New Year revellers around the world usher in 2017

As 2016 drew to a close, revellers in Canada celebrated a milestone birthday while bidding a weary adieu to a year filled with political surprises, prolonged conflicts and deaths of legendary celebrities.

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Here's how people are ushering in the new year in Canadaand around the world:

Canada

In Ottawa, two massive fireworks displays that lit up Parliament Hillkicked off ayear-long150thbirthday bashacross Canada.More than $210 million had been allocated for the150thanniversary projects and events.

A stage with a giant red and white "Canada 150" banner was set up, and the enthusiastic crowd of thousands was kept entertained by Canadian artists that included Radio Radio, Brett Kissel and Carly Rae Jepsen.

Gov. Gen David Johnston, elder Albert Dumont and Heritage Minister MelanieJolyrelitthe Centennial flame.

The Governor General of Canada released a message fromQueen Elizabeth on Saturday.

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"I am delighted to offer all Canadians my best wishes and congratulations on the 150th anniversary of Confederation," said the statement from the Queen."Throughout the years, particularly since your Centennial year, I have watched Canada develop into a remarkable nation. You have earned a reputation as a welcoming, respectful and compassionate country."

New Year's Eve eventswere held in 19cities across the country, including St. John's,which was the first to hit the midnight milestone.

United States

New York City's police commissioner said more than 7,000 officers securedthe city for New Year's Eve.

In Times Square, as many as a million revelers gathered to watch the crystal ball drop and ring in 2017.

Police saidthere were no specific, credible terror threats against the city. But police said they hadprepared including lining the Manhattan streets near the celebration with sanitation trucks filled with sand to prevent any attempts to drive into crowds.

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It was impossible to drive into the crowdbecause of a new security measure. Dozens of garbage trucks filled with sandblockedvehicle access to Times Square.

Revellers were checked by security officials twice, once when they enteredthe square and once when they got intoviewingpens that stretched from42ndStreet to West59thStreet. No large bags or umbrellas were allowed.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon had the honour of pushing the Waterford crystal button that began a 60-second countdown to 2017.

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Mariah Carey was the headline performer in Times Square for Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacreston ABC.

However, the singer appeared to have technical difficulties during her live performance Saturday night. She even stopped singing her song Emotions,paced the stage and told the audience to finish the lyrics for her.

She told the crowd, "I'm trying to be a good sport here."

It's estimated that 300,000 visitors descended on Las Vegas for an extravagant New Year's Eve celebration.

Nightclubs were pulling out all the stops with performances from DJ Calvin Harris, rappersT-Painand KendrickLamarand artists Drake and Bruno Mars. The city's celebrity chefscrafted elaborate prixfixemenus complete with caviar and champagne toasts.

Federal officials ranked the celebration just below the Super Bowl and on par with the festivities in Times Square. FBI and Secret Service agents worked alongside local police departments that put all hands on deck for the big night.

Turkey

New Year's celebrations turned deadly when an armed assailant opened fire at a nightclub in Istanbul, killing dozens of people.

Istanbul's governor said at least 39people were killed and 69 others were wounded.

Security measures had been heightened in major Turkish cities, with police barring traffic leading up to key squares in Istanbul and the capital, Ankara. In Istanbul, 17,000 police officers were on duty, some camouflaged as Santa Claus or street vendors.

France

Tourists and French revellers swarmed along Paris' illuminated Champs Elysees Avenue on a frosty night, admiring the laser display from the Arc de Triomphe and lines of trees sparkling with lights.

"It's so magical to be here in Paris, on what people say is the world's most beautiful avenue," said Maureen O'Reilly, a visitor from Belfast, Northern Ireland. "At times like this, I do think about all those terrible things in Aleppo and how lucky we are here in Europe despite everything."

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Some people were happy to say goodbye to 2016.

"It's been such a horrible year, with all these [celebrity]deaths, Syria, Brexit and Trump. I say: good riddance," said Karine Dublot, from Lyon.

Finland

Finland New Year's Eve festivitieskicked off celebrations for 100 years of independence from Russia.

Tens of thousands of people gathered in Helsinki for a concert and a huge fireworks display to celebrate the beginning of festivities marking its independence.

