New Zealand’s New Year Eve

As many people think, the first country which celebrates New Year Eve is not Australia with its famous fireworks in Sidney, but it is the Tonga Islands in the South Pacific Ocean. One hour later it is New Zealand which celebrates New Year Eve. Wellington is it first capital city to see the New year, with its family friendly NYE festival in Frank Kitts Park Lagoon where you can watch iconic local movies and listen to the soundtrack of Wellington Orchestra during the countdown of the fireworks. The most populated city of New Zealand, Auckland guarantee a vibrant atmosphere with The Sky Tower fireworks. There is also a webcam set up for watching the show from the comfort of an apartment. New Year Eve as we know in France is not the most popular events in New Zealand.They have another celebration like the Chinese New Year or the Muharram: the Muslim New Year. In the 21 century the Maori tribe’s New Year which is marked by the rise of Matariki (a group of stars known has the Pleiades star cluster or The Seven Sister) and the sighting of the next new moon become very popular in all the country. It is like Thanksgiving or Halloween for the United States. This celebration usually occurs during the middle of winter and the exact time varies from year to year. Matariki means « the eyes of god ». According to the myth, when Ranginui, the sky father, and Papatūānuku, the earth mother, were separated by their children, the god of the winds, Tāwhirimātea, became so angry that he tore out his eyes and threw them into the heavens. In 2017, Matariki was the 25 june but the exact date for 2018 is not settled yet.

#International #Géographie #Evénement #Anglais