Partygoers from Tuvalu to Tijuana were set to raise a glass to bid farewell to 2009 and usher in a new decade, closing the door on 10 years scarred by wars, terror attacks, natural disasters and financial turmoil.
In Sydney, the world's first major city to see in the New Year, around 1.5 million people were expected to crowd the harbour foreshore for a high-tech fireworks display on the iconic Sydney Harbour Bridge.
Paris's Eiffel Tower was to be transformed into a multicoloured light show while in Berlin, more than one million revellers were expected on the boulevard leading to the Brandenburg Gate, the symbol of German unity.
Celebrations in Britain centre on the London Eye, the giant wheel across the river Thames from the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben, as the world's most famous clock heralds the start of the New Year.
A downpour of confetti was to mark the moment at New York's traditional mass celebration in Times Square in the heart of of Manhattan.
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