The Pacific nation Samoa was the first full country to greet 2019, with New Zealand following not too long after. Above, fireworks explode from the Sky Tower in Auckland. Fiji and Tuvalu also said goodbye to 2018 at the same time.

An afternoon thunderstorm on December 31 did not stop many from camping out in Sydney to catch the Australian city's largest-ever fireworks display. Fortunately, the clouds had lifted by the time midnight rolled around. Some 1.5 million viewers caught the massive 12-minute-long pyrotechnic display above the city's iconic harbor. Other Australian cities' fireworks also drew large crowds.

In Seoul, South Korea, some people gathered at the Jogyesa Buddhist temple to light candles as 2019, the new year of the Gregorian calendar, rolled in. As in many other East Asian countries, South Korea will celebrate the Lunar New Year some weeks later. Lasting three days, it is one of the most important holidays of the year. Still, many Koreans now also celebrate the Gregorian new year.

Japan welcomed 2019 the same time as Korea. Many revelers flocked to Shibuya Crossing in the heart of Tokyo. Rumored to be the busiest crossing in the world, it would have been hard to get through it on December 31 as it was packed with people waiting to ring in the New Year. However, others may have stayed home to watch a New Year's boxing match on TV!

Security officials were on hand at celebrations around the world, including in Paris. France's Interior Ministry remains wary of terrorism following a deadly December attack on the Strasbourg Christmas market. In addition, "yellow vest" protesters (above), who recently have expressed discontent — at times violently — against President Macron, called for peaceful "festive" demonstrations.

While Hindu worshipers in India follow various calendars and have new year's celebrations at other points of the year, many also mark the entry of January 1st. Singing, dancing and parties are common, while the artfully painted hair of the above woman in Ahmedabad is something that you see less often!

Moscow was in the last timezone in Russia's huge landmass to celebrate the new year. Muscovites enjoyed concerts and light shows and more than 1,000 ice rinks. There was also the traditional ringing of the bells in the Kremlin's Spasskaya Tower.

Tens of thousands of people in Berlin welcomed 2019 with a huge party at Brandenburg Gate. It was the largest New Year's Eve party in the country. As the clock struck over, revellers enjoyed a laser and fireworks display, followed by a series of musical performances including Eagle Eye Cherry and Bonnie Tyler.

More than a hundred thousand people watched Europe's biggest fireworks display on the banks of the Thames. Mayor Sadiq Khan dedicated the display to the EU citizens who live in the city. "By paying tribute to our close relationship with Europe as we welcome in the New Year tonight, we will once again show the world that London will always be open," Khan said.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel told Germans that global cooperation will be essential to tackle challenges such as climate change, immigration and the fight against terrorism in 2019. "For our own interests, we want to solve all these questions, and we can do that best when we also take into consideration the interests of others," Merkel said.

French President Emmanuel Macron was upbeat and resolute in his end of year address. "I believe in us," he said. Macron addressed the discontent expressed in the recent yellow vest protests, but encouraged the French to remember the country's prosperity. "Let's stop running ourselves down and making believe that France is a country where solidarity doesn't exist," Macron said.

UK Prime Minister Theresa May's New Year's speech highlighted Britain's upcoming exit from the European Union. She urged British lawmakers to approve her Brexit plan so that "Britain can turn a corner." May urged citizens on both sides of the Brexit debate to put their differences aside and unite going forward. "Together I believe we can start a new chapter with optimism and hope," she said.

Russia celebrated the arrival of 2019 across 11 time zones and at each one President Vladimir Putin's New Year's address was broadcast. Putin urged citizens to work together. "We can achieve positive results only through our own efforts and well-coordinated team work," he said. Putin stressed that improving quality of life in Russia will remain a top priority in 2019.

Though New Year's Eve is not widely celebrated in mainland China — the country observes the lunar New Year in February — President Xi Jinping still marked the occasion by addressing the nation. He outlined what China had accomplished in 2018. "We have put forward China's proposals and sent out China's voice," Xi said of the many multinational meetings that China hosted this past year.

US President Donald Trump marked the end of 2018 at the White House, where he addressed multiple subjects on Twitter. He celebrated his decision to withdraw troops from Syria and defended his planned border wall that led to a government shutdown a week before the New Year. In a short clip, Trump wished Americans a "really, really, Happy New Year" and said 2019 would be a "great year."

Shortly before New Year's Eve, people you meet will typically wish you a "Guten Rutsch," which literally translates as "have a good slide." The expression could come from the Yiddish word "rosch." Rosh Hashanah, the name of the Jewish New Year, is, however, set in the fall on a different date every year. Other linguists relate the expression to the archaic German meaning of "Rutsch" - a journey.

If a German gives you a little gift like this one New Year's Eve you're allowed to find it ugly, but you should at least know the intention is to bring you good luck for the new year. Lucky charms in Germany include such "Glückspilze" (lucky mushrooms), ladybugs, four-leaf clovers and little pigs.

Germans might believe that "Bowle" is an English word, but it's not at all - though it's probably derived from the word "bowl" - as you need a huge one to serve it. "Bowle" is a German term for punch. For many Germans, this is a must-have party drink on New Year's Eve. Typically combining fruits, alcohol and juice, there are countless recipes, including delicious alcohol-free variations.

Although you might end up at a party with a buffet of finger food, many people choose dishes that can be eaten over several hours as their last meal of the year, such as fondue, in which pieces of meat are cooked in hot oil. Also popular is raclette (pictured), where cheese is melted on a table-top grill, accompanied by meats, pickles and potatoes. The long meal shortens the wait until midnight.

For this New Year's Eve custom, people heat a little piece of lead or tin melt in a spoon held over a small flame, and then drop it quickly into cold water. The strange shapes it then takes on are supposed to reveal what the year will bring. This fortune-telling method is called "Bleigiessen" (lead pouring), but alternatives to lead as a raw material are now being used after it was banned.

In 1963, a British sketch, "Dinner for One," was broadcast for the first time on German TV - and has been aired on December 31 for many years, becoming the most frequently repeated TV program ever. It's in English, but the humor is easy to get. An aristocrat woman celebrates her 90th birthday; her butler, covering for her absent guests, gets drunk, repeating "the same procedure as every year."

Angela Merkel has held many already: The chancellor's New Year's speech to the nation has been broadcast on December 31 since 1969. The speech can sound very similar from year to year - sometimes more literally than others. In 1986, Chancellor Helmut Kohl's address from 1985 was re-aired instead of the new one, allegedly "by mistake."

After counting down the last seconds of the year, you can kiss the people you love, wish everyone the best for the upcoming year and contact your family and friends who aren't with you. "Frohes neues Jahr" is German for Happy New Year. Some people might light sparklers like this woman, but many Germans have more ambitious fireworks ready to be lit at midnight...

At the stroke of midnight, it might be difficult to sincerely wish people around you a Happy New Year, as loud fireworks start exploding everywhere. In Germany, consumer fireworks can be legally sold over the last three days of the year to be lit for the big night. Some people stock up to put on a bombastic show for the neighbors. Traditionally, loud noises were believed to drive out evil spirits.

Clinking glasses might not be as loud as fireworks; filled with champagne or "Sekt" (German sparkling wine), they can definitely help people get in good spirits. The midnight toast is an international tradition, but the Germans have a specific expression to say cheers that night: "Prosit Neujahr." The word "Prosit" comes from Latin and means "may it succeed."