New Year’s Celebrations: Australia Ushers in 2014 With Dazzling Fireworks
Australia has started to bring in the new year with dazzling fireworks and celebrations around the country.
About 1.5 million people have gathered at Sydney Harbour to watch the country’s biggest firework display take off from the Opera House and Harbour Bridge.
It is the first time in more than a decade that the Opera House has played a major role in the fireworks extravaganza.
Nearly 1,000 fireworks are being set off from four of the Opera House’s sails.
Artist Reg Mombassa, best known for his work for the surfwear brand Mambo, is the creative ambassador for this year’s display.
VIDEO: Watch the Sydney New Year’s Eve fireworks spectacular
Midnight has struck in New South Wales, Victoria and the Australian Capital Territory.
* Ok, so the dateline is a specific virtual geographic demarcation that never actually moves, but since I was a small child and first learned of it, the thought of the dateline moving around the world on New Year’s eve has been poetically pleasing to me.