HOLIDAYS AROUND THE WORLD POLINA LEUSH GYMNASIA 1 COMPUTER CHRONICLES 2015 BELARUS BARANOVICHI My favorite holiday My favorite holiday is New Year. It is celebrated on the 1 st of January. It`s a family holiday, so usually we celebrate it with our relatives. The Christmas tree in the centre of Baranovichi. Sometimes my relatives dress up as Ded Moroz ( Santa Claus) and Snegurochka Ded Moroz`s granddaughter. Ded Moroz asks us to take part in some funny contests. So we sing songs, recite poems, dance, tell short funny stories and have fun. Ded Moroz and Snegurochka give us presents for our participation. After funny contests we have dinner together. We usually cook festive and tasty dishes for this holiday. But every time we have our national food - potatoes. We eat mashed potatoes, baked or stewed potatoes. The traditional colours of New Year are green, red and white. The traditional symbols of New Year are a Christmas tree, Ded Moroz, Snegurochka, presents, snowflakes, snowman, a star, crackers. Tradition of welcoming the New Year by organizing feasts and celebrations has been carried forward since ancient times. Historians believe that New Year tradition were started by ancient Babylonians more than 4,000 years ago. Unfortunately there aren`t any traditional songs for New Year. But our people sing their favourite songs during New Year dinner. At schools we often sing Jingle Bells, Christmas Tree We wish you a Merry Christmas.