HAPPY NEW YEAR! The Biggest Bashes Around the World.
It’s that time again! The ubiquitous New Year’s Eve…an occasion steeped in traditions and symbolism. While some of us prefer a quite evening of reflection, and others prefer a massive crowd, December 31st is the day for most of the world to ring in the New Year.
However, historically, New Year’s Eve was not on December 31st. Beginning with the Ancient Greeks, originally New Year’s Eve was held with the new moon after June 21. Before the time of Julius Caesar the Roman New Year started on March 1. In most European countries during the Middle Ages the New Year began on March 25, the day of the Feast of the Annunciation.
New Year’s Eve
Today, New Year’s Eve Celebrations are high spirted, noisy occasions that are made up of sights and sounds that are synonymous with New Year’s Eve. Ringing church bells, blowing horns, tooting whistles, shrieking sirens all echo all over the world. Well known American Traditions are to toast in the New Year with champagne and kiss someone (sometimes a perfect stranger) at the stroke of 12:01am.
According to National Geographic, here are some more notorious celebrations and there traditions held (and sometimes heard) around the world.
NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK
New Year’s Eve in New York’s Times Square defines the evening for hundreds of millions around the globe who watch on television, wishing they were there. A million revelers squeeze into the city’s neon epicenter where Broadway and Seventh Avenue come together, waiting for the Waterford crystal LED ball to drop from the former New York Times Building, for which the iconic square is named. It’s an American tradition more than 100 years old.
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA
Ring in the New Year casino style in kitschy Las Vegas, where fireworks blast over Paris Las Vegas, the MGM Grand, the Bellagio, and the array of other casino hotels on the famous Strip. The city buzzes with tens of thousands who come in for special concerts and performances with the biggest stars, until the sun comes up over the surrounding desert.
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL
Réveillon, Rio’s New Year’s celebration, is one of the world’s largest. Dressed in white like Candomblé priestesses, millions of locals and visitors line the city’s miles of beaches, throwing flowers into the waves at midnight for the African sea goddess Yemanjá, whose traditions have become mixed with the Virgin Mary. Afterward, the streets, bars, and restaurants fill with parties, dancing, and music.
LONDON, ENGLAND
Millions of eager Londoners line the Thames waterfront and gather in Trafalgar Square, waiting for the city to explode in a dazzling display of sparks and color. At midnight, the tower around Big Ben pulses with fiery blasts timed for the 12 strokes of the hour. All eyes then turn to the London Eye as the famous wheel produces a swirling fireworks and light show timed to British rock music echoing through the city.
PARIS, FRANCE
The City of Light becomes a city of fireworks on New Year’s Eve. Hundreds of thousands line the Champs-Élysées, Champagne bottles in hand, for a view to the Eiffel Tower. At midnight, fireworks burst from the entire length of its iron structure, in one of this evening’s most beautiful displays anywhere. Other gathering spots with great views include the steps of Sacré-Couer church and the Trocadéro.
MADRID, SPAIN
Madrileños celebrate the New Year by swallowing 12 grapes—one for each stroke of the clock at midnight. Finishing them on time is considered to be a sign of good luck in the upcoming year. Tens of thousands gather in front of the clock in Puerta del Sol plaza for the annual ritual and line Gran Via to watch fireworks.
BEIRUT, LEBANON
Each New Year’s is a promise that everything will be better in the capital of formerly war-torn Lebanon. Thousands gather to watch the light show on the city’s 1933 art deco clock tower in Nejmeh Square, the heart of central Beirut. At midnight, couples kiss and fireworks burst, shining over a mix of floodlit church steeples and mosque minarets in this eclectic Levantine metropolis.
TOKYO, JAPAN
On New Year’s Eve in Tokyo, streets and restaurants teem with people, many eating buckwheat noodles to ensure health and happiness in the New Year. Temples ring bells as a countdown to midnight, adding a dreamy quality to the celebration. Stay in town through January 2, one of only two days when the emperor opens the palace grounds to the public.
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
Everyone comes to the waterfront in Sydney to celebrate New Year’s Eve. The iconic Sydney Harbour Bridge and nearby buildings ignite at midnight with one of the world’s most spectacular fireworks productions.
Whatever your plans are this year, we here at Alpine Bakery and Trattoria, wish you a healthy and very Happy New Year!
