Goodbye 2020! Somewhat subdued

Sydney, Australia. Image:Twitter@indiatv

Goodbye 2020! Somewhat subdued New Year celebrations kick off around the globe (Watch)

Celebrations have been notably muted because of the coronavirus pandemic and the accompanying restrictions.

Goodbye 2020! Somewhat subdued

Sydney, Australia. Image:Twitter@indiatv

New Year celebrations have kicked off across the globe with the Pacific Island nations and New Zealand becoming the first to say goodbye to turbulent 2020.

This year’s celebrations, however, are expected to be just shadows of the usual festivities in many locations due to the pervasive and enduring anti-coronavirus restrictions.

Island nations, located immediately west of the International Date Line in the Pacific Ocean, became the first to ring in 2021.

All in all, the new year is ushered in nearly 40 times across the globe across different time zones.

The Pacific Island nation of Samoa was first to welcome the new year, marking the occasion with a fireworks display.

A massive fireworks and laser show has been held in Auckland, New Zealand.

As is tradition, the display revolved largely around the city’s most prominent landmark – the 328-meter-tall (1,076 feet) Sky Tower.

The New Year celebrations continued by Australia, with the largest fireworks display held in the city of Sydney.

This year, however, the celebrations turned out to be quite muted, as large gatherings remain off-limits in the country which has rolled out some of the toughest Covid-19 restrictions in the world.

While the fireworks went off above the Sydney Opera House and the Harbour Bridge, as usual, the streets of the city remained largely empty, with domestic – let alone foreign – travel remaining heavily restricted in Australia.