Hundreds of thousands of revelers rang in the new year from frigid Times Square in New York as the famous Waterford crystal ball dropped, signaling the end of a historic and troubled year that saw the election of the first black US president and the worst global economic crisis in decades.
As the clock struck midnight, a tonne of confetti rained down, while the partygoers hugged and kissed.
“We're worried about the economy but hoping for the best,” said Lisa Mills, of Danville, Ohio, visiting Times Square on Wednesday night with her husband, Ken, and 17-year-old daughter, Kara.
Former US president Bill Clinton and Senator Hillary Clinton, who will become US president-elect Barack Obama's secretary of state on Jan. 21, helped New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg lower the famous Waterford crystal ball atop 1 Times Square for the countdown to midnight.
Revelers also braved freezing conditions in London to see the New Year fireworks spectacular on the banks of the River Thames, which engulfed the London Eye in a blaze of color.
An estimated 400,000 people lined the embankments to catch the 10-minute salvo, which lit up the misty night sky over the British capital, while the Scottish capital Edinburgh's traditional Hogmanay knees-up opened a year-long “Homecoming” festival aimed at the country's diaspora.
About 100,000 people gathered in the main square of Bratislava to celebrate Slovakia's becoming the 16th member of the eurozone, exactly 10 years after the single European currency was introduced.
Two 18-year-old students, David and Laco, were selling kisses for a euro each among a crowd of partying people sporting flashing headbands, hats and colorful wigs.
In Prague, the Czech Republic took over the EU presidency from France at midnight as a top government official illuminated a giant pendulum on a hill above Prague with blue and yellow.
In Venice, some 30,000 welcomed in the new year with a collective kiss.
The new year also brought tragedy, as rescue workers in Thailand said at least 59 New Year's revelers died in a fire that swept through a popular nightclub in Bangkok, with at least 200 injured.
In the splendor of St Peter's Basilica, Pope Benedict XVI called for “soberness and solidarity” this year. During a year's end vespers service on Wednesday evening, the pope said these times were “marked by uncertainty and worry for the future,” but urged people not to be afraid and to help each other.
Other people tried to forget their troubles, for at least one night.
Six luxury cruise liners floated off Rio's famed Copacabana beach as fireworks erupted over heads of approximately 2 million Brazilian revelers.
Roberto Felipe, a 22-year-old construction worker, was shirtless with a beer in hand as he watched the spectacle.
“I hope that tonight we begin the end of war and crisis,” said Felipe, who was wearing sunglasses at midnight. “I hope that 2009, which is bringing your President Obama to the scene, will help us all have a better life.”
Some US New Year's Eve festivities fell victim to hard times, and those that remained felt somewhat subdued. The US economic troubles made many people less interested in giving last year an expensive send-off.
Public celebrations were canceled in communities from Louisville, Kentucky, to Reno, Nevada, and promoters in Miami Beach, Florida, reported slower ticket sales than expected for celebrity-studded parties that they say would have sold out in past years.
Tourism officials in Las Vegas expected more tourists in Sin City to celebrate New Year's Eve than last year, despite economic worries that have meant fewer visitors last year, Mayor Oscar Goodman said.
Sydney, Australia, was the world's first major city to ring in the new year, showering its shimmering harbor with a kaleidoscope of light that drew cheers from more than a million people.
In Ireland, thousands of Dubliners and tourists gathered outside the capital's oldest medieval cathedral, Christ Church, to hear the traditional New Year's Eve bell-ringing.
“It is a wondrously beautiful note on which to end what, for many people, has been an awfully out-of-tune 2008,” said Gary Maguire, a volunteer pulling the ropes.
On Dublin's north side, Danny McCoy, a construction worker, who was recently laid-off mulled over his waning fortunes as he got his hair cut.
“Last New Year's I had a fat wallet. I didn't have to worry about paying for my round, never mind the taxi fare home,” he said. “Tonight I've a mind to keep the festivities close to home, because I can't really afford to do anything.”
In Malaysia, the government — mindful of the shaky economy — chose not to sponsor any celebration at all.
In Hong Kong, thousands thronged around Victoria Harbor for a midnight fireworks display, but those with investments linked to collapsed investment bank Lehman Brothers — which filed the biggest corporate bankruptcy in US history in mid-September — were finding little joy.
In Iceland, where people have been angry over the country's collapsed economy, demonstrators forced an annual New Year's Eve broadcast featuring the prime minister off the air, storming the hotel where it was being filmed. They threw fireworks and water balloons at police, who responded with pepper spray.
In India, many were happy to see the end of 2008 after a series of terrorist attacks in several cities, culminating in the three-day siege in Mumbai that killed 164 people.
“The year 2008 can best be described as a year of crime, terrorist activities, bloodshed and accidents,” said Tavishi Srivastava, 51, an office worker in the northern Indian city of Lucknow. “I sincerely hope that 2009 will be a year of peace and progress.”
In Athens, police said arsonists attacked at least 10 banks and two car dealerships amid the celebrations, but no arrests or injuries were reported. Cities in Greece had riots recently over the fatal shooting of a teenage boy by police.
Celebrations were muted in China, where fireworks and feasting are reserved mainly for the Lunar New Year, which this year begins on Jan. 26.
At midnight in Japan, temples rang their bells 108 times — representing the 108 evils being struck out — as worshippers threw coins as offerings and prayed.
FREEDOM OF NAVIGATION: The UK would continue to reinforce ties with Taiwan ‘in a wide range of areas’ as a part of a ‘strong unofficial relationship,’ a paper said The UK plans to conduct more freedom of navigation operations in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea, British Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs David Lammy told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. British Member of Parliament Desmond Swayne said that the Royal Navy’s HMS Spey had passed through the Taiwan Strait “in pursuit of vital international freedom of navigation in the South China Sea.” Swayne asked Lammy whether he agreed that it was “proper and lawful” to do so, and if the UK would continue to carry out similar operations. Lammy replied “yes” to both questions. The
Two US House of Representatives committees yesterday condemned China’s attempt to orchestrate a crash involving Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim’s (蕭美琴) car when she visited the Czech Republic last year as vice president-elect. Czech local media in March last year reported that a Chinese diplomat had run a red light while following Hsiao’s car from the airport, and Czech intelligence last week told local media that Chinese diplomats and agents had also planned to stage a demonstrative car collision. Hsiao on Saturday shared a Reuters news report on the incident through her account on social media platform X and wrote: “I
SHIFT PRIORITIES: The US should first help Taiwan respond to actions China is already taking, instead of focusing too heavily on deterring a large-scale invasion, an expert said US Air Force leaders on Thursday voiced concerns about the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) missile capabilities and its development of a “kill web,” and said that the US Department of Defense’s budget request for next year prioritizes bolstering defenses in the Indo-Pacific region due to the increasing threat posed by China. US experts said that a full-scale Chinese invasion of Taiwan is risky and unlikely, with Beijing more likely to pursue coercive tactics such as political warfare or blockades to achieve its goals. Senior air force and US Space Force leaders, including US Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink and
Czech officials have confirmed that Chinese agents surveilled Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) during her visit to Prague in March 2024 and planned a collision with her car as part of an “unprecedented” provocation by Beijing in Europe. Czech Military Intelligence learned that their Chinese counterparts attempted to create conditions to carry out a demonstrative incident involving Hsiao, which “did not go beyond the preparation stage,” agency director Petr Bartovsky told Czech Radio in a report yesterday. In addition, a Chinese diplomat ran a red light to maintain surveillance of the Taiwanese
RSS