New Year’s Traditions in Mexico

¡Hola amigos! Today we want to share with you some of the things people do in Mexico to celebrate the New Year that we find weird. In the first part of this video we explain these traditions in Spanish and follow up with a break down section in English where we go over some of the most important words and phrases we used in our conversation.

Check the video out to practice listening and go over the phrases from the break down here.

Breakdown Section Phrases

• Salen de su casa con sus maletas y corren alrededor de la calle o de su cuadra y eso, supuestamente, significa que durante este año que empieza van a viajar.

= They go out of their house with their suitcases and run around the street or their block and that supposedly means that during this new year they are going to travel.

• Justo a las 12 de la noche, después de que abrazaste a todos, agarran la escoba y empiezan a barrer hacia afuera.

= Right at midnight, after you’ve hugged everyone, they grab the broom and start to sweep.

• Ayuda a sacar las energías negativas del año pasado y atraer buenas energías, buenas vibras para tu nuevo año.

= It helps to draw out the negative energy from last year and bring good energy, good vibes for your new year.

• Comer 12 uvas a las doce de la noche, y por cada uva pedir un deseo.

= To eat 12 grapes at midnight, and make a wish for each grape.

• Empiezan las campanadas en la iglesia y van medio rápido, entonces tienes que comer una uva, pedir un deseo, masticar, pasar, comer otra uva, pedir un deseo, masticar, pasar, y a veces terminabas con la boca llena de uvas y se te acababan los deseos.

= The church bells start ringing and they go a little fast, so you have to eat a grape, make a wish, chew, swallow, eat another grape, make a wish, chew, swallow, and sometimes you would end up with your mouth full of grapes and you would run out of wishes.

• Si usas ropa interior roja significa que ese año que empieza te vas a casar o que vas a encontrar el amor.

= If you wear red underwear it means that you’re going to get married or find love in the new year.

• supuestamente, usar ropa interior amarilla durante el inicio del año atrae el dinero a tu vida.

= Supposedly, wearing yellow underwear during the start of the year attracts money to your life.

• Y si tengo los dos, ¿puedo andar por el mundo sin calzones?

= And if I have both, can I go about life without underwear?

• No importa cual tienda visites durante diciembre y el inicio de enero, si venden ropa interior van a tener una colección enorme de calzones amarillos y rojos.

= It doesn’t matter which store you visit during December and the beginning of January, if they sell underwear they’re going to have an enormous collection of yellow and red underwear.

How do you celebrate the New Year? Do you have any crazy or weird traditions? Let us know in the comments!

We hope this new year brings you lots of amazing experiences and countless opportunities for you to practice and improve your Spanish!

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