A Shaky World Rolls Out the Red Carpet to 2022 with Light

Even young kids can’t wait until they’re old enough to stay up ‘til midnight and usher in the new year.  Unfortunately, this year the world is caught up in a bout of Groundhog’s day.  We desperately wanted 2020 to be over with the hope that Covid would recede in our rearview mirrors.  Now we want 2022 to do what 2021 didn’t and release us from the tyranny of a virus. The good news is that fireworks as celebratory markers returned, which is progress; but the mood around the globe at 12:01am January 1, 2022 was as much cautious as it was festive. 

With its climate and zestful spirit, there’s nothing like New Year’s Eve on Rio’s Copacabana Beach.  Crowds heralding in the new year have been known to swell to three million people.   This year, omicron and rainy weather reduced attendance to just a fraction of pre-pandemic days.  There was one noticeable advantage to the decrease in revelers.  The amount of garbage collected the next day fell by 50% to 167 tons.   

Sydney Australia, who considers itself the capital of New Year’s Eve, came roaring back with sensational fireworks surrounding its timelessly beautiful opera house.  Igniting six tons of explosives between a 9pm and the midnight fireworks extravaganza, the two shows couldn’t help but be over the top.  Once again, the numbers of people who could attend the celebration were greatly reduced even though thousands gathered together at remote viewing sites to take in the celebrations real time. 

Vaccination requirements and scaled back numbers also put a damper on the ball drop in New York’s Times Square.  Even with their wacky Dr. Seuss hats handed out by Planet Fitness, most people looked like they were at a party they were obligated to go to.  By the time the clock struck 12, New Year’s felt more like New Year’s. Chicago promised some of the grandest fireworks in the city’s history.  Rather than go their usual route and feature fireworks downtown along Lake Michigan, the city decided to use the Chicago River and the bridges that span it as launch points.  Coordinated fireworks exploded along a 1.5 mile stretch for 5 minutes while celebrants looked on from nearby perches. The televised experience proved disappointing but it was better than having nothing at all.

Things didn’t look in the least bit deflated at the Burj Khalifa in Dubai.  If anything on earth could compete with the choreographed beauty of Sydney Australia’s annual explosion of color and light, it’s the incredible combined laser show and fireworks display at the Burj.   The UAE’s blatant self-promotion during the show is understandably irksome, but the exceptional quality of the fireworks themselves help quell any residual annoyance. 

It’s hard to find anyone who’ll commit to a definitive statement about the harm of fireworks to the environment.  Tiny particulate matter smaller than 2.5 micrometers, nitrate and ammonia are a concern.  Compared to the energy we use to drive our cars and heat our homes, the damage of fireworks to the environment is essentially miniscule.  To safeguard the future, we may still want to curtail the use of both to mitigate harm. 

As pervasive as fireworks have become as the vehicle to carry us from one year to the next, they aren’t ubiquitous.  Millions around the planet will be surprised to learn that when the new year is rung in, there are no fireworks at the Eiffel Tower in Paris.  Instead, Parisians gather at the Champs Elysees to perform their mass toast to new beginnings.  And even though fireworks can be found in countless Italian squares on New Year’s Eve, the one tradition that has most stood the test of time is to wear red underwear for good luck.

Stevie Wills

City Pleasures