What did you do last New Year's Eve? Like people almost everywhere, maybe you counted down to midnight and watched fireworks go off. However, many places have their own special ways of welcoming the New Year. Here are some examples.
你去年跨年夜在做什麼呢?也許幾乎就和世界各地的人一樣,去參加倒數計時以及欣賞煙火施放。然而,很多地方有他們自己特殊的迎接新年方式。這裡有一些例子。
In Scotland, there are many New Year traditions, and the best known is "first-footing." The first person to set foot in your house on New Year's Day can bring you luck for the whole year. A tall young man with dark hair is especially welcome. He should bring you one or two gifts. Then you will be able to have a good year.
在蘇格蘭有很多跨年傳統,而最著名的是「跨年第一步」。第一個在元旦當天踏入你家的人會帶給你一整年的好運。深色頭髮的高個子年輕人特別受歡迎。他應該帶給你一兩件禮物。那樣你就能擁有美好的一年。
When the New Year arrives, many Spanish people eat twelve grapes to bring them twelve lucky months. This tradition is called "Twelve Grapes." Each time the clock strikes, they eat one grape. However, very few people can eat all of them in time. To help wash down the lucky grapes, people drink a type of wine. It is made from Spanish grapes. So, New Year's Eve in Spain is all about grapes.
當新年來臨時,很多西班牙人會吃十二顆葡萄,以帶來十二個月的好運。這個傳統就叫做「十二顆葡萄」。隨著鐘每敲響一下就吃一顆葡萄。但是,很少有人來得及全部吃完。為了幫助吞下幸運的葡萄,人們會喝一種酒。它由西班牙葡萄製成。所以說,西班牙的除夕都與葡萄脫不了關係。
There are also some strange New Year customs in South America. People in Ecuador make paper dummies. These dummies stand for all the bad things of the past year. People burn them in the street to take away the bad luck. In many South American countries, people wear colorful underwear on New Year's Day. The color depends on their wishes for the coming year. If they want to find love, they will wear red. Yellow is for money.
在南美洲也有一些過年的奇風異俗。厄瓜多爾人會製作紙人偶。這些紙人偶代表過去一年來所有不好的事情。民眾會在街上焚燒這些紙人以消災解厄。許多南美洲國家的人在元旦那天會穿上五顏六色的內衣褲。顏色取決於他們對來年的願望。如果他們希望招桃花,就會穿紅色。黃色則是招財。
The New Year is a new beginning, and people do all kinds of things to have a good year. If you are bored with the same old ways to celebrate the New Year's Eve, these weird and wonderful customs from around the world may get you in the spirit. Have a good time!
新年是一個新的開始,為了能過一個順利的好年,人們什麼事都願意做。如果你厭倦了用同樣的老方式跨年,那麼這些來自世界各地古怪又奇妙的習俗可能會再度喚起你的熱情。玩得開心!
- everywhere [ˋɛvrɪ͵hwɛr] adv.
到處 - midnight [ˋmɪd͵naɪt] n.
午夜零時 - firework [ˋfaɪr͵wɝk] n.
煙火 - welcome [ˋwɛlkəm] v.
歡迎 - tradition [trəˋdɪʃən] n.
傳統 - luck [lʌk] n.
幸運 - arrive [əˋraɪv] v.
到來 - grape [grep] n.
葡萄 - strike [straɪk] v.
(時鐘)敲(打) - burn [bɝn] v.
燃燒 - colorful [ˋkʌlɚfəl] adj.
鮮豔的 - underwear [ˋʌndɚ͵wɛr] n.
內衣 - beginning [bɪˋgɪnɪŋ] n.
開始 - celebrate [ˋsɛlə͵bret] v.
慶祝 - weird [wɪrd] adj.
奇特的 - spirit [ˋspɪrɪt] n.
心境