Welcoming in 2024

We've had the good fortune of welcoming in many a New Year - some with quite a flourish like 2000 and some where we only stayed awake long enough to watch the ball drop in New York (2 time zones ahead of us). But this New Year's welcome was like none other. Our ship, the Serenade of the Seas, was positioned off the famous Copacabana beach in Brazil. We were told we had the number one pole position. Thank you Royal Caribbean. As you can see, we weren't alone!

Each New Year's Eve in Rio de Janeiro, more than two million people — twice as many as typically fill Times Square — dress in white and pack Copacabana Beach to watch a 15-minute fireworks extravaganza. I learned there is a significance to the color you wear on New Year's eve .. which one did you choose?

• White - New Beginning
• Red - Passion
• Green - Hope
• Yellow - Wealth
• Purple - Power and Ambition
• Orange - Optimism
• Blue - Peace

Along with millions of other Brazilians, we watched an incredible fireworks display .. accompanied by all the boats in the area blowing their horns and one with a strobe light dancing skyward. Here's a photo taken by one of our fellow world travelers.

The photo doesn't quite capture the sights and sounds, so click on this link to get a better "feel" for the celebration....
https://youtu.be/yq0L7NSxlTw?si=nkGQHxtQvEgO06Vv

Happy New Year to One and All. I'm so excited that most of 2024 will be spent seeing and learning new things from around this incredible world of ours! Hope your 2024 is the best ever!