AFP/Sydney
Spectacular fireworks burst over Sydney Harbour to ring in the New Year at midnight, kicking off noisy celebrations for billions around the world to mark the end of 2011. Sydney’s harbour erupted in a blaze of colour and light on the stroke of midnight with a 12-minute pyrotechnic display drawing more than 1.5mn people to crowded foreshores and city landmarks. Shapes of clouds and hearts floated above Australia’s biggest city, while glittering lights cascaded off the focal point of the display, the Sydney Harbour Bridge, and fireworks launched from barges and rooftops exploded overhead. “Every year we make sure our celebrations are bigger and better than the one before,” Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore said. Australia’s colourful midnight display attracts global attention, but from New York’s glittering Times Square, to Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate and Hong Kong’s jostling harbour, revellers will gather to usher in 2012. New Zealand was among the first places to see in the New Year but heavy rain over most of the country put a damper on parties, with two major celebrations in the North Island cancelled due to the weather. In Apia, Samoans celebrated in the streets at midnight Thursday when, with a song, a prayer and the ringing of bells, they wiped Friday off the calendar this week in a historic leap across the dateline. The midnight switch from Thursday, December 29 to Saturday, December 31 brought the Pacific island nation in line with its main trading partners Australia and New Zealand who had been a day ahead. People crowded into the capital Apia to be photographed near the town clock on the stroke of midnight as the seamless transition across the dateline went without a hitch. “Tonight is a momentous and noteworthy occasion that will be documented and recorded in the history of Samoa,” Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi said a speech marking the change. He said alignment with Australia and New Zealand could only benefit Samoa, allowing direct trade five days a week with the regional powerhouses which are also home to large expatriate Samoan communities.