Something old, something new as nations ring in 2008

For one last night, the cafes of Paris were filled with cigarette smoke. Summer Olympics organizers played host to dancing and music in Beijing. And rare celebrations resounded in war-torn Baghdad.

Across the globe, people gathered for parties, shot off fireworks and held out hopes for a peaceful and prosperous 2008.

But reminders of violence were apparent as security was tightened in many nations.

Fireworks were canceled in downtown Brussels, where police last week detained 14 people suspected of plotting to help an accused Al Qaeda militant break out of jail.

In Paris, security was tight for festivities centered on the famous Champs-Elysees and the Eiffel Tower, with about 4,500 police officers and 140 rescue officials patrolling the streets.

In Thailand, an army spokesman said he believed that five bombs set off by suspected Muslim insurgents in a Thai-Malaysian border tourist town probably targeted New Year’s revelers. The bombs, which wounded 27 people, exploded in the hotel and night-life area of Sungai Kolok, spokesman Col. Akara Thiprote said.

Baghdad witnessed something Iraq had not seen since before the U.S.-led invasion in 2003 -- people publicly partying to ring in the New Year.

The ballrooms of two landmark hotels -- the Palestine and the Sheraton -- were full of people for New Year’s Eve celebrations. After years of car bombings, mortar fire and suicide attacks, Iraq’s capital was sufficiently calm to warrant the two high-end parties in the once-posh hotels.

Several European countries rang in the New Year with new habits.

Following up on a ban last year on smoking in many indoor locations in Paris, authorities are banning cigarettes in dance clubs, restaurants, hotels, casinos and cafes.

Fabienne Simon, a 27-year-old smoker, didn’t mind the ban.

“There is nothing better than to go to a nightclub, a coffee place, where there are no cigarettes,” she said. “You come out, it’s great, you aren’t smelling of cigarettes.”

Two European Union newcomers, Cyprus and Malta, started using the euro at the stroke of midnight.

The Mediterranean islands, both former British colonies, are scrapping the Cyprus pound and Maltese lira, bringing to 15 the number of countries using the common currency.

In Asia, China started 2008 with a party including fireworks, singing and dancing put on by the organizers of this year’s Summer Olympics.

Along with innovations, old traditions were maintained.

In London, people gathered in Trafalgar Square and along the banks of the River Thames to watch a fireworks display and hear Big Ben welcome the New Year with 12 resounding bongs.

In Moscow, thousands gathered in Red Square for a concert beneath the colorful onion domes of St. Basil’s Cathedral, with fireworks above.

In a quirky tradition in Spain and other Spanish-speaking countries, Madrid residents eat 12 grapes -- one for each chime at midnight.