"Don't put new shoes on the table!"
"Don't walk under a ladder!"
"Don't leave a hanger on your bed!"
Growing up in an Italian household, I quickly grew accustomed to hearing the above warnings, and although I do not consider myself to be a very superstitious person, I often find myself removing any hangers from my bed just in case. Here are a few other stranger but interesting superstitions from around the world.
1. Eating 12 grapes at midnight on New Year's Eve will bring you a year of good luck.
When the clock strikes twelve in Spain, friends and family will gather amongst themselves as everyone tries to eat 12 grapes as quickly as possible to partake in this Spanish tradition and superstition. Choking on a few grapes is a small price to pay for 12 months of good luck!
2. Spilling water behind someone who has an important event brings good karma.
In Serbia, throwing water behind a person is a way to replenish the Earth and give back what has been given to you so that you may have good karma. This act also symbolizes fluidity and is believed to bring happy endings.
3. If you're single, avoid sitting at the corner of the dinner table.
At family dinners, some of my relatives will warn me not to sit at the corner of the dinner table. In Italy, if you're single and sit in the corner, it is believed that you will not get married.
4. Don't sit on a pillow in Malaysia.
A common Malaysian superstition is that sitting on a pillow will give you blisters and sores on your bottom.
5. If you drop a glove, never pick it up yourself.
Whenever you drop a glove, your lover should always be the one to pick it up. Picking up your own glove is bad luck. This superstition dates back to Medieval times when a lady would drop a glove in the hopes that a knight would pick it up.
6. The number of X's in your right palm is the number of children you will have.
The lines on your palms that intercept and form X's are believed to reveal how many kids you will have.
7. Yo-yos bring droughts.
In 1933 (right when yo-yos were introduced to Syria), Syria experienced a severe drought. Syrian leaders blamed the drought on the yo-yo's, causing many people to believe in this superstition. Yo-yo's have been banned throughout all of Syria ever since.
