New Year's Eve in Thailand celebrated with world's highest ball drop

BANGKOK - History was made this New Year's Eve in Bangkok as the world's highest ball drop took place on the rooftop of the Tower Club at lebua hotel. Perched 872 feet high (64 stories tall), the brightly lit, rainbow colored ball was visible across the city for over 1.8 km (1 mile). This was the inaugural year of the Bangkok Ball Drop at lebua, which is to become an annual New Year's Eve tradition for Thailand.

Measuring 2.1 meters wide (7 feet) and featuring 2,950 LED lights and 50 strobe lights, the ball completed its magnificent light show in concert with the city's fireworks display on the Chao Phraya River. A 10-second countdown to midnight commenced, and the ball made its 15 meter (49 feet) journey to the bottom of its pole. When it came to rest, a sign reading '2014' flashed to signify the start of the New Year.

"Some of our guests didn't know there would be a ball drop tonight. We were already fully booked by the time the plans were fully realized, so we decided to make it a surprise," remarked lebua Hotels & Resorts CEO, Deepak Ohri. "I think it has been a great success."

The Bangkok Ball was handcrafted in Thailand from steel, and the complete structure weighs 1.2 tons. Fifty men labored more than 40 days to construct it.

lebua's restaurants and bars have long been considered among Bangkok's most coveted locations to ring in the New Year because of their dramatic city views and lavish meals. Mezzaluna, serving exquisite European fare, is lauded as the most decadent New Year's dinner in Bangkok, while Sirocco, lebua's alfresco Mediterranean restaurant, is famous for its award-winning cuisine and for being featured in a pivotal scene of The Hangover II. Breeze, with its unique neon light bridge, has a stellar reputation for serving authentic Asian cuisine in a beautiful outdoor setting.

Sourced: TravelDailyNews