We went to Marina Bay in Singapore on Christmas Day and considered going back on New Years Eve.
My cat said, "It's raining New Year's Eve. Let's stay home and watch the telly." Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.
Sydney fireworks on the computer, three hours before New Year in Singapore. Photo by Angela Lansbury.
New Year celebrations - What happens, happened where and when? Where can I see pictures? Next year, what should I see, where could I be?
Answers
In theory, just do a timezone check to see which cities celebrate in which order.
The big surprise, made obvious from a coloured map, is that Portugal is aligned with the UK (including England, Wales, Scotland and N Ireland Belfast, and Dublin in Eire).
You tube has separate videos of many countries, plus some roundups. So does the UK's Daily Mail. On What's ap from Singapore I was sent Auld Lang Syne sung in Chinese, with a piano in white outline and a white-suited painist singer rising from the floor to applause.
Here's what you can see now - and maybe plan your viewing next year, or plan next year's New Year trip.
Wikipedia has photo from previous years. (Why none from recent times?)
Countdown
A few small islands in the Pacific are first to see the New Year in. However, New Zealand's capital is the first big city.
New Zealand - Auckland's Sky Tower turns into a fountain of light.
Australia - Sydney - over harbour bridge - rainbow colours to symbolise recent legislation permitting homosexual marriage. 11 hours ahead of GMT.
Australia - Melbourne (traditional rival city to Sydney) over the Yarra river.
Accident on a boat display, which exploded and the whole thing erupted in all directions in less than five minutes, sending police to evacuate the beach. Fortunately only minor injuries.
Asia
Islands:
Philippines, capital Manila, several people injured by firecrackers (banned in Singapore)
Japan - Tokyo.
North Korea - capital Pyongyang.
South Korea - capital Seoul, fireworks from the top of the Lotte World Tower.
Hong Kong - Victoria harbour.
Taiwan - capital Taipei.
Singapore - Marina Bay - glimpses of the triple towers of landmark Marina Bay Sands complex, spectators carrying see-thru umbrellas and wearing transparent ponchos. In Singapore we are eight hours ahead of the family back home in the UK. (Seven in summer when the UK is on Summertime.)
Petronas Twin Towers, Malaysia. Wikipedia.
Indonesia, capital Jakarta, the city organised a mass wedding ceremony for New Year's Eve, with sponsors providing gifts of gold for the poor. Reminiscent of Saint Nicholas who provided money so poor brides could marry. (One account in Wikipedia says the bishop didn't merely give the girls a husband and thus motherhood and a family, but saved them from becoming prostitutes to pay off their father's debts.) A similar mass wedding has taken place in India where a businessman paid for the wedding of an employee who died, then in following years went on to pay for other orphaned girls who had no father to pay for the wedding and dowry.)
Middle East
Dubai - Burj Khalifa, lights instead of fireworks. (In a previous year a fire took place in a nearby building.) Dubai is the most populous city (the one with the most people) in the UAE, a federation of seven monarchies.
UAE (United Arab Republic), has as its capital Abu Dhabi.
Israel - New Year on January st not a national holiday, as they celebrate Jewish New Year or Rosh HaShonah later.
Russia - Moscow - central Red Square and over St Basil's Cathedral, clock tower, and bridge, near the Kremlin. (Other cities celebrate earlier, such as Omsk, three hours earlier.)
Turkey
Partly in Asia, partly in Europe, capital Instanbul. Red flowers and wreaths were laid to remember those who died at a night club a year ago. Then celebrations welcoming 2018 started.
Western Europe and the Mediterranean
Greece - Athens - Acropolis (Latin for hilltop) over Parthenon, an hour before London, 23.00 hrs GMT.
Germany - Berlin - lights over Brandenburg Gate (yes, the same name as the Concerto)
France - Paris - Arc de Tiomphe lit, people throng the Champs Elysees
Italy - Rome
Lithuania - Vilnius, Cathedral Square.
Spain - capital Madrid, over the clock of Puerta del Sol (Gate of the Sun); Gibraltar, like Spain, an hour ahead of GMT on New Year's Eve.
Austria - Vienna, around the Familienkirche (kirche is church but actually a cathedral)
Lithuania - Vilnius, Cathedral Square
Malta - historic walled city of Valletta, capital.
Portugal
Same time as UK. (One hour different from Spain - we drove across the southern border from Portugal to Spain one year and thought we had an hour and a half to eat supper and could not understand why the Spanish hotel restaurant manager was in a panic and rushing us so that we should finish our dinner in time for the staff to start their Christmas Eve dinner)
Gibraltar
UK
London - lights over Houses of Parliament
Edinburgh - lights over Edinburgh Castle - sounds of singing Auld Lang Syne
South Africa
South America
Brazil - Rio, celebrations on Copacabana beach. (I used to have trouble remembering how to say and spell Copacabana. Then I divided it into syllables: cop-a-cabana.)
USA
New York (city), New York (state), Times Square, the ball drops.
Las Vegas, fireworks from the tops of seven hotels: The Venetian, Treasure Island, the MGM ...
After the shooting of a Country music festival earlier in 2017, every policeman and woman was on duty to keep people safe.
Useful websites
https://www.timeanddate.com/counters/newyearmap.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=78_S_F3vf18 (Sydney, Australia)
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5224951/Thousands-ring-2018-Las-Vegas-tight-security.html
PS Chinese New Year will be Friday Feb 16 and Saturday 17th 2018, the year of the dog.
Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker
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