So we (KA, Jolyne and I) did indeed troop down to Chinatown yesterday. Boy, was it a grave mistake. We reached there well before the event began, expecting a big crowd, but never did it cross our minds that it would be such a H-U-G-E turn-out. When we saw the news later, they said there were two hundred thousand people there, but it really felt like a million. People crushing people, pushing and elbowing their way through the thick mass to grab the best spot. Then there were those who swamped to the road despite it wasn't closed to traffic, so some poor drivers were stuck permanently in human-jam. And you expect hightened security in such a major event? Nah, at least to me. We only saw altogether of one single policeman standing high almightly on the platform looking coolly at us crowd. We were squashed amidst the hordes, right under the bridge where the fire-crackers were supposed to be ignited. It was then that I started to get apprehensive. What if the firecrackers spatter at the crowds and cause injuries ? If people do get hurt, would it cause panic in the crowd? And if people do fall, there might be a domino effect, and stampede might result! My wild imagination got the better of me. After discussing, we decided that our own dear lives matter more and we left the scene, just minutes before 7pm. We tried other less crowded spots, like Yue Hua shopping mall and People's Park Complex but also in vain. As we were finally leaving the place, the event started. Even though we didn't manage to catch a glimpse of the lighting up, we heard the spluttering-but-not-exactly-thunderous outburst of the firecrackers... at long last.