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Berlin (dpa) - In the hope of an end to the corona pandemic, millions of people in Europe have welcomed the year 2021.
In Germany many streets looked like they had been swept empty, there were fewer people on the road than usual on New Year's Eve.
Despite the ban on sale, there was bang.
Fireworks also shone in the sky.
Larger incidents were initially not reported.
The biggest New Year's Eve party in Germany and the fireworks display at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin had been canceled.
Private celebrations were only allowed on a small scale nationwide.
In Germany, there is a lockdown for the second time since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.
There was a general ban on selling fireworks before New Year's Eve.
The main aim was to relieve the hospitals of additional patients.
ZDF broadcast its traditional New Year's Eve show live from the Brandenburg Gate, but without an audience on site, the applause came from the tape.
TV viewers could apply to be shown on video in the program “Willkommen 2021”.
Álvaro Soler, Vicky Leandros and Jürgen Drews appeared in the show program with their daughter Joelina.
Thomas Gottschalk greeted me from Baden-Baden via video switch.
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Many firecrackers and rockets popped off in Berlin in the evening hours.
The accident hospital tweeted about 8 p.m. from the first patient with "# Böllerschmerz".
More reports of injuries followed.
But in the assessment of the police that it was unusually quiet, nothing changed after midnight: "The situation cannot be compared with previous years," said police spokeswoman Patricia Brämer.
"We would like to thank the many Berliners who have adhered to the regulations."
Still, the police had plenty to do.
In many places the officials had to break up smaller groups of people again and again.
More than 80 people were temporarily detained by the police for violating the Infection Protection Act, a spokesman said.
At least three officers were slightly injured in action, but were able to continue the service.
Most Berliners celebrated the New Year in a small group.
The measures met with understanding from many.
Some, like 49-year-old Stefan, who was walking with a friend in Neukölln, even thought it was “very good that there is less shooting”.
Two 25-year-old women were also able to “fully understand” the ban, but were also a little happy about the civil disobedience they saw on the street.
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And how else was celebrated in Germany?
Tends to be calm.
"No comparison with previous years," said a police spokesman in Mainz.
Downtown Düsseldorf, where firecrackers were prohibited, was deserted until shortly before midnight.
From Hamburg it was said from the location service that officials had occasionally collected fireworks, but the streets were initially very empty.
So it was a bit like the TV New Year's Eve classic "Dinner for One", where two people and friends who are not even there get drunk.
Some cooked fondue for two, others ordered the gourmet menu from the restaurant to take home or met the family in a champagne mood for a video conference.
In many countries around the world, New Year's Eve celebrations were more cautious than usual due to the corona pandemic. In Italy and France, there were nightly curfews.
Many parties and fireworks have been canceled, including festivities in Amsterdam, London and Rio de Janeiro.
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In the Italian city of Bergamo, which had a particularly large number of deaths in the first Corona wave in spring, some did not feel like celebrating.
However, those responsible there organized a special event with TV recording to symbolically burn the corona virus - or rather the whole of 2020, as it was called.
In Greece, the turn of the year was celebrated nationwide with huge fireworks - there was far more roaring than before.
The media reported "one of the most spectacular pyrotechnic shows of all time".
Fireworks on New Year's Eve are by no means as common in Greece as in Germany.
The Greeks traditionally play cards on New Year's Eve.
But because there was a Corona exit ban this year, cities outbid each other in terms of pyrotechnics.
While the famous Parisian fireworks had to be canceled this year due to the corona pandemic, electro enthusiasts got their money's worth.
Two greats staged shows against the backdrop of Parisian landmarks.
Electropop pioneer Jean Michel Jarre (72) ushered in the new year in a virtual Notre-Dame.
Star DJ David Guetta (53) delighted his fans with a recorded music show in front of the Louvre.
In many countries around the world, the new year started much earlier: The South Sea islands of Samoa and Kiribati were the first in the world to slip into the new year - at 11 a.m. Central European time.
The New Year mood there was also subdued due to Corona.
An hour later, the fireworks went up in New Zealand.
In contrast to many other countries, the island nation in the South Pacific has not recorded any local corona cases for more than a month.
Therefore, music festivals and fireworks shows were held with no limits on the number of visitors or other restrictions.
This time no spectators were allowed to watch the fireworks at the Sydney Harbor and Opera House in Australia.
Dubai welcomed the New Year with colorful fireworks and a laser show on the tallest building in the world.
In Moscow, there was a large fireworks display at the Kremlin at 10 p.m. CET despite the Corona curfew.
In other countries, people have to be patient: parts of Brazil and Argentina can only greet the new year at 4:00 a.m. CET, followed by New York at 6:00 a.m., Los Angeles at 9:00 a.m. and Honolulu in Hawaii at 11:00 a.m.
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In New York, the "Ball Drop" in Times Square, where a shining crystal ball is lowered from a pole, is said to only take place in front of a few people instead of the usual thousands.
It takes until 1 p.m. CET on January 1st for the whole globe to slide into the new year.
Last up are the uninhabited islets of Baker Island and Howland Island in the Pacific.
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210101-99-865101 / 3