Hundreds of thousands of revelers in chilly weather in Times Square cheered when an 11,875-pound (5,400-kilogram) crystal ball covered with more than 32,000 bulbs dropped at midnight, ushering in the new decade and ending 10 years marred by war, recession, terrorism and threats of environmental catastrophe. Fireworks were set off and 3,000 pounds (1,360 kilograms) of confetti were scattered when the gigantic New Year's Eve ball dropped. Many people wore conical party hats and 2010 glasses that blinked colorfully, and some were jumping up and down to keep warm. “Much happiness and for the world, much peace.” From fireworks over Sydney's famous bridge to balloons sent aloft in Tokyo, revelers across the globe at least temporarily shelved worries about the future to bid farewell to “The Noughties.” Paris jazzed up the Eiffel Tower with a multicolored, disco-style light display as the world basked in New Year's festivities with hopes that 2010 and beyond will bring more peace and prosperity. “The year that is ending has been difficult for everybody. No continent, no country, no sector has been spared,” French President Nicolas Sarkozy said on national TV in a New Year's Eve address. “Even if the tests are unfinished, 2010 will be a year of renewal,” he added. German Chancellor Angela Merkel warned her people that the start of the new decade won't herald immediate relief from the global economic ills. South Africa's president, Jacob Zuma, was more ebullient, saying the World Cup is set to make 2010 the country's most important year since the end of apartheid in 1994. At midnight in Rio de Janeiro, about 2 million people gathered along the 2.5-mile (4 kilometer) Copacabana beach to watch a huge fireworks display and listen to dozens of music acts and DJs. In New York's Times Square, organizers mixed about 10,000 handwritten wishes into the confetti that was dropped over the crowds. They include appeals for the safe return of troops fighting overseas and continued employment. The last year also offered its reminders of the decade's fight against terrorism, wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and more recently, rising militant violence in Pakistan. Spain rang in the start of its six-month presidency of the Eropean Union with a sound and light show illuminating Sol square in Madrid and images from the 27 member states projected onto the central post office building. Despite frigid temperatures, thousands gathered along the River Thames for fireworks were fired from the London Eye attraction just as Big Ben struck midnight - an hour after continental western Europe.
