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4 cities shut dnwn. the l'rench capital npens its dnnrs. nl'lering \ isitnrs the chance tn see the best Hl Rtttlltt. l’lc‘ttssti L'l itl Ltl I‘L‘tltlL‘L‘tl prices. l'nr sninething a little rninantic. trips up and dnwn the Seine nn a hateatt are a reasnnahle [H'IL‘L‘ Istiltte Its little Its {l3 per persnni and can include dinner. See w w w.cruisinghnlida}s.cn.ul\. l‘HI' pre-hells re\elr_\. L'ltL'L'ls nttl It liltttltllll liillc'l 'l'nw c‘l‘ til‘ the \ iltt‘ttltl street part} \ihe nl' the ('hamps l‘.l}\CL‘\. 'l‘he hig wheel. which takes up residence in the 'l‘uilleries (iardens. allnrds a great \antage pnint l'nr the cit_\scape and the lirewnrlts. l‘nr accninmndatinn in l’aris lng nn In w w w.pat‘ish_\.cnnt.
'l‘hnse hnping Inr snmething a little mnre i'aucnus can check nut the eluhhing scene in Brussels. Berlin nr Gothenburg. The latter is slnwl} hecnniing well knnwn as the cit} t‘espnttsililc lint‘ Nel‘ertiti. an increasingl} interesting and pnpular club. The music pnlic} includes li\'e ia//. lilues. rnck and ethnn. and nn llngniana} the dancing is expected In gn nn tmtil the small hnurs til the mnrning tsee www.gntehnrg.cnmi. 'l‘hnse Venturing tn Brussels shnuld sllL‘ls near the (Brand l’lace. which cnmes aliVe with the New Year festivities. market stalls and music thrnughnut the da_\'. culminating in lirewnrks as midnight apprnaches. l)nn‘t l‘nrget In Ir} a glass ni' twn nl' Kwak beer as _\'nu Inast in the New Year. Acrnss in Barcelona things are pretty laid back. with mnre nl‘ an emphasis nn a nice meal. line wines and gnnd hanter hel‘nre the traditinnal eating til I) grapes at midnight. lt' ynu're nnl_\' there fur a few da_\'s make )‘nttt‘ way In the Barri (intic. the picturesque centre nl' nld Barcelnna. which is essentially a ma/e nl‘ dark streets. crammed with cafes. bars and the cheapest accnttttttndatinn in Inwtt.
'l'hnse lnnking In venture a little l‘urther al'ield can dn sn withnut breaking the bank. With its reputatinn as nne nl‘ the New Year capitals nl‘ the wnrld. Sydney Harbour has Iwn separate t'irewnrks displays nne at 9pm and then again at midnight. ()ther eVents nn the night include the llarhnur nl‘ Light. in which a parade nt‘ ships are decnrated with n\'er ltwkm nt' high intensit} light rnpe designs. The Darling llarhnur l3estis-ities‘ entertaimnent prngram spread n\'er three stages until the early hnurs nl‘ | January. See www.n/talk.cn.uk and www.l'lightcentre.cn.uk l'nr a range nt‘ tilight prices. Flights from Sentland start t‘rnm as little at £049 return. .-\ last minute jaunt In New York is equally feasible. and Times Square is a must. Since
122 THE LIST .‘ '2? [‘«m
PARIS OPENS ITS DOORS ON NEW YEAR'S DAY, OFFERING VISITORS THE CHANCE TO SEE GREAT ART AT REDUCED PRICES
l‘)(l~l. New Yams L'\C litts lk‘L‘tt celebrated in the Square and the traditinns remain the same. l'rnni singing and dancing tn cnncerts and an expansiVe lirewnrls deinnnstratinn. (’heck nut cheap lilight and accninmndatinn nptinns at ww w.ehtinkerscnm.
Whether 'Vnu‘re alter L‘UlllL‘lllplilllUll. I'L'l‘lL‘CllUll nt' grind nld—l'ashinned dehaucher}. :\sltt has it all. l5rnm _\'nga retreats in Ko Samui (w w w .centered )‘ngacnmi In hardcnre re\elr_\ in Bangkok‘s 'l‘rade (‘entre nn 3| December. Thailand has all its bases emered. Singapnre. Japan and Vietnam prn\ide eqttall} wnndrnus e\tremes. Kyoto is nne nl~ .lapan‘s mnst pnpular stnmping grnunds t'nr thnse lnnking t‘nr snine spiritual enlightenment dttring the l'estix e hreak. l)ntted arnund the cit} are snme l.(\(l(l temples. 250 shrines. (ill gardens. 2-1 museums. twn imperial \illas and snme til the liest plintn nppnrtunities that Japan has In nt't'er. linr partying. thnugh. there's nnwhere quite like Tokyo. 'l‘hnse
IIHII\III:_' tn put a little l'un intn prnceedings aw a} t‘rnm the ltlittlllc‘ss Hl. llIL‘ L‘ll} L‘L‘Itll‘c‘ llc‘c‘tl lnnk nn t'urther than the deals tn 'l'nls_\n l)isne} land's 205 L'tttlltltltiult c‘L‘lc‘lH‘ttllttIIs t\\ \\ \\.lt)l\_\titlisttc‘_\l‘c‘stit'l.c‘tt.lpl.
()nce painl‘ull} espensi\e. tilights
. e". ‘ .. o .$. ‘ '-'I'.
tn .lapan haxe calmed dnwn in the last )ear. thnugh this is delinitel} a llngmana} nptinn tnr llltisL' with mnne\ tn hurn.
()ne'night: sn man} nppnrtunities.
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