New Years in SK

I would have to say that New Year's Eve is my favorite holiday in Slovakia for the simple reason that it's different than what we normally experience in the States. For me, that makes it one of the highlights and probably something I'll miss in the future if and when the Lord calls us back Stateside.

On New Year's Eve it is very typical for churches to have a service. Our service consisted of congregational singing, mini-sermons by different men in the church, choir specials, prayer, and at the end a video of pictures from the year. Now this isn't your typical one or two hours service. It was over three and a half hours long. Many of the Slovak moms and their kids started leaving around 8:00. We stuck it until just before 9:00 when they were going to start the corporate prayer time. I knew it would be hard to understand everything and the boys had already been sitting for a long time. We also hadn't eaten dinner beforehand since it started at 6:00. (And yes, we're having to get used to the times of certain things here b/c they just don't fit in with what we're used to. I'm not sure we'll ever completely adjust as we still eat on an "American" schedule.)

We ate some special foods I had prepared and played some Wii bowling. We then went outside to do some sparklers and light off a few fireworks. This holiday is the only time personal fireworks are legal in SK. Unlike in the States where you often have to find a special outdoor stand or place that sells only fireworks, here we can find them in small grocery stores or in the aisle as we walk out of larger supermarkets. We sent the boys to lay on the guest room bed around 11:30, but of course they didn't go to sleep!

A little bit before midnight we got them up and we all bundled up to see the show. A few fireworks were already lighting up the night sky, but at midnight they started in earnest! Everywhere we looked we could see fireworks of all different colors. And by fireworks, I don't mean small little bursts of light - I mean up in the sky, colorful bursts that crackle as they fall. To be honest, I'm surprised they sell the grade or level of fireworks that they do. Although these might not go quite as high or be quite as big as professional grade fireworks, they are pretty impressive. Because we live up on the higher portion of the village, we can go in our back yard and see fireworks for quite some distance. This year they didn't last quite as long as last year due to our neighbor being out of town, but they still went off fairly solidly for about twenty minutes. The boys really enjoyed it as it was their first experience. We were also blessed with really mild weather - around 40 degrees.

Some Slovak traditions/beliefs affiliated with New Years.

They will typically eat only pork on New Year's Day. The belief is that if you eat any fowl, your luck for the new year will fly away. My tutor told me that drinking champagne is very common.

They generally will not wish a Happy New Year until the actual New Year and the weeks after it.

Although there is a greeting exactly like Happy New Year, Slovaks will very often wish other things. They will wish people things such as good health, lots of luck, for everything to be good, happiness, and peace.

Typically when you see a friend or acquaintance for the first time in the new year you will wish these things to them and for them. Slovaks will look you directly in the face, shake your hand, and express their well-wishes for you. Some will also give a kiss on either cheek while shaking hands, but this is usually for closer friends. So although Americans generally stop these types of greetings within the first week or so of the New Year, it is possible you may be giving/receiving these greetings for the first couple weeks here in SK. For example, although I won't go to the public school to teach until Monday, the 13th, it is very likely that one or more of the teachers will express their well-wishes to me.

Želam vám všetko dobré, veľa zdravia, radosť a pokoj v novom roku!

I wish you everything good, lots of health, joy, and peace in the new year!