In 1924, Americans began to watch the spectacular Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade. A tradition that began when Macy’s employees held a Christmas parade filled with knights, clowns and jugglers. Turns out there was a great turn out! The 6-mile (9.7-kilometer)-long parade attracted a crowd of 250,000 viewers. The iconic department store decided they needed to do it every year.
Another family pastime is Thanksgiving football, which began in the Great Depression. In 1930, the Portsmouth Spartans moved to Detroit. In 1934, in order to draw fans, the team’s owner arranged a match between the Spartans (renamed the Lions) and the world champions, the Chicago Bears. Though the Spartans lost, a Thanksgiving tradition was born. The ticket sold out two weeks in advance, and the event became a hit!
The “historical version” that we are taught as early as Kindergarten (compete with reenactments) is that in 1621, the Pilgrims come to Plymouth Rock woefully unprepared, almost all die of hunger and are saved as the local, friendly population lovingly teaches them to farm. A successful harvest of new crops are reaped by the pilgrims and then they prepare a bountiful feast for their agricultural teachers and new neighbors to express their gratitude.
Are you hosting Thanksgiving this year? Or, do you get to play the lucky “guest” role? If it the latter, give some extra thought as to the hostess gift. Flowers or a bottle of wine are fine, but expected. With a little pre-planning and some instructions from us, you can show up with something exciting and memorable from our bakery!
Are you coming for the day or the long weekend? Is the hostess a family member or friend? Both of these questions should factor in to your consideration. A weekend stay should warrant a more substantial gift, although preparing and hosting a Thanksgiving meal is no small undertaking on your hostess’ part either!
An ALPINE Gift Card with a Sampling is an equally impressive gift. A box of cookies or truffles with a gift card attached makes a beautiful presentation and says, “Something now to share with your guests, and something just for you, for later!”
Halloween Candy. Sales average about 2 billion dollars annually in the United States.
Ahh… it’s finally that time of year when the blazing Atlanta sun at last gives us a break and the temperatures start to drop. Now, we can all begin to contemplate the homey flavors of fall.
Our Rustic Apple Pie, which NOT coincidently is our October Dessert of the Month is at once simple and majestic. Boasting a full two pounds of apples, we’re not messing around. We’ve perfected our techniques to ensure that this TWO crust beauty is baked to perfection with flaky crust and amazing flavors.
Our Innovative Pumpkin Swiss Roll is equally representative of great fall flavors. We begin with our pumpkin spice cake rolled filled and covered with our signature cream cheese frosting then we decorated with whole pecans.
Typically Ragu sauces are used with spaghetti pasta, while Bolognese is used for wider-shaped pasta like lasagna. The thinking is that the thick sauce blends better with wider-shaped pasta.
Here at Alpine, we help couples celebrate their anniversaries all the time. They come to Alpine to enjoy a great bottle of wine, a fantastic dinner and their favorite desserts to celebrate what is a very significant occasion…their anniversary!
In 2005, less than a mile from our current location, we first opened our storefront to serve our bakery offerings, as well as our pizzas, calzones, and breads to the general public. People liked what we did, and liked our food. That success led to a groundswell among our customers for us to offer more food, and a dynamic dining experience. That led to Alpine Bakery and Trattoria’s opening five years ago, and since then we’ve served a full lunch and dinner menu, as well as a robust wine list featuring wines from regions all around the world. Today, after five years, our trattoria is humming with regulars that keep returning for their favorites, as well as new diners that come in to see what the fuss is all about, and to try our creative, and delicious spins on fresh, local ingredients for themselves. Our award winning bakery continues to provide cakes, pastries and breads to over 80 restaurants in Georgia and beyond.
We are excited to announce our expanded bakery with counter currently under construction in Woodstock. We plan to open sometime in early 2016. Thank you for making Alpine Bakery & Trattoria the success that it’s been over these five years. We value you and your business, and hope you’ll join us in September to help us celebrate!
Tender, young chard is most often used raw in salads while the more mature chard leaves and stalks are typically cooked or sautéed, mainly because they can have a bitter quality that mellows and becomes more delicate. Chard is a classified as a biennial and harvesting is a continuous process, as most species of chard produce three or more crops.
With dozens of varieties to choose from, peaches vary radically in color, flavor and size. But when it comes to classifications there are just two- freestone and clingstone. Freestone is when the stone or pit pulls easily away from the flesh. Clingstone, just like the name implies, is when the stone clings stubbornly to the flesh. Mainly, the Freestones are considered your garden variety and what is most commonly purchased in stores.