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.
The Central Election Commission has amended election and recall regulations to require elected office candidates to provide proof that they have no Chinese citizenship, a Cabinet report said. The commission on Oct. 29 last year revised the Measures for the Permission of Family-based Residence, Long-term Residence and Settlement of People from the Mainland Area in the Taiwan Area (大陸地區人民在台灣地區依親居留長期居留或定居許可辦法), the Executive Yuan said in a report it submitted to the legislature for review. The revision requires Chinese citizens applying for permanent residency to submit notarial documents showing that they have lost their Chinese household record and have renounced — or have never
A magnitude 5.6 earthquake struck off the coast of Yilan County at 12:37pm today, with clear shaking felt across much of northern Taiwan. There were no immediate reports of damage. The epicenter of the quake was 16.9km east-southeast of Yilan County Hall offshore at a depth of 66.8km, Central Weather Administration (CWA) data showed. The maximum intensity registered at a 4 in Yilan County’s Nanao Township (南澳) on Taiwan’s seven-tier scale. Other parts of Yilan, as well as certain areas of Hualien County, Taipei, New Taipei City, Taoyuan, Hsinchu County, Taichung and Miaoli County, recorded intensities of 3. Residents of Yilan County and Taipei received
Taiwan has secured another breakthrough in fruit exports, with jujubes, dragon fruit and lychees approved for shipment to the EU, the Ministry of Agriculture said yesterday. The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency on Thursday received formal notification of the approval from the EU, the ministry said, adding that the decision was expected to expand Taiwanese fruit producers’ access to high-end European markets. Taiwan exported 126 tonnes of lychees last year, valued at US$1.48 million, with Japan accounting for 102 tonnes. Other export destinations included New Zealand, Hong Kong, the US and Australia, ministry data showed. Jujube exports totaled 103 tonnes, valued at
BIG SPENDERS: Foreign investors bought the most Taiwan equities since 2005, signaling confidence that an AI boom would continue to benefit chipmakers Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co’s (TSMC, 台積電) market capitalization swelled to US$2 trillion for the first time following a 4.25 percent rally in its American depositary receipts (ADR) overnight, putting the world’s biggest contract chipmaker sixth on the list of the world’s biggest companies by market capitalization, just behind Amazon.com Inc. The site CompaniesMarketcap.com ranked TSMC ahead of Saudi Aramco and Meta Platforms Inc. The Taiwanese company’s ADRs on Tuesday surged to US$385.75 on the New York Stock Exchange, as strong demand for artificial intelligence (AI) applications led to chip supply constraints and boost revenue growth to record-breaking levels. Each TSMC ADR represents
RSS