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Throughout 2017 there will be hundreds of events in the Nordic nation of 5.5 million, from films, dance parties and environment-related events to concerts and activities linked to its renowned sauna tradition.

Finland shares an 1,300-kilometre border with Russia. Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday congratulated Finland for its centenary in a phone conversation with Finnish President Sauli Niinisto.

Australia

After a year that saw the deaths of a seemingly endless parade of entertainers, Sydney honoured some of the most beloved. The city's famed fireworks display over the harbour paid homage to Prince and David Bowie, and wasset to a music medley inspired by the late singers.

"We are hoping to make it rain purple this year for the first time, not only off the barges, but also off the Sydney Harbour Bridge," fireworks directorFortunatoFortisaid ahead of the celebrations, referencing Prince's hitPurple Rain.

The seventonnesof fireworks launched from barges on the harbor also included a "Willy Wonka moment"in tribute to the late actor Gene Wilder's most famous role, fireworks co-producer Catherine Flanagan said. And there wasa nod to the Bowie classic Space Oddity,with Saturn, moon and star-shaped fireworks. Bowie lived in Sydney for about 10 years during the 1980s and '90s.

"This year, sadly, we saw the loss of many music and entertainment legends around the world,"Flanagansaid. "So celebrating their music as part of Sydney New Year's Eve fireworks displays is an opportunity to reflect on the year that has been and what the future may hold."

Around 1.5 million revellers gathered inthe harbour to join in the festivities. An extra 2,000 police wereon duty and buses wereused to block off certain pedestrian areas following the deadly truck-driving attacks in Berlin and Nice, France.

Officials urged residents to carry on celebrating as normal, despite the threats of extremist attacks across the globe and in Australia. On Friday, a man was arrested after police say he posted threats on social media related to Sydney's New Year's Eve celebrations. New South Wales police said he was acting in isolation and had no known links to extremist groups.

United Arab Emirates

In Dubai, hundreds of thousands of people watched as fireworks shot from the sides of the world's tallest building, the 828-metreBurjKhalifa. The show was also streamed live online.

Last year's excitement was marred by a fire caused by faulty wiringseveral hours before midnight at The Address Downtown, a 63-storey skyscraper nearby. The high-rise tower still remains under repair.

China

Residents in Beijing and Shanghai, China's two largest cities, passed New Year's Eve in a state of security lockdown, according to Chinese media reports citing police.

The Bund waterfront in Shanghai wouldnot have any celebrations, authorities announced this week, while the sale, use and transportation of fireworks in central Shanghai was prohibited altogether. Large buildings that often display light shows also stayed dark.

More than 30 people died two years ago in a deadly stampede on Shanghai's waterfront, where 300,000 people had gathered to watch a planned light show.

Beijing police also said countdowns, lightshows, lotteries and other organized activities wouldnot be held in popular shopping districts such as Sanlitun and Guomao.

North and South Korea

Kim Il-sung Square in the North Korean capital, Pyongyang, was the scene of afireworks display to ring in the new year.

To the south, hundreds of thousands of South Koreans ushered in the new year with a massive protest demanding the resignation of disgraced President Park Geun-hye. It wasthe 10th straight weekend of protests that led to Park's impeachment on Dec. 9 over a corruption scandal.

The evening rally overlapped with Seoul's traditional bell-tolling ceremony at the Bosinkgak pavilion at midnight.

"So many unbelievable things happened in 2016. It didn't feel real; if felt like a movie," protester Lee Huymi said about the bizarre scandal that brought Park down. "So I hope 2017 brings a movie-like ending to the mess. Everything getting solved, quickly and all at once, leaving us all happy."

India

For most people in India, New Year's Eve is a time for family. In New Delhi and many other cities, newspapers are full of big advertisements for lavish parties at upscale hotels and restaurants. The big draws at the hotel parties weresong and dance performances from Bollywood and television stars.

Police with breath analyzers checked for drunk driving, and security wastightened in malls and restaurants.

The western city of Mumbai hosted big street parties with thousands of people at the iconic Gateway of India, a colonial-era structure on the waterfront overlooking the Arabian Sea. There wasmusic, as well asdancing and the occasional fireworks.