Beneath the city's skyline, it was time to light the blue touch paper.The Torchlit Procession traditionally kicks off Edinburgh's Hogmanay Festival. This year, more than ten thousand people were happy to oblige, snaking their way through the streets and up the city's Calton Hill.

(It) wasn't enough. You'll get to walk through the streets of Edinburgh, bonding torches and prevent burning things dying. It's always....

Let me say, fun because every(one) comes together. It's a group.

I have never been here before. Sure there're some novelties and real spinnings for us to join then.

It's the twelfth year of Edinburgh's set peace Hogmanay party which stretches over several days. Now it combines with that Christmas festival and both flew under crowds. This year around half a million people will witness the sights and songs of this city at play.

It's just the most beautiful setting in the world. It is a beautiful city that lends itself to, you know, open their stuff even in the middle of winter, but we light it with fire and music and dance and the atmosphere of this place changes incredibly over these few days.

This year's Edinburgh Hogmanay has a Catalonia feat, so Catalan acts and theme performances will combine with Scottish traditional entertainment. The highlights being at the midnight are tomorrow of course,where a hundred thousand people will gather in Princes Street to bring in the new year.

This of course is the warm-up for the main event. It seems to please everybody here and aslo makes good business sense. Edinburgh's Hogmanay Festival is worth more than 14 million pounds to the local economy.

It can hardly get bigger. The challenge this year like every year is in trying to make it better.
James Matthews,Sky News ,Edinburgh

本期難點

1.light the blue touch paper: Touch paper is the correct name of the impregnated material used in fireworks fuses. The original phrase (the instructions on fireworks) reads "Light the blue touch paper and stand well back."
As an idiom it means to initiate some sort of process or actions.

2. oblige: provide a service or favor for someone, as in: The players are generally happy to oblige with autographs.