New Year's Day(Jour de l'An) en 🇨🇱 Chili

Ano Nuevo in Chile is a spectacular affair, with Valparaiso hosting one of the largest New Year's fireworks displays in South America. The port city's amphitheatre-like hillsides provide a natural stadium for over a million spectators who watch fireworks launched from the harbour. The display lasts roughly 20 minutes and is visible from kilometres away.

Chilean New Year's traditions include eating a spoonful of lentils at midnight for prosperity, placing money in shoes for wealth, and wearing yellow underwear for luck. In some families, carrying a suitcase around the block at midnight ensures travel in the coming year.

January 1st is a summer holiday, and many Chileans head to the coast. Vina del Mar, La Serena, and the lakes of the Sur Chico region fill with vacationers. The traditional meal often includes an asado with choripan (chorizo sandwiches), empanadas, and fresh seafood, particularly machas a la parmesana (razor clams with Parmesan).

Chilean families are close-knit, and January 1st is a day for extended family gatherings, often with three or four generations sharing a long lunch in the garden. Piscola (pisco and cola) and terremoto (a sweet wine-based cocktail) are popular drinks throughout the celebration.

The first day of the Gregorian calendar year, celebrated worldwide with fireworks, parties, and resolutions marking fresh beginnings on January 1.