2013 New Year's Eve Celebrations

T@PT is back after a short break to welcome the New Year!... Here follows an account of the New Year's Eve Celebrations in two major cities of the world: London and NYC!

LONDON

An enormous firework display in central London has kick-started Britain's New Year celebrations in style. The spectacle in London saw a quarter-of-a-million people gather on the banks of the Thames to watch the 11-minute firework show which followed the traditional counting down of the final seconds by Big Ben. Clips from the 2012 Olympic Games featured in the fireworks display over the London Eye. Mayor of London Boris Johnson said: 'What an amazing end to an incredible year.' Watched by hundreds of thousands in the capital and millions around the globe, London has proved, yet again, that it can pull off spectacular world-class events in style. Many of them waited for hours to secure the best viewpoints on the banks of the Thames, but fortunately it was a dry and mild night. Source: MailOnline (abridged and adapted)

Photos credits: Getty Images

NEW YORK CITY

Every year as the clock nears midnight on December 31st, the eyes of the world turn once more to the dazzling lights and bustling energy of Times Square. Anticipation runs high. New Year's Eve at the symbolic center of New York City has become more than just a celebration - it's a global tradition. The world holds its breath... and cheers as the clocks strike twelve. As the famous New Year's Eve Ball descends from the flagpole atop One Times Square, an estimated one million people in Times Square, millions nationwide and over a billion watching throughout the world are united in bidding a collective farewell to the departing year, and expressing our joy and hope for the year ahead. Source: TimesSquareNYC (abridged)

Psy performing in Times Square during New Year's Eve celebrations
Photo credits: The Associated Press

Photo credits: Postman 1107 via Flickr

Confetti is dropped on revelers at midnight
Photo credits: Reuters

Fireworks, concerts and celebrations unfolded around the globe to ring in the new year and, for some, to wring out the old. Here follows a selection of photos by The Telegraph. Just follow THIS LINK to watch New Year's Eve celebrations around the world in pictures. Time Magazine also presents its selection of the New Year's Eve celebrations in this fantastic photo gallery. And may you have an awesome 2013!

The Big Apple

Many cities have their original nicknames or are known for something special. Chicago is called the Windy City, Las Vegas is Sin City, and, of course, New York City 'The City that never sleeps' or most commonly known 'the Big Apple'. The others make sense, but why is NYC nicknamed after a fruit? According to Heather Cross, from the About.com Guide to New York City Travel, 'racing, jazz musicians and a tourism campaign all play a part in NYC's nickname'. 

                                                                                                    photo credit: sdh_zh via photo pin cc

"This commonly asked question got me wondering, why do we call New York City the Big Apple? While I've seen several apple trees in New York City, I don't particularly recall them as being in notable quantity. There are certainly more pigeons than apples in New York City, but we don't call New York City the 'Big Pigeon.' As with anything New York, there are many opinions and contradictions.

In the early 1920s, 'apple' was used in reference to the many racing courses in and around New York City. Apple referred to the prizes being awarded for the races, as these were important races, the rewards were substantial.

Based on the research of Barry Popik, the use of 'Big Apple' to refer to New York City became clearer. Popik found that a writer for the New York Morning Telegraph, John Fitzgerald, referred to New York City's races 'Around the Big Apple.' It is rumored that Fitzgerald got the term from jockeys and trainers in New Orleans who aspired to race on New York City tracks, referring to the 'Big Apple.' In the late 1920s and early 1930s, New York City's jazz musicians began referring to New York City as the 'Big Apple.' An old saying in show business was 'There are many apples on the tree, but only one Big Apple.' New York City being the premier place to perform was referred to as the Big Apple. A 1971 campaign to increase tourism to New York City adopted the Big Apple as an officially recognized reference to New York City. The campaign featured red apples in an effort to lure visitors to New York City. It was hoped that the red apples would serve as a bright and cheery image of New York City, in contrast to the common belief that New York City was dark and dangerous. Since then, New York City has officially been The Big Apple. In recognition of Fitzgerald, the corner of 54th & Broadway, where Fitzgerald lived for 30 years, was renamed 'Big Apple Corner' in 1997."

photo credit: hernan.seoane via photo pin cc

To finish this post, I invite you on a tour around the 'city that never sleeps' on the company of two very well known New Yorkers: Alicia Keys and Jay-Z. 'Empire State of Mind' is a fantastic tribute to this dazzling city! Do enjoy!...

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