The Biggest Night of the Year

Does New Year’s Eve Live Up to its Hype?

Two years ago, I started my 31st of December – yes, you read that right, 31st of December – hungover and nauseous on a bus home from my friend’s house. A few close friends of mine had ended up making different New Year’s plans that year: one of my longest-lasting friends and I would be spending New Year’s Eve at different parties for the first time in five years, and we had felt the need to pre-party the night before. Starting the last day of the year with a terrible hangover was perhaps not the wisest decision in hindsight. Despite what the 31st of December 2019 might suggest, when it comes to actual New Year’s Eves, I am yet to regret one. I want to lay all cards on the table: I (co-)organised four out of five New Year’s parties in my last four years of school and my first year at university, enthusiastically creating spreadsheets for cheese, broth, and chocolate fondue ingredients, and scrambling to teach my friends the waltz in the minutes leading up to midnight. In some ways, I might be the wrong person to write an article about whether New Year’s is overhyped, but I want to start 2022 with a challenge and compel myself to consider the other side of the argument.

What immediately comes to mind is the massive disturbance in most people’s sleeping schedules caused by New Year’s Eve. January must by far be the month in which the sentence ‘my sleeping schedule is completely wrecked’ is uttered most often - particularly as we readjust to our routines after weeks off. It can be hard for those of us who start the year with already heavy-lidded eyes not to envy people who perhaps stayed up until just after midnight and then decided that they would rather start the year refreshed and went to bed shortly after, when you yourself are fuelled purely by a mix of caffeine and spite. Many people who dislike New Year’s celebrations also complain about the noise, the fact that all bars and clubs are filled to the brim, that it involves too much alcohol, and the pressure to enjoy it despite all these things. Personally, the noise level has never bothered me, but I do have family from the Balkans who could take on a firecracker any day – even my chihuahua has become accustomed to the day-to-day noise level of my family and now just sleeps through all the fireworks. I can see, however, why drunk people screaming in your ear as you count down to midnight might not be everyone’s cup of tea.

This year’s New Year’s Eve may have looked a little different than in pre-pandemic years. For some, it was one of the first days since the start of the winter holidays that they spent with friends, particularly as Omicron made socialising over the holidays difficult, and some of us feel unsure about inviting friends to our family home. After spending several months at university, being back home for an extended period of time can be equally welcome and tiring. New Year’s Eve can serve as an opportunity to socialise with friends your age again after Christmas celebrations with your family, roughly marking the midpoint of the winter holidays and potentially serving as a respite from any family drama, big or (hopefully) small.

Unlike HIVE-nights, the most memorable New Year’s parties might often not be the loudest, craziest ones, but perhaps rather ones that allow for much-needed catching-up with friends and that provide a break from recently endured Christmas craziness. An appropriate food-to-alcohol ratio goes a long way. In my experience, finger foods (served in a Covid-appropriate way!) are among people’s favourites, maybe even a fondue that guests can come back to again and again, to ensure that everyone is awake and ideally not hunched over a toilet at midnight regretting their choices that night. Going outside before midnight can also serve as a useful break from drinking, providing everyone with a bit of fresh air, perhaps as you look for a good spot from which you can watch the spectacle of fireworks being set off.

Did I overhype my expectations for New Year’s the year I decided to pre-celebrate New Year’s Eve a day early? Just maybe. But in most other cases, I think that New Year’s, like any other party, is what you make of it. Calling it the best night of the year perhaps creates unrealistic expectations, but it can be a good way to catch up with friends and have some food and drinks. Another thing I highly recommend: waltzing down a hill in public as the clock strikes midnight. Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it!

Katarina Zivkovic