New Year's Eve is cold—but I think Moscow is colder. I am planning to celebrate New Year's Eve with my friends hanging out, eating food, and ice skiing. It will be fun!
Sajjad Asghari, 26, from Iran
This year, I will celebrate New Year's Eve with some Iranian friends here in Moscow. It’s the first year I won’t be with my family.
In Iran, on New Year's, all families gather together. New Year's in Iran starts in the spring, and we always have good weather. You can feel the air of the new year, and people go to parks or travel, and no one stays at home.
On New Year's, we read poems by Hafez and give money as gifts—from the head of the family to the family members—because we believe it will improve financial situations
In a few days, it will be Yalda Night, and I think it’s our best tradition. We gather together and talk until morning, eating various fruits and nuts because it’s believed that this night is one minute longer than other nights of the year, so we all gather to be together for this long night.
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