Some people prefer traveling, going to resorts to ski or to places of entertainment on the New Year's Eve. National holidays From the nationalistic point of view, these are important days because they give people the opportunity to feel and exhibit national unity. On these days all ceremonial activities are carried out by official institutions like schools, state organizations or military forces, and people join these activities. Preparations in schools or military places start from a few weeks before with rehearsals for performances. Students and others who take part in the parades or shows are smartly and colorfully dressed.
Ceremonies follow the parades in halls, stadiums or school courtyards.
Poems are recited, and speeches are given, followed by fireworks or cannon shots. On this date in 1920 the Turkish Grand National Assembly was established in Ankara by Mustafa Kemal. As this was the written record of the transition from a religious community to a nation, this date was accepted as a national holiday. From 1929 onward it was declared as the first Children's Day in the World by Kemal Ataturk, as he acknowledged the importance of children for the futures of nations. On this date in 1919, Mustafa Kemal set foot on Anatolia at the Black Sea port of Samsun which marks the beginning of his organizing the nationalist forces before the Independence War.