New Year’s Eve 2021 around Australia and the world
London’s New Year fireworks rivalled Australia’s after they unveiled a lion’s face made from a group of drones. See the photos and video.
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The world is ushering in 2022 after another tumultuous and pandemic-ridden year capped by new restrictions, soaring case numbers, but with renewed hope for better times ahead.
NEW YORK
Along with the annual Times Square concert and ball drop, the Big Apple also welcomed its new mayor, Eric Adams.
Adams, a retired police officer and former Brooklyn borough president, told the crowd: “New York is back,” moments after he was sworn in as the city’s 110th mayor in Times Square following the New Year’s Eve ball drop.
He succeeds outgoing Mayor de Blasio, who was term-limited out of office and plans to run for governor.
Other stars took to the stage including Ashanti, Ja Rule and Journey.
BRITAIN
Britain also endured scaled down celebrations to welcome 2022 but still went out with a bang as parties went ahead across the country and fireworks returned to the capital.
The sky above London was lit up as thousands of onlookers watched along the Thames.
The countries that make up the UK have differing covid measures in place over the festive period. In Scotland, a maximum of 500 people can attend outdoor events where physical distancing of one metre is in place meaning the traditional Edinburgh Hogmanay celebrations have been cancelled.
The rule-of-six in regulated premises, such as bars, restaurants, cinemas and theatres, was reintroduced in Wales on Boxing Day along with the closure of nightclubs.
In England, the government has not introduced any new measures and chosen to permit social gatherings but has cancelled some events, such as the planned celebrations in Trafalgar Square.
ITALY
The Italian capital Rome enjoyed a relatively festive New Year compared to many other European cities.
RUSSIA
The traditional celebrations at Moscow’s Red Square were cancelled but there were fireworks in the Russian capital nonetheless.
GREECE
NORTH KOREA
North Korea marked the New Year with midnight fireworks at Kim Il Sung Square in its capital, Pyongyang.
Thousands of people gathered to watch the show and live performances.
LIVE: North Korean TV is about to ring in the new year! pic.twitter.com/OrhHcuwjTV
— NK NEWS (@nknewsorg) December 31, 2021
#WATCH | North Korea welcomes #NewYear2022 with a firework display near the Taedong River
— ANI (@ANI) December 31, 2021
(Source: Reuters) pic.twitter.com/d29i9Qw7Ss
Earlier, the Rodong Sinmun state-run newspaper ran photographs of flower shops in Pyongyang crowded with mask-wearing customers buying blooms for the celebrations.
North Korea sealed it borders after the pandemic began and has not officially reported a single case of Covid-19.
SOUTH KOREA
The vibe was less upbeat across the border in South Korea’s capital, Seoul, where the annual New Year’s Eve bell-ringing ceremony was cancelled for the second straight year due to a surge in cases. An image showing Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon and others hitting a huge bell to welcome in the new year was broadcast across the country. However, the festive spirit was still on display with many revellers taking to the streets to the countdown lighting show, which included beams of light projected from the 123-storey Lotte World Tower skyscraper in Seoul. It came as authorities announced an extension of stricter distancing rules for two weeks to tackle a persistent surge in Covid infections.
JAPAN
Revellers flocked to bars, nightclubs, and lounges throughout Tokyo to welcome in 2022 with atleast one of its iconic countdown parties cancelled over Covid fears.
While Tokyo’s famous Shibuya entertainment district banned year-end parties, bars and restaurants were bustling with people throughout the city.
Fumio Kishida, the Japanese prime minister, took to his official YouTube channel to urge people to wear masks at parties and limit the number of people attending.
Across Japan, people thronged temples and shrines, most of them wearing masks on New Year’s Eve.
Earlier in the day, shintoist priests arrived to hold a ritual in preparation for the New Year at the Meiji Shrine in the city.
CHINA
Fireworks exploded above high-rise buildings to celebrate New Year in Hong Kong, China.
Masses of people wearing face masks also attended a New Year’s countdown at an amusement park in Beijing, in mainland China.
DUBAI
In one of its, by now, customary displays of uber enthusiastic celebrations, Dubai claimed to have set a new world record by hosted more than 30 fireworks shows across the Emirates to welcome 2022.
The display at Expo 2020 Dubai included a Times Square-inspired midnight ball drop that counted down to the New Year.
Drone lights were also used to light up the sky.
GERMANY
Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate, in the heart of the city, was the centre of NY celebrations. But with restrictions in effect it was a TV-only event.
The German capital’s kickoff of the New Year, as in the previous instance, was a more toned-down affair than the one traditionally held, with no public audience allowed for its stage show and fireworks, the latter planned as a much smaller version than usual to avoid attracting non-socially-distanced crowds.
A broadcast-only edition replaced the larger party, which usually attracts around 60,000 visitors, due to restrictions amidst the ongoing coronavirus.
FRANCE
The new year received a quite welcome in Paris after celebrations were cancelled.
From December 31, 2021, face masks have been made mandatory for pedestrians in Paris and other cities.
Here is how countries have so far brought in the New Year.
NEW ZEALAND
Celebrations began in the Pacific Islands before Auckland became the first major city to illuminate the skies with a light show from its iconic Auckland Harbour Bridge. The event was scaled down from previous years as Covid restrictions forced the cancellation of the popular fireworks spectacle off the Sky Tower.
AUSTRALIA
SYDNEY
As always, Sydney Harbour and its icons the Harbour Bridge and Opera House were the stars of the fireworks displays in one of the first major cities to welcome in the new year.
MELBOURNE
After a very tough 2021, Melbournians jumped at the chance to welcome in a new year, that promises an end to stringent health restrictions.
BRISBANE
South Bank in Brisbane was the place to be for the best fireworks display in the Sunshine State as families and couple gathered by the Brisbane River.
ADELAIDE
The traditional BBL match featured the home town Strikers was again a hit in Adelaide, as was Light Up in Rymill Park.
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Originally published as New Year’s Eve 2021 around Australia and the world
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