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Coming from Scotland, where Christmas is a far less important holiday than  the days we call Hogmanay (December 31) and Ne’erday (January 1), I should perhaps first introduce our traditions. At midnight on Hogmanay, we toast each other with whisky. After that, we visit friends and family, drink more and sing traditional songs. It is important that the first person to enter a home is tall, dark and handsome, and that all guests brings gifts, usually whisky, a cake or coal. The traditional greeting is ‘Happy new year and lang may your lum reek’, which translates as ‘Long may your chimney smoke’. As I am unable to first foot Tuva in Ne’erday, I guess writing this is the next-best thing. I would like to send my best wishes for the coming year to everybody I met when I was in Tuva in May. - to all the taxi drivers who drove me around Kyzyl when it was too cold to go outside, too snowy to walk, too wet to stand still and too hot to sit around, - to the journalists who sat me down in resturannts and clubs and interrogated me about British customs, politics and way of life. I hope my answers were helpful. To recap: the British are friendly, we hate our politicians, don’t like our weather and have terrible taste in food, - to all the people who cooked for me. Fantastic meat, fish and dumplings. Terrific mustard. But I have not had any mayonnaise since I returned home. I wonder what that means? Just to be polite, I don’t think I will say anything about fermented sour milk, - to all the musicians who gave me so much to write about, so much inspiration. Khoomei, folk, blues, rock, punk, even disco! So much to choose from in such a short time in such a small place. My strongest impression is of a healthy culture determined to preserve its unique qualities and to develop so that it can be exported to the world. It will be difficult and you will encounter many obstacle, but good luck in your endeavours, - to the hustlers who showed me how to play Russki billiards. Thank you for not taking all my money! - to all at the Luna nightclub. Not just for the music, the food and drink ... I have to say that on all my travels around the world, I have never been in a club where quite as many incredibly beautiful women can be found on a regular basis. Yes, I loved the Tuvan countryside, the eagles, the steppes, the mountains, the rivers, the skies, but, oh my, the number of times I fell in love in that one nightclub! I must learn to speak the language before I return... Such a small country, so far from so much of the world, yet with so much to offer. I hope 2006 brings much more to Tuva, that more people get to hear of your fantastic culture and of the natural wonders that will keep people coming back to visit. Many thanks for your hospitality, and lang may your lums reek. David Hutcheon
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Best Wishes to People of Tuva
