2011 - New Year around the World [Photos]

Fireworks light up the London skyline and Big Ben just after midnight on January 1, 2011 in London, England. Thousands of people lined the banks of the River Thames in central London to see in the New Year with a spectacular fireworks display.

People make their way out of the waterfront after observing the fireworks display to welcome the New Year in Singapore on January 1, 2011. Singapore's economy expanded at a record 14.7 percent in 2010, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said December 31, as the city-state recovered sharply from last year's recession.

Sri Lankan Buddhist devotees offer prayers at The Kelaniya Temple in Kelaniya on January 1, 2011. The tropical island economy has grown at a blistering pace since government troops in May 2009 ended a 37-year ethnic conflict with Tamil Tiger rebels that the United Nations estimates left over 100,000 people dead.

In this time exposure photograph residents use sparklers to welcome 2011 during the New Year's festivities in Manila on January 1, 2011. The Philippine capital burst with various colorful fireworks and merry making as Filipinos usher in the New Year.

Russians celebrate the New Year on Red Square in Moscow, with the Kremlin in the background, right, and St. Basil's cathedral in background left, Russia, Saturday, Jan. 1, 2011. Tens of thousands of people gathered on the Square to celebrate the new year, and view the fireworks as the clock on the Kremlin's Spassky Tower, right, struck midnight.

Overview of the city of Tokyo from the open-air Sky Deck of Roppongi Hills on January 1, 2011. At 238 meters above ground level, and 270 meters above sea level, it will be the highest open-air facility in Japan.

Picture shows the sunrise on New Year's Day over Tokyo Bay on January 1, 2011.