New Year, Same Traditions
With weeks away from celebrating New Year’s Eve, Brazil’s citizens are already planning to celebrate despite the government’s warnings against big crowds.
Like their beautiful beaches, Brazil is known for many things, colorful “Carnaval” traditions, particularly their parties. A time of the year that Brazilians enjoy is New Year’s Eve.
“I don’t spend New Year’s Eve anywhere other than Brazil honestly,” said Sabrina Castro, Brazilian. “The vibe is the best, the parties, the music, the traditions. Everything is unbeatable.”
There are many traditions regarding New Years’ in Brazil, like eating lentils for money, wearing all white at midnight, jumping seven ocean waves for good luck and others. However, the most prominent tradition is having huge parties next to the beach.
Although this year, it might have seemed out of reach to have parties of that size, Brazilians are already planning and scheduling parties all around the coast. In one city only, Juquehy, multiple events are held for five days straight and tickets are already sold out.
“For sure, there will be parties this year. There never goes a year without parties,” said João Lobo, a Brazilian from São Paulo.
The parties have been creating a buzz amongst the younger crowd, but the older generation seems worried as the COVID-19 cases continue to rise. The government still has not allowed large gatherings or parties and will not be hosting the annual countdown at Av. Paulista in São Paulo to contain the spread of the virus. “I’m not letting my daughters go to these parties this year,” said Marco Greco, a Brazilian parent. “The government has not allowed it, so it is not safe. I don’t want to risk it.”
Even though these parties are scheduled, it does not indicate that it is safe to resume having large gatherings. Visit local websites to make sure of the laws and rules regarding parties during the pandemic.
