New Year traditions? Everyday life and customs

I am curious about the traditions around Old Year/New Year in other countries.

In the Netherlands it is to eat "oliebollen". Fried dough balls, most times with raisins in it. Served with powdered sugar. And the New Year waffles is a northern tradition: rolled up crisp waffles filled with whipped cream.
And every year a well known comedien gives a tv show on the evening of 31 december and sum up the past year. Always with much controverse. 🙂
To give you an idea: one time a comedien quoted the catholic church that "it is unnatural to be gay" and he stated that walking on water is also considered "unnatural".

Hello I am from Russia.
In our country on December 31, old Russian films about love or comedy, which have become classics with us, are included. such as "Shurik" or "With Easy Steam or Moscow Doesn’t Believe in Tears". We, like everyone, put a Christmas tree. We buy kilograms of tangerines, make an Olivier salad, sometimes they look after Harry Potter or Home Alone. Often at 00:00 you can see countless salutes and people on the street in the windows.

Nowruz is the traditional Iranian festival of spring, which starts at the exact moment of the vernal equinox, commencing the start of the spring. It is considered as the start of the New Year among Iranians along with some other ethno-linguistic groups. The name comes from Avestan meaning “new day/daylight”.
It has been celebrated for over 3,000 years in Iran (Persia), Central Asia, the Caucasus, Western Asia, the Black Sea Basin, and the Balkans. It marks the first day of the first month (Farvardin) in the Iranian calendar.

One thing that sets Iran apart from other Middle Eastern countries is this Persian identity, preserved in traditions, language and “Nowruz” [Persian New Year], their most important holiday.

Nowruz is the day of the vernal equinox, and marks the beginning of spring in the Northern Hemisphere. It usually occurs on March 21 or the previous/following day, depending on where it is observed. The moment the sun crosses the celestial equator and equalizes night and day is calculated exactly every year, and families gather together to observe the rituals.

Haft-seen is the name of the special table of Nowruz, the Festival of new year and the beginning of spring. This table is made up of seven items that start with the letter “S”, in fact haft-seen literally means “seven S letters”!

Every item that is placed on the nowadays Haft-seen table symbolizes something positive for the coming year:

Sumac (crushed spice of berries): For the sunrise and the spice of life
Senjed (sweet dry fruit of the lotus tree): For love and affection
Serkeh (vinegar): For patience and age
Seeb (apples): For health and beauty
Sir (garlic): For good health
Samanu (wheat pudding): For fertility and the sweetness of life
Sabzeh (sprouted wheat grass): For rebirth and renewal of nature

Wauw, that is so different!