When I was on the USS JFK, we spent one New Years in Naples, and they wouldn’t let anyone go ashore on liberty.
They said that the city had a reputation for that particular night, where it was unsafe to be anywhere in the city.
Apparently, there was some custom about throwing things out of a window to usher in the New Year. They said the Neapolitans took it to a different level and would everything and anything out of upper story windows, and you could get killed. Seriously. Anyway, that is what they told us and I don’t know if that is true, but I can say this: I sat on the flight deck watching Naples from anchorage that night, and it looked like what I thought Beirut must have looked like.
“They said that the city had a reputation for that particular night, where it was unsafe to be anywhere in the city.”
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Good thing you asked because I’m 3rd gen Sicilian lol. We visit our ancestral home every 4 years. Yeah, they do this every year. The reason (or belief) is you throw old clothes or anything that reflects the old year, and you leave open the windows to allow the good spirits IN. Same thing in the Philippines: you leave windows OPEN before new Year and in addition, one puts coins or money around the corners of the house so good luck comes in and STICKS around.