On any other day, the long, thin park along Queen Elizabeth Walk would have been barely populated. With a lack of sheltering trees and benches, it would seem that this park was designed for sightseeing more than as a place to idle at, even though the vantage view of the mouth to the Singapore river it offers would have made it compelling enough as such a place.

But tonight the park was completely packed with a huge public turn-out; from its start at City Hall to its end at Victoria Theatre, a huge crowd has gathered along the waterfront. Footpaths and grassy patches became indistinguishable beneath the sea of bodies. Armed with digital cameras, cellphones and video cameras, they stood and faced the same direction, their gazes directed out towards the sea. The mood in the air was that of festivity and of eager anticipation.

The air was warm from a downpour hours ago, and warmer still as I weaved through the crowd with Jo in tow. Occasionally I glaced back and checked if the others behind us – Reminisce and two of his friends – were keeping in pace, since we lost two of them earlier in the short walk from City Hall.

Then it began.

A single spot of gold appeared in the pitch-dark sky and, as the crowd stirred, exploded like an incandescent grenade into a blossom of sparks with a boom and a crackle. The audience cheered on as five or six more followed in quick succession, each a different burst and a different color.

I continued weaving through the crowd with a singular goal to get to the Fullerton Hotel – where we were to rendezvous with Valerie – but with every new burst of fireworks my pace lessened. Soon I stopped in my path and stared in awe at the pyrotechnics, at the chain reaction of reds, greens, golds, blues and fuschias splattered like perfect drops of paint on a black canvas.

Jo wrapped an arm around me as we watched the fireworks display. A moment later, the rest emerged from the sea of crowd and into the momentary clearing we were in.

'Happy new year, my friends,' I said, as colors of the rainbow rimmed our faces and sparkled in our eyes.