Tbilisi Residents Celebrating New Year

Majority of Georgians celebrate the New Year more that the Christmas. Usually they do the celebration at home together with the family members. They give the topmost importance to the New Year table, main component of which probably is the “gozinaki”(nuts fried with honey).

Due to the heavy economic and social conditions the most of the Tbilisi residents are not able to meet a New Year as they would desire. New Year still means much to them and they celebrate it as joyously as they can.

What does the New Year mean for Tbilisi residents? How do they celebrate it? Civil Georgia offers opinions of common citizens living in the Georgian capital.

“The New Year first of all is a new hope, hope for future. I think, I always thought, that each human strives for the brighter future and would never give up. But now everything is awkward, as time goes on everything worsens,” – Boris Nazhevski, street bookseller.
 
“Fore me the New Year means prosperity of my children and my family. Our New Year table does not differ from others’ ones. We will have turkey, gozinaki and liquor,” – Rusudan Tkemaladze, lecturer.
 
“I am not making any special kind of celebration for the New Year. I am not particularly happy… for me is just another day. The New Year for me is just a next year in my life,” – Manana Gujabidze, housewife
 
“I am greeting the New Year better this year. But it is very regretful that we have so many problems  – no electricity, no gas. I think that the New Year means to start everything from the beginning with the new hopes,” – Marina Gelashvili, engineer
 
 “The New Year probably means something new. But I do not see anything new or good so far. I well celebrate it the way I do it for the last 10 years – badly,” – Kakhaber Adamia, journalist
 
 “I celebrate the “old” New Year (November 14, usually celebrated by Orthodox Christians,) more because think that this one is more “correct”. On the “Old” New Year I will go partying with my relatives and friends,” – Zviad Beridze, student.
 
“For me the Christmas is much more important then the New Year. On Christmas I go to church,” Maia Margveladze – journalist
 
“I greet the New Year with the new hopes together with my family. Probably I will celebrate it at home this year too and then go out with my friends. But for me the Christmas is more important,” Maiko Azarashvili – art critic
 
“The New Year means everything new. Usually I celebrate it with my family,” – Rusiko Shinjikashvili – 9th grade pupil.

“How do I celebrate New Year?  It’s a very hard question. If I were a woman I would curse: Let Shevardnadzes greet the New Year as we do, as every simple Georgian that walks the streets does. The New Year for me is a hope. I am an optimist and live with hope,” Goderzi Petruashvili – unemployed agriculturist.

“The New Year for me probably is a kind of expectation. A hope everything will be better then now,” Natia Adamia – student