Menu
Perhaps the most remarkable thing about New Year's Eve in Spain is the enormous dose of superstition that accompanies it. Of course, a portion of irrational behavior that is supposed to bring luck or prosperity is normal in every culture. But the Spanish have taken it to a new level. In previous blogs about superstitious behavior during New Year's Eve we already discussed this. See here and here.
A typical Spanish meal on New Year's Eve also has a special meaning. The usual stew of lentils and chorizo sausage is more than just a stomach filler. Lentils, so the superstition goes, are shaped like coins with a bit of imagination. And that's where the belief comes in that consuming them more or less guarantees financial prosperity.
Incidentally, certain foods around New Year's Eve and superstition don't only go hand in hand in Spain. What about eating lobster? In various cultures that is frowned upon. The reason is that lobsters move backwards. When you look to the future and a new beginning, you want nothing to hold you back and you have to look forward.
The Japanese swear by eating soba noodles, because that meal melts away the pain and difficulties of the previous year. And then there is the eating of round food that is said to bring luck and wealth in America and the Philippines, among other places. Finally, something about the Greeks who have a long tradition of hanging onions on their front doors as a symbol for growth and rebirth.
Whatever you choose for a New Year's Eve or New Year's meal, a lentil stew or oliebollen and apple turnovers, we at Van Dam Estates wish you a very happy new year.
