The year 2025 is here And there are only a few hours left until Spain leaves 2024 behind. However, there are several municipalities that have decided to challenge tradition on December 31st by celebrating the early chimes. That is why even three northern towns from Spain have welcomed the new year coinciding with Australia (due to the time difference).
This is the case of Vilagarcía de Arousa, in Pontevedra, where thousands of people have announced the chimes, something they have been doing since 1988. “as a tribute to volunteering”as explained by the mayor of the town, Alberto Varela.
In Vilagarcía a great party was held in which the chimes had a special presence: those known as Young men from Arousawho conducted the ceremony. Borja, Raúl and Bruno, acquaintances after having participated in the contest Chain reaction, They have thus contributed to making this town “a little better known,” the councilor acknowledged.
The City Council has celebrated its peculiar festival with 350 kilos of grapes and 400 bottles of cava among the attendees, who have gathered in the Plaza de Ravella so as not to miss this tradition, which has included various shows, games and music.
Shipyard and Camargo
The same has happened in a neighboring town, Astillero (Cantabria), who has welcomed the new year with some morning chimes held at 2:00 p.m. in the central market square. Thousands of people have gathered for an event in which there has been no shortage of music, dancing, grapes and party bags.
The mayor, Javier Fernández Soberón, explained that this alternative way of celebrating the end of the year began in 2019 as an initiative together with various merchants in the municipality. “The idea we had was to find a formula to take the neighbors out into the streetthat they should not go to other places at Christmas, and look for an initiative that would generate attract people from other places in the municipality,” says the mayor.
For this reason, since 11:00 a.m., activities with the dance academy performancesvideos of the municipality’s clubs, music with an entertainer and the distribution of 6,000 portions of grapes and 1,500 bags of party favors, a novelty this year.
Since 1:30 p.m., many people have lined up next to the stage located outside the Almacén de las Artes municipal center to take the glasses with the 12 grapes that the 20 volunteers from the City Council have prepared since 8:00 a.m. on this last day of the year .
Between applause, music and screams, the about 6,000 people that has brought together this event, according to data from the Consistory, have celebrated the arrival of the new year in Australia and in Astillero, in advance and being the first municipality in Cantabria to do so. “We are always ahead even to start a new year,” emphasizes the mayor, who believes that other municipalities are imitating this early celebration.
This is the case of Camargo, another of those Cantabrian municipalities that also joins the bell ringing prior to the official ones, but will do so at 7:00 p.m. in the tent installed in the Plaza de la Constitución in Maliaño. However, their initiative goes further than the rest of the towns, since the idea is that the neighbors Replace grapes with jelly beans.
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