One and a half tons of colorful confetti: how New Year was celebrated in New York
'01.01.2020'
Source: "Voice of America"
In New York, thousands of people watched one of the main New Year's traditions in the United States - the fall of a crystal ball in Times Square. Writes about it "Voice of America".
Each year, the ball’s falling ceremony has its own theme, which, as a rule, is associated with the most pressing problems of the outgoing year. This year, the organizers have chosen the theme of ecology and climate change. The honor to take part in the ball launch ceremony was awarded to students and teachers of New York schools that deal with environmental issues.
A meeting of 2020 was preceded by a whole galaxy of famous musicians: at various venues, viewers could watch the performances of the rock band X Ambassadors, the duo The Chainsmokers, the boy band Backstreet Boys and the indie band The Lumineers. Singers Gwen Stefani and Alanis Morisette, rapper Post Malone, South Korean band BTS and others also took part in the New Year's celebration.
Just after midnight, Frank Sinatra's composition “New York, New York” began to play over Times Square - another tradition of celebrating the New Year in Manhattan. Simultaneously with the onset of midnight, about one and a half tons of multi-colored confetti were dropped onto the square.
Times Square is one of the most popular New Years venues for Americans. The Americans take the best places to observe the crystal ball in advance: to be closer to the main New Year's event in the USA, many come to the square 8-12 hours before midnight.
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The fall tradition of a crystal ball mounted on the roof of a skyscraper at the intersection of Broadway and 42nd Street has been over a hundred years old. For the first time, a giant design ushered in a new year in 1907. Today, a three-meter ball, consisting of 2600 triangular crystal panels, is capable of reproducing millions of shades and color combinations.
On the streets of New York, several thousand law enforcement officers ensure the safety of citizens. According to John Miller, a spokesman for the Counter-Terrorism Unit of the New York City Police, “Times Square is arguably the safest place on Earth on New Year’s Eve because there’s so little security effort anywhere else.”
Festive events were also held in all states of the eastern part of the country.
