Put on your yellow underwear, toss your potatoes under the bed and grab your suitcase for a walk around the block: The clock is about to strike midnight on New Year’s Eve in Latin America.
From the northern deserts of Mexico to the southern glaciers of Patagonia, the region has a host of colorful New Year’s traditions and superstitions, some of which are holdovers from colonial times, some homegrown and some blending cultures and customs in Latin Americans’ unique style.
In many nations, revelers ring in the New Year by walking around the neighborhood with a suitcase, a ritual that is meant to guarantee a year of journeys.
“In 2012, I ran around carrying my suitcases and I ended up traveling to Europe. I did the same in 2013 and I went to Argentina. So I am definitely doing it again this year,” said Carla Romero, a communications specialist in the Ecuadoran capital, Quito.
Other Latin Americans sweep the floor or clean house to get rid of bad vibes. In Mexico, the custom includes washing the doorstep.
GRAPE COUNTDOWN
In much of the region, revelers eat 12 grapes, cramming one in with each toll of the clock at midnight — a ritual inherited from Spain.
The grapes must be divided into six red and six white, some keepers of the tradition said.
“In my family, we put them in little packets so everyone can make their wishes,” Colombian homemaker Tatiana Ariza said.
The wishes must be kept strictly secret, “or they won’t come true,” she added.
In Cuba, which had to give up on grapes during a period of severe shortages, people throw buckets of water out their windows to wash away evil — a ritual which is also followed in Uruguay, which, like the communist island, usually has hot weather this time of year.
CHINESE COINS
Other people put money in their shoes or tie three Chinese coins together with a red ribbon to ensure a prosperous year.
For New Year’s decor, many place stalks of wheat, a symbol of prosperity, alongside images of angels or the Virgin Mary.
“Changing seasons requires rites. From Central America to Patagonia, these rites to mark the end of the year are inherited from pagan traditions, from Ancient Rome, from the Egyptians [and] combined with indigenous American traditions and African culture,” Colombian Institute of Anthropology and History director Fabian Sanabria said.
Although the rise of secularism has weakened the hold of ritual over people’s lives, the uncertainties of today’s world have left more individuals from all social classes grasping for the comfort of superstition, Sanabria added.
“It is the zenith of astrologers and horoscopes,” Sanabria told reporters.
After noticing the abundance of New Year’s traditions, Colombian entrepreneur Santiago Delgado decided to round up seven of them in an “Omen Box,” which he sells for US$13.
The box includes materials to carry out regional rituals, plus a copy of Psalm 91, a biblical passage traditionally read on New Year’s Day.
He has sold about 2,000 of them this month.
Other ingredients are easily found at the supermarket, from lentils to put in your pocket to potatoes to place under the bed.
“I usually have three potatoes: One I peel completely, one I peel a little bit and another one I leave the skin on,” said Victor Carreno, a Colombian shopkeeper.
“I put them under the bed and at midnight I grab one at random. If I grab the one with the whole skin everything will go well for me. However, if I grab the peeled one I’m going to have a tough year,” Carreno said.
In Peru, female shoppers snap up New Year’s underwear in yellow, a color associated with happiness and friendship.
In Uruguay and Argentina, the preferred color is pink, which is supposed to bring luck in love.
In Colombia, many women choose red, the color associated with passion.
BUBBLY BATH
The first bath of the year is another key rite.
In the Colombian capital, Bogota, herb sellers at the Paloquemao market offer bitter and sweet-smelling bundles to make a purifying bath.
Others use champagne.
Douse your body in bubbly and let it dry for a year full of happiness and success, Colombians say.
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