ATHENS – Greece welcomed the new year of 2023 with fireworks and a sense of optimism in many locations, and shows put up at central squares in Athens and Thessaloniki.

Celebration of the new year was mixed with relief at the end of the old one that witnessed among others the start of the Russian war on Ukraine, deadly natural disasters attributed to climate change, and the deaths of historic figures like Queen Elizabeth, Mikhail Gorbachev, Shinzo Abe, and Pele, among others.

In Athens, the annual show of fireworks above the Acropolis and the Parliament building at Syntagma Square were preceded by a performance by internationally acclaimed singers Marios Frangoulis and George Perris. They were accompanied by a 10-member orchestra. The event was coordinated by Fotis Sergoulopoulos and Jenny Melita of national broadcaster ERT.

A few minutes before the end of 2022, Athens Mayor Kostas Bakoyannis joined them on the platform at Syntagma to count down to the new year.

The city also set up an open party at the Varvakios arcade following the fireworks, with djs encouraging the public to dance until the early morning hours of New Year’s Day.

In Thessaloniki, a six-minute show of fireworks fired from Thermaikos Bay illuminated the sky over the city’s main Aristotelous Square, following the start of a party with music. Fireworks were funded by the Thessaloniki Commercial and Industrial Chamber, while Mayor Constantine Zervos expressed his good wishes, counting down to the New Year.