Hogmanay

In Scotland, Christmas is still a lesser festival than Hogmanay - or New Year's Eve.

We still consider this our main celebration of the year.

My home town holds what they say is the biggest street party in the world....   Princes Street is closed off and there are appearances by many bands and singers.  This is brought to a finale by fireworks from behind the Castle Mound.....   This year's is expected to be the most spectacular yet.

I have to confess that this sort of activity is not for me but the younger members of the family really enjoy it as part of their Hogmanay pub crawl round the central areas of Edinburgh!  However, tickets are quite hard to come by this year - or so I am informed!

When I was still a girl we would often top off our pub crawl by getting to the Tron Kirk in the High Street (Royal Mile) to listen to the bells chiming midnight....  the whole town then seemed to erupt into an orgy of Auld Lang Syne and kissing complete strangers!

Many traditions are still observed today.

It is traditional to clean the house from top to bottom to welcome in the new year.

Strong efforts are made to heal  family rifts before the new year dawns.

Families gather at one home - great amounts of food and drink are prepared and people dance, sing and recite old poems and stories.  

Food includes Black Bun, Dundee Cake, Lentil Soup (it's COLD out there...!), Steak Pie, sausage rolls, scotch eggs and other savouries, clootie dumpling, forfar bridies etc.

At midnight it is considered lucky to be 'first footed' by a dark man, who should arrive with a lump of coal in one hand and a bottle of whisky in the other - thus ensuring that the home will want for neither warmth nor sustenance for the new year. As it is considered unlucky to be first footed by a red-head - many of my family are kept indoors until after 'the bells' in order that we do not bring bad luck to neighours and friends!

The doors and or windows of the house are thrown open just before midnight in order to hear 'the bells'.... ie the church bells striking midnight.

We gather round and sing the auld song, 'Auld Lang Syne'... and then we seriously party!  This often goes on until the morning.  There are people visiting and 'first footing' until the early hours.

Eventually, we all go to bed....   but only to get ready to start the partying again on New Year's night!

That sounds like so much fun. To go see everybody, with a party to welcome you there.  With his head of full black hair, the big McDonald in our family, would be much in demand as a first footer.

To everyone at Highlander Radio

I'm pretty busy today (Hogmanay) ensuring that everything is 'just so' in the house for the New Year.

We are seeing the  a new year in with a few good friends and it will be a quiet evening (daughter is away from home) - so, in case I don't get a chance to drop in here after 'the bells'...
I give you the traditional Scottish New Year greeting:

'Awrabest - when it comes' !!  

I see on the one of the news channel that the celebration started last night in Edinburgh.  It looked like everyone was having a Grand Old Time!  Lots of hoopla going on.    

maggiemahone1

we had loads of fun with mick stu and jim being drunk on ancient reserve =P
but i gave craig this huge flu and we had to stay at home in anyway... it was quite funny tho, we had those old comedie programmes and ended the evening with chewin' the fat just before the bells nice nice

i hope you all had fun too!

Ah well if ye consider it fun walking two hours in freezing cold round Portree and getting frustrated coz all the pubs were too full lol Ended up having 2 glasses vodka in a friends room where i am not allowed lol. my luck everyone was partying so busily lol. Nice fireworks in edinburgh wish i had been there sigh but twas quite nice tho Had a nice start with "Stamping their ground" on Radio Scotland. Hope ye had a good one last night and a verra happy new year to everyone!!


         

i'm sorry we couldn't come thru but i just don't dare to drive on the left side of the road and then craig got my christmas illness...
i'd loved to meet you.. ah well hopefully we can do that at nsome point

Quote (Aon_Daonna @ Jan. 02 2003,2:26)

i just don't dare to drive on the left side of the road

Well sweety, if you have problems driving on the left, how are you going to live in Scotland? Once you're married, guys no longer think it is cute, that you won't drive. How you going to get the kids to emergency room, when dad's at work.  You don't plan, on being barefoot and pgnt all the time; do you? Drive the biggest factor of women's lib.

hehehe
well I just have to grow accostumed to it, i guess =)
and nothing keeps me longer than 1 month from driving, I LOVE DRIVING! I did my first attempts already and the only thing that really irritated me was that the gear-changing-thing (dunno the word) and the handbrakes are on the other side