Kirollos Rezkallah

a fourth-year student at the Faculty of Applied Informatics

I'm from Egypt and am a Coptic Christian; we trace our roots back to the ancient Egyptians and Greeks. For us, New Year's is mainly a religious occasion, so we usually spend it in church prayers. At the same time, for many Egyptians, it's also a secular event, meaning celebrating and having fun. People often celebrate New Year's with friends, sometimes even more often than with family.

For me, I keep the main idea of celebrating with close ones and enjoying the moment. For the past five years, I've been celebrating New Year's in Russia and every time it was different, but two moments were especially memorable. One was when we gathered with friends in the dormitory, everyone prepared a dish, and we celebrated together. Honestly, it felt like the dining hall at Hogwarts – very cozy and warm. Another unforgettable New Year's celebration was a very traditional Russian celebration with my wife and her family in Moscow. We ate classic dishes – my favorite Olivier salad, a butter and caviar sandwich, and roast lamb. It was very authentic and homely.

What surprised me most was how important New Year's is in Russia – traditional dishes are on the table, and the whole family waits for midnight. The holiday also feels much more grandiose than in many other countries. Moscow truly feels on a completely different level – so many lights, Christmas trees, and free ice rinks in every corner of the city! And you have time to indulge in all the activities, since we celebrate not just one night, but several days. This New Year's I plan to celebrate with my family in the capital again, fully following Russian traditions.

Ramin Jalalpoor 

a third-year student at the Faculty of Control Systems and Robotics

I am from Afghanistan and for us the main holiday is Nowruz, our New Year, which is celebrated in March. This is a very bright and happy day that marks the start of the new season and renewal of nature. The streets and houses are decorated and on the day itself we visit friends and family, give gifts, and make our traditional dishes. Among the most popular ones are samanak (a dish made from wheat sprouts), kabuli pulao, sweets, and a special juice, haft mewa (meaning “seven fruits”), that contains seven ingredients.

I’ve celebrated New Year in Russia several times. When we celebrated it with friends, it was very fun and cozy: first, we had dinner together and then we walked around the city watching the fireworks. Even though Nowruz is celebrated in spring, I maintain the tradition; for instance, I cook traditional holiday dishes. However, I also happily adopted some Russian traditions: I decorate a small festive tree, listen to themed songs, and celebrate the holiday with my friends. For instance, we rang in 2025 on a dacha. 

It’s surprising that New Year is more important for Russians than Christmas. I like that the people here decorate their trees, exchange gifts, and celebrate the day together, with friends and family gathered around a big table. And New Year movies add to the special atmosphere.

I think that this year I’ll be celebrating with a small group of friends. We’ll cook something tasty, watch holiday shows, and go outside to watch the fireworks. The most important thing is to spend the day in a great company and in a good mood.

Bui Dinh Khai Nguyen

a first-year Master’s student at the Faculty of Control Systems and Robotics

I am from Vietnam and there, the year’s main holiday is Tết, the Lunar New Year. Its date isn’t fixed and changes every year according to the Lunar calendar. We decorate our homes with blooming peach, yellow apricot, and kumquat trees. On this day, we meet with family, give our friends and relatives “lucky money” in red envelopes, visit the graves of our ancestors, and eat traditional dishes, like bánh chưng, a sticky rice pie.

I got to celebrate New Year in Russia four times. For instance, last year, my friends and I hosted a festive dinner and several days before that I had been on a Yagodnoe trip with ITMO’s Buddy System. There, we played games to learn about holiday traditions in Russia and other countries. It was also my first time in a sauna – including a freezing-cold lake plunge.

In general, I try to combine two holiday traditions. I often walk around the city to feel the holiday atmosphere, and try traditional local dishes: Olivier salad, herring under fur coat, and duck stuffed with apples in a mustard sauce. It turned out that kholodets (a meat aspic – Ed.) is a traditional dish in both Russia and Vietnam. I was also surprised and impressed by another Russian tradition – making a wish as the clock strikes twelve. In this short time, you have to write your wish down, burn the paper, throw the ashes into your glass of champagne, and drink it. 

I will be celebrating this New Year’s in St. Petersburg. My friends and I are planning to get together, make a tasty dinner, and play board games. If the weather is nice, after midnight we will go to Palace Square to watch the fireworks and the Christmas tree.

Mert Er

a first-year Master’s student at the Faculty of Software Engineering and Computer Systems

In Turkey, we usually celebrate New Year’s with friends and family. We decorate a Christmas tree, then get together at a big table, have dinner, exchange small gifts, and together count down the last ten seconds to midnight. However, having celebrated the day four times in Russia, I’ve come to spend this day differently.

Most of all, I was surprised that it is a grand holiday here. Young people would typically spend time before midnight with their families and then go out on the town – this is very impressive! For instance, last year, my friends and I danced the night away at a club. It was unforgettable.

It’s also cool that you can celebrate not just one day, but for almost two weeks! You get to rest, see your friends, and even plan a small trip. In Turkey, New Year holidays typically last one day, but can be two or three days, if January 1 falls on a weekend.

I also found the story of Snegurochka (Ded Moroz’s granddaughter) quite interesting. It turns out that she’s just as important as Ded Moroz, especially for kids. Moreover, it’s curious that her origin and appearance are different among the peoples of Russia, but for everyone this character is an important part of the holiday culture.

This year, I will be celebrating with friends: we’ll decorate the Christmas tree together and then have a delicious dinner. I will be cooking several dishes from the city of Izmir and Aegean cuisine, such as İzmir köfte (spicy elongated meatballs with cumin and garlic in tomato sauce) and haydari, a yogurt-based sauce. This way, I will bring the tastes from my homeland to the table. And at midnight, I will videocall my family to celebrate the Turkish New Year.