❄ If you live in Turkey quite recently, then you probably have a question: how is the New Year celebrated here?
❄ New Year (tur. Yılbaşı - Yılbashi) is a secular holiday and Turks are not forbidden to celebrate it. New Year in Turkey is celebrated in the same way as in many countries - on the night of January 31-1. By the way, January 1 has been an official holiday in Turkey since 1981. In Turkey, too, many dress up Christmas trees and decorate the house for the New Year celebration. However, this holiday is not originally Turkish, therefore it is celebrated widely and massively, mainly in big cities, Istanbul, Antalya, Izmir. The New Year is also celebrated in cities where many visitors live, for example, in Alanya.
❄ In big cities, on a festive January night, people walk in the streets, concerts of pop stars take place, streets and shops are decorated with garlands, Christmas trees are set up in the squares. It is at this time that many foreigners come to Turkey to celebrate the New Year. So all events are designed mainly for them. Nevertheless, Turkey already has its own traditions of celebrating the New Year. This holiday is considered a family holiday, so all close people try to get together, congratulate each other. New Year's table is always rich and plentiful! Traditional dishes are prepared, such as kebab, kofte, cuts, fruits and sweets. The main dish is stuffed turkey. They try to cook it in all families where they celebrate the New Year.
❄ In a word, the New Year in Turkey is not much different from the usual European and Russian celebrations. This is a fun event for which people prepare in advance, which they expect and believe that the New Year will definitely be even better than the last!
