New Year in New Zealand

As always New Zealand starts the celebrations before us in Europe and elsewhere.
A private video:

The Year of the Tiger

Today - the 14th of February - the Chinese New Year begin and that means that New Years Eve has been celebrated in several places all over the world.

This year it's the year of the Tiger, meaning that we have left the year of the Ox behind us.

It's the most important traditional Chines holiday, by English speaking sometimes called 'the Lunar New Year'.
This celebration is most common in countries with a Han population.
It implies both religious rituals, special clothings, a lot of food and different kinds of festivals with all kinds of mythical figures parading in the streets.
As the Chinese population in Paris is quite numerous, there has been festivities in the town, something French tv reported on.

In New York - Manhattan - and some other North American cities we have the so called China Towns, as we all know, where the Chinese population is numerous and where the celebration will be visible for all and everyone.
Manhattan has one of the largest ethnic Chinese communities outside Asia, if not the largest.
Even in Stockholm the Chinese New Year has been celebrated for some years, though in a more modest way outside the Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities, this year was no exception.

New Years Eve: Church, Malmsjö/Tennyson, Cider, 'Dracula'

This video is not from Stockholm but from the Kalmar Castle

Svenska (English below):

Nyårsafton började Aurore och jag med att besöka Oscarskyrkan för en gudstjänst.
Efter detta gick vi till Historiska och Nordiska museerna för att se någon av deras utställningar men båda museerna var stängda.
Vi promenerade på stan och gick in i några butiker, tog oss varsin kaffe och muffins för att därefter åka hem.
Stockholm är tyvärr inte särskilt festligt ens på en nyårsafton.
P.g.a. att vi inte har snö blir mörkret också mörkare eftersom staden inte är särskilt upplyst, som jag tidigare skrivit om.
Aurore stod för matlagningen, som alltid till oss men nu även för vår medboende.
Förrätt bestod av toast med skagenröra,

som huvudrätt en purjolökpaj med bechamel och parmesanost.

Som dessert en choklad fondue med frukterna kiwi, apelsin och banan.

Allt mycket gott - i vanlig ordning då hon lagar mat.

Vi lyssnar på musik, läser, tittar/lyssnar på Jan Malmsjö som läser Tennysons 'Nyårsklockan' från Skansen dricker Cider i samband med att vi 'skålar in' det nya året 2007.

Förra årsskiftet firade Aurore och jag själva i Älvsjö med Champagne (Moët et Chandon) och jordgubbar bl.a. Detta år blir det mer spartanskt och mindre festligt, inte minst p.g.a. vår medboende.

Aurore och jag avslutar natten med Francis Ford Coppolas film 'Dracula' med Gary Oldman i huvudrollen och i andra roller Winona Ryder, Anthony Hopkins och Keanu Reeves.

English:

Aurore and I begin New Years Eve with a visit to Oscars church in Stockholm and the service there.
It's a church named after king Oscar II who in 1903, when the church was inaugurated, celebrated 25 years as a regent in Sweden. The church is built in new gothic style.

After this we wanted to see one or more exhibitions at either the The Museum of National Antiquities (homepage to the Museum of National Antiquities) or the Nordic Museum (homepage of the Nordic Museum) but both museums were closed.
From the 1st of January the stately museums in Stockholm will again charge a entrance fee after almost two years with free entrances.

We stroll around in city, visit some shops, takes a cup of coffe and queen cake (cup cake) and return home. Aurore starts preparing the food.

She starts with toast and 'skagenröra', continuing with the main course pie with leek, bechamel and parmesancheese.
We conclude with a chocolat fondue and fruits (orange, kiwi, banana).

Instead of Champagne (Moët et Chandon) and strawberries - like last year when Aurore and I celebrated New Years Eve alone - we drink Cider this year, watch the broadcasting from Skansen with the Swedish actor Jan Malmsjö (imdb.com) reading Alfred Tennyson (info on Tennyson) and his poem 'Ring Out, Wild Bells', read every year from the stage at Skansen.

The night ends with 'Dracula', the movie made by Francis Ford Coppola with Gary Oldman, Winona Ryder, Anthony Hopkins and Keanu Reeves among others.

(Foto Skagenröra kopierat från: http://getiton.blogg.se/images/2010/toast-skagen_77181407.jpg)
(Foto purjolökspaj kopierat från: http://www.kokaihop.se/recipe/large/71956-277117.jpg)
(Chokladfondue kopierat från: http://vegoinspira.files.wordpress.com/2009/08/chokladfondue.jpg)
(Foto Jan Malmsjö kopierat från: http://www.expressen.se/polopoly_fs/1.1829930!slot100slotWide75ArticleFull/3447786819.jpg)