Fireworks and Festivities for the New Year

What do you get when you pair a bunch of expats and one Dutch guy on New Year's Eve? A great time had by all. Celebrating the New Year, Amsterdam style is feared by some, avoided by others, and embraced by masses. I decided that I had to see what it was all about. After spending a quiet Christmas in Lisbon, I was ready to come back and see what all the fuss was about.  

Well, the fuss started at about 8am with booms and pops that echoed throughout the streets. At first I didn't know what it was. I thought it was something from the construction site down the street banging. I was wrong. It was the beginning if a day's worth of fireworks. I know what you're thinking, it's daytime. You would be right, you can't actually see any of them, but you can hear them. It sounds like a war zone. I was starting to get a little nervous. 

It was a rainy, miserable day, and public transportation was set to stop early that night. Tim and I took a cab to a friend's apartment to begin the festivities. We had all of the necessities: an ample spread of food, copious amounts of booze, an assortment of friends and friends of friends, and lots of silly crowns and noisemakers for all. 

It was nearing midnight, and the fireworks became louder and closer. There was no way we wouldn't be participating in the fun, so in walked Jeroen with a giant bag full of all sorts of roman candles and other things that could be set on fire. We all went out into the rain and acted like the locals. Well, maybe not so much like locals, but a bunch of Americans with fireworks. There was a lot of yelling and singing of Auld Lang Syne. The locals continued to set off their fireworks in virtual silence. 

All throughout the city of Amsterdam, people were in the streets getting soaked by freezing cold rain setting off fireworks. There are no regulations, no restrictions, and it is nothing short of a miracle that more people don't get hurt. The sky was full of smoke and the popping and booming continued throughout the night. The streets were littered with red, pulpy paper, and I must say I was happy to get to my bed safely after a long walk home.

The next morning, the first day of the new year when resolutions are being made (or broken) and hangovers are being nursed brought the memory of a conversation from the night before. We had agreed to go to the beach. The beach? In Holland in the winter? Yup, it seemed like a great idea at about 1am. I have no idea what beach we ended up at, but it was stunning.

It was a great idea, and while it was freezing, it was the perfect place to begin a brand new year.