VOA News | Wednesday, January 1, 2025 
World welcomes 2025 with light shows, embraces and ice plunges 

From Sydney to Mumbai to Paris to Rio de Janeiro, communities around the world welcomed 2025 with spectacular light shows, embraces and ice plunges. The New Year’s Eve ball dropped in soggy Times Square, where thousands of revelers stuck it out in heavy rain to celebrate the start of 2025 in New York City. Countries in the South Pacific Ocean were the first to ring in the New Year, with midnight in New Zealand striking 18 hours before the ball dropped in Times Square. Auckland was the first major city to celebrate, with thousands thronging downtown or climbing the city’s ring of volcanic peaks for a fireworks vantage point. Conflict muted acknowledgements of the start of 2025 in places like the Middle East, Sudan and Ukraine. American Samoa will be among the last to welcome 2025, a full 24 hours after New Zealand. – Earliest fireworks – A few hours after Auckland, fireworks blasted off Australia’s Sydney Harbor Bridge and across the bay. More than a million people gathered at iconic Sydney Harbor for the celebration. British pop star Robbie Williams led a singalong with the crowd. The celebration also featured Indigenous ceremonies and performances that acknowledged the land’s first people. – American traditions, old and new – In New York City, crowds cheered and couples kissed when the ball weighing almost 6 metric tons and featuring 2,688 crystal triangles descended down a pole in Times Square. The celebration included musical performances by TLC and Jonas Brothers...Read more